Πέμπτη 27 Σεπτεμβρίου 2012
Δευτέρα 31 Ιανουαρίου 2011
Still Life
Still Life is a 2005 computer adventure game by Microïds. While not sharing its name, Still Life is a sequel to Post Mortem. A sequel, Still Life 2, was released in 2009. The game has since sold 240,000 copies worldwide.[1]
A major theme throughout the game is art, especially the technique of still life that the game is named after. The game also uses a storytelling device of switching back and forth between two player characters.
Plot
FBI Special Agent Victoria McPherson is investigating a series of brutal murders in 2004 Chicago. While visiting her father for Christmas she discovers an old notebook that belonged to her grandfather, private investigator Gustav McPherson. Victoria is surprised to learn that Gus had been involved with investigating a very similar series of murders in 1920s Paris. The player alternates between these two characters as they work to hunt down what seems to be the same serial killer more than 70 years apart.
In both cases the murderer targets sex trade workers: street prostitutes in Prague, and employees of an exclusive Chicago massage parlor and S&M club called the Red Lantern. The killer or killers are disguised in a dark cloak, top hat, and silver mask.
Gus eventually identifies the man responsible for the Prague murders, but the killer escapes justice and relocates to America. Near the end of the game Victoria discovers that similar murders occurred in 1931 Chicago and later in 1956 Los Angeles.
The identity of the 2004 Chicago killer is never revealed. Victoria encounters him several times, but never sees behind his mask. She does not believe he is the same person as the Prague killer, but rather a younger person who has been influenced by the Prague killer in some way. At the climax of the game Victoria manages to shoot the Chicago killer, but the body falls into the Chicago river. As the game ends, the Chicago police are still dredging the river for the killer's body. Victoria plans to travel to Los Angeles to learn more about the 1956 killings.
Victoria McPherson in her Chicago home.
Gustav McPherson at a Police station in Prague.
A major theme throughout the game is art, especially the technique of still life that the game is named after. The game also uses a storytelling device of switching back and forth between two player characters.
Plot
FBI Special Agent Victoria McPherson is investigating a series of brutal murders in 2004 Chicago. While visiting her father for Christmas she discovers an old notebook that belonged to her grandfather, private investigator Gustav McPherson. Victoria is surprised to learn that Gus had been involved with investigating a very similar series of murders in 1920s Paris. The player alternates between these two characters as they work to hunt down what seems to be the same serial killer more than 70 years apart.
In both cases the murderer targets sex trade workers: street prostitutes in Prague, and employees of an exclusive Chicago massage parlor and S&M club called the Red Lantern. The killer or killers are disguised in a dark cloak, top hat, and silver mask.
Gus eventually identifies the man responsible for the Prague murders, but the killer escapes justice and relocates to America. Near the end of the game Victoria discovers that similar murders occurred in 1931 Chicago and later in 1956 Los Angeles.
The identity of the 2004 Chicago killer is never revealed. Victoria encounters him several times, but never sees behind his mask. She does not believe he is the same person as the Prague killer, but rather a younger person who has been influenced by the Prague killer in some way. At the climax of the game Victoria manages to shoot the Chicago killer, but the body falls into the Chicago river. As the game ends, the Chicago police are still dredging the river for the killer's body. Victoria plans to travel to Los Angeles to learn more about the 1956 killings.
[edit] Ending / sequel
A controversy surrounding the game is its lack of an ending. Originally planned as the second of a trilogy,[citation needed] with Post Mortem as the first, Still Life ends without revealing the villain. The story was meant to continue in a third game, but it seemed unlikely that the finalé would ever be made, as part of the development arm of Microïds in Canada was bought out by Ubisoft.[2] However, on December 6, 2007, Microïds announced the development of a sequel, Still Life 2, which was released in 2009.[3] The mysterious serial killer's identity will apparently be revealed in the sequel. On September 19, 2008 a new Still Life series website was opened, covering the three games.[edit] Still Life: Prelude
Still Life: Prelude was a section of the game which continued on the game's website, but is not online anymore. It placed you once again in control of Victoria McPherson investigating cases prior to those encountered in the main Still Life game plot.[edit] Characters
[edit] Chicago
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- Victoria McPherson - An FBI agent, Granddaughter of Gus; one of the player's characters (Sarah Leger)
- David Miller - Chicago Police/FBI Officer (Arthur Holden)
- Claire Ashby - Chicago Police/FBI Coroner (Pauline Little)
- William Tate - Chicago Police Officer (Terrance Scammel)
- Todd Browning - Chicago FBI Chief (Terrance Scammel)
- Vaclav Kolar - Chicago University Tutor (Harry Standjofski)
- Patrick McPherson - Father to Victoria, son of Gustav and Milena (A. J. Henderson)
- Richard Valdez - Boyfriend of Victoria; works at Chicago Art Gallery (Marcel Jeannin)
- Bouncer Mr. Zero - Bouncer at Chicago Red Lantern Club (Terrance Scammel)
- Mia Holmes - Works at Red Lantern Club; Neighbour of Kolar (Jennifer Seguin)
- Roslyn Checa - 1st Chicago Victim
- Elizabeth Walmsley - 2nd Chicago Victim
- Shannon Braeme - 3rd Chicago Victim
- Natalie Kenworth - 4th Chicago Victim
- Cynthia Woods - 5th Chicago Victim
- Stephanie Wallace - 6th Chicago Victim
[edit] Prague
.jpg)
- Gustav McPherson - Private Detective, first featured in the game Post Mortem. (Sven Eriksson)
- Jiří Skalnic - Prague Police Investigator (Mark Camacho)
- Kazimír Stašek - Prague Police Officer (Marcel Jeannin)
- Emil Korona - Prague Coroner (A. J. Henderson)
- Mark Ackerman - American Artist (Arthur Holden)
- The Crow Man - Coachman in Prague (Arthur Holden)
- Patrick Bell - US Embassy in Prague (Marcel Jeannin)
- Otokar Kubina - Prague Pimp; Owns Lingerie shop (Harry Standjofski)
- Petr Jesenský - Henchman for Kubina in Prague; Brother of Roman (Terrance Scammel)
- Roman Jesenský - Henchman for Kubina in Prague; Brother of Petr (Terrance Scammel)
- Ida Skaličková - Prostitute in Prague; Gustav's Girlfriend (Sarah Leger)
- Milena - Prostitute in Prague; Gustav's wife (Claudia Besso)
- Apolena - Prostitute in Prague (Jennifer Seguin)
- Vladana Tominová - Prostitute in Prague; Benefactor for bridge (Holly Gauthier-Frankel)
- Františka - Prostitute/Victim in Prague
- Anežka - Prostitute/Missing in Prague
- Annika Vitti - Prostitute/Victim in Prague
- Sasha - Prostitute/Victim in Prague
- Katarina Bulgari - Prostitute/Victim in Prague
- Nadia Burkowski - Prostitute/Victim in Prague
- Herbert Ackerman - Ambassador; Father of Mark
- Michael Harrison - Los Angeles Police Officer
[edit] Development
Still Life was made with Virtools applications;[4][5] the same software as Post Mortem and some other Microïds games. The point and click gameplay is also based on the first two games in the Syberia franchise.[edit] Lead character biographies
- Gustav McPherson is a Private Detective, who grew up in New York City. In the mid-1920s Gustav moved to Paris and took up the profession of an Artist. In 1925 a mysterious woman, Sophia Blake, hired Gustav to investigate the murders at the Orphee Hotel, of her 'sister' and brother-in-law. This mystery unfolded into a paranormal encounter with an item called the 'Head of Baphomet', which would give eternal life to its beholder. In 1929 Gustav was enlisted by his then girlfriend Ida to investigate the murders of multiple prostitutes in Prague. While uncovering that the murderer was also an artist, Ida herself was murdered causing Gustav to be distraught. Gustav, Vladanna Tominoka and Milena fled the murderer by working their way back to America. Gustav and Milena settled in Chicago, where they married and had a son, Patrick McPherson. In 1932 Gustav also stole some FBI files related to the murders, which he later passed on in 1956 to a police officer in Los Angeles, Michael Harrison. Harrison was investigating murders which were almost identical to the ones in Prague.
- Victoria McPherson is an FBI Agent working in Chicago. She is the daughter of Patrick and granddaughter of Gustav. As a child she loved listening to her grandfather's stories and would later find herself entangled in similar circumstances to one of Gustav's cases. Later in her career Victoria was sent to work in Maine.
The Dig
The Dig is a graphical adventure game developed by LucasArts and released in 1995, and a game based on an idea for an Amazing Stories episode by Steven Spielberg. It was the 11th game to use the SCUMM game engine, and is famous for its connection to Spielberg and notorious for its prolonged production that had the game bordering on vaporware.
Released as CD-ROM only, The Dig was sold for PC and Macintosh computers. It contains a full voice-over soundtrack and a digital orchestral score. For the most part, the game's graphics are hand-drawn and sparsely animated, with a mixture of pre-rendered 3D and hand-drawn animation clips also presented in certain parts of the game.
