Blizzard Sued over Battle.net Authentication

Blizzard is being sued over the Battle.net authentication used in multiple games including Diablo III. A class action suit led by plaintiff Benjamin Bell is seeking damages for "consumer fraud, unjust enrichment, negligence, breach of contract and bailment," claiming that Blizzard is "deceptively and unfairly" charging some users to secure their data from hackers.

Bell is specifically referring to Blizzard’s $6.50 keychain authenticators, alleging that Blizzard has made $26 million by selling them. The suit accuses Blizzard of unfairly requiring users to use Battle.net and says the company has continued to “negligently, deliberately, and/or recklessly fail to ensure that adequate, reasonable procedures safeguard the private information stored on this website.” Bell points to multiple hacking incidents -- including May’s Diablo III hacks -- as evidence that Blizzard failed to take "the legally required steps to alert" players.

Bell is seeking damages and an injunction to bar Blizzard from “tacking on” costs after games have already been purchased. He also seeks to stop Blizzard from requiring players to sign up for a Battle.net account.

We reached out to Blizzard about the suit and a spokesperson sent IGN the following statement:

"This suit is without merit and filled with patently false information, and we will vigorously defend ourselves through the appropriate legal channels.

We want to reiterate that we take the security of our players’ data very seriously, and we’re fully committed to defending our network infrastructure. We also recognize that the cyber-threat landscape is always evolving, and we’re constantly working to track the latest developments and make improvements to our defenses.

The suit’s claim that we didn’t properly notify players regarding the August 2012 security breach is not true. Not only did Blizzard act quickly to provide information to the public about the situation, we explained the actions we were taking and let players know how the incident affected them, including the fact that no names, credit card numbers, or other sensitive financial information was disclosed. You can read our letter to players and a comprehensive FAQ related to the situation on our website.

The suit also claims that the Battle.net Authenticator is required in order to maintain a minimal level of security on the player’s Battle.net account information that’s stored on Blizzard’s network systems. This claim is also completely untrue and apparently based on a misunderstanding of the Authenticator’s purpose. The Battle.net Authenticator is an optional tool that players can use to further protect their Battle.net accounts in the event that their login credentials are compromised outside of Blizzard’s network infrastructure. Available as a physical device or as a free app for iOS or Android devices, it offers players an added level of security against account-theft attempts that stem from sources such as phishing attacks, viruses packaged with seemingly harmless file downloads, and websites embedded with malicious code.

When a player attaches an Authenticator to his or her account, it means that logging in to Battle.net will require the use of a random code generated by the Authenticator in addition to the player’s login credentials. This helps our systems identify when it’s actually the player who is logging in and not someone who might have stolen the player’s credentials by means of one of the external theft measures mentioned above, or as a result of the player using the same account name and password on another website or service that was compromised. Considering that players are ultimately responsible for securing their own computers, and that the extra step required by the Authenticator is an added inconvenience during the log in process, we ultimately leave it up to the players to decide whether they want to add an Authenticator to their account. However, we always strongly encourage it, and we try to make it as easy as possible to do.

Many players have voiced strong approval for our security-related efforts. Blizzard deeply appreciates the outpouring of support it has received from its players related to the frivolous claims in this particular suit."

Source: Courthouse News

Andrew Goldfarb is IGN’s associate news editor. Keep up with pictures of the latest food he’s been eating by following @garfep on Twitter or garfep on IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria Now Live

Mists of Pandaria, the newest expansion for World of Warcraft, is available now, offering a new class, new continent, new level cap and more. Players will be able to step into the shoes (well, paws) of the Pandaren race, plus expand their character up to level 90. New features also include scenarios (a new PvE trial), challenge modes, a new talent system, a pet battle system, high-prestige awards for beating new five-player dungeons and much more.

Pandaria is available for $39.99 at retail or digitally, and a Collector’s Edition with a soundtrack CD, behind-the-scenes DVD, hardback artbook, mouse pad and more is available for $79.99 in stores. "Mists of Pandaria takes players back to the roots of World of Warcraft -- exploration, discovery, and the epic conflict between the Alliance and the Horde," Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime said today. "It also contains the widest variety of content that we've ever added in an expansion, and we're excited to be able to share it with players around the world this week in our first truly global launch."

Blizzard has a full Mists of Pandaria survival guide running through all the new features, including the new talent system and how it changes each class.

Not sure if you want to play Mists? We’ll be live streaming the new content today at noon PST, plus you can read our Mists of Pandaria review in progress for our impressions as we play.

Will you be buying Mists of Pandaria? Let us know in the comments below.

Andrew Goldfarb is IGN’s associate news editor. Keep up with pictures of the latest food he’s been eating by following him on Twitter or IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

Ubisoft Opens New Performance Capture Studio

Ubisoft has opened a new “world-class performance capture studio” in Toronto that will work on future projects, including Splinter Cell: Blacklist. The facility is state-of-the-art and aims to “create deeper characters, more immersive storytelling and more filmic, actor-driven games” through voice, facial and body performance capture. All actors will be captured at the same time, allowing performances to feel more like film.

The studio includes a 2,000 square foot performance space to allow multiple actors to perform at once, as well as 80 high-resolution Vicon T160 motion capture cameras. The facility will also use wireless helmet cameras for accurate facial capture, with footage synched in real time to voice and body capture. A sound stage and rigging beams that allow for stunt performances are also available to capture “dynamic, physical scenes for games.”

“We are extremely proud to unveil a performance capture studio in Toronto after just two years of operation in the city,” said Ubisoft Toronto and Montreal CEO Yannis Mallat. “This is about more than just the creation of a cutting-edge facility. It’s about Ubisoft transforming our approach to storytelling with a focus on acting talent and the delivery of the highest-quality performance output for our cinematics and animation teams. The studio also is a testament to our confidence in the talent in Ontario to deliver some of the best performance capture in the industry for games.”

