tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post2420271949193945338..comments2023-08-12T17:27:01.102+02:00Comments on The Pink Pigtail Inn: Has Blizzard put the WoW blogging community on ignore?Larísahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05769822260333419777noreply@blogger.comBlogger52125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-18967882803955371792010-04-20T19:33:15.296+02:002010-04-20T19:33:15.296+02:00@Anonymous: I assure you that I don't look dow...@Anonymous: I assure you that I don't look down on lack of English knowledge. If it sounds as if I'm sarcastic it's not intentional. It was meant as a neutral statement/fact. As you probably notice my English is far from perfect and I understand that others may have far bigger problems, even not understanding a word of it. It's great if fans volontary help out translating stuff since Blizzard only supports a few of the biggest languages.Larísahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05769822260333419777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-2156036223888315622010-04-20T19:25:03.992+02:002010-04-20T19:25:03.992+02:00"(...)I can’t evaluate those sites; maybe the..."(...)I can’t evaluate those sites; maybe there’s a need for them if people don’t understand English in those countries." <- As i was reading your blog entry i stoped at this sentence. I know that you meant people in those countries might not know english well enough to use english news sites, but what you said sounds more like sarcastic"maybe people in those countries are just too stupid to learn english". It's just a bit offensive phrasing, thats all.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-87016882829134987992010-04-19T20:56:50.249+02:002010-04-19T20:56:50.249+02:00Maybe it's got something to do with the semant...Maybe it's got something to do with the semantics between "Fansite" and "Editorial"? <br /><br />Blogs, of course, are the latter. Opinion pieces (which can often include mis-information as well) are not things that companies wish to be associated with. So, despite the fact that they could easily use disclaimers, it's probably a lot less headaches to just not associate with the WoW "editorials" out there.<br /><br />I don't know the entire list of the fan sites they have on the offical website (can't check from this PC), but from the examples you've used, they are mostly fact sites. Whether they be data on quests/gear/etc or a re-post of Offical Forums stuff, they seem to be opinion free. (Barring comments sections, but those aren't from the sites themselves.)<br /><br />So, I don't think it's so much of an "ignore bloggers" stance. It's more of a "cover their asses" stance.Darthregishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10319251914537986903noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-61441633201124336742010-04-19T20:23:48.354+02:002010-04-19T20:23:48.354+02:00@Perdissa: well, there are some blogs that are a b...@Perdissa: well, there are some blogs that are a bit of both. The more theorycrafting/strategy oriented ones, which often also include good archives with links to how-to-spec, how-to-gear etc kind-of-posts.<br /><br />Personally I'm not a huge fan of that kind of blogs though. I visit them sometimes, like now that I'm levelling a druid and need a bit of guiding in how to do it.<br /><br />But to cater for my need for a daily dosis of blog entertainment/thought stimulation/whatever, I stick more to the personal/opinion related blogs. They tickle me. The info heavy don't. On the other hand probably the info-blogs are much better suited for being linked by Blizzard.<br /><br />@Reversion: yeah... I think they need to work a bit on their image. I guess the twitter-stuff they're doing and GC:s appearances in the forums is an effort from their side. But we definitely could need a little bit more. They don't have to embrace the entire community. But if they acknowledged a few blogs/fansites they could be like representatives for the rest of us if you get what I mean.<br /><br />@Tim Howgego: You make clear that the situation is more complicated than I made it and I defintely agree on that. I would love to see you musing over this at your own blog, maybe using your wonderful map from a couple of years ago. A sequel sort of... You've put out some ideas very nicely in the comments here but I'd love to see you wrap it up and expand on it...<br /><br />Don't know if this is the right forum to order blogposts from you, but there's no harm in trying, right?<br /><br />@Dorgol: I think blogs might be more influencial than you suggest. There is a reason why Coca Cola and other huge well branded companies still care about what they prominent bloggers think and try to treat them nicely. You know the rings-on-water thing. I think that even if the blogs are tiny, some ideas from them might get wings and spread over a larger part of the community - even though everyone might not be aware of from where the ideas first eminated.Larísahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05769822260333419777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-85186139966453085712010-04-19T18:30:43.744+02:002010-04-19T18:30:43.744+02:00@Pugnacious Priest
