General WoD Alpha/Beta Discussion

[Netherspark]

@Netherspark: So someone having access to alpha suddenly means he knows everything about all the storylines that are about to unfold in that expansion and future content patches? Yeah, I don't think so, lol.

You're just being silly now. I think you need to let it go, tbh.

No. Someone who has access to alpha must have played it to get the knowledge you claim to have. If you have played it you must have knowledge of the rest of the game as well, but you don't. Selective memory?

How could you have played the alpha to the point of knowing something late-game, but nothing before that?


Why do you dance around questions instead of answering them?

[Orlong]

'PVP favoritism'? I get that you're paranoid
Three raid blog and one pvp blog really makes confirms 'PVP favoritism, right?

But its not just this one blog. There have been at least 8 PVP oriented blogs and 2 blogs about old raids doesnt counter any of it. We still no next to nothing about any of the PVE content (raids/dungeons/garrisons/pet battles/brawlers guild/challenge modes/proving grounds/achievements/professions etc...)

[Imnick]

I honestly don't think it's that strange for someone to expect that if you know the storyline of the endgame zone, which requires you to be at the level cap to enter, not even slightly finished on any alpha client we've been able to see then that couldn't be your only piece of information. You know nothing else except something you couldn't have seen without getting a capped character and somehow homing in on that zone despite no hints that there'd be something there?
It's a bit of a tall story.

[Edoran]

Going back a few pages, remember Blizz said (I don't remember the source, I just know they said it) that we will have PLENTY of notice on the pre-patch because of how it affects raid teams and guilds.

PTR or not, there's no way that goes live without a couple months notice.

[Marlamin]

Nobody currently has access to the alpha (the realms are also down), and in the first public alpha build the only open zone was Frostfire Ridge.

Other zones were protected by No Man's Land and ported you out as soon as you zoned in.

[Krazzorx]

It's not like pve is radically changing though outside of healers. And there's not much to discuss on the healers side for pve until we at least see the fights.

I mean, what's there to talk about for raiding? Other than the raid formats changing, which we're getting a blog today on, raiding isn't changing. Raiding can't really be discussed without context of the bosses we are fighting. PvP can somewhat.

I just can't think of any PvE blog we could have outside of the one they are doing, and one discussing the 2 raids. And the pvp equivelant of a scouting report on Highmaul/Foundry would be a blog on Ashran which we also haven't gotten yet.

[Deleted]

It's nearly been a month since the alpha announcement. I'm in the F&F program, but still no invite Still employee only.

I wonder when Blizzard will start the real alpha.

[Ehnoah]

Let's see what F&F Alpha say... maybe next week... =/

[Arbs]

@Netherspark: Marlamin just answered your questions. Alpha access right now happens in very limited fashion with very specific zones being made available for testing.

Or how do you think they managed to post an alpha screenshot of Ashran on the frontpage (while the realms are down)? Do you think their characters leveled through all the zones before they were able to playtest Ashran?

Uhh from the use of a Sandbox duh?

Teleport commands

It is how we get into the Raids, Dungeon, Phased Ashran etc.

[Spriggs]

@Netherspark: Marlamin just answered your questions. Alpha access right now happens in very limited fashion with very specific zones being made available for testing.

Or how do you think they managed to post an alpha screenshot of Ashran on the frontpage (while the realms are down)? Do you think their characters leveled through all the zones before they were able to playtest Ashran?

That Ashran picture was from a WoW dev on Twitter.

[Marlamin]

Uhh from the use of a Sandbox duh?

Teleport commands

It is how we get into the Raids, Dungeon, Phased Ashran etc.

He's talking about the Ashran screenshot on the frontpage, which was obviously (i dont even know why i have to say this) taken on internal realms, not the realms used for external (such as F&F) alpha.

[Selindis]

This back and forth about the Emerald Dream being in Warlords, even if it's a bunch of crap, is yet another reason I'm looking forward to the game. I won't be disappointed if it goes either way. We'll find out soon enough though; and I will remember and come back when it's time to give kudos or ostracize.

[Arbs]

He's talking about the Ashran screenshot on the frontpage, which was obviously (i dont even know why i have to say this) taken on internal realms, not the realms used for external (such as F&F) alpha.

Well their we go.

[Imnick]

He's talking about the Ashran screenshot on the frontpage, which was obviously (i dont even know why i have to say this) taken on internal realms, not the realms used for external (such as F&F) alpha.

Would you say that there's any chance that anyone who's not a Blizzard employee has had access to this at this stage?

[Marlamin]

Would you say that there's any chance that anyone who's not a Blizzard employee has had access to this at this stage?

Access to the internal realms? No, only Blizzard employees (and probably not all of them either) can get on there.

Access to normal alpha realms was only possible during the PAX incident for a very small amount of people (who could only access Frostfire Ridge).

[Marlamin]

Journalists and the likes sometimes get access to them under NDA. Sometimes just visiting the Blizz HQ in US or even France requires an NDA agreement to be signed for this very reason.

Those are probably separate realms from the internal realms the dev team uses to playtest Ashran and such.

[Netherspark]

Same as to how some people got to know about the Emerald Dream stuff in Tanaan.

This response implies you've played on Blizzard's own internal realms... Is that what you're saying?

Journalists and the likes sometimes get access to them under NDA. Sometimes just visiting the Blizz HQ in US or even France requires an NDA agreement to be signed for this very reason.

So you are now saying your access to WoD Alpha was a special setup for journalists etc at one of Blizzard's HQs. Is this correct?

Was this your only access to the alpha, or have you played it by other means as well?


Be clear please. In what context have you played WoD alpha?

[Imnick]

Access to the internal realms? No, only Blizzard employees (and probably not all of them either) can get on there.

Access to normal alpha realms was only possible during the PAX incident for a very small amount of people (who could only access Frostfire Ridge).

Thanks, confirmed what I already believed
There's no reason journalists would have access to something as unfinished as their internal pre-alpha builds right? I mean... that's just common sense. The only stuff there finished enough for them to want to give it press coverage is stuff they'll release themselves, and there's no point giving journalists access to test servers which have an NDA when they have multiple months before said NDA would be lifted. That's just asking for a leak, or bad publicity due to unfinished content, or both.

[Marlamin]

Thanks, confirmed what I already believed
There's no reason journalists would have access to something as unfinished as their pre-alpha builds right? I mean... that's just common sense. The only stuff there finished enough for them to want to give it press coverage is stuff they'll release themselves.

Sure, they give previews sometimes at press events and the such but those are pretty limited.

As far as I know only SMV and maaaaaaaybe Frostfire Ridge was demo'd at press events, no other zones.

P.S. This all excludes playtesters, who are tasked to go through content (at Blizz) during/in the last phases of development for that content.

[enchanted]

Well Simca did say that F&F Alpha was supposed to start either yesterday or before. I believe it will start on Friday (hopefully).