I'll get right to it: it's been a very eventful week (isn't it always?), and I'm almost literally out the door to attend this year's Gen Con gaming expo in scenic, and exciting, Indianapolis. I've never been to the Midwest, mind you, so I have no idea what to expect. This will also be my first Gen Con, and though I have a general idea as to what to expect, I'm sure my preconceptions can only touch on the reality. I'm envisioning miles upon miles of folding tables with DM screens propped on them, veritable mountains of aluminum soda cans, and several small countries' net worth of Magic cards changing hands. This is probably only the beginning. In any case, I'm excited as to what I'll see, who I'll get to talk to, and just how many middle-aged men in halfling costumes I'll get to photograph. Wish me luck, especially in accomplishing the latter.

Anyway, on to this MMORPG stuff. Two of the biggest names on the scene have a whole lot going on this week, one of which is yet to be released. That's never stopped anything from being buzzworthy, though, so I'll lead off with that. Before I get to that, let me implore you, as always, to send me any comments, concerns, or criticisms you have about this column. This is a by-the-people, for-the-people production, so do your part. Many of you have asked me to write about Horizons, and trust me, I'm on it. I'm just trying to get up to speed on the (very sticky) matter, as I've never played the game and haven't had a whole lot of time to delve into its community. In fact, if you want to school me on the subject, feel free to do so. I give credit where it's due, and this issue seems like it needs someone close to it to aid in its unraveling.

World of WarCraft

So the latest patch has brought to the beta two of the features that y'all have been clamoring for the most: the implementation of rogue and priest talents, and the inclusion of the hunter class. There's also been an increase to the level cap (it's now at 55), and a couple of new transportation options have been added -- boats and goblin zeppelins. Of foremost import to you guys is most likely the hunter class.


From here (mind you, I'm yet roll one up), it seems like a substantial pet class, with secondary damage-dealing capabilities, by means of ranged weapons. The ability to train multiple pets is an interesting one, but I'm curious as to how much of a pain it will be to keep their "happiness" rating high enough for them to be effective. I'm kind of liking how one acquires pet abilities -- basically, if you tame a monster, you're able to add its abilities to your general repertoire, which you can teach your other pets -- and it seems like roaming around the world "collecting" new ones will be a cool solo pursuit. The pulling-related skills seem cool, too, though I wonder how exactly something like "Eagle Eye" (which allows you to zoom your view, in order to spot distant targets) will be implemented. Overall, it seems like a cool, versatile, and fun-to-play class. I'm looking forward to giving it a whirl. If any of you out there have managed to make any headway into the profession, let me know how you're feeling it.