Following a concept art leak earlier this week, Blizzard has officially confirmed that the Necromancer class is returning to Diablo III. The four years in the making news came during the developer’s Blizzcon 2016 Opening Ceremony.
Introduced by Blizzard co-founder Frank Pearce, the Necromancer hearkens back to the glory days of Diablo III. The class is heavily inspired by D2’s version of the character, but will “take advantage of everything Diablo III has to offer.”
Players will have the option of choosing either a male or female version of the character, which differs from past versions of the class. In addition to the character, the pack also comes with an in-game pet, two additional character slots, a portrait frame, pennant, banner, and banner sigil.
Although currently scheduled to release sometime in 2017, Blizzard has yet to confirm a firm release date for the Necromancer pack. Pricing also remains a mystery,...
Introduced by Blizzard co-founder Frank Pearce, the Necromancer hearkens back to the glory days of Diablo III. The class is heavily inspired by D2’s version of the character, but will “take advantage of everything Diablo III has to offer.”
Players will have the option of choosing either a male or female version of the character, which differs from past versions of the class. In addition to the character, the pack also comes with an in-game pet, two additional character slots, a portrait frame, pennant, banner, and banner sigil.
Although currently scheduled to release sometime in 2017, Blizzard has yet to confirm a firm release date for the Necromancer pack. Pricing also remains a mystery,...
- 11/5/2016
- by Eric Hall
- We Got This Covered
The makers of the Warcraft movie did everything right. They tapped a video game universe with an immense collection of lore and backstories as source material. Director Duncan Jones had indie cred, a commercial and critical hit in Source Code, and a verifiable history of love for the games he was drawing from. His actors were intriguing performers who had shown great potential in other roles. Dean Redman, who plays Varis, said Jones helped the actors see their characters' motivations and goals, and then gave them the freedom to express...
- 6/24/2016
- Rollingstone.com
As part of last night’s PlayStation 4-centric press conference, one of the numerous game announcements came from veteran developer Blizzard, who has made public their plans to bring last year’s hit PC exclusive Diablo III to both the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4.
Blizzard co-founder Frank Pearce offered a few tidbits of information on a PlayStation Blog post, saying that the developer was happy to return to console development as they had their roots in it back in the day (The Lost Vikings, anyone?). Every upgrade the PC version has already received will be part of the basic package for the console versions of the game, and the interface, controls, and camera will all be revamped to better suit the controller-based experience as opposed to a mouse and keyboard. No specific release date for either version was announced, but Pearce did add that the game will be shown at Pax East next month in Boston.
Blizzard co-founder Frank Pearce offered a few tidbits of information on a PlayStation Blog post, saying that the developer was happy to return to console development as they had their roots in it back in the day (The Lost Vikings, anyone?). Every upgrade the PC version has already received will be part of the basic package for the console versions of the game, and the interface, controls, and camera will all be revamped to better suit the controller-based experience as opposed to a mouse and keyboard. No specific release date for either version was announced, but Pearce did add that the game will be shown at Pax East next month in Boston.
- 2/21/2013
- by John Fleury
- We Got This Covered
Think back. Way back. Way, way back. To 2009. An eternity in video game time. 2009's BlizzCon was pretty eventful, featuring the reveal of "World of WarCraft: Cataclysm" and the Monk class for "Diablo 3." Blizzard also took the opportunity to show of the next version of Battle.net, the one that would ship with "StarCraft 2: Wings of Liberty." While many of the features that were discussed ended up making it into the final release, some have not. For example, Blizzard mentioned that they were working on App Store-like functionality for Battle.net which would allow players to browse, download and even buy fan-created "StarCraft 2" maps and mods right through the interface.
Last week I sat down with Mike Morhaime and Frank Pearce, two of the co-founders, to discuss the 20 year history of Blizzard. During the interview, Pearce mentioned the "StarCraft 2" marketplace is still coming.
