Beta players of World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor now have the opportunity to seek out Blizzard Entertainment's own tribute to the late, great Robin Williams. Williams, who passed away last month at the age of 63, was beloved by many; so many, that fans of the comedian took to starting a petition asking Blizzard to add Williams to their long-running MMO, immortalizing him forever.
Wowhead reports that a user by the name of 'Haldhur' found a few in-game nods to the actor, with the first being an obvious reference to his role as 'Genie' in Disney's Aladdin. On an island off the coast of Talador is an item known as the Ever Burning Lamp, and upon rubbing it, a djinn will appear exclaiming, "INFINITE COSMIC POWER," followed by "Itty Bitty Living Space" while shrinking.
Not too far away, players can find a broken eggshell with various items in it, in reference to Williams' role as one of the two leads of Mork and Mindy. Files for an NPC named Robin dressed in clothes that resemble Mork's were found within the game's files, as well as another NPC dressed as (presumably) his cross-dressing nanny, Mrs. Doubtfire.
While neither character is currently in the beta, it's safe to assume that Blizzard will implement them before the expansion's release.
Additionally, there are several stuffed animals and tanks which have been assumed to be yet another Robin Williams reference, this time for Toys. A character title called the 'Comedian' has also been discovered, but it's unknown if this is also tied to Williams, despite how appropriate it would seem.
The nods may seem out of place, but only to those unaware that Williams was an avid player of World of Warcraft and video games in general. His daughter, Zelda Williams, was named specifically after The Legend of Zelda character of the same name. Shortly after his fans petitioned Blizzard to create a tribute to the actor, the developer quickly agreed to the idea and set out to make it a reality.
It's still unknown how these various NPCs and items will relate to the overall lore of World of Warcraft, but we can at least take comfort in the fact that he will always have a place in WoW. Perhaps more details about the Robin Williams-specific additions will be discussed in the weeks leading up to the expansions' release - or maybe Blizzard wants people to discover it for themselves.
Either way, World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor is expected to release on November 13, 2014 for PC.
Source: Wowhead