It is the most serious LucasArts adventure game, containing no slapstick, and relatively little subtle humor, an element found abundantly in all other LucasArts adventure titles. It is also the only one to fit perfectly into the science fiction genre.
Story
The Dig intro animation starts with a radio telescope in Borneo picking up an unidentified object, directly heading towards Earth. It is a giant asteroid that could cause catastrophic damage upon impact. A team of five is tasked with the mission of taking the Space Shuttle Atlantis to the asteroid, named "Attila" after Attila the Hun (to be distinguished from the real asteroid 1489 Attila), and plant nuclear explosives on its surface to cause it to divert to a stable orbit around the Earth. The five members of this crew are:
The title 'The Dig' refers to the whole process of investigation and exploration of the planet, in order to make the alien machines work again and discover what happened to the lost civilization. The main theme is xenoarchaeology.
The story's emphasis is on the stranded trio's interaction (and occasional conflict) as they spread out to explore the desolate world, each in their own way: the commanding Low determined to find the way to go home, the intelligent and stubborn linguist Maggie Robbins studying the dead civilization, and the geologist Ludger Brink, who seems to be sliding into a state of madness.
The trio eventually uncover a stockpile of "life crystals," which have the ability to heal wounds and resurrect the dead, but make the user heavily addicted. Brink, after being resurrected from a fatal fall, becomes obsessed with stockpiling the crystals. Robbins meanwhile deciphers the language, and she and Low begin to interact with an ancient alien they find sealed in a pyramid. The alien was a great inventor in its society, but chose to stay behind after its society abandoned this universe for another dimension known as "Spacetime Six", in order to warn anyone who discovered them about the way the crystals decayed its civilization, and about how none who ventured into Spacetime Six ever returned to this universe, which is referred to as "Spacetime Four".
When asked for a way home, the alien explains that only his society can provide them with one, in the form of a spaceship, but since they will never return this is impossible. Boston then offers to go into Spacetime Six and help his fellow aliens get back. The alien does not believe he has the strength to do it since no-one of his advanced civilization could, though after some persuasion shows them where to find the last piece for the portal. They successfully retrieve the piece, but Maggie dies from a fall after helping restore power to the machine. Low enters the portal and discovers the entire Cocytan race, who are unable to perceive the way back to their home dimension. Low shows them the way home, and the aliens eventually resurrect Maggie and Brink, who is now free of life crystal addiction but appears to have greatly aged from their use, though he is assured he will still live a long time. The astronauts return home with new allies, an expanded view of the universe, and a new understanding of civilization's purpose.
The Dig was originally conceived by Spielberg as an episode of Amazing Stories (and later as a film), but was concluded to be prohibitively expensive. During the game's release, the director did not deny the possibility of making it into a movie. However, over a decade later, no progress has been made on a film version of the story.[4]
The Dig had by far the longest development length of all LucasArts adventure games. Work began in 1989 but the game was not released until 1995. During its development there were four successive project leaders, starting with Noah Falstein, followed by Brian Moriarty, then Dave Grossman, and finally Sean Clark who managed to get the game released.
The first preproduction involved a storyline that took place in the distant future. A crew of explorers in a space ship visit an abandoned planet and discover signs of very intelligent life with powerful technology and artifacts. It is first assumed that the occupants of the planet had died off, seeing as there is no sign of them left, but as the story progresses, the player discovers something very different.
When Brian Moriarty took over, he decided to start again from scratch. This version of the game was similar to the actual game that was released, but it had one extra character, a Japanese science-hobbyist business tycoon named Toshi Olema, who funded the Attila project as long as he was a part of the crew. Toshi would have met a gruesome death when he stumbled into a cavern with acid dripping from the ceiling, with the other astronauts being unable to safely retrieve his body to bring him back with life crystals. He was later completely removed from the story. This version of the game was also very bloody and adult, and although Steven Spielberg thought this feel was very fitting, he had received quite a bit of complaints about the first Jurassic Park film, from parents who had ignored the PG-13 rating and brought their young children to see the movie because it was about dinosaurs, only to discover that the movie contained blood and graphic violence. So, worrying that parents would purchase the game for their rather young children, he requested that it be toned down a bit.[5]
Other notable design ideas which were dropped during the game's production include a survival angle, which forced you to keep water and food supplies for life support and exploration of entire huge cities on the planet.[6]
Some fans of the game had attributed the turbulent development history of the game to "The Dig curse". This term was coined because the game's design team met for the first time at the Skywalker Ranch on the day the 1989 San Francisco earthquake struck. It was said that this started a bad omen for the project that persisted throughout.[7]
The game was met favorably by the press and gamers alike upon release. Players typically liked the sense of wonder they felt in exploring the seemingly-abandoned planet, although some disliked the game's serious atmosphere. Some of the more distinctive puzzles, described as Myst-like, were also met with frustration by players.[citation needed]
On July 6, 2009, it was announced that the game would be re-released using the Steam content delivery system by Lucas Arts on July 8.[8]
The cover of The Dig audio book features a picture of four astronauts.A novel based on the game was also written by Alan Dean Foster, who is famous for having written book versions of many famous movie titles such as Star Wars (ghostwriter), Alien, Aliens and Alien³.
The novel is not completely consistent with the game, but presents the point of view of the indigenous civilizational race, something not seen in the game. The novel also provides some background detail (such as the reaction on Earth after the discovery of Attila), in addition to filling several plot holes and mysteries that cannot be explained in the game.
An audio book version of the novel was also released.[10] Notably, the cover of The Dig audio book features a picture of four astronauts. The artwork was done for the second draft of the game which featured four game characters. Later, the artwork was retouched for the game box and the book covers to reflect the reduction to three main characters, but the cover of the audio book was left with the four character design.
The tablet computer carried by the characters in the game is named "Pen Ultimate", a pun on the word penultimate, implying that The Dig's designers had foreknowledge that their game would be the second-to-last SCUMM game.
When in the Underwater Power Chamber (just off of the main Atrium) for the first time (before diving into the water after successfully completing the 'Exploding Alien Turtle' puzzle), if you type 'SWANS' when Boston is at the far-left side of the chamber, you will see an animation of another Boston Low dive in the water on the outside of the chamber and swim off-screen, after which the player-controlled Boston will utter a considering "Hmm". This can be repeated as often as the player likes until the 'Exploding Alien Turtle' puzzle is completed.
The game contains hidden visual references to Star Wars. Several of the engravings on the alien world that can be seen in close-up views strongly resemble spaceships like the Millennium Falcon or an Imperial Star Destroyer.
Though not an easter egg, it is worthy of note that Platonic solids are often referenced, among various other shapes, examples of which are the spaceship and the 'keys' to open doors.
The game has a hidden "bad ending", although it is almost identical to the normal ending and requires the player to go far out of his or her way to view. After Brink dies from falling off a cliff in the Tomb Spire near the end of the game, the player is only a few mouse clicks away from fixing the Eye generator in the Cathedral Spire, losing Maggie in the process, finishing the game and viewing the normal ending. However, it is possible for the player to instead use the eye part for the Eye generator into the slot of Brink's life crystal machine again in the Tomb Spire; obtain two more life crystals it creates before taking the eye part again and heading back to the Cathedral Spire; and, after Maggie sacrifices herself, make Low use one of the crystals on Maggie. Upon realizing that she has been brought back by a life crystal and would be doomed to addiction, she immediately throws herself off a ledge, dying a second time. The final cutscene at the end of the game remains nearly identical, with both Maggie and Brink being brought back to life by the aliens. However, the brief clip of Maggie smiling at Low and thanking him is replaced by a clip of her slapping and scolding him for his irresponsible decision.
Released as CD-ROM only, The Dig was sold for PC and Macintosh computers. It contains a full voice-over soundtrack and a digital orchestral score. For the most part, the game's graphics are hand-drawn and sparsely animated, with a mixture of pre-rendered 3D and hand-drawn animation clips also presented in certain parts of the game.
It is the most serious LucasArts adventure game, containing no slapstick, and relatively little subtle humor, an element found abundantly in all other LucasArts adventure titles. It is also the only one to fit perfectly into the science fiction genre.
Story
The Dig intro animation starts with a radio telescope in Borneo picking up an unidentified object, directly heading towards Earth. It is a giant asteroid that could cause catastrophic damage upon impact. A team of five is tasked with the mission of taking the Space Shuttle Atlantis to the asteroid, named "Attila" after Attila the Hun (to be distinguished from the real asteroid 1489 Attila), and plant nuclear explosives on its surface to cause it to divert to a stable orbit around the Earth. The five members of this crew are:
- Commander Boston Low (voiced by Robert Patrick), the main protagonist— a retired astronaut and survival expert
- Dr. Ludger Brink (voiced by Steven Blum), an archaeologist and geologist
- Maggie Robbins (voiced by Mari Weiss), a reporter and linguistics expert
- Ken Borden (voiced by David Lodge), expert shuttle pilot
- Cora Miles (voiced by Leilani Jones), NASA technician and political candidate
The title 'The Dig' refers to the whole process of investigation and exploration of the planet, in order to make the alien machines work again and discover what happened to the lost civilization. The main theme is xenoarchaeology.