"No one takes bloggers se...@Pugnacious Priest<br /><br />"No one takes bloggers seriously - they probably consider us as part of the social media and our blogs are just 'fan' ravings."<br /><br />But that's exactly what blogs are. Even when you get to the WoW.com articles, you are still reading "fan ravings".<br /><br />Back in Ulduar when we saw "Phaelia's Vestments..." drop, only 1 other person in my guild knew that it was a reference to a particular blog. Similarly we saw little interest in the BRK rifle.<br /><br />Blogs just aren't that big an influence on WoW as a whole. The fact that Blizzard has put items in game to honor important Bloggers is MUCH more than they needed to do.Dorgolhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12936803721440329897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-56935115702460629922010-04-19T17:29:23.664+02:002010-04-19T17:29:23.664+02:00To add a little to Stormdragon's insightful &q...To add a little to Stormdragon's insightful "fansite" comments:<br /><br />The top tier of WoW "fan site" are all serious commercial endeavours. Curse (including World of Raids, Arena Junkies), Wikia (WoWWiki), AOL (WoW.com), MLG (MMO-Champion), Yantis/etc (Wowhead/Thott/Alla). Dedicated paid staff, properly financed, even capable to mounting legal actions - proper business. There's then a middle tier of sites, that tend to cover niches, but are very popular in their respective niche. Often run by one person, but have such high overheads and technical scale, that they have to be actively operated, and as such start to resemble a (small) business. And then there's a lower tier of not-so-popular fansites. Good ideas that nobody bothered to maintain, hobby sites, right down to "content free" pages assembled out of an official fansite kit.<br /><br />What's the difference between a fansite and 'blog? Consider bloggers as an extension of the player community, and fansites as replacements for missing game features. There are cross-overs, but generally: 'Blogs are primarily personal memoirs, opinion based, often written for the benefit of other people in the blogging community. In contrast, fansites tend to be provided as services to the wider play-base - players who just want a question answered in as few lines as possible (meaning less opinion, better structure), or who want to feel part of a community (yet don't have the literacy or commitment to 'blog).<br /><br />This all neatly explains why Blizzard seems to pretty much hate everyone with anything invested in their games: Individual bloggers risk being akin to that "self appointed entourage", even if that doesn't apply to most of them. Yet at the other end of the scale - where the people involved are much more likely to just be trying to get a job done - the loathing turns towards "those unlicensed people profiting from our Intellectual Property", with varying degrees of acceptance of the fact that the popularity of these "third party" services is a tribute to Blizzard's own communications and design failings.<br /><br />This "can of worms" is a little more complex than a biased public relations strategy.<br /><br />Instead consider the argument that everything not currently considered by their PR should instead be directly controlled by Blizzard - they've merely failed to design a sufficiently flexible online platform to do this. Yet. Take a step back and ask why we so often leave WoW in order to learn about or discuss it, when almost everyone interested in WoW plays? Encouraging the development of game-related things outside the game now, creates an ecosystem that is less likely to fall into line (willingly work within a licensed, Blizzard-controlled environment) if the time comes. Such a transition would be akin to (recent) Twitter strategy - initially letting independant developers provide assistance with "core gameplay" (like clients), then abruptly taking all those functions in-house (in their case, by giving away what independent developers were selling).<br /><br />Whether Blizzard ever do that is moot. I suspect that WoW is already far too developed for anything radical to occur now. But it's an interesting one to watch when we look at, say, the relationship between Facebook and the operators of some of the games run on that platform. Adventures in virtual feudalism... And no, I don't mean Evony.Tim Howgegohttp://timhowgego.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-81978307118179723682010-04-19T14:45:02.881+02:002010-04-19T14:45:02.881+02:00So they ignore blogs because there is lots of cont...So they ignore blogs because there is lots of content but most of it is of no interest to anyone...<br /><br />Sounds just like the official forums!<br /><br /><br /><br />On second thought I apologize to all bloggers everywhere for that comparison.<br /><br />This is the sort of thing that annoyed me most about this recent stuff with the tree changes. The feeling it conveyed to me was that they did some forum only survey, made up their minds, and now are ignoring anything else anyone else brings up to counter argue. The change itself bugged me but what bugged the most was the demonstration of Blizzard’s lack of understanding or interest in a segment of the player base.Reversionhttp://Looking4more.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-75398988586559015962010-04-19T08:50:03.831+02:002010-04-19T08:50:03.831+02:00I don't know, I see it this way: Blogs are ver...I don't know, I see it this way: Blogs are very much personality-driven, as compared to pure fan-sites, which have little personality of their own, but makes up for it by organizing information in useful ways. <br /><br />I tend to skim thru blogs, and only read the ones where the writing style appeals to me. When I read them, I am wondering what other people are thinking about particular issues (pony!)or what whimsical thought of they day they might have. <br /><br />If I'm browsing a fan-site or information site, I have very specific information that I'm usually looking for. When I find it, then off I go.