Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty Review
Short Version: The most important lesson I learned from Starcraft II – more of the same only BETTER in every way possible can make for an absolute Masterpiece! The list of improvements are extensive: Extremely high production values, massive amounts of interesting well voiced In-game cinematics, Engaging Singleplayer missions with interesting objectives, a near limitless Map Editor, and a full compliment of Online Multiplayer features including built in league and ladders, Blizzard delivered the Best RTS I have ever played in exchange for the 10 year wait from the original!
What you’ll Like:
• The Graphics are Jaw-dropping and there’s an Insane amount of detail in nearly every aspect of the game.
• The Adventure-like Metagame that allows to you watch your recent exploits on television, play fun tunes on the jukebox, learn more about your companion characters and explore your ship and newly acquired units.
• The Added RPG elements of upgrading your units skills and abilities or hiring mercenaries with in game credits and research points acquired during missions.
• The Extremely Flexible Map Editor allows you to create nearly any type of game you can imagine, if you can get over its learning curve.
• The Branching Story Paths forcing you to choose one mission over another each with unique cinematics and consequences.
• The gameplay from the original remains intact while the new units add new layers to the games strategy.
• Best Part: All of the excellent added story-driven cinematic’s in between missions.
What you’ll Hate:
• As a result of splitting the game into 1 full game & 2 expansions – There are only a handful of Protoss assignments and absolutely no Zerg Missions.
• Battle 2.0 is fancy but ultimately less functional than 1.0. Why did they remove chat rooms, force region restrictions, and strip=out Lan Play? Oh yea. To over-monetize everything they can – be on the look out for more of this.
• Worst Part: Knowing I’m contributing to Activision’s bottom line.
Final Verdict:
9/10*
Legendary!
*Final Verdict: 9/10 If corporate influence is to be counted – then consider Battle Net 2.0 changes, Region Locking, No LAN play and The so called “StarCraft II Marketplace”
BAD ASS APPROVED! Safe Buy!
*UDPATE
Kotaku reports that the Australian version of StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty will not be region-locked. This means Australian gamers are free to play with us guys in the USA if they choose to do so during first sign-up.
Here’s Blizzard’s Q&A to clarify things…
Q: Who is eligible to play on the North American servers?
A: All players, including those in the regions of Hong Kong and Macau, who purchase the English Southeast Asia/Australia/New Zealand Standard or Collector’s Edition of StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty will have the option of playing on the North American Battle.net® servers in addition to the Southeast Asia/Australia/New Zealand servers if they prefer.Q: How much will this cost?
A: The option of playing on North American Battle.net servers will come at no additional cost to all players who have purchased the Southeast Asia/Australia/New Zealand version of StarCraft II.Q: How will access to the North American servers be granted?
A: Our intention is to ensure that within 60 days after the launch of StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty, all players with a copy of the Southeast Asia/Australia/New Zealand version will automatically gain the ability to also access the North American servers — this will be handled through Battle.net account management.Q: How will I know when I can access the North American servers?
A: We will have additional information on how and when to access the North American servers on our StarCraft II community site.Q: What will happen with my Southeast Asia/Australia/New Zealand Battle.net account?
A: Once you get access to the North American Battle.net servers, you will have access to both regions for online play. You can choose which one to play on at any given time, and can switch back and forth at will.Q: How will my friends list and rankings be handled?
A: All account-specific data, including friends lists, rankings, achievements, statistics, titles, and unlockable rewards, will be tracked separately for each region’s Battle.net servers, and will not carry over between them.Q: If I have already purchased the North American version, can I also play on the Southeast Asia/Australia/New Zealand servers?
A: No. To have the option to play on both servers, you must purchase the Southeast Asia/Australia/New Zealand version of StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty. This solution is specifically targeted to address gamers in Southeast Asia/Australia/New Zealand who have social relationships with North American players from previous Blizzard Entertainment titles.
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237 thoughts on “Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty Review”
No doubt, one of the best games Blizzard had ever released. Playing it at present.
Nice graphical update, nice to play it again in new version, with a new story…but still majorly a graphical update. 7/10
I still play it often today, but I think as a hardcore fan of it, that we were probably expecting too much, wich explains the little disapointment. Let’s pray for a totaly new starcraft experience in Starcraft 3, comming out fall 2034 ^^
Hey Angry Joe with the new patch for starcrafft 2 out allowing for much better chat options then before would you raise your score of this game even with the corporate bullshit that’s left to a 10/10
this looks like a good game but how does it compare to command and conqer or dawn of war the first one the second one is shite
Haha, that was brilliant — I thought for the longest time that this was actually going to be a sincere review. A fantastic satire, well played, and a great way to express just how disappointing the result of a decade’s wait was. Loved the Duke Nukem Forever reference. Keep it up!
i dident get a notepad!? wtf!
