Sep 23 2020
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Ex-Blizzard Developers Establish Dreamhaven and Two Game Studios

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Mike Morhaime, former CEO and co-founder of Blizzard Entertainment, announced his new game company Dreamhaven, based in Irvine, CA. Dreamhaven will publish games from its two newly announced game studios, Moonshot Games and Secret Door.

“I’m excited to team up with such talented people who care deeply about games and their communities,” said Dreamhaven CEO Mike Morhaime. “I’ve always believed in the power of games to bring people together regardless of backgrounds or boundaries. With Dreamhaven, we look forward to creating and sharing new experiences with players everywhere.”

Morhaime founded Blizzard Entertainment (originally called Silicon & Synapse) in 1991, which has been responsible for some of the biggest franchises in gaming including Warcraft, Diablo, and Overwatch. Morhaime left Blizzard in April 2019 after stepping down as president in 2018.

Moonshot Games is anchored by Jason Chayes, Dustin Browder, and Ben Thompson, while Secret Door has Chris Sigatay, Alan Dabriri, and Eric Dodds. All are former Blizzard developers who worked on Hearthstone, Heroes of the Storm, StarCraft 2, and more as Producers, Art Directors, and Game Designers.

Neither Dreamhaven nor the studios are announcing any games or plans yet. According to the new website, Dreamhaven wants “to establish independent identities, voices, and cultures,” and “create vibrant worlds that reflect our values.”

Jan 29 2020
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For the Horde! Warcraft 3: Reforged Out Now on PC

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Blizzard Entertainment has released the HD remaster of seminal real-time strategy game Warcraft 3, Warcraft 3: Reforged. It’s available now through the official Blizzard shop (and playable on Battle.net) on PC for $29.99.

“Warcraft III is one of our proudest achievements as a company, and we’re honored that so many players around the world still hold it up as a paragon of the RTS genre,” said J. Allen Brack, president, Blizzard Entertainment. “With Warcraft III: Reforged, our biggest goal was to modernize the game while retaining everything that players have loved about it, and we hope everyone agrees that we’ve done it justice.”

The remaster includes both the original 2002 Reign of Chaos and the 2o03 expansion, The Frozen Throne. The single-player story spans seven campaigns with over 60 missions and four factions, including Orcs, Humans, Night Elves, and the Undead. Every unit, building, and environment has been given a graphical upgrade, as well as remastered audio and improved voice-overs.

The World Editor, which famously gave rise to the entire MOBA genre with the original Defense of the Ancients mod, has also been given a robust upgrade with added tools, and more enhancements planned in the future. Warcraft 3: Reforged is also fully integrated with Battle.net’s multiplayer suite, including voice chat and auto-patching. And in case anyone is still playing the nearly two-decades old original, you’ll be able to play with them online using Reforged.

In addition to the Standard Edition, Warcraft 3: Reforged also has a Spoils of War Edition for $39.99. This special edition features new skins for heroes like Arthas and Jaina, as well as several digital bonuses for other Blizzard games, such as a card back for Hearthstone and a pet for Diablo 3.

Warcraft 3: Reforged is available now on PC (Battle.net). It’s rated T for Teen.

Dec 18 2019
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Warcraft 3: Reforged Releasing January 2020

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War never changes, but occasionally gets remastered. We’ve known since BlizzCon 2018 that Blizzard’s 2002 real time strategy magnum opus Warcraft 3 is getting the HD remaster treatment. Today we finally got an official release date for Warcraft 3: Reforged – January 28, 2020 on PC.

Aside from a full HD graphical overhaul to every unit, structure, and animation, Warcraft 3: Reforged will feature cross-play multiplayer support with the original game, and full integration with Battle.net’s social and match-making features, as well as auto-patching.

Reforged will retain all the original voice recording, but feature a new, expanded World Editor with more tools to create unique scenarios and mods. The entire MOBA genre started with the Defense of the Ancients (DOTA), which was a mod built out of the original Warcraft 3 editor.

In addition to multiplayer support, Reforged features both the original Reign of Chaos campaign and Frozen Throne expansion content. That’s seven single-player campaigns spread over 60 missions. Blizzard has previously confirmed that they’re updating and changing some of Warcraft 3’s story based on World of Warcraft’s retcons, as well as increasing the role of heroes who became more prominent in the series, such as Jaina and Sylvanus.

Warcraft 3: Reforged is available now for pre-purchase from the Blizzard digital shop, for $29.99. A Spoils of War edition is available for $39.99, and features digital goodies for Warcaft, as well as skins, pets, and mounts for other Blizzard games such as World of Warcraft, Overwatch, and Hearthstone.

Warcraft 3: Reforged will release on January 28, 2020 on PC (Battle.net).  It’s rated T for Teen.