Isaiah's Tech

We already know that Blizzard pushed the release of Starcraft II until mid-way through 2010 with the beta starting in Q1. Well, now we're hearing that expansions for Starcraft II are going to be released in the "next few years" which really doesn't tell us much. Also in the "next few years" category is the Diablo III release date so Blizzard is definitely taking their sweet time - perfecting the games of course. Hopefully, "next few years" means 2011.

[Kotaku]

No surprise here, but Blizzard has just announced that StarCraft II has been delayed until 2010. Blizzard is citing that it is because they are upgrading Battle.net for the future Starcraft and Diablo games. The bad news is that Activision is now expecting a lot less money this year, since Starcraft II won't get released and because of the state of the economy.

However, there is good news. Apparently, the StarCraft II delay will not impact Blizzard's launch schedule. This means that they will be launching two games next year. As of right now, it's not known what game it will be, but I'm hoping that it's Diablo III.

[STARFEEDER, Kotaku, 1 UP, Mac World, WoW, G4 TV, Joystiq]

Apparently, this poster is confirmation that we will see Starcraft 2 before the end of this year. The poster has no information about Diablo 3 so that means it's coming out next year - or the year after that. Anyways, don't count on this information to be 100% accurate since it is just speculation. But, at this point, any information about Starcraft 2 really interests me.

[Gamezilla]

Blizzard has been hiring for a new game for a while now. First, it was for the next-gen MMO from Blizzard, but this one could be for a new game altogether. It be for the PC or the Xbox 360, probably the PC though. Blizzard is currently looking for a software engineer for an unannounced game. They are currently working on 5 new titles now: Starcraft II, Diablo III, a new WoW expansion, a next-gen MMO, and this new unannounced game. The new WoW expansion is the one that means just about nothing to me. I used too much money on World of Warcraft and it was just time to move on. It's just too boring now, it could be their last expansion though.

[PS3 QJ]

Blizzard finally did it. They have unleashed their new Battle.net service. Battle.net will one day rule everything Blizzard does. Having a Battle.net account will control everything Blizzard using only one username and password. Everything from World of Warcraft, Starcraft II, Diablo III, the Blizzard Store, etc. "There's more to come in the future as well, with Blizzard promising to add 'more features, including tools to make it easier for friends to communicate between games and to help bring out community of players closer together.'" It sounds a bit like Blizzard pulled some Steam features, but I could care less. I'm so excited. As of right now, it is not mandatory to combine your WoW accounts to your new Battle.net login credentials, but one day it will be mandatory to continue playing. For Blizzard's older games such as Warcraft III, Diablo II, and Starcraft, they will still use the "old" login credentials utilizing, what Blizzard now calls, Battle.net classic. I am so "hyped up" for the revamped Battle.net service and you will be able to go to Blizzard's Battle.net site below. Make your new accounts now!

[Kotaku, Battle.net]

Blizzard's websites (like the WoW Armory and the official WoW site) are down for maintenance today, but no one really knows why. A couple of people are suggesting that Blizzard is switching to Battle.net accounts. "Portions of the official EU sites are redirecting to this Battle.net login page." This could be in preparation for the upcoming Starcraft II beta that's been rumoured to be available soon. Apparently, the so-called Battle.net accounts are going to hit EU first and then US at a later date. More information about this if Blizzard really decides to finally make the switch. I hope they do because Starcraft II (and Diablo 3) will both be utilizing Battle.net for online purposes. They are both a long time coming and the revamped Battle.net should be ready by now.

[WoW Insider]

I originally saw this article on G4TV, but i couldn't go to the link, so i Google'd some more sources. The rumour of the day belongs to Blizzard and Diablo 3. Apparently, the beta is set for September 11 and the game itself is set to be released on December 24, 2009. Are these rumours true? I don't think so. Is it just a coincidence that the beta will be released on September 11? (9/11?). Diablo 3 to be released on Christmas Eve? How strategic would that be of Blizzard to release a game on Christmas Eve? Personally, i don't think Blizzard would be dumb enough to release a game on Christmas Eve. If it does come out this year, i think it will be released a couple of weeks before Christmas holidays or pushed to Q1 next year. I'm going to call this rumour a fake, even though it breaks my heart. The specs of Diablo were also supposedly released (below).


For Windows: Operating System: Windows Xp / Vista; Processor: 1.4GHz or higher CPU; RAM: 1GB or more; Video: 128MB video card and DirectX 9; Hard Drive Space: 4-8GBs.
For Mac: Operating System: Mac OS X 10.3 (Panther) or better; Processor: 1.6GHz or higher; RAM: 1GB or higher, DDR RAM recommended; Video: 128MB ATI or NVIDIA video card; Hard Drive Space: 4-8GBs.

This spec sheet means that i will be able to play it on my junky desktop PC without upgrading, woopee!

Diablo 3 Release Date (and picture): http://www.destructoid.com/rumortoid-diablo-iii-release-date-and-specs-leaked--124228.phtml

I came across a so-called Diablo 3 review this morning. I didn't bother to read it nor understand it. So, i skimmed to the last paragraph and it said, "A full release is scheduled for both PC and Mac in March." Seriously? Diablo 3 in March? Isn't that a bit early? I tried looking on Google for a possible confirmation, but couldn't find anything. I actually did find that Play.com had Diablo 3 set for release on March 27, 2009, but they changed it. If Diablo 3 was coming out so soon (less than a month away), i think the whole world would be going nuts. I'm going to have to deny this so-called March 27th release of Diablo 3. It's upsetting and disappointing that it won't come out this soon. It'll hopefully come out later this year, but i doubt this March 27th release. Sorry Diablo fans.

Need for Speed looks like they're going to release an MMO. For the PC though and not for consoles. It will be a free MMO, so need to worry about any payments. It'll have the usual customizable UI and all that MMO-stuff. I would try it out, but i don't really know if i want to play Need for Speed on the PC. Kind of lame if i had to use a keyboard. I want to play Need for Speed Underground right now. I'll even play Gran Turismo 4 right now, but i can't find it. I also want to play Capcom vs SNK 2, since Street Fighter 4 recently came out. Argh, so many problems. I also have lots of Physics to do today, so that's great.

Diablo 3 Release Date (and picture): http://www.tiscali.co.uk/games/previews/2009/02/10/diablo-iii.html
Need For Speed MMO (and picture): http://kotaku.com/5162280/first-screen-from-nfs-mmo-shows-customizable-ui