This game is epic. I don’t know what else I can say. I can’t find a single flaw other than the no LAN, and Activision should screw off.
That being said, there is rumours battle.net 2.0 might get LAN by Heart Of The Swarm.
A decent ending? ._.
I’m not talking about cutting off early or anything. I mean what actually happened in the ending. You’re OKAY with that?
dude this totally converted me in to a rts fan
I got StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty only around 20 days ago (seems like so much longer) and as I installed it, I found myself immersed in not only the rockin’ soundtrack, but also the detailed backstory, that explained the events of the StarCraft I and StarCraft: Brood Wars, which I still play on a regular basis. I played through the campaign, amazed at how enjoyable and unique all the missions were from each other. Multiplayer was a disappointment, however. Mainly because of the fact that I can’t play with any of my friends who might bring their laptop over one day and have SC2 installed.
Final Opinion -
Gameplay – 10/10
Story – 10/10
Singleplayer – 10/10
Multiplayer – 9/10
The moment I saw your starcraft review, I, as a starcraft addict, had to add you. Perfect review. If you ever wanna play online with me, just Pm me on youtube and i’ll give you my account info.
Thanks for the review.
is it possible that LAN will be available on the expansions. maybe they want to release all 3 race campaigns before releasing LAN
activision ruins everything. corporates ruin everything. activision ruined blizzard, it ruined the call of duty series just for the sake of money. gaming is going to die a slow painfull death.
I’m going to only address grievances in this comment as the fanboyism has already taken hold of the positive marks (which I must admit this game deserves).
-wtf. No LAN mode? I still play Age of Empires on LAN, and the lag isn’t too bad, though that is possibly more because it isn’t nearly as graphics intensive.
-Even with the lowest possible graphics settings, I require a $600 Laptop or a $200 upgrade for my Desktop computer. And I never planned on using the Desktop for online use. The cutscenes are incredible, but I guarantee you they can be played on my Toshiba Satellite, and puny 2.16ghz Intel chip. I don’t need a freaking i7 or AMD Athlon Six Core. Jesus Christ.
-Online registration/Verification? So sorry, but eventually l33t h4x0rz are going to overrule that, too. And to be honest, I will be glad. What is the point of adding a little fee here, a little extra freaking inconvenience there, when you already have your $60-$100 sale, multiplied by like OVER 9000 (more like OVER 9000000)??
The fans have given you gold in return for your masterpiece, but then behind their backs you sack things like goddamn LAN. Are you kidding me? LAN has to be one of the most primitive forms of multiplayer gameplay, something games as far back as freaking AGE OF EMPIRES can handle, and this is something you can’t accomplish because YOU’RE AFRAID OF LOSING MONEY?!
I’m going to be a good Observer and not buy into this until the prices go down or I find a great deal, as well as looking to see if the Pigs decide to charge more for online activity as the box prices go down.
I agree.
When I heard there was no LAN mode, my friends and I were a little upset, because we get together just about every weekend for LAN parties, and StarCraft: BW is an old favourite.
I’m also gonna have to look a little harder at the system requirements… I don’t think my comp can do this without an upgrade, either.
For the record I read somewhere that the made the game so that general computers today can handle it. (you will have to find the source yourself) but my computer just made the cut off and its only 7 months old. It’s an amazing game, a few balance problems but its in its early stages, for example the archon desperatly needs more power. the only thing im not enjoying is the lack of chat rooms. (which is rumored to come in the next patch)
As a kid, I loved RTS games. Between SC1, the original C&C, and several others, I was happy. I almost lost hope in SC2 every being made, especially when Blizzard took of with WoW, and was what seem like working only on that. But, when I saw the trailer for this, I was excited. Especially during the wait, I had a crappy end to one of my favorites, C&C 4.
Even though it is only the Terran campain, it was still a very involving story, and I enjoyed every minute of it. From the branching paths, to the excellent voice acting, it really pulled me in.
Yeah, the battle.net stuff is bull, but I can look past that, since I like to play the single player mostly.