"We had talked about, at BlizzCon a couple years ago,...
Last week I sat down with Mike Morhaime and Frank Pearce, two of the co-founders, to discuss the 20 year history of Blizzard. During the interview, Pearce mentioned the "StarCraft 2" marketplace is still coming.
"We had talked about, at BlizzCon a couple years ago,...
- 3/17/2011
- by Russ Frushtick
- MTV Multiplayer
Last week I had the chance to sit down with Mike Morhaime and Frank Pearce, two of the three co-founders of Blizzard Entertainment. The interview was pegged to the company's 20 year anniversary, so we ran through the history of Blizzard, from their early days as Silicon & Synapse to their relatively shrouded future.
One of the subjects that came up was a question that's been on the minds of fans since the announcement of "Diablo 3": Would it be coming to consoles? Said Morhaime, "We've had some posts up on our website for a little while now, looking for some console developers to help us do an exploratory mission to determine whether or not a 'Diablo' game on console would make sense. At this stage that's all it is. We're just exploring the option, the opportunity."
I suggested they check out "Torchlight" on Xbla, which did a great job of bringing "Diablo"-style gameplay to consoles.
One of the subjects that came up was a question that's been on the minds of fans since the announcement of "Diablo 3": Would it be coming to consoles? Said Morhaime, "We've had some posts up on our website for a little while now, looking for some console developers to help us do an exploratory mission to determine whether or not a 'Diablo' game on console would make sense. At this stage that's all it is. We're just exploring the option, the opportunity."
I suggested they check out "Torchlight" on Xbla, which did a great job of bringing "Diablo"-style gameplay to consoles.
- 3/16/2011
- by Russ Frushtick
- MTV Multiplayer
Blizzard Entertainment co-founders Mike Morhaime and Frank Pearce tell the story of how the most successful game in the world came to be.
By Russ Frushtick
A scene from "World of Warcraft"
Photo: Blizzard Entertainment
In 2007, "South Park" won an Emmy for an episode called "Make Love, Not WarCraft." If ever there was a sign of the broad-reaching impact of "World of WarCraft" on pop culture, that was it. Of course, having 12 million active subscribers worldwide doesn't hurt. But the company behind the game, Blizzard Entertainment, wasn't always a multinational juggernaut. Twenty years ago, Blizzard (then called Silicon & Synapse) was just made up of three recent UCLA grads with a love of video games. We sat down to talk to two of those three co-founders, Mike Morhaime and Frank Pearce, about the long, strange, awesomely nerdy journey of Blizzard Entertainment from then to now.
The idea to start a video...
By Russ Frushtick
A scene from "World of Warcraft"
Photo: Blizzard Entertainment
In 2007, "South Park" won an Emmy for an episode called "Make Love, Not WarCraft." If ever there was a sign of the broad-reaching impact of "World of WarCraft" on pop culture, that was it. Of course, having 12 million active subscribers worldwide doesn't hurt. But the company behind the game, Blizzard Entertainment, wasn't always a multinational juggernaut. Twenty years ago, Blizzard (then called Silicon & Synapse) was just made up of three recent UCLA grads with a love of video games. We sat down to talk to two of those three co-founders, Mike Morhaime and Frank Pearce, about the long, strange, awesomely nerdy journey of Blizzard Entertainment from then to now.
The idea to start a video...
- 3/10/2011
- MTV Music News
Blizzard has admitted that its recently outed project Titan is a next generation multiplayer online game. Speculation about the title arose earlier this month when the firm's business schedule for 2010 to 2015 was leaked online. Speaking to Destructoid, Blizzard senior vice president Frank Pearce confirmed that the game will be a new Mmo. "The media is not supposed to know anything about that. It's our next-gen Mmo project," he said. (more)...
