Typhon here ... reporting live from BlizzCon. Outside of the general excitement about all things "Blizzard" (or Activision Blizzard as they are now called), let's just dive straight into the real star of WoWRealms: The World of Warcraft Miniatures Game!

Ok; first impressions time: AWESOME! And unless Monsterpocolypse surprises me, I think that Upper Deck has a shoe-in for CMG of the Year. I'm not going to say that it's perfect; because it's not ... but it does come awfully close. More on it's downfall later though; let's shower it with praises first.

The sculpts are amazing, by far the best crafted plastic figures in the industry. It's got some real weight, and because of how the game is played, you won't even have to worry about snapping the figure off its base. The detail/paint, for a mass production product, is about on par with Mage Knight 2.0 (when WizKids was still trying to impress the players), which I consider one of the finer paint jobs for a CMG. Overall; they look amazing, and I would consider them art pieces in their own right; worthy of that spot in your curio cabinet.

As for the game play ... it's so simple to pick up; yet has the depth for keep competitive players interested. The mix between Minis and Cards might seem foreign to most of you (or not; since it it seems like cardboard has been running rampant in CMGs lately) ... but the game plays more like a TCG, with the beauty of a Miniatures Game. The game engine is solid; allowing more flexibility than I've seen in any CMGs prior; and the win conditions counter the things miniature gamers have been frustrated with for a long time: Turtling, Come And Get Me, Hit and Run, etc. This is an offensive-minded game, and it plays very quickly.

Overall, Upper Deck has a winner on their hands ... if their Organized Play can produced a worthwhile program and the down-economy doesn't adversely effect the launch and longevity of the product; expect to crown the World of Warcraft Miniature Game the "Game of the Year" for 2008/2009

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