Add me i managed to snag the name Templar
i personally think that when a developer goes out of their way to lock down a game so that its difficult to play, install, etc. that developer deserves to have some major points taken away from it. as far as activision and blizzard messing with battle net 2.0, locking down accounts regionally, and removing LAN games deserves to be mentioned at least if not condemned! thanks Joe! I am very picky when it comes to my games and i really have a low tolerance for corporate BS. Its time that developers realize who they are developing these games for, because right now its all about the money and not about the gamer! Activision, just make the damn game! leave your corporate nickel and dimming out of our games! Unless your DLC is entire expansion packs its just stuff you should have included when you released the game and now are demanding more money for. Example: modern warfare 2, with 10 extra multi-player only maps, is over still 90 bucks! how do you get away with that a year after release activision?
Eril about the lag…
I dont remember the lag before. but hey i play game since .. let me see…
atari2600.. oef i feel old now…
anyways….
i like to play with my friends around the world.
Why do i need to logon to battlenet?
We all know it does suck.
Why not someone host with the most powerfull pc and the rest of the friends logon to that.
Like it was in the early days. it was tons of fun and you didnt had to be online all the time.
oh yeah no LAN i know iam a fussy man when it comes to lan option.
There is no trust between buyers and the people who sell the stuff since the outcomming of RDM.
I know there had to be money be earned etc.. but the cost it kinda high. NO MORE RDM PLEASE OR REGIONAL FIXED BATTLENET let US CHOOSE if we want it or not.
let it be a tool we can use. not forced on us.
I mean it might be good for WOW and all.. because you have to be online for that game. (MMO)
But SC2 is a RTS so.. why be online for that?
so much for the grief today.
have fun people..
i almost felt some anger here.. must be joe’s anger i feel for RDM
It’s not about it being a whole story, it’s about paying $150 for 3 campaigns that in the original Starcraft was $50! And as to THREE expansions?! Where did you see that? What research did you do before you recorded this? You had three different types of PACKAGING, but only ONE expansion, which was called Brood War and came with ANOTHER three campaigns!!!!!!
I will buy the Gold version of this when I can get all three campaigns for $60 or less, like the original, because this game is no greater for today than the original for for it’s day….
And I never saw you as biased before Angry Joe, but now I do. You dissed the original to make this follow-up look better.
You knew what you were doing when you didn’t bring up the cost of getting all 3 campaigns, one more thing Activision had a hand in probably and one thing so damning you dare not bring it up.
Shame on you Joe. Shame on you.
The only one who needs to do research is you. There were three expansions. One official one made by Blizzard, Brood Wars. And two expansions made by separate companies Retribution, and Insurrection. I know Starcraft Retribution exists because I remember seeing it in a store many years ago.
http://i32.tinypic.com/2qvfgr4.jpg
He did mention the game being split up if you’d bothered to watch the review. There’s been no word that the expansions are going to cost as much as full games so I don’t know where you got that idea from.
Anyway hows the Something Awful forums they still srs bizns?
The first game was a fun experience for me. It wasn’t exactly a wow moment for me, but it helped familiarize me better with strategy games. SC2 looks like an improvement over the original’s formula. Nothing more, nothing less. A “take it or leave it” approach. Not much innovation, from the looks of it, which is said because we have lots of homogeneous concepts floating around in this medium already.
Not enough people are questioning the traditional forms of game design, to the extent where games will be able to do more than just drag you around from level to level, killing everyone in your path. If I were to make up a rule for game design, it would be: if you cannot find a way to make one scene, one area within a game interesting enough that a player can stick around for a long period of time rather than constantly move from one location to another, then you have failed to craft a very rich, game design concept with lots of immersion.
Okay… US server.. EU server… I agree with you its really bad! but you can’t imagine how much LAG there is during the game play… I have been playing Sc/bw since 1998…. And I went on the Asian server a few times to learn how they play was never really worth it due to a lot of lag. So you have to stand corrected this time… It kinda makes you wonder if people are better in other regions, so I guess that’s what CPL / WCG etc are for. The real life tournaments! One really bad thing is that the “achievement server” is going down a lot. And that sometimes while you play on the ladder you end up against opponents that are far a head of your in skill or the other way around. So that thing ain’t working so well.
Fox parody? More like MSNBC parody.
Us conservatives don’t propogandate (as far as I know) anywhere near as much as your “liberal communism”. (PARTIAL SARCASM) ((not really))
SC sequel is similar like original, there are no major changes. The graphics has been updated a few units added. Still, game is good and enjoyable. It reminds me on good old times.
10/10?
Fuck you.
No arguments? no no pal…fuck you
Joe should have synhronised his “A zerg,shotgun,and you”dance with the hologramic night
elf on the secound floor.