<br /><br />That's pretty much the difference I see between fan-sites and blogs. But should they list blogs on their links page? Absolutely.Perdissanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-64050337667946582082010-04-18T09:42:46.430+02:002010-04-18T09:42:46.430+02:00@Tim Howgego: Wow. Thank you. I didn't realize...@Tim Howgego: Wow. Thank you. I didn't realize they normally don't even bother to answer. I should feel honored then! It's an interesting observation that the developers are more involved in the community than the ones that are supposed to be working with public relations. It's as if they're sending out secret messages to us, just to let us know that they still care. Even if they're kept behind the corporate business wall.<br /><br />But I still think Blizzard is making a mistake in their policy. Even though it might seem like good deal, getting promotion for absolutely free, I think it might turn against them in the long run. Anyway - it definitely gives their competitors an opportunity to get an advantage. The community means a LOT to the success of an MMO. If someone else manages to take better care of their community it might be the beginning of.. well who knows what.<br /><br />@Anonymous: yeah that practice bugs me since I find general gaming sites incredibly boring and don't read them at all. So there's a risk that I miss those interviews, which I really want to read. I wish they were published on more MMO-oriented or even Wow-oriented sites.<br /><br />@Stormdragon: thanks for inside information. If the situation you describe is true, it's even worse than I had believed. Good lord. They REALLY need some better PR people over there.<br /><br />I definitely don't think Blizzard improves anything by including piss poor sites in their fansite program and not including good ones.<br /><br />I can see the problem with linking to all-commercial sites like wow.com. But there are high quality sites that are non-profit and I can't see any good reason for putting them on ignore.Larísahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05769822260333419777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-65647001714591242162010-04-17T23:44:36.370+02:002010-04-17T23:44:36.370+02:00I find it a bit amusing that so many of the larger...I find it a bit amusing that so many of the larger Blogs feel like Blizzard should give them some type of nod to legitimize them, quite frankly this is why Blizzard keeps as far away from these sites as possible. A very good friend of mine who worked with Blizzard during the initial stages of TBC and on SC II told me once that Morhiem and Pardo especially Pardo always felt like such sites were basically self appointed Entourages who tried to gain influence and credibility just by hanging out, and Pardo has a list of horror stories about such groups Name dropping ever chance they got whether it was true or not, and basically causing the company embarrassment and grief. And quite frankly they are not liked by Blizzard management they are in fact loathed, they could go away tomorrow and Blizzard would not shed a tear, but they won’t go away because they are too profitable. (more on that in a bit)<br /><br /> Apparently it all pretty much came to a head During Blizcon 05 when some fan site was telling folks that there were back door deals being made between Blizzard and certain supposed pet Raid guilds and folks were believing it, since then Blizzard has distanced itself as much as possible especially from entities like WoW.com and such..the average Joe thinks that these blogs are ran by Joe gamer and that isn’t the case some of them if you look hard enough are owned by AOL, IGN, NBC and other very large very corrupt companies . When you actually peel away all the noise and sound bytes there is a very practical very just reason for Blizzard to ignore most Blogs.Stormdragonhttp://companyofthewolf.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-72742851848409006162010-04-17T22:21:22.278+02:002010-04-17T22:21:22.278+02:00How big are sites like EJ and WoW.com and they don...How big are sites like EJ and WoW.com and they don't seem to be the ones getting interviews with Blizzard reps. More generic gaming sites tend to get the interviews which then get linked to by all of the other blogs.<br /><br />I just don't think Blizzard PR even cares about the blog community at large despite those sites being a faster and more up to date source of information than Blizzard's own website.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-8446722256799616572010-04-17T12:37:17.251+02:002010-04-17T12:37:17.251+02:00Congratulations - at least you got a reply! I gave...Congratulations - at least you got a reply! I gave up trying to illict any response years ago.<br /><br />What you're missing is that Blizzard's Public Relations has almost nothing to do with community. Blizzard's PR is interested in the non-WoW mainstream press. Typically the very large commercial general gaming-related news sites. These are the sites that can be guaranteed to get the word out to as many non-players (new or lapsed) as possible. The people most likely to bring in new earnings.<br /><br />We've seen this logic just recently with the "press Cataclysm invites". Even big, commercial WoW sites, like WoW.com, are reporting that someone else (like Gawker media) got an email about pre-registration. Not that WoW.com got that email.