The story's emphasis is on the stranded trio's interaction (and occasional conflict) as they spread out to explore the desolate world, each in their own way: the commanding Low determined to find the way to go home, the intelligent and stubborn linguist Maggie Robbins studying the dead civilization, and the geologist Ludger Brink, who seems to be sliding into a state of madness.
The trio eventually uncover a stockpile of "life crystals," which have the ability to heal wounds and resurrect the dead, but make the user heavily addicted. Brink, after being resurrected from a fatal fall, becomes obsessed with stockpiling the crystals. Robbins meanwhile deciphers the language, and she and Low begin to interact with an ancient alien they find sealed in a pyramid. The alien was a great inventor in its society, but chose to stay behind after its society abandoned this universe for another dimension known as "Spacetime Six", in order to warn anyone who discovered them about the way the crystals decayed its civilization, and about how none who ventured into Spacetime Six ever returned to this universe, which is referred to as "Spacetime Four".
When asked for a way home, the alien explains that only his society can provide them with one, in the form of a spaceship, but since they will never return this is impossible. Boston then offers to go into Spacetime Six and help his fellow aliens get back. The alien does not believe he has the strength to do it since no-one of his advanced civilization could, though after some persuasion shows them where to find the last piece for the portal. They successfully retrieve the piece, but Maggie dies from a fall after helping restore power to the machine. Low enters the portal and discovers the entire Cocytan race, who are unable to perceive the way back to their home dimension. Low shows them the way home, and the aliens eventually resurrect Maggie and Brink, who is now free of life crystal addiction but appears to have greatly aged from their use, though he is assured he will still live a long time. The astronauts return home with new allies, an expanded view of the universe, and a new understanding of civilization's purpose.
[edit] Development
An impressive list of people worked on the game: The project leader was LucasArts' Sean Clark, Industrial Light and Magic created some of the CG imagery, it is based on a story idea by Steven Spielberg and has writing credits for Spielberg, author Orson Scott Card (who wrote the dialogue), and the well-known interactive fiction author Brian Moriarty (whose previous Lucas engagement was with Loom).[3]The Dig was originally conceived by Spielberg as an episode of Amazing Stories (and later as a film), but was concluded to be prohibitively expensive. During the game's release, the director did not deny the possibility of making it into a movie. However, over a decade later, no progress has been made on a film version of the story.[4]
The Dig had by far the longest development length of all LucasArts adventure games. Work began in 1989 but the game was not released until 1995. During its development there were four successive project leaders, starting with Noah Falstein, followed by Brian Moriarty, then Dave Grossman, and finally Sean Clark who managed to get the game released.
The first preproduction involved a storyline that took place in the distant future. A crew of explorers in a space ship visit an abandoned planet and discover signs of very intelligent life with powerful technology and artifacts. It is first assumed that the occupants of the planet had died off, seeing as there is no sign of them left, but as the story progresses, the player discovers something very different.
When Brian Moriarty took over, he decided to start again from scratch. This version of the game was similar to the actual game that was released, but it had one extra character, a Japanese science-hobbyist business tycoon named Toshi Olema, who funded the Attila project as long as he was a part of the crew. Toshi would have met a gruesome death when he stumbled into a cavern with acid dripping from the ceiling, with the other astronauts being unable to safely retrieve his body to bring him back with life crystals. He was later completely removed from the story. This version of the game was also very bloody and adult, and although Steven Spielberg thought this feel was very fitting, he had received quite a bit of complaints about the first Jurassic Park film, from parents who had ignored the PG-13 rating and brought their young children to see the movie because it was about dinosaurs, only to discover that the movie contained blood and graphic violence. So, worrying that parents would purchase the game for their rather young children, he requested that it be toned down a bit.[5]
Other notable design ideas which were dropped during the game's production include a survival angle, which forced you to keep water and food supplies for life support and exploration of entire huge cities on the planet.[6]
Some fans of the game had attributed the turbulent development history of the game to "The Dig curse". This term was coined because the game's design team met for the first time at the Skywalker Ranch on the day the 1989 San Francisco earthquake struck. It was said that this started a bad omen for the project that persisted throughout.[7]
[edit] Release
On November 30, 1995, the game was finally released exclusively on CD-ROM.[2]The game was met favorably by the press and gamers alike upon release. Players typically liked the sense of wonder they felt in exploring the seemingly-abandoned planet, although some disliked the game's serious atmosphere. Some of the more distinctive puzzles, described as Myst-like, were also met with frustration by players.[citation needed]
On July 6, 2009, it was announced that the game would be re-released using the Steam content delivery system by Lucas Arts on July 8.[8]
[edit] Soundtrack
The music (composed by Michael Land) consisted of Land's original score performed on a Kurzweil K2000 synthesizer, enriched by hundreds of short chord samples from the works of Wagner. Land cited the music he personally composed for The Dig as the type closest to his own individual style. The Dig was also the first LucasArts game to have its soundtrack also sold separately as an audio CD, adapted as a linear continuity of finite pieces. The CD was released in small numbers, however, and this rarity led a lot of gamers to desperately look for it.[9][edit] The Novel
The novel is not completely consistent with the game, but presents the point of view of the indigenous civilizational race, something not seen in the game. The novel also provides some background detail (such as the reaction on Earth after the discovery of Attila), in addition to filling several plot holes and mysteries that cannot be explained in the game.
An audio book version of the novel was also released.[10] Notably, the cover of The Dig audio book features a picture of four astronauts. The artwork was done for the second draft of the game which featured four game characters. Later, the artwork was retouched for the game box and the book covers to reflect the reduction to three main characters, but the cover of the audio book was left with the four character design.
[edit] Trademark Issues
On February 6, 2007, LucasArts filed a notice of opposition with the US Patent Office against Digg to uphold their trademark for the game,[11] claiming that Digg was "identical or nearly identical to Opposer's mark The Dig." After settling out of court, LucasArts' notice of opposition was dropped on September 19, 2007.[edit] Video game "Easter eggs"
At a certain point of the game (after Brink's sudden disappearance), if you talk to Maggie about Brink, Low will say "Have you seen this boy?", which is exactly the same line Robert Patrick (his voice actor) says in Terminator 2: Judgment Day and a spoof scene in Wayne's World. If you press Ctrl+B while not in outer space, Low will flex his muscles. Also, after examining the communicator several times, he'll say "It's a T-1000 model"The tablet computer carried by the characters in the game is named "Pen Ultimate", a pun on the word penultimate, implying that The Dig's designers had foreknowledge that their game would be the second-to-last SCUMM game.
When in the Underwater Power Chamber (just off of the main Atrium) for the first time (before diving into the water after successfully completing the 'Exploding Alien Turtle' puzzle), if you type 'SWANS' when Boston is at the far-left side of the chamber, you will see an animation of another Boston Low dive in the water on the outside of the chamber and swim off-screen, after which the player-controlled Boston will utter a considering "Hmm". This can be repeated as often as the player likes until the 'Exploding Alien Turtle' puzzle is completed.
The game contains hidden visual references to Star Wars. Several of the engravings on the alien world that can be seen in close-up views strongly resemble spaceships like the Millennium Falcon or an Imperial Star Destroyer.
Though not an easter egg, it is worthy of note that Platonic solids are often referenced, among various other shapes, examples of which are the spaceship and the 'keys' to open doors.
The game has a hidden "bad ending", although it is almost identical to the normal ending and requires the player to go far out of his or her way to view. After Brink dies from falling off a cliff in the Tomb Spire near the end of the game, the player is only a few mouse clicks away from fixing the Eye generator in the Cathedral Spire, losing Maggie in the process, finishing the game and viewing the normal ending. However, it is possible for the player to instead use the eye part for the Eye generator into the slot of Brink's life crystal machine again in the Tomb Spire; obtain two more life crystals it creates before taking the eye part again and heading back to the Cathedral Spire; and, after Maggie sacrifices herself, make Low use one of the crystals on Maggie. Upon realizing that she has been brought back by a life crystal and would be doomed to addiction, she immediately throws herself off a ledge, dying a second time. The final cutscene at the end of the game remains nearly identical, with both Maggie and Brink being brought back to life by the aliens. However, the brief clip of Maggie smiling at Low and thanking him is replaced by a clip of her slapping and scolding him for his irresponsible decision.
StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty
StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty is a military science fiction real-time strategy video game developed and released by Blizzard Entertainment for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. A sequel to the award-winning 1998 video game StarCraft, the game was released worldwide on July 27, 2010.[9] It is split into three installments: the base game with the subtitle Wings of Liberty, and two upcoming expansion packs, Heart of the Swarm and Legacy of the Void.[10]
Set in the 26th century in a distant part of the Milky Way galaxy, the game revolves around three species: the Terrans, human exiles from Earth; the Zerg, a mix of species infested by the same virus;[11] and the Protoss, a species with vast mental powers. Wings of Liberty focuses on the Terrans, while the expansions Heart of the Swarm and Legacy of the Void will focus on the Zerg and Protoss, respectively. The game is set four years after the events of 1998's StarCraft: Brood War, and follows the exploits of Jim Raynor as he leads an insurgent group against the autocratic Terran Dominion. The game includes both new and returning characters and locations from the original game.
The game was met with very positive reviews from critics, receiving an aggregated score of 93% from Metacritic. Similar to its predecessor, StarCraft II was praised for its engaging gameplay, as well as its introduction of new features and improved storytelling, while criticism targeted features that existed in the original StarCraft game but were removed in StarCraft II, such as the lack of LAN play and the decision to split up multiplayer regions. In its first month on sale, over three million copies of StarCraft II were sold worldwide.[12]
Gameplay
The new Terran briefing system allows the player to explore the inside of the battlecruiser Hyperion.StarCraft II features the return of the three species from the original game: Protoss, Terran, and Zerg.[1] In the Terran campaign, the original StarCraft briefing room is replaced with an interactive version of the battlecruiser Hyperion, with Jim Raynor, now a bitter and hard-drinking mercenary captain, as the central character. In a departure from previous Blizzard games, the campaign is non-linear, with Raynor taking jobs for money and using that money to buy additional units and upgrades. Although each playthrough will vary, the end result remains consistent, keeping the storyline linear. Vice President Rob Pardo stressed that each campaign will function very differently.[13] The Terran campaign, Wings of Liberty, places players in a mercenary-style campaign, as Terran rebel Jim Raynor performs missions for cash. The second release, the Zerg campaign Heart of the Swarm, will have role-playing elements. The player will level up the Queen of Blades, Kerrigan, throughout the missions. In the last expansion, the Protoss campaign Legacy of the Void, the dark templar Zeratul will have to employ diplomacy between Protoss tribes to acquire units and technologies for each mission. Each campaign is expected to span 26–30 missions. Wings of Liberty has 29 playable campaign missions, but only 26 of them are playable in a single playthrough since three missions are choice-related alternates. There is one secret mission named "Piercing the Shroud", which can be unlocked on the "Media Blitz" mission.[14][15]
Several unique missions are included in the Wings of Liberty campaign. In one level, lava floods the battlefield every five minutes, forcing the player to move their units to high ground or watch them get destroyed. In another mission, enemy units will only attack the player at night. Finally, in one mission, the player tries to influence the tide of an AI-controlled battle with only a single unit, a Ghost. The single player missions are highly customizable and are featured in the StarCraft II Community Zone. Between missions, players can choose units, buildings, and upgrades that are not available in the multiplayer missions.[16] A major new addition to the map-making community will be the StarCraft II Marketplace, where high quality maps will be sold for a small fee as "premium maps" over Battle.net. The mode of payment has not yet been announced. Lead Designer Dustin Browder has mentioned that even maps like player-created Defense of the Ancients in Warcraft III would not meet the quality requirements to be branded as a premium map.[17]
The editor was available for the first time during the phase 1 beta testing of StarCraft II, when it came with a patch. With the start of phase 2, the editor was updated. At present, there is a large map-making community using the editor, creating first-person shooter games, RPGs, tower defense and Age of Steam-type games, an example of the latter being Storm of the Imperial Sanctum. The map database is constantly being updated as more map makers create mods for the community. Blizzard has also changed the way that custom maps are distributed. Rather than hosting games using local map files, users now create and join games using maps that have been published to Battle.net. Users publishing maps or mods to Battle.net are limited to a total of 50 MB of storage, divided between ten files at most, with no file being larger than 10 MB. Although the Starcraft II Editor offers more features than the original StarCraft Editor in terms of gameplay customization, there are concerns that the publishing limitations of Battle.net will not allow for large-scale custom maps or extensive map availability unless there is an external map publishing tool.[27][28]
A Zerg colony gathering resources and expanding its military.At the conclusion of Brood War, Kerrigan and her Zerg forces became the dominant faction in the Koprulu Sector, having annihilated the United Earth Directorate's Expeditionary Force, defeated the Terran Dominion, and invaded the Protoss homeworld of Aiur. However, after the conclusion of Brood War, Kerrigan retreats to Char, despite having more than enough power to crush all remaining resistance in the Koprulu Sector. In the four years leading up to the events of StarCraft II, she has not been seen or heard from by any of the other characters, although her ultimate attack may come at any moment.[30]
Arcturus Mengsk has been left to rebuild the Dominion, and is consolidating his power while fending off harassment from rival Terran groups. Valerian Mengsk, a character introduced in the novel Firstborn, will play an important role in Dominion politics, due to his position as heir apparent to the throne. Meanwhile, Jim Raynor, whose role in the events of StarCraft and Brood War has been marginalized by the media under the Dominion's control, has been reduced to mercenary status, and has been shown to be doing business with the "Moebius Foundation", a new faction which is interested in ancient Xel'Naga artifacts. Chris Metzen, Vice President of Creative Development at Blizzard, has emphasized that by the events of StarCraft II, Raynor has become jaded and embittered by the way he was used and betrayed by Arcturus Mengsk. Other new characters to the series include Tychus Findlay, first introduced in the StarCraft II teaser cinematic, a marine who becomes a member of Raynor's crew, and Matt Horner, Raynor's second in command, a character originally featured in the novel Queen of Blades.[30]
Following the fall of Aiur and the death of their matriarch Raszagal, the Protoss have retreated to the dark templar homeworld of Shakuras. There, Artanis, a former student of Tassadar, is trying to unify the Khalai Protoss and the dark templar, who have nearly separated into a tribal mindset as a result of centuries of distrust. Zeratul, tormented over the murder of his matriarch, has disappeared to search for clues to the meaning of Samir Duran's cryptic statements regarding the Protoss/Zerg hybrids in Brood War's secret mission "Dark Origin".[30]
The Raiders embark on a series of missions to find the remaining pieces of the Xel'Naga artifact, which they sell to the enigmatic Moebius Foundation in order to fund their revolution. Along the way, they meet with Gabriel Tosh (a Spectre, or psychic assassin), and colonist leader Ariel Hanson. The Raiders perform missions to help Tosh procure the raw materials to train new Spectres. They also aid Hanson as she attempts to evacuate her colonists who are caught between the Zerg infesting their planets and the Protoss attempting to eradicate the infestation. Horner also arranges a series of missions to undermine Mengsk, with the eventual goal of overthrowing the Dominion. Finally, Zeratul sneaks aboard the Hyperion to deliver a psychic crystal which allows Raynor to share visions involving a prophecy regarding the future of the Zerg and Protoss, as well as a mysterious hybrid of the two, the ultimate revelation being that only Kerrigan has the power to prevent the eradication of all life in the sector and beyond.
After collecting the final artifact piece, Raynor's forces encounter Dominion battleships at the pre-agreed Moebius Foundation rendezvous point. The Moebius Foundation is revealed to be under the control of Valerian Mengsk, Arcturus' son. Valerian, intending to show himself as a worthy successor to his father, asks Raynor to help him invade Char and use the artifact to restore Kerrigan's humanity, thus weakening the Zerg. To the initial dismay of the crew, Raynor agrees. As the invasion of Char begins, the Dominion and Raider fleet is severely damaged by the heavy Zerg defenses. Raynor secures a foothold on Char and rendezvous with Dominion forces, which survive the crash landings. The combined forces push towards the main Hive Cluster of the planet, protecting the artifact, which eventually reaches full power and activates, destroying all Zerg within its blast radius. Raynor's team finds Kerrigan restored to human form; however, Tychus reveals that he made a deal with Arcturus Mengsk, trading Kerrigan's life for his own freedom. Raynor defends Kerrigan from Tychus' attempt to kill her, shooting Tychus in the process. The closing scene shows Raynor carrying Sarah Kerrigan across the battlefield in his arms.[31]
Since the announcement, fans have also been able to participate in the development of StarCraft II through feedback and questions on fansites and forums. Periodically, Blizzard Entertainment provided Q&A batches, web pages about the units, buildings, and lore, podcasts (titled "BlizzCast"), and posts from Blizzard employees on forums.[41] The StarCraft II community was made aware of internal development processes by an official representative that went by the name of Karune (Kevin Yu) on the Battle.net Discussion Forums. Karune regularly posted Q&A on the Battle.net forums to answer various fansite questions about the game. Furthermore, Battle Reports of the latest alpha build of StarCraft II were occasionally uploaded to the StarCraft II website, with comments provided by Lead Designer Dustin Browder and Blizzard eSports Team Member Robert Simpson.
