Blizzard has launched the 3.3.5 patch for its
World of Warcraft MMO and those who are interested in the minutiae of changes affecting each class and the game world in general can take a look at the full patch notes on the official site of the developer.
But one of the most interesting changes made in the patch is the introduction of chat abilities that work cross faction, cross server and, to everyone's surprise, cross game. This basically means that once StarCraft II is out, those who are engaged in one of the two games can quickly contact their friends playing the other.
Battle.net now uses something called Real ID, described by Blizzard as “a completely voluntary and optional level of identity that keeps players connected across all of Battle.net. When you and a friend mutually agree to become Real ID friends, you'll have access to a number of additional features that will enrich your social gaming experience in new and exciting ways.” The idea is to make it simpler for those who are friends to find themselves, see what they are playing and send messages to one another.
Blizzard has been talking a lot about the idea of a community built around its titles and the changes to Battle.net recently made seem close to rendering it a sort of proto social network. In a way, the company is mirroring the path Valve took with Steam, which started off as a way to deliver patches and evolved into a digital distribution service that also brings groups of gamers together.
StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty is set to be launched on July 27 and will be the first of three games that tell the story of how the conflict of Terrans, Protoss and Zerg is playing out. This first release will be focused on Jim Raynor and his rag tag band of fighters with Blizzard promising more than 20 single player missions to play through.
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