<br /><br />The brutal truth is that they don't need to encourage the player community to promote WoW, because the player community does that anyway. This is a commercial business: Why pay for what you already get for free?<br /><br />It's even more accentuated for Blizzard, because of their tendency to perfection. Put simply, they can only be loved, they cannot love. There is no natural sense of a need for reciprocity. And they don't seem to be doing so badly as a result...<br /><br />The odd tributes you refer to do not come from Blizzard's marketing department. They come from the developers. Those people are much closer to the community itself. They might not read every 'blog and fansite, but they do read some.Tim Howgegohttp://timhowgego.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-69598570888498512042010-04-17T11:55:02.781+02:002010-04-17T11:55:02.781+02:00OK I've found another example of a highly comm...OK I've found another example of a highly commercial company that thinks that the blogging community is serious business and makes an effort to keep on good terms with them. Listen to this speech by a Coca Cola representative. It's damned impressive in my opinion.<br /><br />Don't come and say that Blizzard is commercial and therefore shouldn't bother about the blogs.<br /><br />Others have shown the opposite. I just think Blizzard is way behind in this area.<br /><br />http://vimeo.com/4778751Larísahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05769822260333419777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-7212701862770962952010-04-17T10:32:57.711+02:002010-04-17T10:32:57.711+02:00@Tech Deft: Cheers! You're a man of action! It...@Tech Deft: Cheers! You're a man of action! It will be interesting to see what kind of response you'll get. Please share it if you get some!<br /><br />@Spiritus: Did you hear that, Blizzard people, if someone is reading this? We have a volunteer here!<br /><br />@River: You really know what you're talking about, not just speculating like I am. Thanks for sharing, even though it's sad to see that my assumptions were correct.<br /><br />@Rilgon Arcsinh: well, as I said - the loss is more on Blizzards side than on hours.<br /><br />@Hugmenot: I think you overestimate the potential effects of a single blog link. Honestly. And if they linked to a number of blogs it would rather be like a buzzing bar than just a one-man show with one voice that grew too strong.<br /><br />@Gnomeaggedon: You Sir put out those things much better than I could myself. Thank you.<br /><br />@Bristal: I don't agree with you to be honest. Modern marketers are working their asses off to find ways to get on good terms with bloggers. Because they realize the value of viral marketing.<br /><br />There's probably a ton written about this. I did a quick google search and came up with this one http://www.socialnetworkingtodayblog.com/?p=415 which I sincerely recommend you to read. And if someone happens to know someone at Blizzard, please send them the link as well! It's a good starter.<br /><br />But I DO agree that blogging isn't journalism. I've written about that before. http://www.pinkpigtailinn.com/2009/08/few-thoughts-about-blurry-wow.html<br />This doesn't stop blogs from being important. They're important for what they are.<br /><br />@Brigwyn: you must be drunk or something suggesting that PPI is playing in the same league as Matticus and EJ. But it gives me some nice egoboo (fandom expression, here's the explanation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egoboo), so thanks!<br /><br />You have a point however. If the official "Fan Site" model doesn't fit for blogs, maybe there's something else that is needed. Maybe they just don't need to be so serious about it. What's the huge problem with having a link list in the line of wow.com when you think about it?<br /><br />@Kiddo: awww... The 18 year thing. Yeah. That sucks a bit. Honestly I don't quite understand why they've put it there. I guess they fear some crazy parent aggro and want to prevent getting sued for god-knows-what.<br /><br />@Euripides: sigh. I do that kind of stupid errors sometimes. WTB native English. Thanks for pointing it out. I'll correct it when I've got some other post up so I won't bump this post unnecessarily in blogrolls.Larísahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05769822260333419777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-60309848626790118062010-04-17T03:13:15.758+02:002010-04-17T03:13:15.758+02:00You had me at "meat the design team" :P
...You had me at "meat the design team" :P<br /><br />Seriously, though, I think that the whole media relations wing of Blizzard is basically understaffed and conservatively avoiding making any changes to something that's not hindered their success so far.Euripideshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15959773270851315360noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-82119537767624221882010-04-17T03:11:33.029+02:002010-04-17T03:11:33.029+02:00"The site must be entirely about WoW, be up a..."The site must be entirely about WoW, be up and running, updating at least once a week, --be run by someone over 18 years old-- and not link to content that violates or encourages to violating the WoW Terms of Use."<br /><br />Not exactly easy, seeing as WoW will be gone by the time I accomplish all of these. =/Kiddohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05183992457496766106noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-92115882657406156212010-04-17T01:42:16.919+02:002010-04-17T01:42:16.919+02:00Heya Larrissa!
