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All of the latest Mists of Pandaria newsWoW Moviewatch: The Worgen
by Michael Gray 
Jan 4th 2010 at 12:00PM
Most machinima videos tend to clock in around 2 or 3 minutes, with even the story-driven movies reaching maybe 5 minutes on average. It takes a lot of work to film and render even a single minute of footage, which usually makes the shorter movies more manageable and effective. So, it was with a certain amount of curiosity that I fired up The Worgen for the first time.
The Worgen was created by Alexander Egeskog with the help of about a half-dozen people. The ultimate question for a movie like this is "Does the script and acting justify the longer film?" In my mind, I think it absolutely does. While some of the pacing could probably have been a little faster, I think the framework of the story sets up compelling reasons for a longer, more detailed approach to the film. Since the narrative is relayed from a father to a son, a certain amount of meandering and epic pacing is appropriate.
Ultimately, The Worgen was an engaging film to watch. I'm curious see what you thought of the movie, also, so please be sure to drop some comments if you have any feedback.
Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an e-mail at machinima AT wow DOT com.Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, WoW Moviewatch
Reader Comments (Page 2 of 2)
Noah Jan 4th 2010 6:11PM
For me, the passion and creativity don't even factor into my enjoyment of the movie, since I thought it was extremely well shot and it contained excellent effects, especially compared to other machinima videos, which often represent poor craftsmanship. I would easily put it in my top 10, or top 5, for simply visual mastery, even if the actual creative story was nothing special.
I think I may even appreciate this more than Blind, even though Blind was an overall better video, simply because this movie looked as if the creator used the actual in-game engine to create it (although I can't be sure), whereas Blind was done by importing the models into a 3D program and creating animations and camera movements from scratch. This gave Percula much more freedom when he made Blind, even if it did multiply his workload by 10. So I appreciate this video because it is a successful and beautiful result of what can be done simply with the game engine and the limitations it puts on productions.
lillytoo Jan 4th 2010 4:31PM
the video was very well done. it did not appear slow throughout and told the story just fine. even if not a wow player the story is still easy to understand.
Kevin Jan 4th 2010 4:34PM
I really liked it. I think it was nicely done. Much props to the makers. Excellent work. Can't wait to roll out my Worgen this year! :)
Alexander Egeskog Jan 4th 2010 5:33PM
Hey Skyfire, what could've been done to improve it? Yes, I'm interested in everyones thoughts since this was a side project while waiting for our script writer to finish of the big movie :)
Nah seriously, don't say it's a waste of time since it wasn't Blind-quality. If you're seeking professional 3D animation, then WoW-moviewatch isn't the place.
Anyway, would love some more feedback, or what you think could've been improved :)
tom Jan 4th 2010 6:45PM
Wow. Just wow. One of the best wow movies i have ssen, im looking for ward to maybe using the sythe. Maybe we can use the sythe to summon worgen? exellent video. just makes me more frustrated that worgen are gonna be an ally race...
uncaringbear Jan 4th 2010 5:42PM
This was really well done. I only wish the voice acting was was better than what it was. It would've helped this film immensely.
Alexander Egeskog Jan 4th 2010 5:44PM
Yeah, the voice actors will actually buy professional equipment for the next project
Wildthings Jan 4th 2010 5:46PM
Anyone else watch those mages melee and think they were all screaming, "OOM.... OMG Did the tank leave Queue again?"
Great Video, One of the better I've seen them post here for a while. I loved story, made me once again excited to play such a great game with amazing emersion.
Only thing I would say, and it has been said. The voices in the beginning could have been a tad different. Too similar, and it took a bit away from the tale, trying to figure who said what when.
alexander.90 Jan 4th 2010 5:50PM
Yup, we'll keep that in mind ;)
Eddy Jan 4th 2010 5:57PM
I thought it was a little slow- but in a good way. I didn't find it took 100% of my focus, but I could listen to a rather pleasing story and watch some rather beautiful visuals to go along with.
