As we expected, the forum thread for the Cataclysm Closed Beta Key Contest was truly epic, but we've pulled all fifty names out of our enormous hat. Like we stated in the contest rules, the winners were randomly selected, but we did check all of the users' posts to make sure they adhered to the eligibility guidelines. Thanks again to everyone that entered, and we hope that you stick around for awhile and make a home out of the WoW Allakhazam forums!

Please Note: Winners will be contacted via PM and email over the next few days. If you're on the winners list and don't receive your email, feel free to reply in this thread.

The entry period for the contest has expired. Thanks to all those who entered!

ZAM is having a giveaway to celebrate the end of the world (or at least the end of Azeroth as we know it) and we’re giving away fifty chances to experience that post-dragonkissed world before anyone else.

You can see the entire list of winners at the bottom of this article!

After a ton of negative feedback on Blizzard's forums and elsewhere, Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime released a statement that Blizzard will not force users to use their real name when posting after all. Morhaime said that the company is still committed to making the forums a constructive place for players to visit and use and that other announced changes will stay in effect.

The backlash was in response to Blizzard's announcement earlier in the week that it will post user's real names when they use the official Blizzard forums.

See Morhaime's letter to fans below.

You read it right, ZAM Premium users! In addition to getting Premium service across all of ZAM’s network sites (including Wowhead and Wowinterface), you now get full Premium privileges on TankSpot as well!

That means you’ll have full access to the following features:

• Download 720p HD versions of their movies directly from the site
• Guild Recruitment classifieds prominently placed across TankSpot
• Ad-free site services
• A distinguished blue username on the TankSpot forums
• Full avatar and signature service

To link your accounts, go to:
http://www.tankspot.com/zam2ts.php

Please Note: You will need to be logged in to both your ZAM account and TankSpot account to make this work. If you don’t already have TankSpot account, register here. If you don't already have a ZAM account, register here. You can read the Frequently Asked Questions here!

According to a blue post in the official World of Warcraft board, Blizzard will be changing the way that posters are identified on all of the official game forums. The announcement was made around 9 a.m. PST, and after about 3 and a half hours, the post already had more than 230 pages of responses. Blizzard's thought is to spur more creative discussion, but the response has been less than stellar as hundreds of people seem to be going back and deleting their old posts. Below is the official post on the Battle.net forums.

The World of Warcraft Cataclysm beta went live on June 30th and we've got all the details on how you can get in and start taking down that dragon that's destroying everything. All you need to do is go to your Battle.net account and click on the "Manage My Games" section of your Account Management page. Then, create a beta profile in the "Beta Profile Settings."

If you're selected you'll receive a confirmation email and you will be able to verify that the game client is ready for download from your "Manage My Games" section. Blizzard will be adding new beta players weekly so if you're not selected right away, don't give up hope! To read more about the beta release go here. Good Luck!

The Blizzard Creative Writing Contest is back this summer, offering one lucky (and talented) fan the chance to visit Blizzard's headquarters in Irvine, CA and spend an afternoon with the company's own writing team. As if hobnobbing with Blizzard's lore masters isn't reward enough, the grand prize winner will also receive his or her choice between a Diablo III "OVERTHROWN" barbarian diorama or a Frostmourne sword. Seven runners-up will each receive prize packages from the Diablo Archive, the Warcraft Archive, the StarCraft Archive, and the Warcraft: War of the Ancients Archive, "all signed by Chris Metzen, the cover artists, and Blizzard's writing staff," according to the official contest page.

This year fans from anywhere in the world can enter the contest (with the exception of a few states and provinces), unlike the 2009 event. Blizzard is calling for creative fiction based in the Warcraft, StarCraft, or Diablo universe, written in English and composed of 2,500 to 7,500 words. Entrants are instructed to submit their work at the official contest page, using this entry form. Rules and eligibility information can be found here, or visit the main contest page for all the links and info. The deadline for entries is August 23, 2010. To help you get an idea of what kind of writing the judges enjoyed in the past, visit the 2009 Blizzard Creative Writing Contest page to read last year's winning entry and excerpts from some of the finalists' stories.

The latest Cataclysm preview from Blizzard introduces Grim Batol, a mountain once refuge to the Wildhammers clan following the dwarven civil war of Ironforge. Located in the Twilight Highlands (of the upcoming expansion), Grim Batol is a 5-player dungeon steeped in lore, tangled between the dwarves, the Twilight's Hammer and the Red and Black Dragonflights. Tuned for level 85 players, the dungeon lies within the cavernous ruins of the mountain sacked by the Twilight Hammer cult, now being used as a training ground for Deathwing's minions.

"The cult, seduced by Deathwing's thirst for absolute domination over Azeroth, has claimed the Twilight Highlands as its base of operations," the Blizzard preview reads. "The black dragonflight has driven off the agents of the red dragonflight who guarded Grim Batol so that it may be used as a fortress for training Deathwing's minions. The halls of Grim Batol run so deep into the highlands that it is unknown to what twisted end the Twilight's Hammer is using this doomed dwarven marvel." Read the full story and view a handful of new screenshots at the Grim Batol section of Blizzard's official Cataclysm preview site.

It's not every day you get to see real life events translating over to video games, but that's just what World of Warcraft's two largest LGBTQ guilds (Taint [H] and The Stonewall Family [A]) will be doing on June 19th, 2010. This will be the sixth year for the gay pride parade, dubbed "The Proudmoore Pride Parade," and these two guilds plan on meeting up at 12 PM from Camp Turajo for Horde players, and at 11:45 AM from the gates of Theramore for the Alliance. From there, both groups will make their way through the Barrens to Ratchet, where they will then take the boat to Booty Bay to continue celebrating.

In addition to this, the guilds have announced that the "theme" for this year's parade will be "Last Dance," to honor the fact that this will be the last time that the parade will make its way through the Barrens before Cataclysm hits Azeroth sometime this year. As well, players will be designing their own "float" concepts, where they can create themes and costumes to march together in groups in the parade. Remember, all players are welcome to join in on the parade, but try to keep your PvPing urges to a minimum, as disorderly conduct will be highly frowned upon.

Wouldn't you rather just always be playing WoW? Starting today, using the new Armory website, Mobile Armory App for the iPhone and iPod Touch or the Remote Auction House app for Android will enable you to keep track of all your bids and auctions in real-time.

But what's an auction without being able to bid and sell? Also launching today, for a paid subscription of $2.99 a month, the World of Warcraft Remote service will let you post items for sale directly from your character's bag, bank or mailbox on your factions Auction House or your realm's cross-faction Auction House. You'll also be able bid or place buyout purchases on other player's for sale items in real-time. And don't forget about that gold you'll be earning and spending, which you can collect from a sold item or reclaim from a failed bid.

What it boils down to is now you can now make gold or buy sweet armor anywhere, even when you're waiting at the DMV or at your friend's brother's cousin's wedding. For more info, go here.