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OK, between Guitar Hero and this, I’m totally outing myself as a geek. But I don’t care. Here it is: I play World of Warcraft. (It’s not a problem; I can quit any time I want.) Ever since I started playing, I’ve started noticing little references to WoW everywhere. South Park and The Simpsons have both had episodes featuring the game (or in the case of The Simpsons, a suspiciously similar game).
And the more I advance in the game, the more pop culture references I notice in the game itself. I just love sly little mentions that not everyone would catch. I started doing a little research and there are way, way too many to mention, but I’m going to list a few of my favorites. I haven’t actually discovered all of these myself, so it gives me something to watch out for while I’m playing. Besides murlocs and ghouls, I mean.
1. The inscription on a couple of weapons (the Finkle’s Lava Dredger and Finkle’s Skinner) says, “Property of Finkle Einhorn, Grandmaster Adventurer.” Ace Ventura fans will recognize this from the moment near the end of the movie when Ace figures out that Lois Einhorn is, in fact, ex-Miami Dolphins footballer Ray Finkle. “Einhorn is Finkle! Finkle is Einhorn! Einhorn is a man!”
2. My friend Josh says he has never seen this one mentioned on any other Easter egg site, so this may very well be an exclusive (thanks, Josh). This one’s also in the town of Stormwind - there’s a traveling salesman who goes by the name Antonio Pirelli. In both the theater and recent movie versions of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (which I adored), there’s a traveling hair tonic salesman named Adolfo Pirelli. Coincidence?? Not in my book.
3. This one’s a little trickier. In one of the large cities in the game, Stormwind, there’s a flower shop owner named Bernard Gump. Florist Gump. Get it?
4. If you head to a town called Lakeshire and train with the fisherman there, you might be getting more of a lesson than you bargained for: the trainer’s name is Matthew Hooper. Richard Dreyfuss played shark expert Matt Hooper in Jaws.
5. More naming fun. In the Eastern Plaguelands, there’s a priest named Father Inigo Montoy, which is just one letter away from Inigo Montoya from The Princess Bride (“Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.”)
6. The creators must be fans of The Princess Bride, because the stable master in the town of Southshore is named Wesley. That’s not quite the same as the stable boy Westley in The Princess Bride, but it’s close enough that it had to be intentional. Right?
7. Another movie that gets multiple references is Silence of the Lambs. One quest requires players to get an ogre tannin out of a basket. (No, I don’t know what a ‘tannin’ is.) The second the tannin is removed, an ogre runs after the player yelling, “It puts the tannin in the basket or else it gets the club again!” This is a combination of Buffalo Bill’s “It rubs the lotion on its skin or else it gets the hose again,” and “It places the lotion in the basket.”
8. There’s a blacksmith in the town of Darkshire who sometimes mumbles about hearing the lambs scream. Her name just happens to be Clarise.
9. Visit the city of Orgrimmar and you’ll have the chance to check out a shop called “Boomstick Imports”. Bruce Campbell would be proud.
10. My favorite category of movies – the horror genre – does not go unnoticed in the World of Warcraft (which is only appropriate since it’s crawling with the undead, ghouls, zombies and banshees). The innkeeper in Undercity is named Innkeeper Norman and the innkeeper of Sepulcher is named Innkeeper Bates… see, Norman Bates, our favorite Psychopath hotel manager.
11. The trick in the bullet above – giving two people of the same profession names that relate to one another – is a favorite trick of the WoW game designers. Next time you visit Undercity, take notice of the auctioneer there. His name is Yarly. Not something you’d think much of, right? But if you travel to Stranglethorn Vale and check out the auctioneer there, you’ll see that his name is O’Reely. O’Reely and Yarly is a reference to the “O RLY? YA RLY!” owls of Internet fame.
12. There’s a kitty at the start of the Naxxramas instance whose name is Mr. Bigglesworth… AKA Dr. Evil’s cat in the Austin Powers movies.
13. It isn’t just movies that are referenced. The punk movement also gets a little love from the good people of Blizzard Entertainment. In the Alterac Mountains, there’s a non-playable character named Nancy Vishas. This is likely a nod to Sid Vicious of the Sex Pistols and his girlfriend Nancy Spungen, whom he stabbed to death in 1978.
14. Finally, not one, but two Homestar Runner references. First, a non-playable character in the Searing Gorge named Master Smith Burninate…. as in the Strongbad drawing Trogdor the Burninator. I wonder if there’s a poorly-drawn dragon lurking somewhere that I haven’t found yet. The second reference is a bad guy named Jorb. This may or may not be a reference to the Homestar short “A Jorb Well done” where Coach Z is unable to pronounce the word ‘job’ correctly.
