Instead of just expanding your current World of Warcraft game with the upcoming Wrath of the Lich King, Blizzard announced an entirely new sequel that will “take you to the next step in interactive gaming”. Check out the video to see the surprising new (yet strangely familiar) direction Blizzard is taking the franchise.

I strangely feel as though I’ve already played this game…

Modern day marriages often end with the bride keeping her last name, so why the look of awe on so many faces when two large corporations exchange vows, swap a little ink, and walk away bowlegged and smiling with the same brand recognition they had going into the deal?

This is true for Activision Blizzard, who after one final share holder vote on July 8th, will forever merge the world of warcraft with the world of modern warfare.

So bust out your mud covered food rations, and fill your gnomish hands with as many mana pots as you can stuff into a twenty slot bag, because gaming as we know it is about to change — for better, for worse, till poor sales do they part.

When I read this headline yesterday, I came very close to needing to change my pants. Thankfully, I realized the error of the situation.

Blizzard is known for their fondness of April Fool’s shenanigans, and once again taunted the gullible with glimpses of what might be if the twisted minds of Blizzard employees were really set loose upon the gaming world. It took me a few seconds to make the connection, and when I did my heart sank.

Oh, how I wish April Fools didn’t exist.

According to the WoW website: “Armed with a trusty axe, killer riffs, and a ton of attitude, the guitar-wielding bard is the second hero class to be introduced in the upcoming Wrath of the Lich King expansion for World of Warcraft.”

Basically, you mix Guitar Hero and WoW (Blizzard and Activision) and you get the bard. Its funny, its clever, it throws in a quote from Spinal Tap, everyone has a laugh and moves on.

Oh, how I wish April Fools didn’t exist.

You see, for those of you who jumped on the MMO train with WoW probably don’t know the beauty (and danger to any sort of social life) that was EverQuest. I played a few classes, but nothing ever compared to the Bard. It was the best class, hands down.

They could do a little bit of everything with their instruments, like a musical Swiss-Army knife. Bards could “twist” the songs and get multiple effects going at any given time. Casters loved bards for their mana song – effectively turning Bards into a mana fountain that spewed blue bar regeneration.

They could stun, charm, trance, fear, kite, haste, run, direct damage – anything any class could do, they could do it too. Hell, they even wore plate and could dual wield. With a truly unique play style that was both engaging and simple to use, they made for the most all round enjoyable play experience.

Sadly, the bard class has fallen by the wayside of late. Sure, you can play one in “Vanguard,” but who wants to suffer through that when Warcrack is readily available?

So you can see why Blizzard seemingly harmless jests nearly cost me a pair of underwear. I thought they had just answered my prayers. But, it was April First.

Blizzard announced today that its overly-popular MMO, World of WarCraft, is headed to consoles in a spin-off entitled “The Molten Core”. We here at Ripten are excited about the possibilities of this concept, and I’m putting my money down that this is going to be the best game ever created. Find out why.

One of the first things I heard that made me stiff in the pants was this:

“Blizzard got its start in console gaming, and we’ve always been excited about returning to this arena. Additionally, we’ve wanted to reintroduce the 40-player raid dungeon experience for some time. With World of Warcraft: The Molten Core, we’re able to do both.”

Those words are straight from the mouth of Mike Morhaime, CEO and co-founder of Blizzard Entertainment. Sounds neat, right? Well it looks even neater! Check this out!

Sorry, that was a very conveniently misplaced ad. Here is the real screenshot:

Awesome, I know. Blizzard rounds out the details by indicating that there will be different shapes and colors to represent the different classes in World of WarCraft. They also have a sweet teaser trailer. Check it out!

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World of WarCraft: The Molten Core will be available soon for the Atari 2600, with a planned release on other consoles depending on sales. Read more about the 2008 Game of the Year (yes, I’m calling it now) at Blizzard’s site, or check out an exclusive sneak peek at the game here.

World of WarCraft’s latest patch, dubbed “Fury of the Sunwell”, is alive and kicking as of right now. Jump on your epic mount and find out what’s new.

The official description of the patch is as follows:

The glorious fount of arcane energy known as the Sunwell empowered the high elves for millennia, until the death knight Arthas laid siege to the elven kingdom and corrupted its sacred energies. Seeing no other alternative, a band of survivors led by Prince Kael’thas destroyed the ancient fount. Over time the surviving elves fell pray to a crippling magical withdrawal.

Now, promising salvation for his people, Kael’thas has returned. Soon the Sunwell will shine once again, but whether the sacred fount will usher in deliverance or destruction remains to be seen.

A full list of the patch notes can be found here (good luck getting it to load within the next 3 days though). In addition to all of the changes (some for the worse depending on your perspective and/or class), Blizzard has dedicated this update in memory of Gary Gygax, one of the creative minds behind the epitome of dorkdom: Dungeons and Dragons.

It’s nice to see that Blizzard still remembers where all their inspiration came from — now they just need to set the record straight on how much they ripped off Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000 (WarCraft and StarCraft, respectively).

A good many of you will be saddened to learn that the Human Illusion from the Noggenfogger Elixir no longer works outside of Old Hillsbrad. This, as you may know, is not the first time Blizzard has removed or changed something that people do just for kicks and has no real impact on the gameplay. Blizzard simply doesn’t like it if you have too much fun.