- 12/19/2010
- by By Mark Langshaw
- Digital Spy
Blizzard's top secret non-"World of Warcraft" Mmo is still a secret, and so is a project called "Titan" that showed up in a purportedly leaked product slate from the company. In fact, they're both so secret that a Blizzard VP was willing to say that we shouldn't know anything about their upcoming "next-gen Mmo" called "Titan," which is going to be employing some top-notch industry talent.
"Titan is — the media is not meant to know anything about that," senior Blizzard VP and "WoW" executive producer Frank Pearce told Destructoid when pressed about the game.
"It's our next-gen Mmo and we've only started talking about it in a limited fashion because we want to leverage the fact that we're working on something like that for the purpose of recruiting — getting some of the best talent in the industry on that," he explained.
Exactly what kind of next-gen Mmo it will...
"Titan is — the media is not meant to know anything about that," senior Blizzard VP and "WoW" executive producer Frank Pearce told Destructoid when pressed about the game.
"It's our next-gen Mmo and we've only started talking about it in a limited fashion because we want to leverage the fact that we're working on something like that for the purpose of recruiting — getting some of the best talent in the industry on that," he explained.
Exactly what kind of next-gen Mmo it will...
- 12/17/2010
- by Brian Warmoth
- MTV Multiplayer
On Thursday I wrote an article about how Blizzard denounced DRM in favor of “better games” — now, I’ve got to take it all back, as word comes in from IncGamers that Blizzard won’t even include a pseudo-lan feature in StarCraft II. Instead, all gaming must take place over the Battle.net platform, regardless of how close the two computers are to each other.
When asked about it, Frank Pearce, Blizzard co-founder, said that the functionality “is not there. Our goal is to make sure that connectivity to the Battle.net servers is such that [it's] the experience people want.”
Let’s get serious, Blizzard. Battle.net is not a feature, it’s a DRM. An authentication method. (Shame on me for praising them about the same subject just yesterday.) A restriction. Fair’s fair when it comes to getting your money’s worth and stopping pirates, but this is ridiculous.
When asked about it, Frank Pearce, Blizzard co-founder, said that the functionality “is not there. Our goal is to make sure that connectivity to the Battle.net servers is such that [it's] the experience people want.”
Let’s get serious, Blizzard. Battle.net is not a feature, it’s a DRM. An authentication method. (Shame on me for praising them about the same subject just yesterday.) A restriction. Fair’s fair when it comes to getting your money’s worth and stopping pirates, but this is ridiculous.
- 5/30/2010
- by Jeremy Swinarton
- GameRant
2010 has been an innovative year for DRM strategies, with Ubisoft trying to secure "Assassin's Creed 2" and EA demanding continued Internet access to play "Commmand and Conquer 4." Blizzard has an entirely different perspective on the issue of pirated game policing, however. In fact, they just plain don't believe that funneling research and development dollars into DRM is worth the expense.
"The best approach from our perspective is to make sure that you've got a full-featured platform that people want to play on, where their friends are, where the community is," Blizzard co-founder Frank Pearce told VideoGamer.com.
Blizzard may be a unique company in terms of their library and Mmo and online multiplayer focuses. Nonetheless, Pearce believes their dollars are better spent bringing legal players in rather than keeping illegal ones out.
"That's a battle that we have a chance in," Pearce said. "If you start talking about DRM and different...
"The best approach from our perspective is to make sure that you've got a full-featured platform that people want to play on, where their friends are, where the community is," Blizzard co-founder Frank Pearce told VideoGamer.com.
Blizzard may be a unique company in terms of their library and Mmo and online multiplayer focuses. Nonetheless, Pearce believes their dollars are better spent bringing legal players in rather than keeping illegal ones out.
"That's a battle that we have a chance in," Pearce said. "If you start talking about DRM and different...
- 5/27/2010
- by Brian Warmoth
- MTV Multiplayer
Yet another big player in the development industry has denounced Digital Rights Management (or Digitial Restrictions Managment, as its opponents claim is more accurate) in favor of producing good games with better user experience.
