StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty & Community Thoughts!

StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty & Community Thoughts!: "

As many of you may already know Blizzard Entertainment last week announced that it has begun closed beta testing for its new real0time strategy game, StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty. StarCraft II has been a long time coming. It is the sequel of the 1998 hit, StarCraft. The new game will feature an entirely new 3D graphics engine and just like its predecessor, it will focus on the battle between the Protoss, Terrans, and Zerg. Blizzard said that StarCraft II should launch sometime in the first half of 2010.

In a release, the company mentioned there are thousands of people in the beta test. one of the main thrusts of the testing at this stage is for the company to gain as much feedback as possible on the multiplayer balance of the game. In addition to being able to play the game, the testers will be the first to experience Blizzard’s reworked Battle.net platform, which the company has plans to use for not only StarCraft II but also World of Warcraft and all future Blizzard games. The new Battle.net system is said to be launched with StarCraft II. As of right now the delays in getting Battle.net ready have already caused some delays in the launch of StarCraft II but Blizzard thinks it will be well worth the wait. Players can set up a Battle.net account now and submit system specifications for a chance to be admitted to the beta.

On the other light of the scene are it’s diehard fans and many communities have already risen in support of the upcoming game. Many tournament players from the original game, Starcraft, have been sharing some of their experiences about the beta with the public (which is allowed) and are filling in those who have not yet had a chance to play. Amongst the tournament players are the Koreans who are infamously known to be the “best” at StarCraft. YGosu (a Korean fansite) for the upcoming game interviewed ZenioWerra, a top level amateur Zerg player who gave up his aspirations of becoming a WarCraft III progamer in order to prepare for StarCraft II and Lee “Check[Pooh]” Hyung Ju, a well-known WarCraft III progamer in Korea who made his claim to fame in the early days of the WarCraft III professional scene.

Some highlights of YGosu’s interview with “Zenio” can be read below:

YGosu: What do you think the strengths of Starcraft II are?

Zenio: First off, it`s still in the beta phase, yet Battle.net works really well so even new players can start playing with ease. The ladder system is great, too. From an observer`s standpoint, the tempo of the game is quick so it`s fun to watch.

YGosu: Were you thinking about E-sports with that last bit?

Zenio: Yes. There`s a real joy to watching the game.

YGosu: On the other hand, what do you think the weaknesses are? In terms of balance, or gameplay.

Zenio: The sound effects could be better. I think Zerg has the biggest problem there, there`s just no energy behind the unit sounds. It barely sounds like they`re responding when you click on them, and you can`t tell what unit is making what sound. There aren`t units that sound desperate or growl at you aggressively, and the “You require more minerals” sound is kind of off-putting (the Korean dub of the Zerg lady is said to be pretty bad). So it`s kind of annoying.

Some highlights of YGosu’s interview of “Check” can be read below:

YGosu: That`s a similar position as the Starcraft: BW gamers. If you`re part of a team, I suppose it`s the rule that you follow team policy. Then tell us what you think of Starcraft II.

Check: It`s still beta, but it seems very complete. The balance is alright, and I rate it highly from an E-sports perspective as well. It`s being streamed a lot lately, and it`s getting a good response from the viewers. It`s personally pretty fun to watch other guys play as well.

YGosu: Outside E-sports aspects, do you think Starcraft II is a fun game that the average person could enjoy?

Check: I think that maybe Brood War fans might not be able to get used to the fact that Starcraft II is in 3D. But it`s really similar to the original, and if they gave it a try I think they`d like it. The interface is more convenient, too.

Translation was a courtesy of Waxangel from Team Liquid for translating the articles from YGosu.

So what do you guys think of StarCraft II ? Are you excited as many of the people in the PC Gaming world? Share your thoughts and comments with us!

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