You Fail dude…
the movie stranger then fiction that’s hes in was alot simmaler to this they how all the funny parts in the trailer and you have to try so hard to laugh
joe
you didn’t mention this but in solo player in the lab you have the upgrade (that you mentioned)
but most of the upgrades a BULLSHIT, it isn’t even a choice
for exemple is any one here honestly going to get a device a slows down zergs , altho many units have that effet on all enemis
when you can have a zerg controler
mercs a useless…. ok mabe the super old battle ship and the confederate siege tanks a good, but the rest is a waist of resources
….. jim raynor didn’t look like a bad ass in sc1 .. he was one… also he had red… or light brown hair
and wan’t a brooding emo
Damn thats ignorant xD
The upgrades are not bullshit. I for example took the device that slows down zerg units. Its great because it extends the lifetime of your units greatly, because the enemy units die before they can hit you. Theres a reason for why you can upgrade marauders to slow down their targets. The “slow down” device just does that in a wider area.
And the mercs arent useless. If you get suprise attacked, its nice to be able to call in mercs/backup instantaniously.
And in SC1 you couldnt see what color hair Jim had. He was pretty much bald, army cut. He’s much more awesome in SC2 because he looks worn out, and looks like he’s seen alot of shit the past 4 years (in SC history timeline). Now he is a freedom fighter, whereas in SC1 he had just been in the army etc.
Your reply is a fail and it hurts my eyes to see you try so hard…
The upgrade choices are great (most amazing one in my opinion was the SCV free refineries) and yes I took the device that slows zergs down, it is great on the last mission!!
I used the merc’s a lot and best part is they spawn instantly when bought which can be very good with that alone. Try the better hitpoint & damage giving marines, marauders and firebats with a couple of medics…
Jim Raynor now has character instead of being a flat hero for a storyline but kudos to you for being able to see what he looked like under his helmet…
Please I beg of you, please next time THINK before you reply…
a siage tank is 150 min,150 gas-siage brakers are 300 min n 200 gas+instant cast+ 30% hp n dps.Mercs dont seem useless to me.
someone here dun know what he is talking about. The psi disrupter is freaking amazing on the last mission when you are up to your neck defending against the zerg, L2P noob.
Well you must have been sleeping over the year i believe.
Did you see the crappy C&C4? what a shitload of crap was that.
Missions are lame as hell… actors? LOL not excistent.
Well that was EA-GAMES ruining everthing.
So there… our used to be number one RTS maker killed it all the way.
Blizzard was smart and made it beter from the old SC1.
Downside i see now in more newer games…. RDM system (i have to be online all the time)
RDM was made for companies for beter security so unauthorised people couldnt startup the program’s. ITS NOT FOR FUCKING GAMES YOU MORONS!!!
Plus if people get the Pirate version they might be beter off since they have a version they dont have to be online for it.
Then there is the thing indeed wich agryjoe also mention to have a version for a special continent?
WHAT THE FUCK IS UP WITH THAT? can i not have friends from all over the world anymore and play with em?
the internet is here to connect people.. some people who implement that.. disconnect friends etc.
same goes for WOW. you have friends in europe or somewhere else.. buy another copy.
Those new technics are only good for the people who sell it to the game industry.
you all buying the story about the illegal copies flying all over the world now.
Well it still happends no mather howmuch money you put into it.
beter make it for the people who buy the game more accesseble and more rewarding to buy it.
normal i would buy the collectors edition.. but since that RDM etc.. i bought the normal one.
oh yeah no friends at home either… no lan-parties.. yeah my internet is always there.
oops ISP has a blackout.. no more SC2 for you buddy.
So we get punished for buying the games we bought on earlier.. like we always did.
thank you for rewarding us with more security shit.
making it impossible to play when it came out.. since that battlenet trash couldnt handle it.
still blizzard did a good job on the game for sure.
But please i hope for the future we buyers can get our lan option back.. or do we have to wait for the pirate version?
Another reason for why they made the region-bullcrap was because they wanted to reduce the amount of laggers.
Err…. no, not quite on some bits there. Specifically, while you need to be online for installation, you can play as much as you want without logging on at all once it is installed. You just can’t score in achievements. There is no punishment involved there. True, if your ISP goes out and you have friends locally you could set up a LAN party…. if you had the friends there, they were already set up to do so, and you managed to get things going before the ISP came back. The best complaint I’ve heard against dropping LAN parties was the lag. If you want to get together and play with friends, it can seriously tax the host’s bandwidth, causing lag where a LAN party would not (only the host computer would suffer from that).