Great post. And an interesting topi...Heya Larrissa!<br />Great post. And an interesting topic I've often considered myself.<br /><br />There is so much to consider when responding to this post. So I'll try to be brief. <i>(And you know how difficult that is for me...)</i><br /><br />Let's face it. There's a few serious players out in the WoW Bloggosphere, with yourself being one of the premiere and probably Matticus, Elitist Jerks (albeit their forums) others.<br /><br />As a small <i>(And trust me, I may make a lot of noise maybe but I'm small potatoes compared to you guys.)</i> blog and community site I can understand why Blizzard doesn't encourage Blogs as "OFFICIAL" Fan Sites.<br /><br />Mostly for the same reasons you stated and others have so there's no need to delve into that further.<br /><br />But maybe we're looking at this all wrong. Maybe it's the definition of "Fansite?"<br /><br />Maybe blogs don't really qualify by their nature alone.<br /><br />Here's what I mean. We're not usually there for "Blizzard" fans. As many have said, we write for ourselves and not for our "audience."<br /><br />Granted we might decide to transition from being a "personal" blog or even a game/class/ "community" into something more, but mostly? We're just not there for "Fans" but ourselves.<br /><br />The "Fan Sites" listed are really their for "Blizzard" or "Warcraft" fans. They're not there for our own opinions, but as resources for the fans.<br /><br />So, should blogs get recognized as part of a "Community?" sure.. Why not? Maybe press that angle and see what happens. <br /><br />But I'll be honest, I don't think that most of the blogs out there qualify for "Fan Site" status.Brigwynhttp://www.brigwyn.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-57703146486639731462010-04-16T23:56:33.840+02:002010-04-16T23:56:33.840+02:00Actually, there are a significant number of "...Actually, there are a significant number of "coke sucks" commercials out there (just search YouTube for something like pepsi vs. Coke... and vice versatile). <br /><br />In most cases they are officially endorsed, occasionally a real one goes live long enough to go viral and the company gets a slap over the wrist. <br /><br />Some companies handle alternative and viral marketing well. Others not so well. These was a recent example, a month or so back, where a company (maybe Nestle?) handled their Internet publicity policy so badly that they received huge amounts of unofficial (ie facebook) and traditional media attention - and it wasn't good attention. <br /><br />Not that I can imagine it likely, at this point in time, Blizzard has a large autonomous collective (thank you Monty Python) that could easily turn on the hand that doesn't feed them. <br /><br />To be honest, I don't think Larisa is even suggesting official approval, rather that there is a significant range of talent people out there who would have a positive impact on the player base, that Blizzard could at least list as a group of unofficial and unendorsed resources. <br /><br />People burn out when something is single focused. Blogs, videos, podcasts, comics etc, the wealth of freely giving content is a way to keep the fires burning, if not educate and make peoples lives easier. <br /><br />I have been writing a whole lot of PvP posts lately in part because the new Blizzard battlegroubd changes have injected a lot of people with no idea. This makes me angry and my decision was to make the game better for them, thus for me. <br /><br />It occurs to me that if Blizzard were to pick 6 bloggers (etc) at random, they would be able to get the Blizzard message out much better than a 1/2 arsed podcast and occasional dev chats on Twitter. <br /><br />They are either unaware of how to use this media, or afraid that in using it, their marketing department would be made redundant (rather than strenghtened)gnomeaggedonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13795869874129292721noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-45039732652854361022010-04-16T22:41:20.813+02:002010-04-16T22:41:20.813+02:00@Bristal: I'm not saying the point of journali...@Bristal: I'm not saying the point of journalism is respect. But that people prefer that what they do is respected. Journalism is respected overall, not to ignore that every politician seems to hate journalists the day after someone exposes their finances or affairs.