[Turias]

If only I was accepted...

[phillryu]

Ahhhh crud!

[Adam Betts]

Haven't heard from them..

[benb]

Nor I. Probably a good thing though. I would spend way too much time with it.

But still.

[Liquidity X]

I GOT IN!!!!! Well I'm in the 2nd phase, in a few weeks i'll be contact with all the info, wo ho!

[phillryu]

Does anyone know what our chances were of getting in?

[OwlBoy]

Arg, me neither. Nor my friend on the PC who has been obsessing about it...

-Owl

[mac freak]

Seems like no one got into this, more or less. I've read threads on around 10 different forums, and Liquidity X, you're the FIRST person I've found to receive an email

[a2daj]

IIRC, it's a lottery, so everyone has an equal chance of getting in Mac or PC.

[::maroma::]

I didn't get in either. <cry>

[::maroma::]

I didn't get in either. <cry>

[Adam Betts]

Originally posted by ::maroma:::
I didn't get in either. <cry>

Blizzard said bwahahahaa:

[gbafan]

I'm in the 2nd phase as well.

[Adam Betts]

Originally posted by gbafan:
I'm in the 2nd phase as well.

[Liquidity X]

See:

Congratulations!_ You have been selected to participate in the upcoming
second phase of the World of Warcraft(tm) beta test!

The first phase has just begun, and we wanted to let you know that your turn
is right around the corner._ In just a few weeks, we'll be emailing you the
information you'll need to create your account, download the World of
Warcraft beta, and start playing!

Until then, please be patient and do not contact us to inquire about the
beta test. In addition to sending you the email mentioned above, we will
also make an announcement on our Beta Community Site --
http://www.worldofwarcraft.com -- when your phase of the beta test has
started. Please feel free to start browsing that site now for a variety of
information on the World of Warcraft beta, such as news updates and basic
tips on playing the game.

See ya in Azeroth soon!

Donna "Katricia" Anthony
Community Manager
World of Warcraft


so i guess i get to bypass the bugs and just concentrait on the fun side man i can't wait!

[Turias]

So... much... jealousy!

[phillryu]

Oh well, back to playing frozen throne :'(

[::maroma::]

Woah! I just got the email today! I'm in the first phase. And it looks like the first phasers will be playing in the 2nd phase too!

Me happy now!

[::maroma::]

Oh man, the download is about 2GB! And I'm getting roughly 6 KB/s on a cable connection.

Estimated Time Remaining: 142 hours, 58 minutes

[OwlBoy]

Originally posted by ::maroma:::
Oh man, the download is about 2GB! And I'm getting roughly 6 KB/s on a cable connection.

Estimated Time Remaining: 142 hours, 58 minutes

Aww you suck!



Can you post screen shots of the mac part? (Icons, folder structure, any aqua windows the app may have, etc)

People are posting screenshots all over and not getting in trouble so don't worry bout that.

-Owl

[::maroma::]

Originally posted by OwlBoy:
Aww you suck!



Can you post screen shots of the mac part? (Icons, folder structure, any aqua windows the app may have, etc)

People are posting screenshots all over and not getting in trouble so don't worry bout that.

-Owl

Yeah, Blizzard says the NDA that the Alpha testers were under has been lifted. That means we can post screenshots of the in game play, etc. They did say that we can't post any movies of the game though. I'll post all those screenshots you requested ASAP. More requests are welcome. I'll do what I can.

Download speed getting faster. I'm 5.4% done! Blizzard is using bittorrent to distribute this, and I've uploaded more than I've downloaded by about 50MB! I suppose the download speeds will get faster as time goes on.

[rbarris]

make sure you have reset your upload cap speed to 20KB/s or less.

On the original Mac WoW downloader, this setting was hidden - hit the chiclet at the upper-right corner of the DL window to expose it, type in a "20" or "10" into that left most text edit field.

On the currently available version of the downloader (at worldofwarcraft.com after you log in), we changed it to put it in plain sight once the DL begins.