Those are a few of my favorites. So tell me, Warcraft people, what have you come across that made you giggle to yourself?
This list is ,indeed, vastly geeky. I pay you homage Stacy, and a lamb will be sacrificed in your honor!
posted by Gil on 1-4-2008 at 11:34 am
This list is, indeed, vastly geeky. I pay homage to you Stacy. A lamb will be sacrificed in your honor.
posted by Gil on 1-4-2008 at 11:37 am
It’s amazing how many pop culture references are in WoW. I love the Super Mario Bros. knock-offs, Muigin and Larion.
Take a look at this list for more:
www.wowwiki.com/List_of_pop_culture_references_in_Warcraft
posted by Tyson on 1-4-2008 at 11:51 am
In or around the Exodar there are two quests you can run. One is “Precious and Fragile things need Special Handling” - the first line to a Depeche Mode song. The other is a timed-run quest called the “Kessel Run”. You have to do it in under 15 minutes. It is an obvious homage to Star Wars (Han Solo flew the Kessel Run in under 12 parsecs). The funniest thing to me is when you go on to another NPC (Non-Player Character) he says something like “so you’re the one that did the Kessel run in under 15 minutes, i don’t know if I believe that”.
Here are a bunch of other easter eggs: www.blizzplanet.com/content/669/
posted by Aaron on 1-4-2008 at 12:03 pm
Okay, so if you haven’t seen Buckaroo Bonzai you should really go out and rent it, it’s a classic. But on the border of Thousand Needles, in Shimmering Flats, you can find tire tracks going right up to a wall of solid rock. Then the tracks reappear in Tanaris coming out of a cliff face, where you will also find the vehicle which made them. Awesome Buckaroo Bonzai reference from the beginning of the movie.
posted by Jess on 1-4-2008 at 12:31 pm
Those are really awesome. One of the newer ones I’ve spotted is the NPC that opens up the gates to Zul’Aman, the new raiding instance. His name is Harrison Jones. There is also a quest in Un’Goro Crater that you get from an NPC named Liken. He gives you a quest to collect the pieces and power up a sword.
posted by Luciphena on 1-4-2008 at 1:13 pm
You are obviously an Alliance player, and I can no longer read this excellent blog in good conscience. For the Horde!
posted by Rnast on 1-4-2008 at 1:27 pm
in defense of sid. he overdosed before it was decided who killed nancy. still unsolved.
posted by leggs on 1-4-2008 at 2:03 pm
In Thunder Bluff, there is a character named Clarice Foster, who I always thought was meant to be a cross between The character Clarice from Silence of the Lambs and the woman who played her, Jodie Foster.
There is also a rare trinket called the “Six Demon Bag” that “blasts enemies…with the power of wind, fire, all that kind of thing!”, a reference to the movie Big Trouble in Little China.
Jack Burton: Hey, what more can a guy ask for?
Egg Shen: Oh, a six-demon bag!
Jack Burton: Terrific, a six-demon bag. Sensational. What’s in it, Egg?
Egg Shen: Wind, fire, all that kind of thing!
There’s also a ring called “The One Ring” which gives +1 to all stats, a character at Christmastime called the “Greench”, and of course the races’ dances, like the Napoleon Dynamite dance.
Those are just some I thought of off the top of my head, but there’s tons more listed at the link above.
posted by Leah on 1-4-2008 at 2:39 pm
also the bankers in Stormwind. if you take their first name and put them together you get Olivia Newton John.
posted by Glamor on 1-4-2008 at 3:24 pm
There is a belt called tenatious defender, an enscryption on the bottom reads “It has the power… to move you”
Its in refrence to the band Tenatious D and their song “Wonderboy”
item=24091
Look it up on wowhead
posted by Jon on 1-4-2008 at 4:25 pm
My favorites: the quest in Silithus named “Everything Counts in Large Amounts,” Depeche Mode reference.
And in Un’Goro Crater you will pick up a quest named “With a Little Help from my friends” from a goblin named “Ringo.”
King’s Honour, friends.
posted by holly on 1-4-2008 at 4:26 pm
One of the lumberjacks in Elwynn Forest is named Terry Palin. Two of the members of Monty Python had the first name Terry (Gilliam and Jones) and one of the other members was named Palin (Michael).
