Blizzard Now Selling Companion Pets in Online Store

Posted 2009/11/04 at 2:21 PM by Malgayne

Lil' K.T.Lil' PhylacteryPandaren MonkPandaren MonkFAQEdit:hereRelevant Links

Lil' K.T. purchase page

Pet Store FAQ

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Today we’re pleased to introduce the Pet Store for World of Warcraft, a new way for players to obtain in-game pets to join them on their adventures in Azeroth. Two brand-new companions are now available for purchase exclusively at the Pet Store in the online Blizzard Store: Lil’ K.T. and the Pandaren Monk.

Make a Difference: Pandaren Monk Charity Pet

Enter the Pandaren Monk, ( http://us.blizzard.com/store/details.xml?id=1100000763 ) a martial-arts expert who’s here to help celebrate the upcoming fifth anniversary of World of Warcraft. He may be cute, but he’s proof that even the softest of critters can overcome the hardest of circumstances. For every Pandaren Monk that finds its way to a player’s side between now and the end of the year (December 31, 2009 at 11:59 PDT), we’ll donate 50 percent of the $10 purchasing price to the Make-a-Wish Foundation in an effort to brew up a little hope, strength, and joy in a child’s life.

Lil’ K.T., the Littlest Lich

Lil’ K.T. is a miniature lich who bears a striking resemblance to the legendary lord of Naxxramas, Kel’Thuzad. But don’t let his diminutive stature fool you: Lil’ K.T. has a diabolical laugh and wields true power at his bony fingertips, randomly wreaking icy havoc on critters who dare to cross his path. You can now buy this new pet for $10 on the Blizzard Store. (http://us.blizzard.com/store/ )
In order to receive a purchased pet, you’ll need to merge your World of Warcraft account with a Battle.net account. For more information on Battle.net, please visit the FAQ. ( https://us.battle.net/faq/index.html ) For more information on the new Pet Store, visit the Pet Store FAQ. ( http://us.blizzard.com/support/article.xml?locale=en_US&articleId=29845 )

http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html?topicId=20677775733&sid=1

Does this mean you'll be introducing more services like this in the future? Will you be introducing the ability to buy epic weapons/etc. in the future, for example?

As with the pets, mounts, and other items players can obtain through Loot cards from the World of Warcraft Trading Card Game, Pet Store pets are purely cosmetic and just for fun. Like other paid services we offer, such as Paid Name Changes, Race Changes, and Character Re-Customizations, the Pet Store service is entirely optional and intended to provide players another means to enjoy World of Warcraft in a way that isn't detrimental to the game and that doesn't detract from the gameplay experience for players who choose not to use the service.

blizzard blizzard-store

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Comment by Deepthought1. You agree to the EULA and the EULA applies ONLY ingame, it is a rule to follow while you play the game. It is the same kind of rules that are used for business to make it possible. That however still doesn't mean it is above the country's law. ANYTHING that violates your human rights or does not obey to them is a crime and will be punished by law, no matter how many autographes there are at the bottom of that contract. I am not a lawyer so probably there are still ways to avoid this and I am sure Blizzard knows them very well but still .... I know the matter of virtual ownership is still discussed all over the world and there are more than one opinion on this topic....2. Giving 50% of the incomes for charity is acceptable, I agree, they could as well give 20% or 10% for example. But giving anything less than 100% for charity shows they :

- either have high expenses with the "charity token" (pet)
You will agree than creating these pets was very easy and costless compared to creating a new instance or a tier set, so their expenses are close to none.
- or they want to make money piggybacking people's sense of humanity and compassion

This is IMO and others may not think the same way...
Comment by 445032This post was from a user who has deleted their account.Comment by EudemoniaSigh. What is it about the Blizzard related forums that brings out the most appalingly reasoned arguments with pretensions to insight?

Then quit now.

If you hate the decisions they have already made, find a new game. You can't stand to see them destroy the franchise, a forum post is not going to tell them anything. Leave, stop paying them money, and if enough people agree with you, Blizzard will either fold or re-think their decisions.

Oh noes, the company is changing. Maybe to appeal to a wider audience, so they make more monies. I hate it when companies try to make money. I think that you may question Blizzard’s behavior, even if this concerns “just a game” at the moment. There are people that love this game as it was/is, so don’t trivialize it.Let's take a similar example. I used to really like Star Wars. The original trilogy was, in my opinion, a great series. Part of that is because I saw the series in the theater when I was a kid (yeah, I'm old). Then George Lucas destroyed the franchise with the second trilogy. It was horrible, and it even ruined the original Star Wars for me. I don't enjoy the original trilogy as much now, just because of how bad I thought the second trilogy was.

So... should I scream and wail and gnash my teeth? Write angry forum posts? Or should I just move on with life, and realize that "oh hey, it's just a movie." Obviously I chose the latter. There are still lots and lots of other movies I can watch, and I don't ever have to spend a cent on George Lucas' movies (nor do I have any intention to, even if he makes more Star Wars films/cartoons/plays/whatever).

