Going to California With a Blizzcon in My Heart - Ep 44

Going to California With a Blizzcon in My Heart - Ep 44

SOLO QUEUE DISCORD available at: https://discord.gg/nXQVqERcSU

Show Notes

Welcome to Episode 44! – 5:23

Summer is at a close. There is a buzz in the land. The fog of the Coiled Isle has lifted. The Blizzcon stage is set. The Race to World First is reaching its crescendo. And I managed to kill my first Delve Nemesis. Also, sorry to Spotify listeners who got two versions of Episode 43 or was missing the episode altogether. On the other side of the ledger, Solo Queue hit an all-time high ranking of #79 on the Apple videogame podcast charts!

News – 20:52

• 1 content and Season 2 are live, including beloved Story Mode
• Race to World First update, followed by numerous updates throughout the episode (be sure to listen through the end credits)
• 1.5 is on the PTR, but no official news yet, which I find nice
• Blizzcon 2026 is coming!

“What Have You Done Lately?” – 33:36

I actually killed Nullaeus in the final day of Season 1! Add-on troubles at 12.1 launch. And the first thing I did? Take a level 44 Undead Warlock to 55 because. In the Barber Shop, I saw the Azure Somnowl druid flight form and immediately headed to Amirdrassil to hunt it down! Neighborhood activities are a bit of a chore. Not awful, but…

Playing 12.1 – 54:45

I am digging the storytelling methods employed in 12.1, including the flashbacks used with Nek’zali and Valeera. One suggestion from the SQ Developer Bench for identifying the abilities when playing as a different NPC in game. Zone music is great. The Vaults are dangerous. I appreciate the lore connections being established on the Cursed Isle.

Side Quest – Boss Encounter Design – 1:33:24

YouTube channel of @Candlesan is Wyatt Cheng, Senior Design Director at Second Dinner and former Blizzard game designer. The video “How I Designed Patchwerk the Naxxramas Boss” is the one that caught my eye. He has others on WoW design and other game design as well. Check it out at: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/b2Jw4rsbnpk

Main Topic – Blizzcon 2026! – 1:38:02

September 12-13 is the height of hype in the Warcraft and Blizzard world! My thoughts on possible announcements, things I’m hoping for, what I would like to see in Classic+ (and why I cannot wait to stop calling it that), and a bold prediction of a brand new IP. I will be there and will post updates of my trip to the Solo Queue Discord. If you want to meet up, reach out by socials or Discord or email or something. I hope to literally see you out there…in Anaheim!

Outro – 2:24:51

• Thanks to Blizzard for the amazing music and sound, to OGRE for intro/outro music, my lovely and supportive wife, Podbean for hosting the show, and YOU for listening.
• Support the show at https://www.patreon.com/soloqueuewow
• Thank you to contributing patrons Andrew, Righteous Bandy, ThatSkyGuy, Cyn, Snek of Voldun, Jon, Metacognition, Jeru, Raven, Greybeard, Pasta Matt, Luch, and Rak!
• And thanks to free members Max, Eddie, Bear, Friends of Wumpus, Sean, Curro, AehanNahkriin, Guardian Sandy, Alice, Don, Kamil, Eric, Wednesday, Case, TJ, Denethar, TheChampz, Michelle, Donald, AggroManagement, Brian, William, and Uihu!
• ONE FINAL RtWF UPDATE CRAMMED IN HERE! DON’T MISS IT!
• Subscribe to the podcast at your podcast feed of choice, Apple, Spotify, and all the rest. Leave a 5-star rating and a written review to help grow Solo Queue.
• You can contact me at soloqueuewow at gmail.com, Bluesky, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Threads. I am @sweeperdave on Discord where you can join the Solo Queue Discord channel.
• If you are attending Blizzcon, reach out. I would love to say hi to you.

“I will see you out there (maybe even in Anaheim)."