Limiting upload speed is a good way to de-congest your connection and improve overall throughput, especially on cable modems!

Rob @ Blizzard

[::maroma::]

Originally posted by rbarris:
make sure you have reset your upload cap speed to 20KB/s or less.

On the original Mac WoW downloader, this setting was hidden - hit the chiclet at the upper-right corner of the DL window to expose it, type in a "20" or "10" into that left most text edit field.

On the currently available version of the downloader (at worldofwarcraft.com after you log in), we changed it to put it in plain sight once the DL begins.

Limiting upload speed is a good way to de-congest your connection and improve overall throughput, especially on cable modems!

Rob @ Blizzard

Thanks for the tip. Luckily, the upload cap was set to 20 by default. And now my download speeds are up to 150-200 KB/s, so I am a happy camper! I'm up to 25% complete.

And I'd like to commend you on the ease of this process. This is my first experience beta testing something like this, and it couldn't have been easier.

[OwlBoy]

Not to be a silly n00b or anything but: sweet! A guy from blizzard posted here! (this thread)

-Owl

[::maroma::]

Here are some screenshots of the Mac OS elements:

Download Window



Folder Contents



Application Info



I'm about to fire it up. I'll be back in the morning.

[Paco500]

I've been in the freinds and family alpha test for a few weeks, and have moved into the beta test. Let me say first and foremost, I'm not a hard-core gamer. Not really even a soft-core gamer.

But this is awesome.

The only games I ever really played w/ fervor were Warcraft and Warcraft II, and although I bought Warcraft III, I never really got into it. I spent a good amount of time playing Ultima Online, but it got pretty old. I was part of the Everquest Mac beta test, but never came close to getting into it.

I have played WoW mostly on a PC (P4, 2.6GHz, 1GB RAM Radeon 9600Pro, 128MB), but have also played on my TiBook 800, 1GB RAM. Although the PB does not meet minimum specs(G4 867), it's playable. But the PC plays it better (should be expected, faster processor, much better video card).

It's too late and I'm too tired to go in to detail, but this is definately a game I'll be playing a lot more of down the road. If anyone has any specific questions, I'll be glad to answer.

The good poeple a Blizzard should be commended. They have put together an amazing game- and they treated us mac folks with much love.

[Jsnuff1]

Maroma! hahah hey i got in first phase too...you replyed to one of my posts...didnt know you were a macnner too. I dont know if you saw my post in the wow forum but im in a bit of tangle. Im behind a university firewall so im downloading at a rate of 2kb/s through bitTorrent. Could you do me the biggest favor and do a direct transfer with me after you finish your download. It would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks for any help.

[Paco500]

Originally posted by Jsnuff1:
Maroma! hahah hey i got in first phase too...you replyed to one of my posts...didnt know you were a macnner too. I dont know if you saw my post in the wow forum but im in a bit of tangle. Im behind a university firewall so im downloading at a rate of 2kb/s through bitTorrent. Could you do me the biggest favor and do a direct transfer with me after you finish your download. It would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks for any help.

nevermind.

[mrgreen4242]

Hi everyone -

This is my first post, and I am already asking for a favor... I was wondering/hoping that one of you who got into the first stage of beta happens to have one fo the newish iBooks (G4 800/933 models w/ the ati 9200 video card).

I am asking if there's anyway you could test out WoW on there for me, Blizzard has even said its ok to put it on two systems, as long as you don't use them concurrently (despite what the program says, they specifically stated people could do it on the official forum). So even if you have a super mac, and just have a lil 12" iBook for the road, maybe you throw it on and give it a shot?!

I ask so desperately because I am about to pick up a new laptop to bring with me on an overseas military deployment. (I can't say where, etc, for securoty reasons). But, I will have internet access there, and a new/good MMORPG is just the time suck that I need to pass the hours away from my family. (I'm a techinician in a non direct combat or combat support unit... in fact, I can safely say I will be in a situation where boredom will be my #1 enemy).

