Starcraft 2

Initially, I was thinking of starting with the Zealot. It made sense to start with the first unit that’s coming out of the Gateway. However, the Protoss Mothership seems at least 10 times more exciting, so lets forget about build orders for now.

If you interested in how the Mothership fits the storyline, here’s a brief primer:

After the destruction of Auir, and the attacks on Shakuras, the Protoss has decided to create safe havens within the sky. These glass domes encase entire Protoss cities and are a symbol of hope and power. Headed by the leaders of the Protoss Conclave, Motherships are not only armed to the teeth, but also act as a funnel for the Conclave’s immense psionic power.

Let’s look at the gameplay video (Protoss Mothership only)

Protoss Mothership Stats

The production cost for producing a mothership is not clear, yet you know what you get for your money - a finisher that will destroy your opponents fleet and level a heavily fortified base. It has 850 hit points and is protected by a 350-point shield.

The Mothership’s standard attack consists of eight psionic missiles that home to nearby targets. It seems like they’ll be difficult to focus-fire effectively. In the gameplay video, it looked like the Mothership is hitting two or more targets simultaneously. Lets go through the abilities next.

Protoss Mothership Ability: Time bomb

The time bomb ability will slow down to crawl all enemy movement in the area around the Mothership. In addition, all missiles fired by stationary base defenses (maybe Goliath missiles as well) will get caught up in this force field. Once the units are destroyed, the missiles fall to the ground and the Mothership continues unscathed.

Protoss Mothership Ability: Planet Cracker

This ability reminds me of the movie Independence Day. It’s a deathray that hits all targets on ground below the mothership. Its purpose is to level a base and/or destroy all ground reinforcements that enemy throws at you. Not sure if you can use this ability in conjunction with the Time bomb. It seems like a deadly combo to me: no one moves, while I level the base.

Protoss Mothership Ability: Black Hole

In case you’ve got the impression that the Mothership abilities target ground only, here’s my favorite ability: the Black Hole. It looks like the Mothership will expend all its energy on this one (you might even need an energy upgrade). The effect is devastating to all units in range - they are sucked in the black hole, never to be seen again.

This disappearing act takes things a bit too far in my opinion. So maybe Blizzard can balance it with making it a Wormhole instead of a black hole. It could cause damage and throw the sucked units all across the map.

En Taro Adun!

It seems that the Protoss have received most of the attention so far in terms of development. Judging from the gameplay videos (make sure you download the hi-def video), the Protoss have a well-rounded force at all tiers.

It’s a bit of speculation at this point but the tiers look something like this:

Tier 1

Protoss Zealot - the mainstay of the Protoss ground forces hasn’t changed much, except for getting a Charge ability to get him close distances faster.

Tier 2

Obviously, at Tier 2 you’ll have some stategic choices to make. The options seems to be equally strong (at this point).

Protoss Immortal - Immortals get through heavy hitters like the Terran Siege tanks so if you expect the Terran to go mass tanks, Immortals will be a good strategic option.

Protoss Phoenix - dubbed as a air-supriority fighter, the Phoenix seems to be a counter to Mutalisk rushes. The Overload ability allows it to fire at all nearby enemies which makes it perfect to stop Mutas from destroying your expansion.

Protoss Stalker - Stalkers excel at hit-and-run tactics. Their Blink ability not only gets them to a higher/lower ground in a … blink, it also allows them to massacre running units (e.g. CSVs). In that respect they are similar to their Dark Templar brethren.

Protoss Colossus - Technically, the Colossus will probably be Tier 3 but I see a lot of players teching quickly to get him as early as possible. It looks like it replaces the Reaver unit which failed its role as a ground support unit in Starcraft. Most Protoss players didn’t use it except for harassment via drops.

The Colossus seems to have a much better potential to support the Zealots. His ability to move to lower/higher ground means the harassment potential is still there… I bet it’ll go through a dozen Drones in 5 seconds.

Tier 3

Protoss Warp Ray - the demo pitted Terran battlecruisers against Warp Rays. The four rays destroyed 3 battlecruisers without a single loss. These will be a mid-/late-game answer to massed heavy units as their attack increases the longer they shoot at their target.

Protoss Mothership - you can only build one of these and Blizzard calls it the Ultimate Protoss weapon. It has three specials - one defensive, two offensive ones. My guess is once you build one, it’s GG for your opponent. It’s a like the finishing move in Mortal Combat.

I’ll go through them in more detail, once Blizzard post more info. Otherwise, I’ll simply continue with the speculation!

Blizzard has been kind enough to post high resolution versions of the gameplay video we got earlier. I viewed the 1280×768 video on my new 20″ LG display and I’m definitely looking forward to more of this! I love the fact Starcraft 2 is now 3D.

1280×768 Resolution

• Download gameplay video (Windows version)
• Download gameplay video (Mac version)

720 x 404 Resolution (not recommended!)

• Download gameplay video (Windows version)
• Download gameplay video (Mac version)

Gamespot has a detailed interview with Blizzard’s top creative talent, including Rob Pardo.

Here’s some of the key points that have surfaced about Starcraft 2 gameplay, apart from the obvious fact Starcraft 2 is now 3D!

