The Starcraft 2 Thread

[Tabris]

Just wait until they start charging for Battlenet access...

[Goltana_R-Zek]

Originally Posted by bobyab

Blizzard is now operating from the WoW mmo $$$ mindset. How many development hours are they now putting into the SC2 project when they know the only kick back they will ever be receiving is from box sales. In todays gaming world, it isn't just about creating a GREAT game, but also figuring out how to maximize your profit from the project. Who is going to pay a monthly fee to play SC2 online? Maybe, if they are lucky, 20% of the people that purchase the game. So why bother... Instead, make your game, release it in installments and get $$$.

You cry babies and software pirates need to get a fuckin job. Maybe then you will appreciate the hardwork and excellence that goes into a project like this.

Wow, thanks for the fucking info its about making profit, really thought it was just about screwing the userbase, some insightful shit there. I didn't realize we had a blizzard employee on hand here.

Its more than just about the money, although atm I still find it retarded they're splitting it up into 3 separate games - if they're treating each campaign as an expansion, I assume there will be a time lapse between them.. waiting to see WTF happens is stupid in its own right. I just can't see how this really helps the gamer at all, and I don't think people need to hear you white knight for blizzard or something, its certainly not like they're hurting for profit or some shit.

[Kragg Goremaw]

I'm thinking this is pretty lame but I'm going to withhold judgment until they clear some things up. Are these stand alone expansions and will we have to get them to play online still?

I saw in an interview though, that they said they are doing this because they don't want to delay the game for years, so are they saying the extra expansions are years off? If so couldn't they just give us 2 normal freaking expansions with parts of the story for each race?

I'm glad DoW2 is looking good though.

[Cybsled]

Well lets hope they don't take as long as Valve to put out the episodes for HL2.

Have they even played with a date for Episode 3?

[Malakriss]

Blizzard still hasn't released details about what kind of asstastic DRM the games will have on them either. This could very well turn into a clusterfuxplosion of such magnitude that even Admiral Ackbar thinks we're fucked.

[Hachima]

Doesn't blizzard have a new global account system that you link all your blizzard games to? It would be nice if they just had online validation and no need to keep track of all the DVDs for each campaign.

[Cybsled]

Given the backlash against EA's DRM, I somehow doubt Blizzard would risk the negative press by selecting something along the same lines.

[Kragg Goremaw]

It's Activison Blizzard now though, so there are more out of touch suits to muddy things up. I know Activison said they'd stay hands off but I can't help but feel they'll try protect themselves from the Dread Pirate Interwebs.

[Qhue]

Originally Posted by Malakriss

Blizzard still hasn't released details about what kind of asstastic DRM the games will have on them either. This could very well turn into a clusterfuxplosion of such magnitude that even Admiral Ackbar thinks we're fucked.

Its a trap!

[Twobit Whore]

Blizzard knows that the vast majority of players will want to enter CD-Keys so they can play online. Pirated shit won't work there. The few people that pirate the game, finish it and then uninstall it aren't going to be worth the trouble to get draconian.

[The Ancient]

Originally Posted by Malakriss

Blizzard still hasn't released details about what kind of asstastic DRM the games will have on them either. This could very well turn into a clusterfuxplosion of such magnitude that even Admiral Ackbar thinks we're fucked.

I love how DRM suddenly enters the conversation out of the blue. Fortunately, I speak dillweed.

Translation: I can't wait til they put some DRM on the game so I have an excuse to pirate it.

[Qhue]

While I dont doubt that there is considerable content in their single player campaigns this whole thing reeks of ass hattery. Blizzard is rolling in money and doesn't need to pull dipshit moves like this to effectively jack up the price of the game to Rock Band levels.

Then again they have gotten used to the massive profit margins afforded by the WoW subscription model. The one where they generate less content than other games yet rake in logarithmically more profit...

In light of that any new release that isnt on the subscription model probably looks like a waste of time to the corporate bean counters and Pardo's car dealer.

[Hachima]

BlizzCon 2008: StarCraft II Lead Producer On The Split Single Player Campaign

They have a huge, solid Terran campaign that needs a bit of fleshing out at this point, and once you figure out the dev time needed for the other two campaigns it would have delayed the game for years.

So basically the next two campaigns won't even be released for 'years', which is not a big surprise, its always better to do it right. Plus it will help the initial game to be released sooner.

[Malakriss]

Starcraft: March 1998
Brood War: November 1998
Ghost: Indefinite Hold in 2006, development began in 2002
Starcraft II: ??? 2009, development began in 2003

The "years delay" on Zerg/Protoss is rather scary, both from a historical standpoint and on game completeness as well. The entirety of multiplayer relies on a) finalized units, b) racial balance, c) map editor, but this makes up a significant portion of the single player campaign as well. Storyline doesn't take years to develop, and creating the UMS maps shouldn't. Is there something wrong with computer AI? Map creation too difficult? Other faction forces not completed?

Something is either horribly wrong with the technical development, or this is nothing more than a money grab. Neither bodes well, this is utterly terrible news.

[Salshun]

Originally Posted by The Ancient

I love how DRM suddenly enters the conversation out of the blue. Fortunately, I speak dillweed.

Translation: I can't wait til they put some DRM on the game so I have an excuse to pirate it.

The worse type of person in this whole equation is the guy feeling like Robin Hood when he pirates a game. It isn't a loaf of bread for your fucking family, it is a perfect example of luxury item. You don't need it.

Too many fucking kids thinking they're a freedom fighter for downloading a game. Personally, I'm just cheap, and I don't want to spend $40 on something I might not like that much in the end.

Also, DRM isn't an anti-pirating mechanic, it's a proving ground for crackers. Any company that thinks DRM does ANYTHING other than fuck over paying customers is living in a fantasy world. People that want to steal your shit have never had an ounce of trouble doing so.