<br /><br />Respect doesn't need to be unquestioning. You're confusing respect with blind loyalty and stupidity. <br /><br />While WoW is indeed a brand, it's folly to think that Blizzard would even attempt to manage every apsect of its image. They post comics which come from sites which are not alway... clean. Same for fan art. While they have gone after a few cases of misuse of their names, as you said, they seem to let logos and screenshots and whatever else go where they will.<br /><br />"Coke sucks" would make an excellent ad campaign.Klepsacovichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07915576683657376929noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-81988355020991921122010-04-16T21:59:49.782+02:002010-04-16T21:59:49.782+02:00Too many responses to read them all...but I'm ...Too many responses to read them all...but I'm a bit surprised by all the naivete regarding business.<br /><br />WoW is a BRAND. A huge multibillion dollar one. I would imagine they have a sizeable marketing staff managing that brand. To protect a brand you must tightly control anything that may even appear officially associated with it, or defines/reflects upon it in any way.<br /><br />Ever see a Pepsi commercial that says Coke sucks? Not legal.<br /><br />If not for Blizzard's savvy, experience, and amicable hands-off relationship with the interweb community, not only wouldn't you see blog/forum endorsements, they might well be legally pursuing the community quite aggressively.<br /><br />I'm always surprised that I see the occasional blog or forum using the official WoW logo. Even screenshots are likely officially their property. <br /><br />Obviously it would be a huge and impossible job to control blogs in this tech age, but expecting the company to actually endorse any particular blog or forum without having direct control over them is kind of laughable.<br /><br />Personally, I LOVE that all these blogs/forums/data sources are completely independent of the company. It's one of the best things I've found about MMO gaming. I don't care what Blizzard thinks about the PPI. I Love it!<br /><br />Granted Larisa does a huge amount of work and it's always great to be recognized, but expecting Blizzard to send her a shout-out is like wanting Apple to publicly praise my blog talking about the Ipad.<br /><br />@klepsacovic<br />"Video game journalism gets too little respect already..."<br /><br />Journalism is not about respect. Many may disagree with that, but respect is showing esteem or regard without questioning. You respect your leaders, elders, people of authority, etc. <br /><br />Journalism seeks to break down simple respect by questioning the obvious and casting doubt on things we accept.Bristalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11849907713604626977noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-14721641855830008452010-04-16T19:55:17.665+02:002010-04-16T19:55:17.665+02:00@Saithir
It's degrees of recognition I guess a...@Saithir<br />It's degrees of recognition I guess and what you sacrifice to get that recognition. The mention from Blizzard of a great piece of work, the nod towards your blog, isn't too much to ask and I would agree with you that it seems almost petulant of them not to provide just a simple listing.<br /><br />@Larisa<br />I don't know what to suggest. I just worry that the bright lights of Blizzywood might turn your head and I won't get such a good daily read :)Chewynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-33944609563128203932010-04-16T18:42:15.994+02:002010-04-16T18:42:15.994+02:00Is that you question things bad?
In my opinion? N...<i>Is that you question things bad?</i><br /><br />In my opinion? No, not at all, because that's why I exist - to question them, and to question whether they have my class's best interests at heart.<br /><br />In Blizzard's opinion? With the frequency with which I pan Ghostcrawler, Kalgan, and a good deal of their staff? Probably. :PRilgon Arcsinhhttp://www.stabilizedeffortscope.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-5121352322773732132010-04-16T18:37:15.950+02:002010-04-16T18:37:15.950+02:00@Rilgon (not 100% directed towards you).