I am a PC user right now (it's not as bad as it sounds, I use Linux mostly, except for games). Can't bring this big ole' p4 desktop with me, and will have no real use for a laptop when I get home... which is why the decision(sp?) to get a Mac.

Since I won't really need it when I get home, I am going the cheap route, (that, and I am poor), so my choices are between the 12" and 14"/933 iBooks. The price difference is only about $200, so it's not a huge deal, but the super small/light 12" would be great. BUT, if it's completely unable to play WoW, then the 933mhz model may be in my future!

Looks like I am leaving in about a month, so I'll be grabbing the iBook right about then. Wow, all that just to ask if someone could let me know how this program runs! Sorry, I tend to run on and on!

[phillryu]

Originally posted by Paco500:
nevermind.

You do need a cd key to install it right?

[Jsnuff1]

yes, even the downloader asks for a cd-key before you can download it

[JB72]

Congrats to Liquidity and Maroma. You lucky bastages!

Question for Rob @ Blizzard; is the Mac code multithreaded? Dual CPU aware?

Tanks.

[Liquidity X]

thanx, this is my 3rd Beta, tested EQ, D.H. Lore (soon to be released) and now this.

[phillryu]

Oh yeah? I got EQ and FT under my belt.

[::maroma::]

Wow! What a game! It completely killed my ambition to do anything else this weekend, even sleep!

This is my first MMORPG, and beta test experience, but it has gone very smoothly. I've picked up the gameplay very quickly, and while I still have a lot to learn, I feel like I am competing pretty well. That's a testament to how well done this game is, even for newbies like me.

The graphic, scenery and shear size of the world are really amazing. Gameplay is fun, and you can pretty much pace it to suit your preference. You can wonder around for hours, admiring the scenery and exploring the towns and cities, or you can take on many quests, or just practice and get EXP by taking on the beasts and monsters scattered throughout.

Does anyone have any questions or requests?

[::maroma::]

Originally posted by Jsnuff1:
Maroma! hahah hey i got in first phase too...you replyed to one of my posts...didnt know you were a macnner too. I dont know if you saw my post in the wow forum but im in a bit of tangle. Im behind a university firewall so im downloading at a rate of 2kb/s through bitTorrent. Could you do me the biggest favor and do a direct transfer with me after you finish your download. It would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks for any help.

Hey man.. did you get it yet? Sorry I didn't see this until now. I was a little busy.

[redJag]

Originally posted by ::maroma:::
Does anyone have any questions or requests?

Your system specs and how it runs on your computer (I know it's still beta, still curious). Is there an FPS counter? How about some screens of the beautiful scenery? :-)

[JB72]

Originally posted by Liquidity X:
thanx, this is my 3rd Beta, tested EQ, D.H. Lore (soon to be released) and now this.

That's cool. I did Star Wars Galaxies last year (Windows obviously.) It was my first beta, and I thought the process was very engaging, and I'm glad I did it. Although that test seemed to go "live" much earlier, so a the start we were really dealing with a very raw game (no combat!)

[JB72]

Originally posted by ::maroma:::
This is my first MMORPG, and beta test experience, but it has gone very smoothly. I've picked up the gameplay very quickly, and while I still have a lot to learn, I feel like I am competing pretty well. That's a testament to how well done this game is, even for newbies like me.

The graphic, scenery and shear size of the world are really amazing. Gameplay is fun, and you can pretty much pace it to suit your preference. You can wonder around for hours, admiring the scenery and exploring the towns and cities, or you can take on many quests, or just practice and get EXP by taking on the beasts and monsters scattered throughout.

Does anyone have any questions or requests?

I'm definitely jealous. I don't have all that much time for gaming these days, so I've limited myself to WoW when it comes out. Blizzard just seems to know how to do things right, and I'm so grateful that they are still loyal to Mac.

I'm pretty good now as far as info in concerned. There's been such a plethora of screenshots etc. released. SteveFett's beta journal is a particularly good read.

