Blizzard launches Facebook Armory app
by Eliah Hecht 
Feb 1st 2010 at 9:00PM
You can see the results in the gallery below. Here are my brief impressions:
- It's a bit scary that it asks you to log in with your Battle.net account, but if you look at the URL of the popup window it is in fact from us.battle.net, one of the legitimate domains. Still, I'm not sure it's good training for users for Blizzard to ask us to log in within random popups.
- The login form does not ask for your authenticator.
- It doesn't tell you this in the brief description, but you choose up to five characters for the app to report to your followers. It doesn't just indiscriminately report the progress of your latest bank alt.
- By default, it publishes updates on your characters to your Facebook feed, but that box is easily unchecked (fortunately).
- It also by default posts to your feed that you've installed the app, which is something I can't forgive a Facebook (or Twitter) developer for. If I really want to tell all my friends I'm using your app, I'll tell them. Don't do it for me. At least this too is an option that can be unchecked.
Overall, assuming they manage to make it work, if you want your Facebook friends to know about your WoW characters, this is the app for you. If not, why are you still reading this post? Anyway, I'm glad to see Blizzard following through on some of the promise the Armory has always showed, even if I don't approve of all their methods. Innovation is always welcome.
Filed under: Blizzard
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Ace Feb 1st 2010 9:08PM
Letting all my friends know I play WoW?
No thanks...
prinbball Feb 1st 2010 9:21PM
Exactly what I thought too. My good friends know, but do I really wanna let all 550+ friends know that I am an avid World of Warcraft player?
Ringo Flinthammer Feb 1st 2010 9:38PM
Get a little bit older and you'll decide:
1) You don't need 500 "friends"
2) There's no shame in playing -- the fantasy football guys are just as geeky
Mr. Tastix Feb 1st 2010 9:55PM
There's nothing wrong with playing World of Warcraft, or any other video game for that matter. As an avid video game enthusiast I have no shame in admitting and showing off my love for gaming.
If one of my "friends" judges me on what I like then they aren't true friends.
Snuzzle Feb 1st 2010 10:18PM
Obviously it's not something you'd necessarily want if you use Facebook for professional or networking reasons (yes, it does happen). But for my personal FB? Yes please. The best WoW one broke a long time ago when it stopped letting you reorder your characters.
I do wish the limit was higher than five characters, but let's be realistic, how many people have more than five characters they actively play? I'd guess the number is not very high. Most people have two 80s, but three seems to be the average.
Reps Feb 2nd 2010 12:13AM
If you're a college/highschool student, you likely have 300+ friends because you add most of the people you KNOW. Not just the ones you hang out with. I have 10 or 15 people that I hang out with on a regular basis, and the majority of them know that I play WoW. But I really don't need the other 280 people I know aware of this fact.
This is sort of like being part of the stereotypical "chess club" at school. There really isn't anything wrong with playing chess, or even board games in general for that matter. But in the same way that the chess team is often considered "nerdy" or "geeky", playing World of Warcraft doesn't exactly reflect high social standing among peers.
Kylenne Feb 2nd 2010 12:16AM
@ Reps: See Ringo's comment.
Gorgondor Feb 2nd 2010 12:35AM
Who the hell knows 550+ people on facebook? Stop adding friends of friends.
Also, nothing wrong with playing WoW, honestly, I like the idea of posting all this to my FB feed, not really sure why, but I just do, it's not like this is personal information either, i don't give a toss if someone see's that my main, Gorgondor Level 80 Shaman just cleared ICC10 for the first time, weather they know what that means or not.
Almoderate Feb 2nd 2010 12:47AM
Oddly enough, I mentioned in passing on my FB page that I was playing WoW only to get more than a few old high school and college friends respond that they played, too. Then we all started linking armory pages and talking about what we were doing in game. It eventually led to all of us playing together and reconnecting in that way.
So no... I don't mind so much that they know I play. :)
kooda Feb 2nd 2010 2:44AM
I agree with the top guy i wouldnt want all my facebook friends to know its just more awkward conversations of "What is it?" and "Why the heck do you pay for a game?,bit nerdy isnt it?" but anyhow gj blizzard for getting this out there
Jeremy S. Feb 2nd 2010 3:11AM
For other reasons, I won't use this, but for the reasons everyone is giving, I see no problem with it.
There's no way you can have 550 friends. Why are people allowing strangers into their lives, then turning around and saying Blizzard is invading your privacy?
It's a very fishy situation, but just like the feed fiasco, is easily explained by showing that the majority of the power and choices are still in the players hands.
I think it's a player responsibility thing. That's just my opinion though.
Negatron Feb 2nd 2010 9:30AM
Lol its 2010, all old "embarrassed" fogies go that way------->
Kids, trying to hard be look cool can follow them.
Reps Feb 2nd 2010 10:11AM
I have 200 friends on facebook, and I know every single one of them. And I'm not the kind of person who meets a lot of people. I don't add friends of friends. I don't add people I don't know. I don't add people I wouldn't talk to. I don't add anybody I don't see regularly (aside from friends who have moved). I can honestly say I know everybody on my friends list. I'm sure many people know more people than me.
You have to remember that when you go to a school with thousands or even tens of thousands of people, you get to know quite a few of them.
slythwolf Feb 2nd 2010 12:27PM
I don't have any friends that don't already know I play WoW and am a huge nerd. I call those "distant acquaintances".
zainwolf Feb 1st 2010 9:13PM
But we MUST spam our 1000 friends with every irrelevant detail of our clicking. At least Blizzard > Zynga by a factor of 10000 or more ;-) When I log into WoW it doesn't ask me to invite all of my friends list to play too.
We put a lot of hard work (play) into our toons so it's fun to show them off. Who doesn't have their guildmates and WoW friends in their facebook? I know some prefer to keep a separation between so-called real life and WoW but others are not persnickety that way.
Yes, I used the word persnickety! Deal with it.
ToyChristopher Feb 1st 2010 11:09PM
It doesn't ask you yet!
danawhitaker Feb 1st 2010 9:24PM
This would be nice payback to all the people on my friend's list who spam me with Farmville and Mafia Wars updates. Unfortunately, I lost my interest at the 5 character limit. I have 7 characters I'm actively working on (1 80 and 6 35s) and I really can't choose two to leave out.
mtsadowski Feb 1st 2010 10:57PM
Yes, yes, a thousand times yes! I hate that stupid farmville
Ed Feb 2nd 2010 4:45AM
I wasn't going to get the app until I saw this post.
Now it's fully set up to spam my friends every time I so much as pick up a green.
Roy Feb 2nd 2010 10:57AM
Yes, this is also my response to all those wonderful Farmville updates. Help me raise my barn! Become a fan of "Barn raising bug, 5 horses, 2 cows and a pig for free".
Ugh. That is NOT what I am on facebook for.
But heh, now turnabout is fair play... and maybe I will get someone on refer-a-friend lol.