In the m...@Rilgon (not 100% directed towards you).<br /><br />In the modern media it is not only acceptable to have people "rebel" against a companies thoughts, it's sensible.<br /><br />Is that you question things bad?<br /><br />Of course not, especially since you question them in a rational (if occasionally unappreciated) way.<br /><br />I think I can say confidently that Larisa, and for that matter most bloggers, wouldn't sell their soul for a link from Blizzard.<br /><br />Yet, haven't we all experienced the trauma of looking for information.. cohesive information... and found nothing through "official" forums.<br /><br />then one day, we all stumbled across blogs.<br /><br />Here were passionate people who not only answered 1 question about 1 talent applied to one skill... but took the time to analyze it and write guides that got you not only going, but helped you excel.<br /><br />How many hunters would be melee hunters today based purely upon the beginning of life of a hunter and the lack of official or approved content?<br /><br />People like BRK received Blizzards attention because they filled a gap that was lacking...<br /><br />but when did they receive that acknowledgment?<br /><br />Ohh yeah... when they quit.<br /><br />I can understand why, according to the rules, Blizzard wouldn't list Armaggedon's Coming! as a fansite... but you know as well as I, there is information, inspiration, joy and frustration of the game there, that everyone needs or relates to.<br /><br />Yet Blizzard, to date, (and my today being their yesterday, so anything is possible tomorrow) haven't done the simplest of acknowledgments.<br /><br />Volunteers like TNB & Blog Azeroth are cataloging the sites that Blizzard could refer to.<br /><br />Fim brought it up on the last TNB, at my request. I see so often the question in forums, official and unofficial...<br /><br />"Where can I find reliable information on x, or where can I find a blog about y."<br /><br />Some people want theorycraft, others (like my most loyal of readers, Prelimar) want nothing more than to share in the joy of shared stories.<br /><br />Am I a small blog.. by Blizzard standards I am sure yes.. only 300,000 reads in just under 2 years... hardly worth a mention.. yet I continue to get emails and comments about how inspired people are.<br /><br />yes I bag Blizzard... nearly every post... but I never damage their reputation, because anybody can tell that the reason I speak out is quite simply, that I care.<br /><br />the question is... <br /><br />Do Blizzard care?<br /><br />PS: Blizzard... there better be a Gnomeaggedon of Gnomeregan statue when we reclaim it.. or... or.. I'll blog about it!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-44290421447425825922010-04-16T18:25:00.187+02:002010-04-16T18:25:00.187+02:00Blogs are typically one man or woman's very bi...Blogs are typically one man or woman's very biased point of view of the current state of the game.<br /><br />I believe it is very prudent for Blizzard to refrain from linking blogs on their fansite page because such links could result in giving one individual (or a small group of individuals in the case of WoM) too much recognition and potential influence over the game.<br /><br />I also believe it is naive to believe Blizzard is paying little attention to the blogger community given several items were created to honor bloggers.Hugmenothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07634767362565932566noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7084921087677216126.post-11200237850066700492010-04-16T18:10:53.589+02:002010-04-16T18:10:53.589+02:00I just want to point out that I like not being &qu...<i>I just want to point out that I like not being "affiliated" or given a stamp of approval from Blizzard. It makes my writing and analysis less biased.</i><br /><br />Bingo. It was one of the reasons why I had a bit of respect for WoW Insider before they started hiring absolutely worthless writers for their staff and diminishing the quality of their editing, fact-checking, and quality control.<br /><br />I wouldn't WANT to be a Blizzard-affiliated or Blizzard-sanctioned blog. I like having the freedom to pan Ghostcrawler for his soul-searingly stupid ideas (like Hunter Focus - anyone remember how well THAT worked in Vanilla Closed Beta) without worrying about "oh, is this article going to lose me my fansite tag?". I like having the freedom to be myself and write in my own voice without worrying about someone disapproving of it and yanking the merit.<br /><br />SES is me, and my math, analysis, opinions, and editorials on WoW as it relates to raiding Marks Hunters. Nothing more (usually), and certainly never anything less.Rilgon Arcsinhhttp://www.stabilizedeffortscope.comnoreply@blogger.com