US game firm Blizzard blows 'em away in Cork

BLIZZARD, THE US computer game company which this week confirmed it had created 600 jobs in Cork rather than the planned 100, has more than 11.5 million players of its flagship title World of Warcraft, but the fantasy role- playing game is still largely an underground phenomenon in this country.

That may change on the back of a television advertising campaign featuring the original prince of darkness Ozzy Osbourne.

However, it’s safe to say there at least 600 seasoned World of Warcraft (WoW) players in Ireland – the staff at Blizzard’s European support centre in Cork city. Many positions at the company require applicants to give their user name for WoW and the highest level they have achieved.

“Blizzard is known for hiring gamers,” says Paul Sams, Blizzard’s chief operations officer. “We want them to be part of the demographic, because if there is a problem we want them to experience the pain just as much as our customers.”

That does not necessarily mean having a young workforce but rather a “youthful” one; he points out that many computer gamers from 1980s are now in their 40s and 50s.

Sams (38) fits the profile himself, having been an afficionado of text-based gaming on the Commodore 64 in the early 80s.

“Historically gamers were 18- to 35-year-old males but the demographic has expanded,” Sams says in his laid-back Californian way. He says he recently met another father at one of his children’s football practices “who nearly lost his mind when he found out where I worked and that is becoming more common”.

All of which suggests the future is bright for Blizzard in Cork. Predominantly the facility provides in- game text-based support to WoW players in Europe, while European HQ is just outside Paris.

Employment has mushroomed at Cork since 2007 both through the European growth of WoW and because additional responsibilities have been taken on.

Cork is now entrusted with taking over support for the US on occasions, eg when staff are attending the annual BlizzCon conference for hardcore devotees of its Warcraft, StarCraft and Diablo titles.

Citing Government and IDA Ireland supports, as well as the attraction of Ireland as a location to live, Sams says: “Ireland has been very positive for us. We definitely made the right decision.”

WoW and Blizzard’s other titles fall into a category known as massively multiplayer online role-playing games, effectively update internet versions of board games like Dungeons Dragons.

Alternative economies have sprung up around these games, with characters and in-game artifacts being bought for hard currency by players who don’t have the time to put in the often mundane work required to build up their characters’ skills.

Sams is unequivocal on Blizzard’s stance on these secondary markets which thrive on eBay and other sites.

“We’ve taken a religious approach to this: if we find you doing it we will ban you,” he says to nervous laughter from his advisers. “There are a lot more people out there who want to mess with us than there are working at Blizzard to prevent it.”

He speaks from first-hand experience. Some players of Diablo II learned how to illegally duplicate objects which undermined the in-game economy and ultimately led to genuine players giving up.

The release of WoW expansion pack Wrath of the Lich King last November sold 2.8 million copies in its first day on sale, which Blizzard says made it the fastest-selling PC game to date.

Although he won’t be drawn on future release plans, Sams says Blizzard is planning a relaunch of its Battle.net service which will be supported from Cork.