At the June 2008 Blizzard Worldwide Invitational, Blizzard Executive Vice President Rob Pardo was quoted as saying that development of the campaign was one-third complete.[42] He also said that StarCraft II was to be released as a trilogy of games, starting with Wings of Liberty, focused on the Terrans, followed by Heart of the Swarm, revolving around the Zerg, and finally Legacy of the Void, devoted to the Protoss.[10] On February 25, 2009, Blizzard announced the Blizzard Theme Park Contest, where prizes would include two beta keys for StarCraft II.[43] The updated news and updates page of Battle.net for Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne stated that the top 20 players from each realm was to be given be given a StarCraft II beta key.[44] In February 2010, Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime announced that a closed beta would open later that month.[45]
In an interview held in June 2009, Rob Pardo indicated that LAN support would not be included in StarCraft II.[46][47][48] Removing LAN requires players to connect through Blizzard's servers before being able to play multiplayer games, causing gamers to voice their dissatisfaction online.[49] Further controversy was sparked when Blizzard confirmed that the game would not support cross-server play out of the box, restricting gamers to only play against local opponents—for instance, US gamers against those in the US and Europeans against Europeans. The company originally explained that Australia and New Zealand servers would be located in Southeast Asia, pitting them against combatants from Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand.[50] However, starting from patch 1.1.0, it was announced that the Southeast Asia/Australia/New Zealand version of the game would not be strictly region-locked, with gamers able to play on both the SEA/ANZ servers and the North American ones.[51]
Mike Morhaime, president of Blizzard, announced during the opening ceremony of Blizzcon 2009 that StarCraft II and the new Battle.net platform would both be released in 2010, separated by about a month from each other.[52] As of March 2010, Blizzard had stated that the new platform was being tested outside the beta and was planned for release in early July 2010,[53] for both StarCraft II and World of WarCraft: Cataclysm, with a later upgrade for Diablo 3. On May 5, 2010, it was revealed that StarCraft II and Battle.net 2.0 would be integrated with social networking site Facebook, "linking the world's premier online gaming platform with the world's most popular social platform"[54]—a move that allowed gamers to search among their Facebook friends for StarCraft II opponents. Wired magazine, in its annual Vaporware Award, ranked StarCraft II first among the delayed technology products of 2009.[55] StarCraft II was finally released on July 27, 2010.[56] with launch parties in selected cities of countries around the world, such as Singapore.[57]
StarCraft II continues its predecessor's use of pre-rendered cinematic cut scenes to advance the plot while also improving the quality of in-game cut scenes within the levels themselves, which are rendered on-the-fly using the same game engine as the graphics in the game proper. Blizzard stated that, with the new graphics engine that StarCraft II uses to render the gameplay, they "can actually create in-game cut-scenes of near-cinematic quality".[58] Improvements include advanced scenery allocation and more detailed space terrain, such as floating space platforms with planets and asteroids in the background. Small cliffs, extensions, and even advertising signs were also shown to have been improved and refined.[21]
As of July 23, 2010, eighteen patches had been released for the beta (only seventeen on European servers),[68] including a patch which provided access to the Galaxy map editor. On May 12, 2010 Blizzard released the beta client for computers running Mac OS X, for the users who had signed up. On May 17, 2010, Blizzard announced that the first phase of the beta test would be coming to an end in all regions on May 31, but it was later extended to June 7.[69] The second phase began on July 7, 2010, and ended on July 19, 2010.[70]
A Korean Air Boeing 747 with a StarCraft II advertisement painted on it. Jim Raynor is prominently displayed on the plane. This plane was spotted at Incheon International Airport.Blizzard entered into a co-marketing agreement with Korean Air that will last for six months, in which two of the airline's airplanes on both domestic and international routes prominently display StarCraft II advertising featuring Jim Raynor on the fuselage.[74]
On June 24, 2010, at a press-only Korean event, Blizzard announced that Korean players would be able to play StarCraft II for free with an active World of Warcraft subscription. In PC bangs, or other cybercafés, players can play the game by paying 1000 South Korean won (approx. $1) per hour. Other options include a 30-day subscription for ₩9900 (approx. $8), a 24 hours play-time ticket for ₩2000 (approx. $1.50) or unlimited access for ₩69,000 (approx. $56).[77]
The end-user license agreement (EULA) for Wings of Liberty differs significantly from those of Blizzard's earlier titles in that buying the game only grants the buyer a license to play, while the game itself remains the property of Blizzard. Any breach of the EULA amounts not only to breach of contract but copyright infringement as well, giving Blizzard greater control over how the game is used. Concerns have been raised by Public Knowledge over how the altered EULA may affect multiplayer tournaments not endorsed by Blizzard.[78]
In response to the reports, Blizzard's Public Relations Manager, Bob Colayco said: "There is no code in our software that will cause video cards to overheat. When we saw this issue first reported, we conducted thorough additional testing and determined that for those players experiencing this problem, the cause is most likely hardware-related."[85] CrunchGear has also suggested that the problem is not with StarCraft II, but rather due to poorly maintained hardware and inadequate cooling. They do however agree that the overheating only occurs on non-framerate locked screens and provide the fix that Blizzard has offered to users.[86] Other articles recommend that users regularly clean the dust out of their computer to improve the cooling efficiency of their systems.[84][87] Blizzard posted a message on their official forums regarding the issue that has since been removed.[84][88] The original message was: "Screens that are light on detail may make your system overheat if cooling is overall insufficient. This is because the game has nothing to do so it is primarily just working on drawing the screen very quickly."[84][88]
Since its release, StarCraft II has been met with critical acclaim, with an aggregated score of 93% at Metacritic,[90][101] and 92.67% at Game Rankings.[89]
The game was particularly praised for retaining the popular RTS gameplay while introducing new features and improved storytelling. GamesRadar felt that "In many ways, StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty feels like StarCraft 2.0 – and that’s a good thing", stating that it "delivers on all fronts".[96] NZGamer.com said the game was "the best RTS game released in years and one of the best games on PC".[102] In relation to its story, Game Trailers stated "If there's anything immediately apparent from Wings of Liberty's story, it's that the series' narrative structure has evolved well beyond the original's sparse between-sortie intermissions", calling it "an epic and entertainingly told yarn",[97] while Eurogamer criticized the dialogue as being "flat" and the characters as being "either clichéd, banal or both".[103] Giant Bomb echoed this view while also noting the Hyperion portion between missions, finding it to have "more depth of character, more believable pathos, more surprise twists—than I honestly expected out of the story".[citation needed] IGN however noted that "no doubt franchise fans will eat it up, but newcomers may be wondering what all the fuss is about while going through the early missions that lack the kind of urgency you would hope when the fate of civilization is in peril."[98]
Joystiq was very positive towards the improved multiplayer matchmaking service, calling it "similar to Xbox Live and PSN, which is a welcome change from the archaic matchmaking of Battle.net in previous Blizzard games",[104] while GameSpot called the amount of online content "remarkable", noting the variety of maps and up to 12 player online support.[105][105] When comparing the single and multiplayer modes, GameSpy felt that the single-player portion was "less inspiring, mostly because of the extremely shallow learning curve", with the online multiplayer being "so smooth, so challenging, and so much plain-old-fun". John Meyer of Wired praised the improved graphics engine, saying that it "shows decades of polish" and a "slick new presentation".[106]
Matt Peckham of PC World also noted that some buyers expressed dissatisfaction with the absence of LAN-based multiplayer gameplay, the lack of cross-realm play and the campaign being limited to the Terran race.[107] Game Revolution, in relation to currently only being able to play the Terran campaign however pointed out that "Wings of Liberty has 29 missions; the original StarCraft had just over 30. Fair odds say the next one will have roughly the same amount; Broodwar brought about 30 too. We already got the full game for $50, and we’re getting offered two expansions. If you want to feel outraged about something, pick something else."[108]
Ars Technica gave the overall game a verdict of "buy" and especially praised the single player campaign as "fun as hell". They were also very impressed with the game modding tools that will allow users to create their own content and distribute it to other fans. The two "ugly" issues they identified with the game were lack of LAN play and the decision to split up the regions. They suggest these decisions were influenced by Activision rather than by the game designers at Blizzard, and feel this will turn many people off of the game and make things difficult for people who have international friends.[109] In a separate article Ars Technica vigorously supported StarCraft II against a series of 1-star ratings given to the game on Amazon.com in protest against the lack of LAN play.[110] They argue in Blizzard's defense against complaints that it was not a full game because only the Terran campaign was released, but did suggest that customers complaints about the lack of LAN and cross-region play were legitimate.[111]
While there is clearly an interest in a professional StarCraft II scene, there are several factors that could affect the way it develops as an e-Sport. After 3 years of negotiations, Blizzard decided that Korean e-Sports Players Association (KeSPA) was unwilling to cooperate with them with regard to sharing of profits from competitive Starcraft multiplayer. This breakdown has led to an uncertain future of KeSPA's legal ability to broadcast Blizzard's intellectual property of both StarCraft and StarCraft II without paying royalties.[78][116] So far only one of the two major StarCraft broadcasters, MBC Television, has agreed to Blizzard's new terms.[117]
Blizzard Entertainment and GomTV signed an agreement on May 26, 2010 allowing GomTV to create and broadcast the GomTV SC2 Global League, a series of tournament of $170,000 prize pool each in South Korea.[118] This agreement follows the decision from Blizzard to cease the negotiation with KeSPA and confirms the fact that Blizzard has decided to take another route to promote e-Sport in Korea.
