Posts with tag easter-egg

Breakfast Topic: They just don't get it...

by Gregg Reece Oct 19th 2009 at 8:00AM

Geekdom is much like any other group of people. There are movies, music, and literature which are considered classics and are generally accepted as having been seen, heard, or read by everyone at one point or another. Some of these are so accepted as classics that the idea someone is unfamiliar with them is simply "inconceivable" and we are left shocked when this occurs. Unfortunately, one of our own staff seems uninitiated in such classics.

While discussing some of the quests coming up in patch 3.3, we'd made a joke referencing the Knights who say "Ni!" from Monty Python's Holy Grail. Our own Matt Low mentioned that he didn't get whatever inside joke we were making. Much to our dismay, he had never seen the movie or any Monty Python for that matter. Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords for daily quests wouldn't get a chuckle from him. Terry Palin in Elwynn Forest quoting the lumberjack song is also lost on him. He wouldn't even be that concerned about eating the Crunchy Frog available from Darkmoon Faire because he wouldn't know that it contained crunchy, raw, unboned, real, dead frog instead of an almond whirl.

With the vast number of pop culture references scattered in World of Warcraft, it's sad when any are lost on its players. What obscure references have you found in the game that you've enjoyed or other people have completely missed?

Filed under: Breakfast Topics, Humor

Twinked-out NPCs in patch 3.2 thrill twinks

by Mike Schramm Jun 25th 2009 at 4:00PM

As expected, the twink enthusiasts over at TwinkInfo are supremely excited about that experience switch coming in patch 3.2 -- not only are they finally getting to stop XP gains on demand, but Blizzard has given them their own little easter egg in the game. We already knew the two NPCs with the switch for each faction were called Behsten in Stormwin and Slahtz in Orgrimmar (get it? "Best in slots?"), but now that the PTR is open, they've discovered something else: the NPCs themselves are twinked out with classic Rogue twink gear. From the Blackened Defias Chest to the Feet of the Lynx (and dual Assassin's Blades with Lifestealing), Blizzard went all out on these guys. As Drayner says, the only thing missing is a 'chanted Fishing Hat.

Not everybody is big on twinking -- lots of people think it's annoying to duck into the BGs for the first time and get rolled by an alt who's got a lot of money and time behind them. Fortunately, though, this XP change will not only legitimize twinking even more, but it'll get it out of our way as well, as players with XP turned off will only face other players with XP turned off (other twinks, essentially). Throw in that it's something twinks have been asking for a long time, and it's a win-win for everybody.

Patch 3.2 will bring about a new 5, 10, and 25 man instance to WoW, and usher in a new 40-man battleground called the Isle of Conquest. WoW.com will have you covered every step of the way, from extensive PTR coverage through the official live release. Check out WoW.com's Guide to Patch 3.2 for all the latest!

Filed under: Horde, Alliance, Analysis / Opinion, Fan stuff, Odds and ends, Blizzard, Humor, NPCs

[1.Local]: Questions, answers from our readers

by Lisa Poisso May 17th 2009 at 3:00PM

Reader comments – ahh, yes, the juicy goodness following a meaty post. [1.Local] ducks past the swinging doors to see what readers have been chatting about in the back room over the past week.

The comments section is usually a cacophony of voices seeking to agree or disagree with the main post, discredit previous commentors or make some pointless point ("first" -- /facepalm). This week, readers pulled together in a more truly interactive relationship, offering up questions, tips, insights and well thought-out suggestions and ideas. Take a trip through the pickings this week on ways to make professions more interesting, more Star Trek Easter eggs, getting real about DPS, copyright issues, snappier headlines ... and even a post devoted exclusively to guild and player recruitment notices.

Filed under: Rogue, Analysis / Opinion, Tips, Tricks, How-tos, Guilds, Blizzard, Features, Raiding, Bosses, [1.Local]

WoW reference found in Wolverine game

by Eliah Hecht May 2nd 2009 at 4:00PM

X-Men Origins: Wolverine came out in theaters yesterday, to fairly dismal reviews, and like any good summer movie, it has a tie-in video game. Why are we talking about it here? Because the game contains a hidden nod to our own favorite digital pastime, WoW. I'll put specifics (and a screenshot) behind the cut, in case you don't want to be spoiled for the Wolverine game.

Filed under: Odds and ends, Humor

"More DoTs" cameo in F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin

by Mike Schramm Apr 16th 2009 at 9:00AM

ihatemostthings' friend found something fun in the new(ish) game F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin. Apparently, wandering around in the game, you can come across a little terminal that has some familiar code to anyone who's ever raided with a more-than-enthusiastic raid leader (NSFW). You can click the picture above to see a closeup view of what the screen says.

Pretty cute. Blizzard has seen fit to make nods to other games in Azeroth, so it's fun to see other game companies return the favor.

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Fan stuff, Odds and ends, Blizzard, Humor, Fan art

Ricole Nichie lurks in the World's End Tavern

by Michael Gray Aug 1st 2008 at 3:00PM

Keen-eyed and oddly-geared Dwarf Priest noticed somone a little odd hanging out at the World's End Tavern in Shattrath. Lounging about, sizing up the likes of bag-meister Haris Pilton, the Eye of Divinity let Dwarf Priest see a spectre lurking, lurking at the Tavern's floor. Not a Raven, ever more, but Ricole Nichie.

Ms. Nichie has been lurking there for a little while, but you can (apparantly) only see her if you happen to have the Eye of Divinity equipped. And since that comes from the Cache of the Firelord from old Molten Core -- it's not like you're going to see a lot of those flooding the game any time soon.