Also, a side note. This one is less a reply to you and more a reply to everyone that does this: IT’S D-R-M NOT R-D-M FOR FOOK SAKE! Digital Rights Management! Yes it’s vile but call it the right damned thing or you sound like a freaking idiot!
JOE IS A FUCKING LIAR I GOT PROOF OF THE TROOF!
**hook engaged** (><)
10/10? i totally fucking agree with joe!
too bad my pc is too slow (until the end of this month teehee!!) to play further (no i dont want to sacrifice details and visuals and shit im a fucking eye candy hoebag!). but for the part i did play..and somehow was able to run the bar scene…oh man its pretty sick!
i really enjoyed SC 1 way back in the day and im surprised how they took something solid and just refined it totally. yes the drawbacks of no lan and shit are slightly annoying but im more fan of the single player anyhow.
as for not cramming 3 stories in one , im glad. this will give them more time on the finishing touches to (with utter confidence!) really bring out 2 kick arse expanions for us! Blizzard has always brought out great quality games no matter what (i fucking hate WOW but at the same token i appreciate what they created teehee) . i mean lets face it folks if us gamers want more and more..we gonna have to wait and deal with DLC's and longer waits. but its fucking worth it! plus with SOOOO many other games out there to enjoy i hardly notice these waits….
BLIZZARD FINISH DUKE FOR EVER PPPPPPWWWWWEEEEAAAASSSSSEEEEE!!!
hehe – anyways great review Joe! take care yall!
Well, I’m sure the actual game is great and all that, but the corporate BS breaks it for me. I honestly don’t care how awesome the game is, I’m not putting up with that. One thing that I read earlier, which you didn’t mention now, is that you need to be online, even to play singleplayer. That’s a major dealbreaker for me. I specifically get singleplayer games to play them when I cannot be online. The region lock seals the deal for me. I’ve got friends all over the world and we enjoy playing games with each other as we rarely have the opportunity to see each other in the flesh. (which is just as well, some of us are real ugly).
So yea… I will probably get this when it’s released as a bundle with all three campaigns, provided there are fixes for the corporate roadblocks by that point. I’m pretty sure there will be illegal ways to bypass region lock or the need to be online within days, that’s always been the case with every game no matter how much effort they put into DRM and copy protection.
Personally I don’t pirate games. I buy them or I don’t get them at all. But I might buy this one only at a time when piracy actually makes the game playable without all these obstacles in my path.
@Nightfish Just to clarify the singleplayer game does not require you to be online to play (achviements being the exception) when you buy the game and setup your battle.net account you will need to login and create you profile (as normal just as you would for just multiplayer) once that is done you can then logout of battle.net and click on Play as guest, you will not have to login to battle.net again unless you of course re-installed the game. It is in essance a one-time activation check. This is the same for the map editor just to clarify.
well…uhh you dont ‘have’ to be online
but i wont get onto that here!! lalalalalaala!
You can play offline… Im not sure how it works, but achievements are turned off. Dont know what else is.
Being that I might be able to play on an American server even though I am from Southeast Asia, I think this is a safe buy indeed. I just have to ignore the fact that Activision might be doing something sinister to exploit the fanbase!
I really really want to get this game, but I refuse to buy another Blizzard/Activsion until their president has his plane crash into a cliff with him in it.
Oh and Joe I’m ashamed of you, being a achievement junkie.
ANGRY JOE IS WRONG! The first Star Craft didn’t have 3 expansions, but only 1: Star Craft: Brood War
No there are actually 3 expansions for starcraft look it up on wikepidea. Only Brood War Includes more units. And is the epicest. the other 2 i think are rare. i think 1 of the 2 other expansions are called resourgence
There was only one official expansion – Brood War – which added three full campaigns and a new intro and outro movie. the other two (mentioned on Wikipedia) were unofficial and just were mission made using the editor.
joe i got one question for ya………….WHATS YOUR FRIEND CODE ON THERE I GOT TO ADD YOU MAN!!!!
A little note form me, someone who got the collectors edition. IT WAS WORTH IT! I will admit i am NOT the type to buy an collectors edition too often, actually this is my first, BUT, and I must STRESS THE BUT, I gawked at what i was getting. I got the game. a BIG ASS ART BOOK, MAKING OF DVD, A COMIC, NICE BONUS STUFF ON B NET INCLUDING A SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENT “Devoted Fan” (the nice stuff includes three unique avis and icons for the army including the Tauren Marine and my favorite the Diablo Marine) THE SOUNDTRACK, AND TO TOP IT FREAKING OFF, A USB DRIVE THAT IN THE LIKENESS OF JIM RAYNORS HOLO TAGS THAT HAS THE ORIGINAL GAME AND EXPANSION PRE LOADED ON IT! 100 dollars never was spent so well by me. BEST. INVESTMENT. EVER!
