StarCraft 2 Beta Defended from Zerg Rush of Criticism
Having waited so long for StarCraft 2 to emerge from the locked vaults of Blizzard’s development team, whispers had begun online that one of the most successful real-time strategy (RTS) games of all time had lost its edge.
Critics have accused StarCraft of being a relic of a past age: “As far as strategy games go, StarCraft just isn’t that great any more,” stated Fruzsina Eordogh writing for True/Slant.
I think I can safely reveal my honest impressions of the game, which actually didn’t blow me away as much as I had expected. StarCraft 2 is, it turns out, just a game,” Joe Martin almost apologised to his readers in bit-tech, awaiting the howls of Blizzard fans who would inevitably flame him for his heretical opinions.
I’ve been excited about StarCraft 2 ever since the legendary Blizzard cinematic was released two years ago. Yet whilst criticism mounts against StarCraft 2, from what I have seen and played in the beta, the game remains as absorbing, challenging and fun as it has ever been. Here are my thoughts on how StarCraft 2 can answer its critics:
One of the criticisms levelled at StarCraft 2 is that the scale of the game is too small. “If I am going to wage war, I want massive amounts of soldiers,” Ms Eordogh complained.
Whilst this may well have been true of the original game, which had a frustrating limit on the number of units that could be controlled at any one time, StarCraft 2 is easily the equal of Dawn of War (DoW) orCommand & Conquer (C&C) in its scope of available units.
It’s unfair of Ms Eordogh to compare StarCraft (or DoW or C&C for that matter) with Total War. Players may command huge armies of thousands of troops in Total War, but the reality is that those troops move in large blocks of infantry and cavalry, reducing the player’s control to a handful of maybe 10 or 12 units.
If anything, StarCraft 2 gives players more control over individual units, providing a much greater scope and flexibility to its game than Total War, and with the new unit caps huge epic battles can take place like never before in the StarCraft universe.
Furthermore, the sheer range of units now available in the new and improved game is staggering. Terrans for example have four infantry, three heavy vehicles and five air units to choose from, providing much greater tactical flexibility to the game.
Another weakness of StarCraft 2 highlighted was the lack of engaging terrain: “When waging a battle you should be able to utilize the terrain around you. If you are attacking, or defending, you would use the hills or buildings differently.”
True, StarCraft 2 does not provide cover bonuses as players get in DoW, but this does not mean that the terrain does not affect the tactics of a battle in the game. Unlike in other RTS games which tend to have quite open fields, the terrain in StarCraft 2 is usually quite cumbersome, presenting a tough battlefield to negotiate for unwary ground units.
Peter Molyneux caused a hell of a stir when he announced Fable III was ditching its XP bar, Blizzard at least have not tampered with what is regarded by many as RTS perfection.
Starcraft 2 remains true to the original, updating tired graphics but keeping the core gameplay as fast, furious and enjoyable as ever. I have no doubt that when StarCraft 2 finally hits the shelves it will be a monster hit, and that’s without seeing anything that the sumptuous single player mode has to offer...
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