This kind of thing just goes to show how rich World of Warcraft can be, riddled with many easter eggs and sideswipe pop culture references. This one's pretty obscure, even if it's been around for a while -- you have to be wearing a Priest-only item that's not really that useful in current content. Still, it'll keep inspiring the intrepid among us to peer a little closer at the World of Warcraft around us.

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Humor, NPCs

Forum post of the day: Favored Son

by Amanda Dean May 21st 2008 at 5:00PM

Telasero of Ravenholdt made an interesting discovery. He claims that he has found proof that Blizzard favors the Horde. He found a some kind of prehistoric bone art hanging from the wall that he believes matches up to the a Cuneiform Symbol for "Favored Son." I am no expert on ancient writing, so I have a hard time verifying the actual symbol, but the pictures are strikingly similar. It could be a coincidence, but I'd like to believe it's an Easter Egg.

Is this undeniable proof that Blizzard is playing favorites with the two factions? I don't think so. Breavis of Nazgrel pointed out that Thrall is known as the chosen son, so the symbol could represent him rather than the entirety of the Horde. The battle will likely rage on about which side Blizzard prefers. Drysc has pointed out in the forums that your opinion on which side is favored is usually based on whichever side you do not play.

Do you believe this to be a coincidence or not?

Filed under: Fan stuff, Blizzard, Add-Ons, Lore, Factions, Forums

Cool Guys and Girls needed to play Warlocks

by Mike Schramm Mar 11th 2008 at 10:40AM

Axel on LJ points us to an easter egg on the Official WoW page that I can't help think must be fairly old, but I've never seen it before, so here you go: highlighting text under the Warlock and Warrior listings on the class page reveals some funny flavor text.

The US page seems to have been changed from the original above (as of this writing, under Warlocks it says "hey you found some hidden text, there must be some giant conspiracy here"), but the European page shows the original "cool guy/girl" as a recommended player for Warlocks. At least one commenter on the LJ page says this has been around since day one on the main page, and I wouldn't be surprised -- Blizzard is familiar with leaving secrets on the official page for players.

Filed under: Odds and ends, Blizzard, Humor, Classes

A strange little house in Ashenvale

by Daniel Whitcomb Feb 5th 2008 at 7:15PM

Some older players might remember when all those empty huts and farms in The Barrens received a new infusion of life, with orc families inhabiting them and acting out stories both humorous (That poor kid being chased by a swarm of bees) and heartfelt (That poor kid waiting for his dad to come home from Warsong Gulch). A forum post by player Lalluna of the Darkspear server pointed out that, quite a few patches later, that liveliness may be spreading to other zones in Kalimdor!

Ever since patch 2.3, over in the far west of Ashenvale, just northwest of the Shrine of Aesinna, you'll find a rather lovely looking Night Elf abode, complete with a garden. Inhabiting it is the night elven Edune family: Benjari, Becanna, Elenna, and Aleanna. They seem to have visitors in the form of two humans, William and Sulan Dunadaire, a brother and sister. It's not just a silent tableau either, there's definitely stuff going on, as I'll show you after the break.

Filed under: Human, Night Elves, Druid, Hunter, Warlock, Humor, RP, NPCs

Around Azeroth: Help!

by Elizabeth Harper Nov 23rd 2007 at 10:00AM

Reader Zorkolak of Spinebreaker sends in this shot showing one of the odd little Easter eggs you can find in Azeroth. The highest mountain in Stonetalon Mountains has this little message scrawled across its peak, which Zorkolak found using his farsight ability.

Encountered any fun Easter eggs of your own? Tell us about it by e-mailing a copy to aroundazeroth@wow.com with some notes on where the shot came from -- your image may be featured in the next Around Azeroth!

Gallery: Around Azeroth - Old

Filed under: Screenshots, Around Azeroth

Hidden Panda on SSC floor

by Mike Schramm Oct 11th 2007 at 2:26PM

Astela on Maelstrom sent us this shot of the floor in Morogrim Tidewalker's room in Serpentshrine Cavern. It took me a second to see it, but right there in the designs on the floor, you can see a Panda, calling card of one Samwise Didier, one of Blizzard's lead developers (and lead singer of L70ETC).

He's also the creators of the fan favorite Azerothian race we haven't seen in Azeroth yet, the Pandaren (I'm a little disappointed that they didn't show up during Brewfest, actually). Obviously, this is just a hidden Easter Egg done by one of the artists, right? Clearly, this isn't proof that the Pandaren helped build the Coilfang Reservoir or anything like that. Right?

Thanks, Astela!

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Odds and ends, Humor, Screenshots, Raiding

A face in Searing Gorge

by Mike Schramm Oct 4th 2007 at 4:40PM

Folks are saying this has been around since release, but I've never seen this before, either-- Serevarno found a face in the landscape of Searing Gorge. You can really only see it on the minimap, and while it is pretty messy, it's too clean to have happened by chance. The image almost looks like that "Andre the Giant has a posse" picture, doesn't it?

Bornakk jokes that the Titans left their face there before heading off to another world, but while that's probably not the case (Titans aren't that grubby), it is interesting that he should say the Titans leave their images sitting around-- we've already seen Titan statues appear in the videos for Northrend, and it's been confirmed there's a Titan instance up there. Leaving their images sitting around is definitely something they are wont to do.

But of course it's doubtful this has anything to do with the lore-- at most, it's just a developer hiding an Easter Egg, and at least, it's just a coincidence. Still neat, though.

Filed under: Fan stuff, Odds and ends, Blizzard, Humor, Screenshots

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