STARCRAFT 2 REVIEW. POSTED BY : MARK
DATE : 23rd Aug. 2010
Introduction
One of the most anticipated PC releases of 2010, Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty has hit the shelves selling over 1.8 million copies on day one. After playing through the campaign and being drawn into the multiplayer league system it’s not hard to see why.
Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty picks up four years after the original game. Once again you follow the story of Jim Raynor as he and Raynor’s Raiders blast their way across the Kopula sector battling the alien hive mind species of the Zerg and the incredibly advance Protoss. For those of you who don’t know the story so far don’t worry, the campaign does a good job of explaining the back story while building the current story. This is superbly done through highly captivating cut-scenes and an interactivity that adds a slight level of the RPG genre to the game.
Campaign
While essentially a RTS game Blizzard has brought in elements of an RPG into the campaign mode. The mission interactive system aboard Raynors battlecruiser, The Hyperion, allows you to upgrade your units and structures with resources acquired from the various missions. Each mission unlocks new units and provides resources. These resources are then used to upgrade your units and structures and conduct research. There are also opportunities to interact with the crew and items aboard the ship. All these interactive options help to immerse you into the story that is very well told through stunning cinematic cut scenes. The ship is divided into four areas.
· The Armoury - From here you can view information on enhanced units which become available as you progress throughout the campaign. You can also upgrade existing units and structures with special skills and attributes.
· The Cantina – The social centre of the ship. From here you can hire mercenaries, or interact with various aspects of the environment including the not so un-biased news casts.
· The Bridge – The mission selection area of the ship. This room contains the start map for mission selection and an option to view all the previous cinematic.
· The Laboratory – This is where you can upgrade units and structures which will benefit you in your fight against the Zerg and Protoss factions.
For those who want to play as all the factions you will unfortunately be disappointed this time as only the Terran campaign is available. The good news is that Wings of Liberty is the first in a trilogy. So for those who wish to completely immerse yourselves in the story you won’t have long to wait for the additional campaigns. |