The peaceful realm of Azeroth stands on the brink of war as its civilization faces a fearsome race of invaders: orc warriors fleeing their dying home to colonize another. As a portal opens to connect the two worlds, one army faces destruction and the other faces extinction. From opposing sides, two heroes are set on a collision course that will decide the fate of their family, their people, and their home.
Mats Steen, a Norwegian gamer, died of a degenerative muscular disease at the age of 25. His parents mourned what they thought had been a lonely and isolated life, when they started receiving messages from online friends around the world.
An all-new documentary celebrating 10 years of adventure, camaraderie, and /dancing on mailboxes all around Azeroth. Explore the history of WoW with its creators, and journey into corners of Blizzard and the WoW community you’ve never seen before.
Second Skin takes an intimate look at three sets of computer gamers whose lives have been transformed by online virtual worlds. An emerging genre of computer software called Massively Multiplayer Online games, or MMOs, allows millions of users to interact simultaneously in virtual spaces. Of the 50 million players worldwide, 50 percent consider themselves addicted.
In early 2012, Angela Washko founded “The Council on Gender Sensitivity and Behavioral Awareness in World of Warcraft” as a performative intervention within the often misogynistic environment of World of Warcraft (WoW), one of the most popular multiplayer, role-playing games. Instead of continuing to follow the quest structure of the game (killing dragons, getting better equipment, joining more competitive guilds, etc.) and while performing as “The Council" Washko facilitates discussions with players inside the game about the ways in which the community therein addresses women and how players respond to the term “FEMINISM.” Washko is interested in the impulse of the community/player-base to create a somewhat oppressive, misogynistic space for women within a physical environment that is otherwise accessible and inviting.
A documentary about young people from rural China who get payed to improve World of Warcraft characters for kids in the West.
/afk - AWAY FROM KEYBOARD explores the relationship between online gamers and the games that they play. It examines the evolution of the World of Warcraft from its infancy to its non-existent conclusion and beyond, into the world of obsession. Through the lives of several key characters, it shows the joys associated with online games, and offers a objective look at some of its inherent trappings. /afk seeks to create a dialog about gamers in an attempt to bring understanding to the online gaming phenomenon and the millions of gamers behind the World of Warcraft; the most successful MMO of all time. In doing so, one might assert that gaming can no sooner be understood than that of any other form of addiction: if it's an addiction at all.