The British comedy group is well-known for a number of things including “The Lumberjack Song” - a humorous song which was written by Terry Jones and Michael Palin.
posted by Corion on 1-4-2008 at 4:28 pm
There is also a quest in Hellfire Peninsula (Horde and Alliance) called “How to Serve Goblins”. The three Goblins that you rescue are named Manni, Moh and Jakk. It just so happens that the names of the Pep Boys, from the auto parts store in the USA, are Manny Moe and Jack!!
posted by DW on 1-4-2008 at 4:31 pm
Thank you, Stacy!! Your admission allows me to make one leap further into full-fledged WoW playing.
My boyfriend plays and gets excited when I want to learn more about the game. I’ve been hesitant for some time due to the uber geeky “i still live in my parents basement” stigma attached (Sorry guys, no offense. Not to mention, my boyfriend does not live in his parents basement).
Unbeknownst to me, millions and millions of people play WoW. Also, I was the one being teased by HIS friends, because I seem to be stuck in the 19th century with my “knitting”, “record playing”, and “super NES”.
It’s time to suck it up!! Thanks again :D
posted by Lauren on 1-4-2008 at 4:33 pm
Lauren, I knit and crochet and one of my favorite games on the Wii is old-school Mario (1, 2 and 3).
So you know… nothing wrong with being stuck in the 19th century.
posted by Stacy on 1-4-2008 at 4:49 pm
If you go to the new city in outlands, I think Sha’tar or whatever, downstairs in the town, in one of the bars, you will find an NPC named Haris Pilton. LOL
posted by Calvin on 1-4-2008 at 5:15 pm
O’Reily flaps around in Tanaris
posted by RagingMoses on 1-4-2008 at 6:55 pm
In the expansion for wow, there’s a dranei quest called the kessil run. thats from star wars.
posted by brian on 1-4-2008 at 7:23 pm
The quest hub in Un’Goro is the Marshall Expedition, a reference to the old Syd & Marty Kroft saturday morning show ‘Land of the Lost,’ which pretty much describes that zone. Marshall, Will and Holly, on a routine expedition…
The pylons around the edge of the crater, and the crystals used to activate them, are also references to the show.
posted by Sankam on 1-4-2008 at 8:25 pm
Tannen are any of various complex phenolic substances of plant origin; used in tanning and in medicine.
posted by Chris on 1-4-2008 at 9:05 pm
There’s also a mission in the Barrens (I forget which town, it’s the one on the eastern side) where you have to go find a Sommelflange. Thundercats reference from the 80s cartoon. Panthro tells the kids to keep away from “that darned Sommelflange”.
posted by Patton on 1-4-2008 at 10:46 pm
In the Undercity, where undead are sparring with each other, one is named Tyler, another Marla, etc. (Fight Club)
posted by Matt on 1-5-2008 at 12:14 am
- Snakes on a Plane at Nessingwary’s Safari in Nagrand. Also, of course, “Hemet Nessingwary” is an anagram of “Ernest Hemmingway”
- Floyd Pinkus, innkeeper in Thrallmar.
posted by Ida on 1-5-2008 at 1:11 am
A recent reference I just saw is a quest called “The only cure is more Green Glow”, obviously a reference to the cowbell skit (I have a fever, and the only cure, is more cowbell!).
posted by Kevin Ballard on 1-5-2008 at 4:17 am
FOR THE HORDE!
Anyway, there are Heman references in the Lower City of Shattrah, in Outlands. Adam Eternium and his green pet tiger are there, and Or’ko!
posted by absy on 1-5-2008 at 10:44 am
oh that’s wild, didn’t realize the devs were such huge Depeche Mode fans!!
In addition to the aforementioned “Precious and Fragile Things…” and “Everything Counts in Large Amounts” quests, I ran across one in Zangarmarsh called “A Question of Gluttony” where you retrieve Bog Lord feces… eww theres a couple of quests in the xpac that are like that.
This is, of course, a reference to the Depeche song A Question of Lust.
posted by NIck on 1-6-2008 at 2:16 am
Actually Kevin, in Netherstorm you can do a quest called “Needs More Cowbell,: in which you are given a cowbell.
posted by Mizunomatic on 1-6-2008 at 10:13 am
The Flight Master in Undercity has a son named Patrick Garrett. Bat Masterson and Pat Garrett were famous gunslingers.
posted by Blaine Lewis on 1-7-2008 at 1:48 pm
I always liked Groundskeeper Wyllithen in Eversong Woods.
posted by JK on 1-7-2008 at 3:44 pm
i’m a fan of pulp fiction, and in Ravenholdt Manor, in the mountains of hillsbrad foothills,
there’s an NPC named Winstone Wolfe.