SOURCE:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starcraft_2
Set in the 26th century in a distant part of the Milky Way galaxy, the game revolves around three species: the Terrans, human exiles from Earth; the Zerg, a mix of species infested by the same virus;[11] and the Protoss, a species with vast mental powers. Wings of Liberty focuses on the Terrans, while the expansions Heart of the Swarm and Legacy of the Void will focus on the Zerg and Protoss, respectively. The game is set four years after the events of 1998's StarCraft: Brood War, and follows the exploits of Jim Raynor as he leads an insurgent group against the autocratic Terran Dominion. The game includes both new and returning characters and locations from the original game.
The game was met with very positive reviews from critics, receiving an aggregated score of 93% from Metacritic. Similar to its predecessor, StarCraft II was praised for its engaging gameplay, as well as its introduction of new features and improved storytelling, while criticism targeted features that existed in the original StarCraft game but were removed in StarCraft II, such as the lack of LAN play and the decision to split up multiplayer regions. In its first month on sale, over three million copies of StarCraft II were sold worldwide.[12]
Gameplay
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Several unique missions are included in the Wings of Liberty campaign. In one level, lava floods the battlefield every five minutes, forcing the player to move their units to high ground or watch them get destroyed. In another mission, enemy units will only attack the player at night. Finally, in one mission, the player tries to influence the tide of an AI-controlled battle with only a single unit, a Ghost. The single player missions are highly customizable and are featured in the StarCraft II Community Zone. Between missions, players can choose units, buildings, and upgrades that are not available in the multiplayer missions.[16] A major new addition to the map-making community will be the StarCraft II Marketplace, where high quality maps will be sold for a small fee as "premium maps" over Battle.net. The mode of payment has not yet been announced. Lead Designer Dustin Browder has mentioned that even maps like player-created Defense of the Ancients in Warcraft III would not meet the quality requirements to be branded as a premium map.[17]
[edit] Units
Wings of Liberty features approximately the same number of units as the original StarCraft.[18] Some units from the original game have returned, some featuring new upgrades and abilities. For example, the Protoss Zealot, a melee unit from the original game, now has the researchable ability to dash forward and quickly reach nearby enemies as a refinement of its speed upgrade from the original. Other units have been replaced or removed entirely.[19][20] Other changes to unit design have been inspired by story events in StarCraft and its expansion, Brood War, replacing old units with new or renamed versions which sport different attributes and abilities.[19] Units in StarCraft II have new abilities, compared to the original, that encourage more complex interaction with the game environment. Among these are the inclusion of units that can traverse varying levels of terrain,[21] or have the ability to teleport short distances.[19] Some Protoss units can be warped into pylon-powered areas using the Warp Gate, a slight modification of an existing building called the Gateway.[19][22] StarCraft II's campaign also has exclusive units which are only playable in the campaign and not in the regular multiplayer mode, though they are available for custom maps. These mostly consist of units which have been scrapped from development such as the Terran Diamondback as well as various returning units from the original StarCraft such as the Terran Wraith and Vulture.[23][edit] Editor
The StarCraft II Editor is a campaign, map, and mod editor. It is more sophisticated than StarCraft's StarEdit and WarCraft III's World Editor for creating custom maps and campaigns, and it is the first editor by Blizzard to feature built-in mod creation and usage support. Updated art and data from the original StarCraft that were not used, along with models and data that were scrapped during the development process (including those made as April Fools jokes) will be available in the editor.[24] Unlike previous editors made by Blizzard, it is the first to have Internet connectivity features such as map publishing, retrieval, and online activation of the editor client. Lead Producer Chris Sigaty has stated that the editor gives players the ability to create RPG, Hero-type units and structures resembling those from WarCraft III.[25] At BlizzCon 2009, Blizzard demonstrated a build of the Starcraft II Editor showcasing its capabilities, such as the ability to customize the user interface to include features such as the Item system from Warcraft III. The final build includes a third-person style perspective for missions.[26]The editor was available for the first time during the phase 1 beta testing of StarCraft II, when it came with a patch. With the start of phase 2, the editor was updated. At present, there is a large map-making community using the editor, creating first-person shooter games, RPGs, tower defense and Age of Steam-type games, an example of the latter being Storm of the Imperial Sanctum. The map database is constantly being updated as more map makers create mods for the community. Blizzard has also changed the way that custom maps are distributed. Rather than hosting games using local map files, users now create and join games using maps that have been published to Battle.net. Users publishing maps or mods to Battle.net are limited to a total of 50 MB of storage, divided between ten files at most, with no file being larger than 10 MB. Although the Starcraft II Editor offers more features than the original StarCraft Editor in terms of gameplay customization, there are concerns that the publishing limitations of Battle.net will not allow for large-scale custom maps or extensive map availability unless there is an external map publishing tool.[27][28]
[edit] Synopsis
[edit] Characters and setting
The campaign storyline of StarCraft II takes place four years after StarCraft: Brood War,[29] and features the return of characters from the original series that include Zeratul, Arcturus Mengsk, Artanis, Sarah Kerrigan, and Jim Raynor. It also features new characters such as Rory Swann and Tychus Findlay. In StarCraft II, players revisit the original series' worlds, like Char, Mar Sara, and Tarsonis, as well as new worlds, such as the jungle planet Bel'Shir and New Folsom. The Xel'Naga, ancient space-faring race responsible for creating the Protoss and the Zerg, also play a major role in the story.[13][edit] Background
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Arcturus Mengsk has been left to rebuild the Dominion, and is consolidating his power while fending off harassment from rival Terran groups. Valerian Mengsk, a character introduced in the novel Firstborn, will play an important role in Dominion politics, due to his position as heir apparent to the throne. Meanwhile, Jim Raynor, whose role in the events of StarCraft and Brood War has been marginalized by the media under the Dominion's control, has been reduced to mercenary status, and has been shown to be doing business with the "Moebius Foundation", a new faction which is interested in ancient Xel'Naga artifacts. Chris Metzen, Vice President of Creative Development at Blizzard, has emphasized that by the events of StarCraft II, Raynor has become jaded and embittered by the way he was used and betrayed by Arcturus Mengsk. Other new characters to the series include Tychus Findlay, first introduced in the StarCraft II teaser cinematic, a marine who becomes a member of Raynor's crew, and Matt Horner, Raynor's second in command, a character originally featured in the novel Queen of Blades.[30]
Following the fall of Aiur and the death of their matriarch Raszagal, the Protoss have retreated to the dark templar homeworld of Shakuras. There, Artanis, a former student of Tassadar, is trying to unify the Khalai Protoss and the dark templar, who have nearly separated into a tribal mindset as a result of centuries of distrust. Zeratul, tormented over the murder of his matriarch, has disappeared to search for clues to the meaning of Samir Duran's cryptic statements regarding the Protoss/Zerg hybrids in Brood War's secret mission "Dark Origin".[30]
[edit] Plot
Four years after the Brood War, the Dominion is once again the dominant Terran power in the Koprulu sector. For reasons unknown, Kerrigan gathered the swarm at Char and then vanished from sight. With the Zerg gone, the Protoss have once again taken a passive role in the galaxy. Jim Raynor has formed a revolutionary group named Raynor's Raiders in order to overthrow Dominion Emperor Arcturus Mengsk. On Mar Sara, Raynor meets with an old comrade, Tychus Findlay. Together, they liberate the local population from Dominion control and also discover a component of a mysterious Xel'Naga artifact. As the Zerg begin to overrun Mar Sara, Raynor arranges an evacuation to his battlecruiser, the Hyperion, captained by Matt Horner.The Raiders embark on a series of missions to find the remaining pieces of the Xel'Naga artifact, which they sell to the enigmatic Moebius Foundation in order to fund their revolution. Along the way, they meet with Gabriel Tosh (a Spectre, or psychic assassin), and colonist leader Ariel Hanson. The Raiders perform missions to help Tosh procure the raw materials to train new Spectres. They also aid Hanson as she attempts to evacuate her colonists who are caught between the Zerg infesting their planets and the Protoss attempting to eradicate the infestation. Horner also arranges a series of missions to undermine Mengsk, with the eventual goal of overthrowing the Dominion. Finally, Zeratul sneaks aboard the Hyperion to deliver a psychic crystal which allows Raynor to share visions involving a prophecy regarding the future of the Zerg and Protoss, as well as a mysterious hybrid of the two, the ultimate revelation being that only Kerrigan has the power to prevent the eradication of all life in the sector and beyond.