9 / 10 ? i m not agree, no lan, no other campaign than the terran (and a mini protoss campaign). Of course the graphics are awesome, of course the story is great, and more than anything : at last a game running on mac (with a less graphical quality than on pc). this game was over hyped, sure, it s a great game, it deserves its BADASS APPROVED SEAL. But as i said no LAN, no coop just like on Dawn of War 2, no other campaign, the problem that we will have to BUY a full game to play the other capaign (this game is sold something like 60 euros…. means in the end we will pay 180 EUROS in the end !). Really desapointed, for the rest 7.5/10 for me
How is that dissapointing? The campaign will be alot better that way, and its great to keep the game alive and fresh plus adding new content via expanisons. Not only that, it gives them the opportunity to make major improvements to the gameplay/engine via expanisons.
You do realize the expansions are going to be cheaper than Wings of Liberty, right (I’m guessing around $40)? And for pete’s sake people, stop whining about the campaigns! When the expansions come out, Sc2 will have more campaign mission than Starcraft and Brood War ever had (and a much more epic experience probably).
Quality game, everything about it is slick the graphics look good sound works well including characters lines. Controls are easy enough to pick up as they match the usual layout for RTS games. Difficulty feels about right so far, 5 hours in and things are getting a bit trickier, so the game should last a decent amount of time, the storyline is immersive you actual follow what is going on in the storyline. There are plenty of other in game types, such as multiplier and team, to try out though to make the price tag worth every penny, including the arcade game in the mess hall the music is spot on as well. The upgrades for each unit give an extra tactical feature which will make me want to play this again on a harder level. One down point it’s hard to stop playing, I can see many late nights coming up.
This is my first time looking at JOE in action.
He is Faacking Funny as hell!
You are something else..
Joe, we can talk about business together.
Well you know, I dont see it as 1 full game a 2 expansions. Rather I say 3 full and epic campaigns, having about 30 missions for every race is awesome, waiting like 2 years for the next race is kindof bad though, specially since we started with terran, my least favorite race
at least zerg my favorite is next 
oh and now I have to add, activision didnt touch the game, activision have no say on anything blizzard if blizzard doesn’t specifically want their input that’s how it works…
chat is comming to battle.net
and having to be online well that’s their drm and that’s why there is no lan something that is becoming more and more usual…
….I knew that it was supposed to be a good game, but 10/10? Wow….now I really need to jack this game from my bf and play it haha (my comp. will probably not be compatible, and I don’t have a good enough graphics card to take it)
And since I’m more a single player anyway, I don’t have to worry about the whole regional stuff.
Good review, can’t wait to play it! I’ve never been into real-time strategy games, but hey…it may convert me, who knows :]
Yo Joe!
Glad to hear Starcraft 2 has a good single player campaign. A lot of the reviewers seem to skip over the single player aspects of RTS’s as simply tutorials for online play and nothing more. I’m not huge on my multiplaying apart for with some really close mates so that usually makes me skip ‘em by. But on your word I shall give it a bash. Cheers boyo.
However let me say that if my sci-fi story and setting gland is not satisfied I shall unleash my legions upon you!!
…I don’t actually have legions as of yet. I’d probably mail order them or something.
And THEN I’d unleash them upon you!
Nice review,
Boosty
P.S
Can’t wait to hear Zerg, Shotgun, You in full.
hey joe love the show star craft 2 is awsome i was mad to when they split it up but it may be for the better. so Joe can you think about reviewing lord of the rings 2 battle for middle earth.
i have had this game for a long time and i think you would enjoy it so think about it.
Well i don’t care what others think about sc2, it’s a cool game. Some say its just the same old sc1 but why change a good game?
The original game was great and the new one is just better in all way’s possible. I agree whit Joe this game is a bad ass!!
I am a sc fan and if someone says it’s the same old game Fu..k that! the core of the game remained the same and I believe that’s a good thing.
For an RTS game the graphics is great and the story is interesting(same old characters who made me care about them) I think this is the best RTS game come out this far and i can’t wait till the next part comes out.
Any reason why the video is refusing to play for me?
Replying to myself… lol
Yeah it finally played. Great review, just one thing I have to ask.
