Babylon 5 meets World of Warcraft?

[Admiral Shran]

The Beta versions of the new intros for all the races in the new World of Warcraft expansion have been released....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ay2ZepjL6Vk&feature=player_embedded

Skip to the 3:28 mark, when the intro for the Draenei starts.

Does any of this sound familiar to anybody else, especially starting at the 4:00 mark?

 

[OmahaStar]

Valin? The Shadows? lmao yeah, that's not even subtle.

 

[David cgc]

The crystal cities, too.

 

[Pilot Ace]

Hah, cool. Not a fan of WoW, but I'm always tickled when I see what references they can sneak in to other properties.

 

[Admiral Shran]

They've often had references to other media in the game. Usually it's done in a subtle way - nothing this in your face.

 

[Aeon]

That's pretty cool.

 

[Leroy]

I might have missed something other than the prophet Velen I didn't notice anything too blatant. Crystal cities are very generic fantasy/SF hardly anything invented by B5 and there have been tales of armies of light and dark since time began.

 

[CorporalClegg]

^
But how often do you see all three together?

 

[FordSVT]

Ever since the Draenai and Velen were introduced, it's been a pretty commonly held speculation that they're a reference to the Minbari, in some rough ways.

Velen, the prophet, that communicates with beings of light, the Naaru, who arrived in a ship out of nowhere to help fight the Burning Legion.

Valen, the prophet, that communicates with beings of light, the Vorlons, who arrived in a ship out of nowhere to help fight the Shadows.

There are a few other B5 references in BC as well. The crystal cities don't have to be a B5 reference, but Valen and the Minbari were aliens who lived in crystal cities.

There are so many pop culture references in WoW (hundreds) that if it seems obvious or likely, it's really not a stretch to assume it probably is. Blizz isn't shy about that kind of thing.