[::maroma::]

Originally posted by redJag:
Your system specs and how it runs on your computer (I know it's still beta, still curious). Is there an FPS counter? How about some screens of the beautiful scenery? :-)

System Specs:

G4/1.3GHz Powermac (Upgraded G4/500 Sawtooth)
1GB RAM
GeForce3 (flashed PC card)
21" Apple CRT

The game runs surprisingly well on my machine, on moderate settings. Coming from playing a lot of Warcraft III, I was expecting my Mac to be hobbling along. But it runs well on mid range settings. I think the video options are limited right now, because there isn't much control. Performance seems to also be affected by the number of players online, and of course how much is going on on-screen. But so far I'm very happy with performance. I would wager that a G5 would run this game perfectly well on the highest settings.

As for screens, I have tried to take screen grabs using OS X's key combo, but they come out with big oddities in them. I haven't figured out the in-game key for screen grabs yet (if there is one for Mac). So when I figure that out, I'll post some.

[OwlBoy]

-

[NemesisEG]

Excellent link JB *runs off to have a look*

We're waiting for confirmation of the EU test stage and then, hopefully, I'll get in. Downloaded the videos from Blizzard and it's looking very nice. Very nice indeed.

As for Galaxies it's still not that engaging. I had a look a month ago after spending a while with the beta and it's just clunky and not that fun.

EVE, on the other hand, is quite superb. PC only for now...but you never know!

[lenox]

The screenshots look beautiful. I am also impressed to hear how well it runs on moderate hardware. I'd like to know how optimized it is for dual processors and G4/G5's, though, because I have two desktops at home : a dual 867 mac with a radeon 8500 (flashed) and an athlon xp running at 1.47ghz with a radeon 9000 pro.

Usually, Blizzard's game discs are dual-platform so I shouldn't have to worry. I just wanted to know which system would play it better. Guess I'll find out when it comes out!

In the meantime, I might just pay for 3 more months of ragnarok online.

[JB72]

Originally posted by NemesisEG:
As for Galaxies it's still not that engaging. I had a look a month ago after spending a while with the beta and it's just clunky and not that fun.

I kind of miswrote there. I meant the process of beta testing a game was engaging. The end result was pretty disappointing IMHO.

[Turias]

Everytime I open my inbox, I look for a message from Blizzard.

I have yet to see one.

Send out those Phase 3 e-mails!

[JB72]

Originally posted by JB72:
Question for Rob @ Blizzard; is the Mac code multithreaded? Dual CPU aware?

I just found this on the WoW beta site:

Effort we spend on optimizing the Mac version will tend to be aimed at improving frame rate on lower end G4 systems as a first choice - raising the top end frame rates on G5 systems is a secondary goal. As it turns out, most changes we make to benefit G4 also help G5 systems so it works out OK.

With respect to dual processor support, the game is already multithreaded, the impact this has is that you have a smoother experience when moving around in the world since the majority of the file loading can be handled on the second processor (also sound mixing and 3D sound processing).

In general a dual processor machine will -not- be twice as fast as the equivalent single processor system, but you will notice smoother gameplay and almost zero penalty for enabling lots of sound effect options.

Rob

That works for me.

[OwlBoy]

Oh my, I am going to have to get a lot of hours this summer to save up for a new G5

I know I don't need the top of the line, but if I am upgrading, I might as well go all out this time

This game will support Widescreen monitors right?
-Owl

[cSurfr]

Too bad that when I signed up, all i had was a lowly PC, and now I have a pretty dfecent Mac. Can't register 2 times from the same address or you're disqualified. Hook up the mac faithful Rob!!!

[cSurfr]

oh yeah, one more thing....any idea if my current 64mb radeon 9000 is going to be able to run this game well? I know someone out there knows the answer...

[::maroma::]

Originally posted by cSurfr:
oh yeah, one more thing....any idea if my current 64mb radeon 9000 is going to be able to run this game well? I know someone out there knows the answer...

Well, it runs just fine on my 64MB GeForce3, so I don't see why not. Especially if they improve the game before release.

I think this will be the game that makes me upgrade my Mac to a big fat G5. I want to be able to run this game at maxed out settings. It's too beautiful not to!