But I forgot. This isn't just a movie. World of Warcraft is a way of life! It matters! And it's so incredibly addictive that I can't quit, even if I hate where the company is going!

Yeah. That makes sense.Deep sighactually works against your point.Comment by 479762This post was from a user who has deleted their account.Comment by 177591This post was from a user who has deleted their account.Comment by 466163Sigh. What is it about the Blizzard related forums that brings out the most appalingly reasoned arguments with pretensions to insight?Then quit now.

If you hate the decisions they have already made, find a new game. You can't stand to see them destroy the franchise, a forum post is not going to tell them anything. Leave, stop paying them money, and if enough people agree with you, Blizzard will either fold or re-think their decisions.

Oh noes, the company is changing. Maybe to appeal to a wider audience, so they make more monies. I hate it when companies try to make money. thatError one: telling people that your opinion is correct ("It's a game. It's not life. It's entertainment. Just a game.") and dismissing their own opinion has all the intellectual heft of a child ramming their fingers in their ears and screaming "I'm not listening!"To put it another way, you cannot make a nine paragraph post that argues that the topic your discussing isn't worthy of discussion and expect to be taken seriously.Comment by EudemoniaSigh. What is it about the Blizzard related forums that brings out the most appalingly reasoned arguments with pretensions to insight?Then quit now.

If you hate the decisions they have already made, find a new game. You can't stand to see them destroy the franchise, a forum post is not going to tell them anything. Leave, stop paying them money, and if enough people agree with you, Blizzard will either fold or re-think their decisions.

Oh noes, the company is changing. Maybe to appeal to a wider audience, so they make more monies. I hate it when companies try to make money. thatmy Error one: telling people that your opinion is correct ("It's a game. It's not life. It's entertainment. Just a game.") and dismissing their own opinion has all the intellectual heft of a child ramming their fingers in their ears and screaming "I'm not listening!"your ownIt's not lifeTo put it another way, you cannot make a nine paragraph post that argues that the topic your discussing isn't worthy of discussion and expect to be taken seriously.Comment by AshkirImagine walking into a charity and giving them ten bucks right then and there. To me, it feels weird only offering a small increment. But, Blizzard will walk in giving them a large check of over a hundred thousand dollars, and this stunt will cause publicity for the charity and blizzard.

haggers posted:chris (brother)
does that mean he is the one on the left?

anyway, nice gift. grats if you actually talked to him for a while and grats for still living to post about it.Comment by 480790This post was from a user who has deleted their account.Comment by 349103This post was from a user who has deleted their account.Comment by justinc

One last thing - but probably important - according to the EULA, Blizzard owns your a**, nothing in the game or your account belongs to you, you are just renting it in a way, to play. But now we are talking about buying ingame stuff with REAL money - according to the laws in (I believe all countries) when you buy somwthing with your money (real or virtual, like copy rights for ex.) it is YOURS. You get a equivalent for your money. This will probably cause some trouble for Blizz, because country laws are above their agreements.... although I believe they have covered their a** in some way....you are accepting that you have no rights in regards to the gameComment by 303016There are so many unbelivably jaded, obnoxious, fallacious and otherwise stupid opinions within this thread.

- No-one should be trying to speculate the rationality of how Blizzard wants to direct their flagship, ESPECIALLY on a cosmetic level. It's their choice. They aren't exactly nerfing anything here. I mean, if they want to make the sky green, let them; it's a fantasy mythos. If you don't like what they're doing, politely tell them and move on; no-one's forcing you to buy anything or to continue playing the game.

- This isn't anything new. All that's been done is exactly what Blizzard (and most companies. especially those in the software industry with the microtransaction market) have been doing for a few years now; they're expanding their branding into different product markets to increase their profitibility. The TCG with it's loot cards precede this whole fiasco and certainly hasn't introduced anything gamebreaking after like 8 sets. The TCG itself is even actually pretty fun to play!

- These pets will have cost time and money to make (albeit, there are now no ongoing costs, except for the server maintenence of the store to purchase them), so it's not outlandish to pay a small fee for something someone worked hard on for your entertainment. Blizzard don't even have to donate proceeds to charity at all, but clearly they've chosen to and certainly the highest proportion of a sale that I've ever seen a commercial organisation do for any similar promotion.

TL:DR Version - I'm going to go buy myself a Lil. K.T and my g/f a Pandaren Monk for a chuckle and for the warm, fuzzy feeling. Can all you moral Nazis go into the corner and have your aneurysms in peace, please? Thanks.Comment by MalgayneTom Chilton has apparently elaborated on this a bit. Wow.com has the interview here.

Again: please keep the flaming to a minimum.Comment by chase123Tom Chilton has apparently elaborated on this a bit. Wow.com has the interview here.

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