In addition to Blacklist, the studio will contribute to capture for future Ubisoft projects from all 26 of its worldwide studios. Ubisoft Toronto will also partner with Screen Industries and Research Training Center of Sheridan College “to identify, define and pursue research projects in the field of virtual production to reach new levels of excellence.”

Ubisoft originally announced plans to expand to Toronto in July 2009. Original Assassin’s Creed producer Jade Raymond was later chosen to head the studio. Raymond said in 2010 that Toronto was working on a Splinter Cell game (later revealed to be Blacklist) in addition to an unannounced title.

Splinter Cell: Blacklist was announced at E3 and blends the fast-paced style of 2010’s Splinter Cell Conviction with classic Splinter Cell gameplay, including the return of Spies vs. Mercs. For more, read our impressions from E3.

Andrew Goldfarb is IGN’s associate news editor. Keep up with pictures of the latest food he’s been eating by following him on Twitter or IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

X-Men: First Class Sequel News - What is Days of Future Past?

Bryan Singer has confirmed that X-Men: First Class 2 will revolve around the Days of Future Past comic run.

Singer exclusively told IGN that the script is being written now, adding “It’s going to be very ambitious. It’s called Days of Future Past and it deals with aspects of that comic but also some very new things but I don’t want to give any of it away. Matthew Vaughan will be directing and I’m totally excited about it.”

So what is Days of Future Past? For those who haven’t been following the X-Men for the last 30 years, it’s a storyline that was first published in 1981 and deals with alternate timelines.

Set in a dystopian future in which Sentinels rule the United States, the X-Men – along with all mutants – are incarcerated in concentration camps.

Using her psychic abilities, Kitty Pryde transfers her mind to her younger, present-day self to forewarn the X-Men about the horrors that await them, and the political assassination that triggers it all.

This means that the movie could potentially tell parallel stories – Godfather: Part II style – with the Bryan Singer X-Men of Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen starring in the future story and the Matthew Vaughn cast of James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender appearing in the present (or past, depending on when they decide to pitch the timeline).

Obviously this is just speculation at the moment, and as with the previous X-Men movies, the filmmakers might just be using this concept as a jumping off point to tell their own story, but we nevertheless asked Singer if there would be any chance of crossover on this front:

“I think there’s a strong desire to broaden out the universe” he explained. “The X-Men universe is every bit on its own as big as the Marvel universe, and I think that it’s time to reach out and explore it and perhaps bring some connectivity between the films as Marvel has done so well. So, you may see some of that, I don’t know.”

Click on the video below to see the full interview, and let us know your thoughts on Days of Future Past in the comments below.

Chris Tilly is the Entertainment Editor for IGN and couldn't be more excited about this X-news. His idle chat can be found on both Twitter and MyIGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

Diablo 3 Exploit Creates Invincible Wizards

A new bug has been discovered in Diablo 3 that makes the Wizard Class invulnerable.

In a post on the official forums, user Doso explained how to become invincible by doing the following:

• Step 1: Select Teleport - Fracture. Bind it to a key


• Step 2: Select Archon, tested with Improved Archon


• Step 3: Hover your mouse over or near your charcter


• Step 4: Press Teleport


• Step 5: QUICKLY(!) Press Archon

Despite being uncovered yesterday, Blizzard has yet to respond to the situation other than by removing details of the exploit from the original post. A fair number of people have expressed their intent in the thread to make the most of Blizzard's mistake by farming Inferno difficulty, so it'll be interesting to see what the company does with loot obtained this way - especially given the existence of the Real Money Auction House.

Blizzard recently shared its feeling that the current endgame model for the title wasn't sustainable, and explained that it was looking into ways to amend this.

Cheers, Kotaku.

Luke Karmali is IGN's UK Editorial Assistant.  You too can revel in mediocrity by following him on IGN and on Twitter.

Source : ign[dot]com

X-Men: First Class 2 Will Be Extraordinarily Ambitious

Simon Kinberg, who is co-writing X-Men: First Class 2 with director Matthew Vaughn and Jane Goldman, spoke about the hotly anticipated mutant sequel at Comic-Con last weekend. Unsurprisingly, he's not allowed to give any details about the plot, but he did say that the film is "extraordinarily ambitious" and "unlike the other X-Men movies and yet very much a celebration of the X-Men movies." Hmmm, intriguing…

“It’s one of those movies that, because it’s such a big deal for the studio, they have some sense of what it is that we’re writing and they are ambitious about the movie, too," he said. "I don’t know what the budget’s going to be, we’ve got to finish the script before we have a budget, but I would assume that it is a bigger movie than the last in physical scope, and that we have the license to do that because of the success of First Class. And because I think Fox has had success with interesting movies in the last couple of years in the genre, like Planet of the Apes was a really good movie, Chronicle was a cool movie, First Class, they’re just narratively or creatively a little bit more ambitious. So they’ve encouraged us to do that with the sequel.”

When asked about Vaughn's previous statements about things he might like to do in the film -- such as pinning JFK's assassination on Magneto -- Kinberg said the writing process has been very fluid. Read: Ideas are always changing.

"We really went into it, Matthew, Jane and myself, just wanting to create a movie that was as… I’m very proud of First Class… as dramatic as that movie," he said. "I think it is as dramatic as that movie, but more epic, mythic in a way as well. So, there are ideas that we’ve started with that haven’t survived, there are ideas that we started with from conversations we had from making First Class that are going to be in the sequel."

Shooting is expected to begin in spring of 2013 for a July, 2014, release.

Via Collider

Talk to Movies Editor Scott Collura on Twitter at @ScottIGN, on IGN, and on Facebook.

Source : ign[dot]com