Blizzard Entertainment

Silicon & Synapse (later to become Blizzard Entertainment, Inc.) was founded by Michael Morhaime, Allen Adham and Frank Pearce in February of 1991. The company first focused on creating game ports for other studios, making titles such as J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, Vol. I and Battle Chess II: Chinese Chess.

Transitioning into the year 1994, they had been acquired by distributor Davidson & Associates for $6.75 million. They called themselves "Chaos Studios" but changed it soon after, realizing that a company with that name already existed. Shortly after, Blizzard released their hit Warcraft: Orcs and Humans.

Blizzard changed hands several times, being acquired and reacquired by a number of different companies, all the while producing games such as Diablo and Starcraft. Eventually Blizzard evolved into what it is today: Activision Blizzard.

Blizzard has three main franchises, known as their big three. Each franchise has a loyal following of its own, but in the end we all share a love for Blizzard and their games. Read on for a brief overview of all of the games of the series.

Warcraft
1994 - Warcraft: Orcs & Humans
1995 - Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness
1996 - Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal
1999 - Warcraft II: Battle.net Edition
2002 - Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos
2003 - Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne
2004 - World of Warcraft
2007 - World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
2008 - World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King
2010 - World of Warcraft: Cataclysm

In addition to the many video games, the Warcraft franchise also has a trading card game, multiple tabletop games, many books and comics, and soon there will be a Warcraft movie. Yes, it's been officially announced. It's going to be brutal and awesome. "We're definitely not going to make a G or a PG version of this. It's not PillowfightCraft." says Chris Metzen, co-producer.

Starcraft
1998 - Starcraft
1998 - StarCraft: Brood War
2010 - Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty

Starcraft is more than just a game, with multiple books and graphic novels written about the story, and many future works in progress.

Diablo
1996 - Diablo
2000 - Diablo II
2001 - Diablo II: Lord of Destruction

Many books/graphic novels have been written based on the Diablo storyline. A third game is planned, and in the works.

Warcraft: Orcs & Humans (1994) was Blizzard's first game in the Warcraft franchise, and ultimately what brought them mainstream success. There are currently 4 games (not including expansions) in this series. Warcraft takes place in and/or around the world of Azeroth.
In a quick attempt to summarize the story, the Orcs were sent from their home in Draenor (or Outland) to the Eastern Kingdoms of Azeroth, where the Humans had made residence. War ensued.
Many new races have been introduced since the franchise's birth, from the typical fantasy races of Elves and Trolls to unique races such as the Draenei or the Worgen. Eventually, Warcraft (the real-time strategy game) led to World of Warcraft (the MMORPG).
Warcraft continues to be popular among gamers, and is one of my personal favorites as far as RTS games go. The series continues to grow, and a Warcraft 4 is rumored, but won't begin production until after the all of the Starcraft 2 expansions are released.

This is truly a great game for lovers of fantasy, as two warring people battle with swords and magic for control.

World of Warcraft is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG). The game was released on November 23, 2004, on the 10th anniversary of the Warcraft franchise. WoW takes place within the world of Azeroth, approximately four years after the events at the conclusion of Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne. It continues the Warcraft storyline, and takes it one step further by putting you in the story. WoW actually holds the Guinness World Record for most subscribers (around 12 million in October of 2010, and rising). World of Warcraft is estimated to hold 62% of the MMORPG market.

As with most other MMORPGs, you control a single character in-game, exploring the landscape, fighting various monsters, completing quests, fighting other players, crafting things, and pretty much doing whatever your heart desires. The beauty of the game is that it's open-ended. You aren't limited as to what you can do, because there's so much available to you. $15 per month is a small price to pay for all of the time you can put into this game.

Starcraft is another successful Blizzard strategy game, which since the original release (1998) has spawned one expansion, one sequel, and one die-hard fan base.

Starcraft is set in a distant part of the Milky Way Galaxy known as the Koprulu Sector at the beginning of the 26th century. Long before any of the games, a species known as the Xel'Naga genetically engineered the Protoss and later the Zerg races in attempts to create pure beings. These experiments backfire, and the Xel'Naga are nearly destroyed by the Zerg. Later on, the government of Earth commissions a colonization program as part of a solution to overpopulation, and manages to send the Terran (Earth's race) to Protoss space, where they are promptly attacked by the Protoss and Zerg (who were already at war with one another). The three races battle for control.

As with Warcraft, many different tactics and strategies have been developed by players, allowing for very diverse gameplay in this RTS. With guns and aliens, this game is for everyone, but if you love sci-fi then you you must own this game.

In the universe there is an eternal conflict between the High Heavens (led by the Angiris Council) and the Burning Hells (led by the Prime Evils). Some of the angels and the demons grew tired of the conflict, and left to find a place untainted by the battle. Led by Lilith, the daughter of Mephisto (eldest of the Prime Evils), they ended up living together and eventually creating the world of Sanctuary. The high angel (Lilith's mate, Inarius) also created a massive crystal-like object known as the "Worldstone," which he bound to Sanctuary and himself. It hid Sanctuary from the High Heavens and Burning Hells. Over time, the union of angel and demon blood created beings with astounding powers, named "Nephalem". The Nephalem revolted, and eventually caught the attention of the Archangel Tyrael. He established the Horadrim to prevent the Prime Evils from taking over the world, but after many things went awry, Diablo (a Prime Evil) manifested once more, wreaking havoc on Sanctuary.

A truly great fantasy RPG, everyone should add this game to their arsenal. Diablo 3, coming out soon! Pick up one and two today.

In April of 2007, job ads showed up from Blizzard, seeking developers for a Next-Gen MMO. Toward the end of this year, a Blizzard employee said that it would not be an expansion for World of Warcraft, and that it would be totally new IP (intellectual property). This rules out World of Starcraft, a rumor of something that has been floating around for awhile now. (Sorry, it's not happening.)

Job listings indicate that Blizzard wants "2+ years game development experience modeling and texturing sci-fi and fantasy character armor and weapons for next-gen art pipelines." So it's Sci-Fi they want, but it sounds like they'd still like to keep some fantasy elements in the game.

Not much information has been released, but check back as this article will be updated as soon as news is available.

BlizzCon first started in October 2005, held at the Anaheim Convention Center where it has been held since. It's an annual convention of all things Blizzard, where you'll be the first to learn about all of the new projects, progress on current projects, and anything else Blizzard that's left to see.

Everyone in attendance gets a "Goodie Bag" filled with all things Blizzard, such as redeemable codes for in-game items, closed beta passes, and various other prizes. DirecTV carries Blizzcon as a PPV event ($39.95 for both days). All BlizzCon 2009 Pay Per View event purchasers received an exclusive "Grunty the Murloc Marine" World of Warcraft in-game pet and had access to the online stream for no additional cost, provided they entered their DIRECTV account number into the stream site login.

The metal band Tenacious D will be performing at Blizzcon 2010, and there have been other musical guests in years past such as Ozzy Osbourne. Blizzcon is a huge gathering of like-minded gamers, and is a great place to be.