Vanya Jan 4th 2010 6:48PM
Very epic-y, nice retelling and beautifully shot, it has the same feeling of blizz patch videos, though a longer run. The only thing that threw mw out a little was the second guy's voice acting and that the Dalaran wizard didn't use any spells to fight the scourge, it would have been a bitch to anymate i guess.
Nice! 5/5
Andrige Jan 4th 2010 7:02PM
That's darn good, had ye old shivers for quite a while during the latter part of the video.
Would have been nice to see an original story though, since there's a lot of neat storytelling done in the video I can imagine it would be better once it surprises people (the story of the Worgen have been widely discussed) for that bigger impact.
Also have to give credit for the soundtrack you chose, it enhances it very nicely.
And for feedback I personally am not too fond of the fighting scenes, they were pretty stale and the mages ended up hitting the scourge with their hands. A few spells casts in the city of mages perhaps? So it could be a bit more frantic, a bit more believable perhaps if more blows were slaying hits (Abomination cleaving down several mages from behind) rather than just going at it at one another during the scene.
Anyway, very nice production, if you have anything else going on please tell. I thrive seeing this kind of stuff.
P.S Add links on the YouTube video itself so it leads to your project/blog for more hype on your next project.
//Andrige
Dreyja Jan 4th 2010 7:47PM
Wonderful! This is just the kind of thing we need going into Cataclysm. It tells the Worgen story so well. :)
Beautifully done!
toxicityj Jan 4th 2010 10:14PM
This was a really good little movie that explained a lot of Lore that I've completely missed (judging by other comments, it's due to me being Alliance only). The voice acting at the beginning and end were kind of bad, but that doesn't take away from the greatness of the story telling that makes up the bulk of the video.
toxicityj Jan 4th 2010 10:15PM
This was a really good little movie that explained a lot of Lore that I've completely missed (judging by other comments, it's due to me being Alliance only). The voice acting at the beginning and end were kind of bad, but that doesn't take away from the greatness of the story telling that makes up the bulk of the video.
Cadychan Jan 5th 2010 2:38AM
What an amazing video! Being an animator myself, I can really appreciate how much work goes into making a film of any length. The story and musical score were fantastic; I honestly have no complaints. Great job!
Neofox Jan 5th 2010 7:06AM
Wow, amazing video! It brought me all the way back to when I started as a human paladin three years ago, when I was questing through Duskwood, doing the Scythe of Elune quest chain. Despite the fact that I've been Horde now for about two years, Duskwood is still my favorite zone simply because of the long, mysterious quest lines. Pyrewood Village and the whole of Silverpine have always been interesting to me as well (can't wait to see that old gate to Gilneas finally open!).
I may be going a bit off topic here, but it still seems to me that, lore-wise, the Alliance would be none too fond of accepting the worgen into their faction. It's not Horde-fan nerd rage, but I really just can't see the rest of the Alliance, aside from the night elves, accepting them. After all, they through out the vast majority of highborne when they started feeling the effects of their magic addiction. Heck, they wouldn't even accept the humans who fell victim to the plague of undeath.
Ok, I'm done with that. It was an amazingly well done video.
Charles Jan 5th 2010 1:13PM
Okay, as much of an avid reader of the site that I am, it takes quite a lot, usually, to get me to post something.
This was...quite a lot.
Lore isn't present enough in machinma these days. A lot of people like to make up their own stories or take it upon themselves to retcon all over the place, but it's wonderful to see that you might understand that the story Blizzard's conjured up is good enough, and to see it played out in such a wonderful production was highly enjoyable. The Worgen's origin story has *always* been one of my absolute favorites, and to see it in such a medium is great! Arugal's such a tragic character, Velinde's probably my favorite Night Elf ever, and more than anything, this just excites me for Cataclysm even more, and I wasn't sure that was even possible.
If I have one complaint, it's how abruptly you wrapped things up. I was expecting the narrator to reveal why he knew so much about Pyrewood, or...something other than "Yup, one of my favorites!" I liked the end, don't get me wrong, but it just wasn't what I expected.
Still, this was probably the best Machinma I've seen in years, and I can't wait for your next project. If it's anything like this one, I'll become a very dedicated fan.