After collecting the final artifact piece, Raynor's forces encounter Dominion battleships at the pre-agreed Moebius Foundation rendezvous point. The Moebius Foundation is revealed to be under the control of Valerian Mengsk, Arcturus' son. Valerian, intending to show himself as a worthy successor to his father, asks Raynor to help him invade Char and use the artifact to restore Kerrigan's humanity, thus weakening the Zerg. To the initial dismay of the crew, Raynor agrees. As the invasion of Char begins, the Dominion and Raider fleet is severely damaged by the heavy Zerg defenses. Raynor secures a foothold on Char and rendezvous with Dominion forces, which survive the crash landings. The combined forces push towards the main Hive Cluster of the planet, protecting the artifact, which eventually reaches full power and activates, destroying all Zerg within its blast radius. Raynor's team finds Kerrigan restored to human form; however, Tychus reveals that he made a deal with Arcturus Mengsk, trading Kerrigan's life for his own freedom. Raynor defends Kerrigan from Tychus' attempt to kill her, shooting Tychus in the process. The closing scene shows Raynor carrying Sarah Kerrigan across the battlefield in his arms.[31]
[edit] Cast
The English language version of StarCraft II has several new and returning voice actors. The voice director for the game was Andrea Romano.[32] Over 58 voice actors were hired for the game, some of whom voiced multiple characters.[33]- Robert Clotworthy as Jim Raynor[32]
- Neil Kaplan as Tychus Findlay[32]
- Ali Hillis as Dr. Ariel Hanson
- Scott Menville as Egon Stetmann
- Brian Bloom as Matt Horner
- Dave Fennoy as Gabriel Tosh
- James Harper as Arcturus Mengsk
- Tricia Helfer as Sarah Kerrigan[32]
- Fred Tatasciore as Zeratul / Swann[32]
- Grey DeLisle as Annabella "Nova" Terra
- Josh Keaton as Prince Valerian
- Michael Dorn as Tassadar
- Blair Bess as Donny Vermillion
- Rachael MacFarlane as Kate Lockwell
[edit] Development
The development of StarCraft II was announced on May 19, 2007, at the Blizzard Worldwide Invitational in Seoul, South Korea.[34][35] Development on the game, initially delayed for a year by the temporary reassignment of Blizzard's resources to World of Warcraft,[36] began in 2003, shortly after Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne was released.[37] According to Rob Pardo and Chris Sigaty, development for StarCraft II was put on hold for a year in 2005 due to the assistance needed for World of Warcraft.[38] StarCraft II supports the DirectX 9 (Pixel shader 2.0) software, and it is also fully compatible with DirectX 10 as well. The development team had decided not to add exclusive DirectX 10 graphic effects.[1] The Mac version uses OpenGL. The game also features the Havok physics engine,[1][39] which allows for more realistic environmental elements such as "debris rolling down a ramp".[34] Additionally, there are plans to implement VoIP into the game.[40]Since the announcement, fans have also been able to participate in the development of StarCraft II through feedback and questions on fansites and forums. Periodically, Blizzard Entertainment provided Q&A batches, web pages about the units, buildings, and lore, podcasts (titled "BlizzCast"), and posts from Blizzard employees on forums.[41] The StarCraft II community was made aware of internal development processes by an official representative that went by the name of Karune (Kevin Yu) on the Battle.net Discussion Forums. Karune regularly posted Q&A on the Battle.net forums to answer various fansite questions about the game. Furthermore, Battle Reports of the latest alpha build of StarCraft II were occasionally uploaded to the StarCraft II website, with comments provided by Lead Designer Dustin Browder and Blizzard eSports Team Member Robert Simpson.
At the June 2008 Blizzard Worldwide Invitational, Blizzard Executive Vice President Rob Pardo was quoted as saying that development of the campaign was one-third complete.[42] He also said that StarCraft II was to be released as a trilogy of games, starting with Wings of Liberty, focused on the Terrans, followed by Heart of the Swarm, revolving around the Zerg, and finally Legacy of the Void, devoted to the Protoss.[10] On February 25, 2009, Blizzard announced the Blizzard Theme Park Contest, where prizes would include two beta keys for StarCraft II.[43] The updated news and updates page of Battle.net for Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne stated that the top 20 players from each realm was to be given be given a StarCraft II beta key.[44] In February 2010, Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime announced that a closed beta would open later that month.[45]
In an interview held in June 2009, Rob Pardo indicated that LAN support would not be included in StarCraft II.[46][47][48] Removing LAN requires players to connect through Blizzard's servers before being able to play multiplayer games, causing gamers to voice their dissatisfaction online.[49] Further controversy was sparked when Blizzard confirmed that the game would not support cross-server play out of the box, restricting gamers to only play against local opponents—for instance, US gamers against those in the US and Europeans against Europeans. The company originally explained that Australia and New Zealand servers would be located in Southeast Asia, pitting them against combatants from Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand.[50] However, starting from patch 1.1.0, it was announced that the Southeast Asia/Australia/New Zealand version of the game would not be strictly region-locked, with gamers able to play on both the SEA/ANZ servers and the North American ones.[51]
Mike Morhaime, president of Blizzard, announced during the opening ceremony of Blizzcon 2009 that StarCraft II and the new Battle.net platform would both be released in 2010, separated by about a month from each other.[52] As of March 2010, Blizzard had stated that the new platform was being tested outside the beta and was planned for release in early July 2010,[53] for both StarCraft II and World of WarCraft: Cataclysm, with a later upgrade for Diablo 3. On May 5, 2010, it was revealed that StarCraft II and Battle.net 2.0 would be integrated with social networking site Facebook, "linking the world's premier online gaming platform with the world's most popular social platform"[54]—a move that allowed gamers to search among their Facebook friends for StarCraft II opponents. Wired magazine, in its annual Vaporware Award, ranked StarCraft II first among the delayed technology products of 2009.[55] StarCraft II was finally released on July 27, 2010.[56] with launch parties in selected cities of countries around the world, such as Singapore.[57]
[edit] Changes since StarCraft
Compared to the original StarCraft, StarCraft II was designed to focus more heavily on the multiplayer aspect, with changes that include major improvements to Battle.net, a new competitive "ladder" system for ranked games, and new matchmaking mechanics that are designed to "match-up" players of equal skill level.[1] In addition, the replay function, which allows players to record and review past games, was improved. Blizzard also stated that they incorporated changes to the game that were suggested by fans.[41]StarCraft II continues its predecessor's use of pre-rendered cinematic cut scenes to advance the plot while also improving the quality of in-game cut scenes within the levels themselves, which are rendered on-the-fly using the same game engine as the graphics in the game proper. Blizzard stated that, with the new graphics engine that StarCraft II uses to render the gameplay, they "can actually create in-game cut-scenes of near-cinematic quality".[58] Improvements include advanced scenery allocation and more detailed space terrain, such as floating space platforms with planets and asteroids in the background. Small cliffs, extensions, and even advertising signs were also shown to have been improved and refined.[21]
[edit] Beta
Blizzard posted a release date for the game's first beta of Summer 2009, but failed to release a beta during that time.[59] Since May 6, 2009, it was possible to sign up for the beta phase of the game.[60][61][62] In November 2009, the game's producer Chris Sigaty confirmed there would be no public beta for the game taking place in 2009 but assured fans that it would happen next year.[63] On February 17, 2010, StarCraft II began closed beta testing, as promised.[64] The beta was expected to last for 3–5 months. Beta keys for the initial release were sold on eBay for prices as high as $400.[65] Blizzard also released a map editor for the beta as part of Patch 9.[66] According to the company, they had planned to release a major content patch towards the end of beta testing.[67]As of July 23, 2010, eighteen patches had been released for the beta (only seventeen on European servers),[68] including a patch which provided access to the Galaxy map editor. On May 12, 2010 Blizzard released the beta client for computers running Mac OS X, for the users who had signed up. On May 17, 2010, Blizzard announced that the first phase of the beta test would be coming to an end in all regions on May 31, but it was later extended to June 7.[69] The second phase began on July 7, 2010, and ended on July 19, 2010.[70]
[edit] Pre-release
Customers and reviewers who received the installation DVD before the July 27 release were greeted with an error screen, telling them to wait until the release date.[71] There was no known workaround and some reviewers had praised the action for limiting journalists to playing and reviewing the game with actual players.[72][73][edit] Release
[edit] Marketing
[edit] Versions
On April 8, 2010 Blizzard officially announced that the game will be available in a standard and collector's edition. The game is also available for digital download from Blizzard on the release date; pre-loading began on July 15.[75] The collector's edition comes with an artbook, 2GB flash drive modeled after Jim Raynor's dog tag with the original StarCraft and Brood War expansion preloaded, behind-the-scenes DVD, soundtrack, comic book, unique avatar portraits, a unique model for the in-game Thor unit in multiplayer and a World of Warcraft pet.[76]On June 24, 2010, at a press-only Korean event, Blizzard announced that Korean players would be able to play StarCraft II for free with an active World of Warcraft subscription. In PC bangs, or other cybercafés, players can play the game by paying 1000 South Korean won (approx. $1) per hour. Other options include a 30-day subscription for ₩9900 (approx. $8), a 24 hours play-time ticket for ₩2000 (approx. $1.50) or unlimited access for ₩69,000 (approx. $56).[77]