Before, it was Valve, Ironclad Games (Sins of Solar Empire) and World of Goo developer Ron Carmel who put DRM to shame, and now it’s Blizzard, whose upcoming game StarCraft II has been the subject of piracy even in the closed beta stage. Frank Pearce, Blizzard co-founder, thinks developers need to change their focus, and he wants his team “focused on content and cool features, not anti-piracy technology.”
This viewpoint is starkly contrasted with Ubisoft’s philosophy, which became evident when they imposed harsh DRMs on the PC version of Assassin’s Creed 2. Thousands of fans were angered when even those who purchased the game had trouble getting authenticated. Pearce has a different view on...
Before, it was Valve, Ironclad Games (Sins of Solar Empire) and World of Goo developer Ron Carmel who put DRM to shame, and now it’s Blizzard, whose upcoming game StarCraft II has been the subject of piracy even in the closed beta stage. Frank Pearce, Blizzard co-founder, thinks developers need to change their focus, and he wants his team “focused on content and cool features, not anti-piracy technology.”
This viewpoint is starkly contrasted with Ubisoft’s philosophy, which became evident when they imposed harsh DRMs on the PC version of Assassin’s Creed 2. Thousands of fans were angered when even those who purchased the game had trouble getting authenticated. Pearce has a different view on...
- 5/27/2010
- by Jeremy Swinarton
- GameRant
Since 2008, World of Warcraft has been constant at 11.5 million subscribers and many were under the impression that the subscriber base had peaked. Blizzard plans to achieve a new level of success this year with the Cataclysm expansion.
According to an interview on VG247, Blizzard product development executive vice president Frank Pearce discussed getting the subscriber base to a new plateau.
“I don’t think [it has peaked] at all,” Pearce said. “In China, for example, we haven’t even launched Wrath of the Lich King yet, and that expansion is already 18-plus months old. They’re still playing The Burning Crusade there, because we’re waiting for approval for Wrath from the appropriate agencies. And once we get that approval and launch Wrath in China then I think we will see growth.”
Blizzard believes that the expansions will win-back players who have set the game aside and break the 11.5 million subscribers mark. Cataclysm,...
According to an interview on VG247, Blizzard product development executive vice president Frank Pearce discussed getting the subscriber base to a new plateau.
“I don’t think [it has peaked] at all,” Pearce said. “In China, for example, we haven’t even launched Wrath of the Lich King yet, and that expansion is already 18-plus months old. They’re still playing The Burning Crusade there, because we’re waiting for approval for Wrath from the appropriate agencies. And once we get that approval and launch Wrath in China then I think we will see growth.”
Blizzard believes that the expansions will win-back players who have set the game aside and break the 11.5 million subscribers mark. Cataclysm,...
- 5/25/2010
- by Robert Bratcher
- GameRant
Blizzard Entertainment may have charged $125 at the door for its 20,000 attendees this year at BlizzCon in Anaheim, but even that price point may not be enough to make the show alone profitable for the company. The event became a merchandise mover and brought in pay-per-view revenue through DirecTV in 2009, but the company admits that the show isn't profitable by itself.
"BlizzCon is operated at a substantial loss for the company," Frank Pearce revealed this week at the 2009 Austin Game Developers Conference, according to GameSpot. "It's a huge marketing opportunity, so that's the benefit we get out of that. But in terms of any kind of financial gain, it actually is a loss for us."
The revelation doesn't come as a huge surprise, mainly due to the overhead Blizzard has to pump into the show for space rental, celebrity appearances and other promotional endeavors that go into making it happen. BlizzCon...
"BlizzCon is operated at a substantial loss for the company," Frank Pearce revealed this week at the 2009 Austin Game Developers Conference, according to GameSpot. "It's a huge marketing opportunity, so that's the benefit we get out of that. But in terms of any kind of financial gain, it actually is a loss for us."
