Get a new pet companion for the WoW-addicted geek in your life

As the genre suggests, the massively multiplayer online role playing game World of Warcraft, is played online. For friends and family who do not play WoW, getting a gift for the geeky loved one who spends so much time in game can be a bit of a problem. I mean, you may have heard your gamer wishing for a set Tier 9 plate armor, but you cannot go out and buy it for them, even if you knew what the heck that meant.

Well, now Blizzard Entertainment has a new way to surprise your World of Warcraft playing loved one. You can now buy an in game non-combat pet companion out here in the real world and gift it into the fantasy MMORPG world. This fancy bit of technology footwork is possible because Blizzard has moved the login process to a central application called Battle.net; which means that it is now possible to acquire account-based items that can them be moved into a game that supports it.

But putting all of that aside for the moment, the thing to take away for this is that for a mere $10 each, you can give your World of Warcraft loving geek a gift they can enjoy inside the game.

Two choices

Pandaren Monk: He is a Panda and a monk that knows Kung Fu - what else do you need to know? Well, for one thing, if you purchase this pet before December 31, 2009, half of the proceeds will go to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of America.

Lil’ K.T: This pet is a mini-lich and a replica of Kel’Thuzad, one of the infamous bosses found in Warcraft lore.

Each of the pets has several unique animations, some of which I captured in video I made with the help of Fraps. Technologia Guild leader Elkwinkarma brought the pets out for some home movies in one of the side gardens found in the floating city of Dalaran.

Bottom line

If you have a loved one playing World of Warcraft, especially if they are into the hundreds of pet companions available in the game, then these two pets that can you purchase from the Blizzard Store could be the perfect gift. At $10 each, they make the ultimate digital stocking stuffer.

But if you are still stumped about what to get your geeky friend, you should take a look at the TechRepublic Geek Gift Guide 2009 for some fresh ideas. With over 25 gift ideas in the guide, you are bound to find some inspiration for that hard to buy for geek.