The end-user license agreement (EULA) for Wings of Liberty differs significantly from those of Blizzard's earlier titles in that buying the game only grants the buyer a license to play, while the game itself remains the property of Blizzard. Any breach of the EULA amounts not only to breach of contract but copyright infringement as well, giving Blizzard greater control over how the game is used. Concerns have been raised by Public Knowledge over how the altered EULA may affect multiplayer tournaments not endorsed by Blizzard.[78]
[edit] Sales
On August 3, 2010, Blizzard Entertainment announced that StarCraft II sold more than 1 million units worldwide within one day of its release. After two days (during which period Blizzard began selling the game as a digital download on its website) it sold approximately 500,000 additional units, bringing the total up to 1.5 million worldwide and making it the fastest-selling strategy game of all time.[79] In its first month on sale, StarCraft II sold a total of 3 million copies worldwide.[12] Notably, the game was also heavily pirated, reportedly being downloaded over 2.3 million times, and setting a record for most data transferred by a single torrent in only three months.[80][edit] Overheating video cards
Several gaming and technology sites reported an "overheating bug" with StarCraft II that in some cases resulted in permanent damage to video cards. The source of the problem is the fact that the frame rate is not locked on menu screens. This causes the graphics card to continuously render the image, resulting in excessive heat. Blizzard has acknowledged the problem, and posted a temporary workaround.[81][82][83][84] They also recommended ensuring computer systems are well ventilated and contacting the videocard manufacturer for hardware-related issues.[85]In response to the reports, Blizzard's Public Relations Manager, Bob Colayco said: "There is no code in our software that will cause video cards to overheat. When we saw this issue first reported, we conducted thorough additional testing and determined that for those players experiencing this problem, the cause is most likely hardware-related."[85] CrunchGear has also suggested that the problem is not with StarCraft II, but rather due to poorly maintained hardware and inadequate cooling. They do however agree that the overheating only occurs on non-framerate locked screens and provide the fix that Blizzard has offered to users.[86] Other articles recommend that users regularly clean the dust out of their computer to improve the cooling efficiency of their systems.[84][87] Blizzard posted a message on their official forums regarding the issue that has since been removed.[84][88] The original message was: "Screens that are light on detail may make your system overheat if cooling is overall insufficient. This is because the game has nothing to do so it is primarily just working on drawing the screen very quickly."[84][88]
[edit] Reception
| Reception | |
|---|---|
| Aggregate scores | |
| Aggregator | Score |
| GameRankings | 92.67%[89] |
| Metacritic | 93%[90] |
| Review scores | |
| Publication | Score |
| Computer and Video Games | 9.3 / 10[91] |
| Eurogamer | 9 / 10[92] |
| Game Informer | 10 / 10[93] |
| GameSpot | 9.5 / 10[94] |
| GameSpy |   [95] |
| GamesRadar | 10 / 10[96] |
| GameTrailers | 9.5 / 10[97] |
| IGN | 9 / 10[98] |
| VideoGamer.com | 10 / 10[99] |
| X-Play | [100] |
Since its release, StarCraft II has been met with critical acclaim, with an aggregated score of 93% at Metacritic,[90][101] and 92.67% at Game Rankings.[89]
The game was particularly praised for retaining the popular RTS gameplay while introducing new features and improved storytelling. GamesRadar felt that "In many ways, StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty feels like StarCraft 2.0 – and that’s a good thing", stating that it "delivers on all fronts".[96] NZGamer.com said the game was "the best RTS game released in years and one of the best games on PC".[102] In relation to its story, Game Trailers stated "If there's anything immediately apparent from Wings of Liberty's story, it's that the series' narrative structure has evolved well beyond the original's sparse between-sortie intermissions", calling it "an epic and entertainingly told yarn",[97] while Eurogamer criticized the dialogue as being "flat" and the characters as being "either clichéd, banal or both".[103] Giant Bomb echoed this view while also noting the Hyperion portion between missions, finding it to have "more depth of character, more believable pathos, more surprise twists—than I honestly expected out of the story".[citation needed] IGN however noted that "no doubt franchise fans will eat it up, but newcomers may be wondering what all the fuss is about while going through the early missions that lack the kind of urgency you would hope when the fate of civilization is in peril."[98]
Joystiq was very positive towards the improved multiplayer matchmaking service, calling it "similar to Xbox Live and PSN, which is a welcome change from the archaic matchmaking of Battle.net in previous Blizzard games",[104] while GameSpot called the amount of online content "remarkable", noting the variety of maps and up to 12 player online support.[105][105] When comparing the single and multiplayer modes, GameSpy felt that the single-player portion was "less inspiring, mostly because of the extremely shallow learning curve", with the online multiplayer being "so smooth, so challenging, and so much plain-old-fun". John Meyer of Wired praised the improved graphics engine, saying that it "shows decades of polish" and a "slick new presentation".[106]
Matt Peckham of PC World also noted that some buyers expressed dissatisfaction with the absence of LAN-based multiplayer gameplay, the lack of cross-realm play and the campaign being limited to the Terran race.[107] Game Revolution, in relation to currently only being able to play the Terran campaign however pointed out that "Wings of Liberty has 29 missions; the original StarCraft had just over 30. Fair odds say the next one will have roughly the same amount; Broodwar brought about 30 too. We already got the full game for $50, and we’re getting offered two expansions. If you want to feel outraged about something, pick something else."[108]
Ars Technica gave the overall game a verdict of "buy" and especially praised the single player campaign as "fun as hell". They were also very impressed with the game modding tools that will allow users to create their own content and distribute it to other fans. The two "ugly" issues they identified with the game were lack of LAN play and the decision to split up the regions. They suggest these decisions were influenced by Activision rather than by the game designers at Blizzard, and feel this will turn many people off of the game and make things difficult for people who have international friends.[109] In a separate article Ars Technica vigorously supported StarCraft II against a series of 1-star ratings given to the game on Amazon.com in protest against the lack of LAN play.[110] They argue in Blizzard's defense against complaints that it was not a full game because only the Terran campaign was released, but did suggest that customers complaints about the lack of LAN and cross-region play were legitimate.[111]
[edit] Professional competition
StarCraft: Brood War is the most successful e-Sport in the world that includes its own ranking system, and it has been referred to as the national pastime in South Korea, where there are two television channels dedicated to broadcasting professional StarCraft matches.[112] It is not yet clear how the release of StarCraft II will affect the e-Sports scene and the current Brood War circuit; however, there have already been a number of large tournaments during the beta-testing phase, the most notable being the HDH Invitational[113][114] and Day[9]'s King of the Beta.[115]While there is clearly an interest in a professional StarCraft II scene, there are several factors that could affect the way it develops as an e-Sport. After 3 years of negotiations, Blizzard decided that Korean e-Sports Players Association (KeSPA) was unwilling to cooperate with them with regard to sharing of profits from competitive Starcraft multiplayer. This breakdown has led to an uncertain future of KeSPA's legal ability to broadcast Blizzard's intellectual property of both StarCraft and StarCraft II without paying royalties.[78][116] So far only one of the two major StarCraft broadcasters, MBC Television, has agreed to Blizzard's new terms.[117]
Blizzard Entertainment and GomTV signed an agreement on May 26, 2010 allowing GomTV to create and broadcast the GomTV SC2 Global League, a series of tournament of $170,000 prize pool each in South Korea.[118] This agreement follows the decision from Blizzard to cease the negotiation with KeSPA and confirms the fact that Blizzard has decided to take another route to promote e-Sport in Korea.
There is also a major concern that a professional scene will not develop without the ability to play over a LAN.[119] The reason for this is that there is a latency delay between commands issued and game response when played online. LAN greatly reduces this delay and allows for much finer control over in-game units. Currently, Blizzard has no plans to support LAN play.[120] One example is the 2010 Major League Gaming tournament in Dallas, which experienced severe delays that were blamed on the lack of LAN and problems with Battle.net 2.0.[121][122]The Battle.net Terms of Use state that it is a violation of the agreement—and an infringement of Blizzard’s copyright in the underlying game—to "use the Service for any ‘e-sports’ or group competition sponsored, promoted or facilitated by any commercial or non-profit entity without Blizzard’s prior written consent".[78]
SOURCE:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starcraft_2
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