STARCRAFT II

Starcraft Series

Science-fiction, real-time strategy game

THE STORY

Starcraft is a series of science fiction computer games set in a distant part of the Milky Way, the Koprulu Sector. The storyline revolves around the war of three galactic species: the powerful, technologicaly advanced Protoss, the evolving insectoid race of Zerg and the humans named Terrans. In Starcraft II: Legacy of the Void the Xel'Naga make their appearance. It's a race originating from another galaxy. Xel'Naga cannot reproduce by themselves and perpetuate their existence by cultivating the Zerg and the Protoss.

YEAR

2010

PUBLISHER

Blizzard Entertainment

GENRE

Real-time strategy

PLATFORM

Microsoft Windows, macOS

THE PROTAGONISTS

Jim Raynor

THE RACES

Terrans

LEVEL DESIGN

Melee map

The primary game type in Starcraft II is Melee in 1v1, teams, or a Free-For-All setting.

Starting base

Games begin at the starting base. The standard layout of a starting base includes two Vespene Geysers and eight Mineral Fields.
Starting areas are given equal resources to maintain balance among the players.

What makes Starcraft II stand out from its competitors

The original StarCraft was a game that defined the real-time strategy genre and set the bar high.

StarCraft II did not disappoint its fans. While it did not bring revolutionary changes to the original StarCraft game, to keep it familiar for its fans, it has built upon it and refined many aspects. StarCraft II advances the storyline and features improved unit control, a faster game pace and smoother game experience. StarCraft II has set the golden standard for unit control in RTS games.

StarCraft is a complex game, requiring a wide range of skills to master it:

Multitasking, fast reflexes and good hand eye coordination to deal with multiple threats at once and execute multi-directional attacks.
Memorization to remember your enemy’s army size and expansion.
Intelligent strategy to understand the different units’ roles and figure the best choice according to current situation but also predicting players next moves.
Perception for estimating the state of a partially revealed map during the heat of the battle.

What I find particularly interesting in StarCraft II is the metagame. One must always stay a step ahead of the enemy. The creators of StarCraft have done an amazing job at balancing the powers of Zerg, Terran and Protoss units. You must constantly re-evaluate your situation and predict your opponents’ plans to create the optimum army composition required to push into your enemy’s base. Every situation is unique and even though recipes may help you gain an advantage they don’t guarantee victory, surely not against an experienced player. You must constantly think and readjust your plan on the fly.

To demonstrate the importance of foresight in this game imagine the opening minutes in Terran vs Zerg match and how this might evolve:

Zerglings

The Zerg start by creating Zerglings, the typical Zerg unit.

… and so on and so forth.

This tug of war between the two players isn’t a simple race to the end. What if the Zergs skip Metabolic Boost and Roaches and rush directly to create Banelings? The Terrans would have to predict this by good scouting.

The game is more about predicting the enemy’s moves and effectively using your powers to counter him.

Each game has endless possibilities of unit composition to create winning conditions.

StarCraft II keeps players on their toes from start to finish.

PREVIOUS GAME

NEXT GAME