posted by Damien on 1-7-2008 at 10:07 pm
theres a quest in EPL called “All Along The Watchtower” and in uldaman theres a boss named Grimlock. He even says something along of the lines of “me grimlock me king” if i remember correctly.
posted by james on 1-11-2008 at 3:06 am
Theres a mechanic named K. Lee Smallfry which is a mechanic (actually called Kaylee) from the TV show Firefly and movie Serenity
posted by JH on 1-11-2008 at 3:22 pm
A few I’ve noticed:
In the front yard of the Scarlet Bastion in Stratholme, Timmy the Cruel announces his spawn with a blood curdling “TIMMY!!!!”, similar to the South Park character of the same name.
Once inside the Scarlet Bastion, players may engage Cannonmaster Wiley. When defeated, Wiley occasionally drops a trinket called Cannonball Runner, a reference to the film Cannonball Run.
The final setpiece of the low level Deadmines instance in Westfall is a pirate ship in a hidden cavern, reminiscent of The Goonies.
In the Blackrock Depths instance, one memorable event entails defeating seven dwarves in rapid succession. Seven dwarves, get it?
In Upper Blackrock Spire, upon touching the Orb of Command behind Drakkisath to complete the Blackwing Lair attunement quest, you are greeted with “have fun storing the castle!” This same line was uttered by Miracle Max in The Princess Bride as the heroes left his house.
posted by Ira on 1-18-2008 at 9:42 am
about your content with the Antonio Perelli thing
i researched this and found something different
the actual reference for Antonio Perelli is a Marx Brothers film in 1939, where Chico Marx plays Antonio Pirelli. The movie is called: “At the Circus”
posted by JB on 1-21-2008 at 2:06 pm
Wow, I’m surprised no one has mentioned the Zelda string in Un’Goro Crater. You pick up some items that lead you to speak with a “Linkin” who sends you off to fix his sword and help him reclaim his lost memory after a river rafting accident. It was a lot of fun. :)
posted by Xoui on 1-22-2008 at 8:51 am
In the WoW reference to Sweeny Todd, that might be the other way around. WoW might have made the reference to Sweeny Todd because Sweeny Todd was actually a story in the middle ages, and later became a brodway musical which the movie was based on, so the Pirelli might be a coincidence, or WoW payed respect to all the fictional characters who died at the hands of the Demon Barber of Fleet Street:)
posted by Orangepanda on 1-28-2008 at 9:00 pm
There is an item in the game named the “Six Demon Bag” which is a direct reference to an album by the alternative band “Man Man”.
posted by Drew L. on 2-4-2008 at 1:36 pm
What about Haris Pilton in Shatt in the bar in Lower City?
posted by Karen on 2-4-2008 at 2:12 pm
most npc’s in WoW are in reference to either pop culture or previous blizzard creations.
For example, in Stormwind, the two auctioneers inside the auction house are named Auctioneer Abercrombie and Auctioneer Fitch.
posted by andrew on 2-22-2008 at 7:02 pm
The Moongraze Stags directly outside of azure watch near Exodar, Have the exact sound samples of imps in the original game Doom. It made me laugh so hard.
posted by Chris on 2-23-2008 at 1:21 am
I recognize most of these references. I think it’s the bank in Stormwind that that bankers are named for the more famous circuses. I was tickled pink when I figured this out.
posted by bethyny on 2-23-2008 at 2:55 am
I think one of my favorite references is the cooking daily NPC in Lower City (Shattrath) named The Rock.
That is a reference to WWE’s The Rock, who was known to say “If you smeeeeeeeeeeeeellllllll what The Rock is cooking!”
My husband is a major movie buff and made me hunt down The Five Deadly Venoms in Stormwind… which appears to be a poison shop but has no NPCs. My guild likes to have meetings there because it’s pretty isolated although it’s in the center of Old Town :)
posted by Cristie on 2-25-2008 at 4:38 pm
Haris Pilton and her dog hang out at the inn in Shattrath. ;-)
posted by Justin on 2-26-2008 at 11:30 am
Ophera Windfury. NPC inn keeper in Hellfire Peninsula at the Temple of Telhamat.
posted by Alfred Hitchcock on 2-29-2008 at 10:46 pm
What about Linken in Un’goro crater?
you get his wooden boomerang, linkens sword of mastery and to get the sword you need to go to a grave
i wonder what that is referencing
posted by Alix on 5-7-2008 at 3:40 pm