1. Quantity vs. Quality

As opposed to Warcraft III where the player controls a few units with many different special abilities, Starcraft 2 will be a numbers game, says Pardo:

Starcraft 2 [units] will instead act as “movers and shooters”–mostly autonomous forces that generally lack special abilities, but will instead be used in large control groups to “do their own thing” in battle, rather than requiring the micromanagement of high-level Warcraft III play.

2. More emphasis on economic activity

Another comparison to Warcraft III which had relatively little emphasis on the economy, so players can focus on battles instead. Starcraft 2 will have its pronounced emphasis on bases and expansions as a means of achieving victory.

3. Rushing - strongly encouraged

Unlike Warcraft which introduced neutral creeps to keep the players occupied, Starcraft 2 will put more emphasis on rushing. Engaging the enemy early and keeping him occupied will distinguish good players from mediocre ones. Which leads us to…

4. The good, the bad, and the GOSU

According to Pardo, Warcraft III was more forgiving to beginners (and lamers!). In Starcraft 2, the gap in the level will be a lot more evident. Pro players will be able to mow down their opponents in record time by way of builds, multitasking, quick expansions, uber units like the Protoss Mothership:

Starcraft 2 … will appeal to hardcore fans by being geared toward “highly competitive, skill-based gameplay,” as well as by efforts to “continue to drive new features onto Battle.net”.

5. Beyond rock-paper-scissors

Starcraft 2 units will introduce more and more subtle ways to counter the opponent’s strategy. The key to good counters will be timing, maneuverability, and position (there’s a brand new implementation of higher ground - more damage, fog of war).

The protoss phoenix, a flying unit, has a special “overload” ability that creates a damaging energy field around itself, then renders it immobile and helpless shortly afterward. In a simulated battle between a player with six phoenix units and another player with only four, the player with six phoenixes apparently chokes and uses the overload ability too early, allowing the other player to dodge out of harm’s way, then arrange the four phoenixes around the now immobile six in a loose formation and overload the six into oblivion.

If you have any other insights, feel free to comment below and I’ll expand the list! Make sure you check out the Starcraft 2 trailer and the new gameplay videos, they’re full of insights.

Take these bits with a grain of salt, though Blizzard are unlikely to deviate from the general Starcraft line so far.

The game takes place four years after StarCraft: Brood War, the same time as the storyline of StarCraft: Ghost.

StarCraft II will take place both in new worlds and in worlds that had appeared in the original game. Char is back. One of the new worlds is Bel’Shir, a jungle Protoss world that was a religious retreat until it was attacked by the Zerg; it now houses many ruined temples. The world shown in the cinematic is Braxis Alpha. Jim Raynor is set to continue his adventures.

• The United Earth Directorate forces were destroyed by Infested Kerrigan’s zerg armies (though a few surviving companies may stil be around somewhere)”.
• The Terran faction in StarCraft II will primarily consist of the “evil empire” of the Terran Dominion.
• The Xel’Naga will fit into the story “in a rather epic tale”. It is important to note that the “greater whole” of the Xel’Naga race was wiped out, which means some of them may still be alive.

I can’t wait for the cinematics! The trailer looks awesome.

Once you’ve seen the official Starcraft 2 trailer, scroll down for the gameplay videos.

I love it when she says: “Nuclear launch detected!” This game is going to be like a nuclear launch … especially in Korea.

Starcraft gameplay - video 1

Starcraft gameplay - video 2

After all the Starcraft 2 facts in the last post, it’s time for some video. Once you view the official Starcraft 2 trailer below, be sure to check the game play videos. Also, see what’s different in Starcraft 2.

Download the high definition Starcraft 2 trailer:

• Download trailer (Windows version)
• Download trailer (Mac version)

I’ve gone through the FAQ at Starcraft2.com. I must say I like what I see! Here’s the facts:

When is Starcraft 2 being released?

As usual, Blizzard is not setting a deadline. I hope they manage to get a beta out by the end of 2007 but based on previous titles, I wouldn’t surprised if they delay it.

What are the new units and races?

No new races this time, they’re sticking to the Protoss, Terran, and Zerg. There will be plenty of new units though. For example, the Protoss have been beefed up with an Immortal, Stalker, a Phase Prism.

Is Starcraft 2 an RTS or an MMO?

Thank God, Starcraft 2 is an RTS.

It’s a good think Blizzard don’t listen to Vivendi all the time, otherwise they’ll be doing one MMO after the other. In Starcraft 2, there will be a single player and a competitive multiplayer on Battle.net.

Will it run on my computer?

Blizzard is not posting specific specs but it says the game will run on Vista and Windows XP. So you probably don’t need to upgrade per se. Getting the most of the new 3D look though will require a good graphics card at least.

What’s different?

Not much. I can’t blame them, Starcraft is one of the best games of all time, no need to fix it, just expand it.

There will be a new 3D engine, of course. There will be several new units for each race. Also, Battle.net will be upgraded with more multiplayer features.

All in all, I’m happy about what I’ve seen so far. Just let me see the Starcraft 2 trailer!

Blizzard has just announced the sequel to Starcraft. I must say it was about time. The original Starcraft came out in 1998, almost a decade ago.

I’m over at Starcraft2.com to go through trailers, screenshots, and other goodies!

A guy (no idea who) has done some amazing work to recreate Starcraft as a 3D game.

Below is just one detail (the Nexus), make sure you click on the 3D screen to see the whole thing!

Do you think Starcraft 2 will be something like that? Considering Blizzard’s resources, I’d be surprised if it looked significantly worse!