What is the song at the end that plays after Joe’s done dancing, where he’s yelling at the screen? If anyone can tell me, I’d appreciate it.
Callenish Circle – Suffer My Disbelief
Hey! Nice and awesome review like always, liked the first few seconds and laughed a lot. But now when I’ve returned to see it again, why is the Final Verdict: 9/10* when the first time it was posted with both 10/10 and 9/10? Ok I understand the reason, but still, it’s more of a 10/10 game…
Activishion started to suck realy hard,since Kotic is boss.They fucked up Transformers 2,they fucked up Singularity,they fucked up the Call of Duty series.Have you people even heard the BULLSH*T Kotic is talking:”COD is the new Star Wars” “PC games should use a plazma TV instead of a monitor” ,,Our Spider-man games suck(dam should have made that clear,while MAKING THEM) ,,I think making Modern Warfare PAYED”.Kotic fucked up Activision(one of my fvourites untill MW2 came out),and Activishion is fucking up Blizzard now…Blizzard are a company that has everything-Incredible games,huge sanse of humor A BLASTIN L80ETC hard rock band,made only by the emploes.Their hunger for money is not something bad.On the other hand,there are Activision-not complete games,with eather sucky story and good gameplay or horrible gameplay with awsume story.Infact Activision arent making any games,they are only publishing.Blizzard make theit own games,they publish then(untill now)alone and do thir own stunts.Activision are simply pathetic.If it worent for Redemic,Infinity Ward and Treyarch-Activision=R.I.P.The idea,that Kotic had something in common with StarCraft2 sickenss me.I just see how in the future StarCraft series will be as KICK ASSING as now,but you will have to have Internet connection all the time,pay 20 dolllars a mounth(the game alone will cost 400 dollars),and every day ,people from Activision will come to inspect your computer for any torrent files,or cracks and take your DNA sample every day,so they can track you anytime,in case you try to get the game on other computer nd then save it on fake disks.And with the secound patch for every Skirmish you will have yo pay 5.99 euro,and when you start the game,there will be tons of info,about other sucky Activision games+special codes,that unlock the Marine Gauss rifle in Modern Warfare(with payment afcourse),that you will need to restart your computer.Then you will realise that Kotic wats 2.99 dollars for every save in the game you make.And with the last patch you will have to pay 6.99 for using the Battlecruiser,Carrier and the zergling in a multiplayer game.(4.99 for the skirmish and 9.99 for campaing).And when you are in a complete Nerd Rage,Kotic will gave a free 3 day trial on StarCraft,every Cristmas.Afcouse this will only apply only to the console version of the game,witch will be way more suppirior to the PC version.Blizzard will be re-named to ,,thats little bunch of people,living in the basement on the Activision building” and you will be charged with 1 dollar for every time you die on Diablo 3(Diablo 1 shots you afcourse).World of warCraft will become “World of CallOfDuty” where instead of Deathwing you get ti kill Osama.Then Kotic will put his ultimate mind cotroling devise in Blizzards new MMORPG,witch will turn us into his slaves.1000 years later Angry Joe will wake up in the Cryo Chamber on the Hyperion and lead the people to EA and UbiSoft games,leaving Kotic to watch with jaw drop. Now dont get m wrong,i love StarCraft and i love Blizzard,but his IS the future if Kotic keeps messing with Blizzard.
Haha – just noticed in the “jukebox” clip that there’s a virtual dancer in the top left corner that’s doing the female Night Elf dance from World of Warcraft. Nice.
Activison is working with Skynet
Nice review joe , maybe we should play sometime
http://us.battle.net/sc2/en/profile/1162693/1/Darkonxy/
just mouse over my avatar to get my character code number and hopefully I will see you in game
one up side of region lock you don’t have to run into Koreans ….they will fuck your shit up
also my problum with activision is there want to make us pay for multiplayer not to mention patchers saying they must charge a monthly fee for multiplayer…..i hate pachter he keeps on pushing it
I think Joe is overreacting a bit.
SC2 is a good game, but its not great. Its the same old game, which is very well presented and has lot of polish.
If you liked SC1, then you will love SC2. If you expected something a little more “different”, “new” or “innovative”, then you will be disappointed.
The story, while very well told, is a run-of-the-mill stereotype and so are the characters. That doesn’t have to be a bad thing, but don’t expect something brilliant here
I finished the game a few hours ago, and Joe seems to have a strange taste regarding “good” music. The SC2 soundtrack is very mediocre. I could even recall some of the old tunes from SC1. The score just “doodles” in the background. Nothing special.