The revelation doesn't come as a huge surprise, mainly due to the overhead Blizzard has to pump into the show for space rental, celebrity appearances and other promotional endeavors that go into making it happen. BlizzCon...
- 9/18/2009
- by Brian Warmoth
- MTV Multiplayer
Back in October, we found out that a "World of Warcraft" movie was in development and Legendary Pictures was looking for writers to pen the screenplay and a director to helm. Variety is now reporting that the studio has finally decided on a director and it is Sam Raimi (Spider-Man). He will begin work immediately after "Spider-Man 4." Earlier, a rumor was going around that Uwe Boll was trying to convince Blizzard Entertainment (owner of the game) that he's the right man for the job. Apparently the company never took any of his offers seriously. Frank Pearce, VP of product development, previously revealed that the new movie will be live-action and will have a budget of around $100 million. Blizzard also previously stated that the "World of Warcraft" movie won't be a journey type of tale, like in "Lord of the Rings." Instead, it will focus more on the growing tensions between...
- 7/22/2009
- WorstPreviews.com
World of Warcraft continues to conquer all territories it visits, be it online games, board games or comic books. The inevitable film seems to be next on the horizon.
Blizzard executive VP of product development Frank Pearce told MTV “Legendary Pictures is currently trying to assign some names to write the screenplay and find someone to direct it, so it’s still really early in production. They want to make sure they get the right talent for those different parts, especially the screenwriting, because that’s the foundation for the movie.”
“It would be a huge undertaking and it’s not really something that we’re ready to do anytime soon.” There’s discussion between doing the film CGI with motion capture effects or live-action mixed with CGI.
The most recent expansion game, Wrath of the Lich King reportedly sold 2.8 million copies within its first 24 hours of release.
Blizzard executive VP of product development Frank Pearce told MTV “Legendary Pictures is currently trying to assign some names to write the screenplay and find someone to direct it, so it’s still really early in production. They want to make sure they get the right talent for those different parts, especially the screenwriting, because that’s the foundation for the movie.”
“It would be a huge undertaking and it’s not really something that we’re ready to do anytime soon.” There’s discussion between doing the film CGI with motion capture effects or live-action mixed with CGI.
The most recent expansion game, Wrath of the Lich King reportedly sold 2.8 million copies within its first 24 hours of release.
- 11/25/2008
- by Robert Greenberger
- Comicmix.com
At an event christening its new expansion Wrath of the Lich King, Blizzard Entertainment VP Frank Pearce commented recently on the future of World of Warcraft. Lich King sold about 3 million copies in one day, the fastest-selling game of all time, so Warcraft clearly still has remarkable support. He confirmed that there would be another game expansion in about a year, and he backed up a statement he made a few months ago concerning a World of Warcraft movie.
Legendary Pictures (The Dark Knight, 300, Watchmen) is currently trying to assign some names to write the screenplay and find someone to direct it, so it’s still really early in production,” Pearce told MTV. “They want to make sure they get the right talent for those different parts, especially the screenwriting, because that’s the foundation for the movie.”
There has been some debate on how that movie should and would progress.
Legendary Pictures (The Dark Knight, 300, Watchmen) is currently trying to assign some names to write the screenplay and find someone to direct it, so it’s still really early in production,” Pearce told MTV. “They want to make sure they get the right talent for those different parts, especially the screenwriting, because that’s the foundation for the movie.”
There has been some debate on how that movie should and would progress.
- 11/22/2008
- by Colin Boyd
- GetTheBigPicture.net
IGN recently spoke to Blizzard executive VP of product development Frank Pearce, and he gave an update on the status of the Warcraft movie. "Legendary Pictures is currently trying to assign some names to write the screenplay and find someone to direct it, so it's still really early in production," Pearce informed MTV. "They want to make sure they get…
Continue reading Blizzard Looking For Writers For Warcraft Movie...
Continue reading Blizzard Looking For Writers For Warcraft Movie...
- 11/22/2008
- by Liam
- Filmonic.com
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