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Wednesday, May 17, 2006

Starcraft 2

Starcraft 2 is perhaps the most anticipated game of all time for the PC. Fans of the original Starcraft have been waiting for a sequel to the best seller for several years and have been denied by Blizzard time and time again over the years. Yet the majority of these fans have remained patient and loyal, faithfully waiting for the day Blizzard will finally announce it, not discouraged from the fact that Blizzard decided to create three consecutive Warcraft products and the slap in the face when the company announced Starcraft: Ghost, a third person shooter available exclusively for consoles and excluded from the PC.

However, we must look at the concept of a Starcraft 2 through rational eyes. Starcraft is the most successful Real Time Strategy game of all time, played professionally on an international level. To create a Starcraft 2 makes complete sense financially, since it will immediately sell several million copies once released, thereby breaking the "fastest selling PC game ever" records set by its predecessors Diablo II and Warcraft III. However, Warcraft III is also a RTS game, and with the recent announcement of its expansion set, The Frozen Throne, it appears unlikely that Blizzard will announce or acknowledge a competing product anytime in the near future.

We must also contemplate on the mere idea of Starcraft 2, the game. The original Starcraft and its expansion, Brood War, set the standard for all RTS games to come. It was perfect in nearly every way in respect to gameplay, including perfect speed, balance, and replayability. Regarding singleplayer, the original storyline was perfectly crafted to complement an already outstanding multiplayer game, earning the game much praise for having one of the best fictional universes ever created. Considering these facts, Starcraft 2 will have immense pressure on it to match, let alone surpass the greatness of its predecessor. The idea of taking on a task of such large magnitude is certainly daunting, and perhaps this is why none of Blizzard's teams have stepped up to the challenge.