You can find GameSpot associate editor Bob Colayco at [email protected]. You just won't find him in a murloc costume anytime soon.

　　So, we must wait to see where processing power and mental energies converge. Will characters in games start using thought processes that seem genuinely human? Or are we doomed to a lifetime of people standing out in the open while repeating their less-than-genius-level routines? I want to expect more from my games, yet I too keep coming back for more of my favorites, which perhaps don't have all the advancements I'm looking for. Then again, it's said that a sign of insanity is when you repeat the same action over and over and expect a different result.

　　Of course, coming back over and over again to our favorites is a perfectly natural thing and part of human nature. For instance, we all have our favorite restaurants and usually pick from a short list of favorite items on the menu. When it comes to film and books, we all have our favorite directors and authors. So it's no big surprise that as players, we tend to follow certain developers over time, the ones who have a proven track record of quality games that we rely on. That's what makes gaming conventions like QuakeCon so popular--eventually a critical mass of fans develop, who are willing to fly, drive, or hitchhike to a stuffy convention center, mingle with other like-minded folks, and get a chance to celebrate their favorites.

　　Who said I missed Halloween by attending Blizzcon? I saw plenty of people in costume!

　　So as a formerly avid Starcraft, Diablo, and Warcraft II player and currently avid World of Warcraft player, it was a no-brainer for me to head out to sunny Southern California for the first-ever Blizzcon convention. No, I wasn't going in any official capacity. I actually took time off and went to the con for leisure as opposed to work (though I did end up happily assisting our crew down there with a couple of write-ups). Yes, I'm not ashamed to admit that my idea of a great time on a Halloween weekend was to drive 400 miles to hang out with several thousand other Blizzard game players. Dress up in a costume and hit a club in San Francisco for boozing, dancing, and carousing? Nah--I can do that any other weekend. Instead I was on the scene in Anaheim drinking in the first details on the upcoming World of Warcraft expansion pack. I actually got a chance to play both that and Starcraft: Ghost, as well as watch some professional Starcraft and Warcraft III tournaments. I had a blast, and it was even more enjoyable since I was with a few friends who also play a lot of WOW.

　　If you've never been to a game fan convention (or "gamecon" for short) before but have been thinking of going, you should definitely do it (there's a pretty big one happening this December in San Francisco). Blizzcon's actually the second major gamecon I've attended. The first was QuakeCon 2002--and the experiences were well worth the trip both times. The first hours you spend at a gamecon are often a somewhat surreal experience. The first thing you'll notice at a gamecon, aside from cosplayers dressed up as characters from their favorite games, or people strutting around with game-related tattoos or hairdos, is the type of conversations you'll overhear. It's one thing to be standing in line at a movie theater and happen to catch someone talking about a game you know. It's quite another to be around thousands of people and have all of them talking about games you really enjoy.

　　"…then after killing Ragnaros, the Perdition's Blade dropped and a retarded warrior tried to roll on it…"

　　"…so I was teching up to reavers, but the guy nine-pooled me and 'lings were all over my base…"

　　"…when the hell are they going to announce Starcraft 2?"

　　It's just not the kind of thing I'm used to. But instead of making me more comfortable, it actually felt wrong, somehow--at least at first. If you're like me and have a few friends who avidly play games, but a lot of friends who don't, then being immersed in such an environment will definitely be a big culture shock. But after a while you grow more used to the idea, and talking with random people at the con all of a sudden doesn't seem so odd, especially because you know you have an immediate common ground.

　　The other odd thing about the weekend at Blizzcon was that the things I expected to do and enjoy the most were not the things I ended up doing and enjoying the most while I was there. I went there specifically to try out the new expansion pack for World of Warcraft and to play some Starcraft Ghost. While I did do that, and while I did have fun with those games, I really felt like I got the most fun out of listening to panel discussions led by Blizzard developers who talked about how they designed certain aspects of WOW, such as the quests, the items, the professions, and the dungeons. It was refreshing to hear the Blizzard developers be really frank about the mistakes they made in designing certain aspects of their game, and how they learned from them. So if you go to a gamecon and see panel discussions on the schedule, don't dismiss them because they sound like they're going to be boring lectures; you may end up missing out on quite a bit. You can always sit in the back and just sneak out early if they don't end up being interesting.

　　About 8,000 folks came from far and wide to attend Blizzcon.

　　I also really liked watching the professional Starcraft and Warcraft III tournaments. I haven't played either of those games in years, but I played enough of them to appreciate the nuances that the pros use in their strategies and their tactics. I daresay I had more fun seeing these "pro" matches than I've had watching the Giants play pro baseball at SBC Park.

　　While the first-ever Blizzcon was far from perfect (not quite enough content to keep you occupied for both days), I definitely found it worth my while. The idea of attending a gamecon might be scary for those of you who don't want the guilt by association, but if you can set those prejudices aside, you'll have a good time. I'm not going to kid you though--you will run into your share of "Comic Book Guys" from The Simpsons and extras from Revenge of the Nerds. But you're also likely to be pleasantly surprised at the other types of people you'll see and meet. We geeks really do come in all shapes and sizes.

　　Next Up: Lost in Translation by Conor Egan