Homeworld had a fantastic, and notable score but SC2 does not.
If i would have to rate it the game itself would get a 7. But together with the very good sequences, production value and polish, i could bring myself to rate it 8/10.
But 9 or 10 out of 10 is just a little overbord.
9 and 10 should be reserved for really great games, which propel the genre forward, sending shivers down your spine, or has wow / jaw-dropping parts in it, but SC2 is just a remake with high production values. Nothing to get overexited.
It’s sad that you can’t enjoy the game like most of us do.
It absolutely has jaw dropping parts. Some of the cinematics are the best of their kind. Almost absolute perfect.
The mission design is aming the best in the RTS genre. No mission feels dull or uninmportant.
The gameplay is the perfection of the genre defining Star Craft 1 which was almost perfect back in the day.
The score is very very good. I can’t get some of the tunes out of my head. And I hate country music.
The story is nothing special, I admit that, but it’s so well told, it’s so engaging. I’d love more movies to be that well casted/directed.
I’m sure if the hadn’t split the game into 3 parts, we would have to wait for some more months / years.
SC 2 may be “the same old game” with a lot of polish. If you only look at the multiplayer.
The research, mission branches, armory etc are elements I don’t remember in SC 1.
I don’t recall a RTS being so adicting and feeling innovative since Warcraft 3.
I’m with Joe here.
As i said above, i too love the cinematics, the walking around the ship, talking to the people etc. Thats not the issue i have with this game. This part is excellent.
But i have to disagree on your opinion regarding the RTS part. There are quite a few missions which are dull and not very inspiring. For example there are a lot of “defend until help arrives”-missions. At least 3 or 4 of them. In SC i can remember ONE, which was very good both in drama aspects, timing and music.
Most of these missions in SC2 feel rather repetive and not very intense.
The gameplay is just old. For example: Most RTS now have a zoom-out function for a better view. SC2 does not have a zoom out. I played the game on my native resolution of 1920×1080, and my battlecruisers were still 4-5cms long, and with a fleet of them, i couldn’t see anything else.
So i’m sorry, but if you think that SC2 delivers the “best” in the RTS genre, maybe you have slept the last 10 years.
SC2 is a remake, plain and simple. The graphics have been updated, but the game mechanics are still the same. Blizzard build the best missions the old engine could deliver, but it still feels old, overly large, poorly proportioned, the maps are still small, the terrain still has no effect on unit speed, cover etc. (except noone can shoot at higher places).
And for the mission branches: These missions are optional. Most of them are of mediocre design at best and most o f them doesn’t add a lot to the story. In my opinion these missions are just stuffing nothing more. You can play them to get some money, and tech-points but if you play them or not..most of the time it doesn’ t really matter. I played the game to the end without using any of the zerg and protoss tech. So in essence they are meaningless.
But PLEASE don’t take insult in my opinion. If you have a blast with SC2, power to you!
But i have played so many other RTS games in the last 12 years, that i’m unable to forget everyone of them, and the improvements they brought to the genre. Blizzard decided to ignore most of them, and so i’m just not satisfied(RTS-wise) with a remake.
PS: Music is a question of taste. Deus Ex had a cool soundtrack, Homeworld had a cool soundtrack, Mass Effect had a cool soundtrack, but SC2s soundtrack doesn’t give me anything. I think its adequate, but nothing more.
The reason Starcraft 2 is popular is because of the competitive nature (And a nation to support that) behind it and the fanbase it gathered over the years. The fact that a 1998 game survived more than 10 years and still having people play it. The competitive part of it is also due to the company supporting it and patching what is considered really imbalanced, while games like World in Conflict and Company of Heroes doesn’t have this kind of support and is left with certain imbalances. Having more than a certain number of imbalances, and you’ll have something like Command and Conquer, which is practically dead if not rotting away, and you don’t see that game being more popular than Company of Heroes because of that.
Innovation isn’t equal to a game’s quality or how good it is, the FPS genre is a decent example of this, it’s like saying Team Fortress 2 should innovate, so it should have a cover system, iron sights and other stuff. Team Fortress 2 is essentially the same game as its predecessors, the only real difference is the fact it’s more balanced and it has a few new features. Another example would be Counter-Strike Source, people still play that and people don’t complain about lack of innovation in that game (And more people play that than TF2 itself).
And also I disagree that it’s simply a graphical update. The number of new units and abilities makes the gameplay feel significantly different while it still feels like Starcraft.