Blizzard fan boys ... and girls, do I have news for you!
Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has announced a partnership with Blizzard Entertainment that will not only make ATI Radeon graphics cards more appealing to a new buyer, but will also put Blizz's premiere titles in the hands of far more gamers.
As part of AMD's new "GAME!" Initiative, they want to reach out and influence the most PC gamers that they can, and what better way to do that than to partner with Blizzard Entertainment, the company that has managed to captivate over 10 million WoW fans. To do this they have agreed to "bundle Blizzard's best games across all ATI Radeon" graphics products."
We, the gaming press, as well as the thousands of other fans who will converge on the Anaheim Convention Center on October 10 for BlizzCon '08, will get to experience what WoW: Wrath of the Litch King, StarCraft II, and maybe even an early build of Diablo III feels like when powered by an ATI Radeon" HD 4800 series card, as AMD is the official graphics sponsor for the event.
"Our collaboration with AMD is especially important to us because it provides us with early access to some of the latest graphics technology," said Paul Sams, chief operating officer of Blizzard Entertainment. "Delivering a polished game experience is one of our top priorities, and this relationship helps us achieve that goal for Blizzard gamers who choose AMD graphics cards."
Recently Blizzard's Bob Colayco spoke with Joystiq.com and told them that graphics is a huge reason why Blizzard has taken so long in developing StarCraft II.
"The truth is that only recently have we had this kind of 3D power where we're able to create a real Starcraft experience in 3D. What we want to see are hundreds of vehicles and creatures clashing on the battlefield, with dynamic lighting and shadows and all of these dazzling special effects -- that's the kind of gaming experience that our players expect from us," said Colayco.
This collaboration with AMD will not only provide Blizzard gamers with a rich experience now, but should help Blizzard develop titles better and faster in the future.
"Blizzard Entertainment is responsible for the hottest titles in PC gaming and AMD is excited to be working closely with one of the top development teams in the industry to deliver exceptional gaming experiences for players around the world," said Rick Bergman, senior vice president and general manager, Graphics Products, AMD.
It's no secret that PC gaming has taken a backseat to the next-gen consoles, some say PC gaming is flat out dying. Others, like myself, think that PC gaming is simply evolving, like the newspaper industry, it's trying to find it's place in an ever changing market. WoW is proof of the PC's evolution and AMD has positioned itself to help the industry continue to evolve, if only to keep their profit margins from slipping. By packaging their cards with some of the gaming industries best new titles they help consumers better understand gaming technology, making it easier to purchase the right systems needed for high-definition gaming.
Consoles appeal to the masses because they are ready-to-play out of the box, PC gaming is a little more complicated. System requirements come in to play and for many that turns a casual pastime into more work than it's worth. The "AMD GAME!" initiative looks to remove the "work" from PC gaming and make it easy as pie for anyone, and hopefully rack up bigger profits and in the process.
"Gamers have a variety of choices when it comes to graphics cards," said Bergman. "Those who choose ATI Radeon solutions can be confident their purchase will give them the visually rich, high-performance experience they expect."
Translation: We'd like you to stop purchasing nVIDIA cards and give your money to us.
