One of the things I love about MMOs such as World of Warcraft is the sheer amount of creativity that goes into the game, and that comes from the game -- it's a fandom (if you'll pardon the term) that inspires...well, some pretty amazing things. Machinima, the art of making videos through in-game footage, is one of those things.
For example, the folks from Pure Pwnage (the the very same who brought you "World of Warcraft is a Feeling") have just released a machinima for the holidays, aptly titled "Christmas Time in Dun Morogh":
Humor is a popular topic for most videos, quite possibly because it translates so well into the medium, and because the game itself lends itself to moments of sheer comedy, such as the human male dance shown in the above video. Yet, there are others still who offer movies for their audiences, using the game's engine to create and control their actors and settings. Rufuscubed's Return is a fan favorite that received various accolades; in fact, one of the makers now works at Blizzard because of this movie (and its second trailer).
However, a little under two weeks ago, Martin Falch released -- get this -- a 90-minute machinima. Tales of the Past III is the final part of Falch's epic trilogy (the first and second parts were 15 minutes and 41 minutes in length, respectively). It features an impressive story, a large cast of players and voice actors, and some very impressive large-scale battle scenes, as well as a hefty 2GB download size. Fortunately, the movie is also offered streamed here, so if you have 90 minutes to spare, it's well worth a watch. It's a terrifyingly impressive effort that really showcases the flexibility of a digital source -- even a video game like WoW. When you consider that movies like this can be masterminded by one person alone...well, it's certainly a powerful example of the potential of a participatory culture, to say the least.
And on that note, happy holidays, everyone!
