[Bob-san]

Blizzcon 08: StarCraft II Split Into Three Games
Blizzard drops bombshell and says real-time strategy sequel is now a trilogy. We talk to Blizzard's Rob Pardo for answers.
by Eduardo Vasconcellos and Jason Ocampo

October 10, 2008 - ANAHEIM--Blizzard dropped a bombshell at the 2008 Blizzcon today by announcing that StarCraft II, the highly-awaited sequel to the smash hit 1998 real-time strategy game, StarCraft, has been split into three. The company said that StarCraft II now consists of three different stand-alone titles--one for each faction campaign. The first of the StarCraft II trilogy will be StarCraft II Terrans: Wings of Liberty. The second will be StarCraft II Zerg: Heart of the Swarm, with the third and final installment of the main trilogy being StarCraft II Protoss: Legacy of the Void.

http://pc.ign.com/articles/918/918895p1.html

Discuss.

EDIT: 1000th post.

[TrashMan]

Just a money raking scheme.
Take a standard campaign, divide into 3 parts and sell each standalone for more $$$.

Oh, how low has the mighty Blizzard fallen.

[Dark RevenantX]

Unless each of them is $20 or $25 or if the first you get is $30-$40 but the remaining two have major discounts, I'll be pirating 2 of them.

[Mongoose]

Yes, because stealing is always the answer when you don't feel like paying for something.

Perhaps people should wait and see what the pricing plan for these things is before jumping all over the idea.  It sounds like each segment is going to have a hell of a lot of content, at least on the singleplayer side of things, and each one will also feature full multiplayer functionality.  If you don't care about storyline, just buy a third of it and be done with it.

[Dark RevenantX]

I also don't feel like paying $150 for all three parts.  If it's the same game just with a new (30-35 mission) chapter of the storyline, I don't feel that it should be another $50.  $20-30 would be more reasonable.

[General Battuta]

I too hope that it's fairly low-priced.

It's going to be really frustrating to finish the Terran campaign and then have to wait a year for the Zerg release.

Of course, this way they can release a strategy guide and a line of figurines with each one, and then bundle them into a battle chest...marketing genius!

[NGTM-1R]

Marketing genius, at least until the market's hatred takes over.

[Bob-san]

I really don't know where all the hatred is coming from. It sounds like a great idea: get SCII out faster. Read the article. They're really fleshing out the campaign. It's effectively twice what the original was. The original was 32 missions and a full MP. This is about 90-110 missions and a full MP. The minimum amount in each of these SCII games will be 30 missions. So, to me, this is twice the game. Anyways--I don't think it warrants a $150+ total price--I think it should be priced $120 total at tops, $100 is more respectable. They have bills to pay and they want us to love the campaigns and their universe. The original has over a decade of play--if they can do the same with the new version, they're definitely doing something huge RIGHT.

[General Battuta]

One hundred and twenty dollars? When each new expansion will be effectively mandatory, since it contains multiplayer updates? That's gouging.

And each campaign is supposedly going to occur concurrently -- meaning that once we've played one, we'll know how the others will end. I'd rather have it episodic, like the original Starcraft.

I'm still going to shell out for Starcraft 2, but I don't like the way this is going. No matter how long the Terran campaign is, it's still just a third of the game.

That said, the chunk of the opening cinematic they showed at Blizzcon was genius.

[Ghostavo]

That said, the chunk of the opening cinematic they showed at Blizzcon was genius.

Link?

[Mr. Vega]

All depends on how expensive each installment is. If they turn out to be pretty cheap, then it's actually pretty brave of them.

[General Battuta]

That said, the chunk of the opening cinematic they showed at Blizzcon was genius.

Link?

Here!

It's shaky-cammed, but still, pretty sweet. Zeratul is badass and I love the design of his warp blade.

[Turnsky]

Just a money raking scheme.
Take a standard campaign, divide into 3 parts and sell each standalone for more $$$.

Oh, how low has the mighty Blizzard fallen.

not really.. the south koreans will practically powder and snort the damn games, after all. 

[TrashMan]

I really don't know where all the hatred is coming from. It sounds like a great idea: get SCII out faster. Read the article. They're really fleshing out the campaign. It's effectively twice what the original was. The original was 32 missions and a full MP. This is about 90-110 missions and a full MP. The minimum amount in each of these SCII games will be 30 missions. So, to me, this is twice the game.

Maybe so, but RTS missions are easy to make and the mission files themselves take very little space. You can effectively put all FS campaign mission ever made on a single CD. And I bet you the mission themselves are more complex than Starcraft Ones.

It's just a money grabbing scheme - especially since they will be stand alone, which means that you get the same art resource,s same engine, everything for each "game" - only the missions are different.



As for StarCraft universe and story - LOL. Blizzard doesn't have good stories, sadly. Fun games, yes. But good stories? I can find better stories in a cereal box.

[Vidmaster]

we Germans have a word for this...

Abzocke.

You could translate it as rip-off, although this is far to weak.

[Admiral_Stones]

Ein wahres Wort.

Hab gar nicht gewusst, das du aus Deutschland kommst. Grüsse aus der Schweiz.

[gevatter Lars]

I just read about it. Don't know what I should think. From what I heard each pack should have the content/length of a full game. Only the first should have the normal prize and the later ones be addon prizes.
Still I doubt it and even the guy who gave the interview stated that the prize might change to full.

I am bit torn...on the one side its nice that they want each campaign to have a larger story, more cutscenes and stuff. On the other hand, why don't they just push the release back? I mean its Blizzard, they could push it back without a problem. Most likely people will even praise them for pushing the release backwards when they only say "We do it for quality ensurance".
They would be praised as the only company that is still in search for quality. I mean I could imagne the marketing manager sitting their with the programmer
Manager "Are you done?"
Tech "Sure we could release it every day you want"
Manager "How long does it take you to do another trailer?"
Tech "2-3 days?"
Manager "Good, lets tell people that they have to wait another month because of quality ensurance while you show them one or two trailers. That will push sales skyhigh"
I think you get what I mean.

Anyway I aspect SC2 to have a quite good share of illigal downloads, maybe even toping Spore, because of this.

Well I don't know. I think I will just sit back and wait. When the release is their and I see that its worth the money I buy it. If not...well then not.
I mean if all these releases are truely what they promise, I think it will be worth buying.

To me this is a little bit like "Dawn of War".
You have the first part with the SM campaign and each addon comes with new factions and a "campagne".
I haven't regred it to have bought these addons...well a little after I saw that there was a "all in one" release. Anyway I think Blizzard could do well with this kind of release scheme IF they can keep up to what they promised.

[General Battuta]

As for StarCraft universe and story - LOL. Blizzard doesn't have good stories, sadly. Fun games, yes. But good stories? I can find better stories in a cereal box.

Actually, the Starcraft story is pretty well-respected. Obviously, stories are a matter of opinion, but most people (myself included) seem to think it's either pretty good or really good.

You're free to disagree, of course.

[TrashMan]

To me this is a little bit like "Dawn of War".
You have the first part with the SM campaign and each addon comes with new factions and a "campaign".

Except this doesn't give you new factions, weapons or mechanics with the "addon".

Actually, the Starcraft story is pretty well-respected. Obviously, stories are a matter of opinion, but most people (myself included) seem to think it's either pretty good or really good.

You're free to disagree, of course.

MY beef with Warcraft, Starcraft and basicely any Blizzard game universe is that the fluff is just thrown there. It feels tacked on. Like a bunch of people just sat in a room and started making out events with kings and kingdoms..and then they just glued it all together. It lacks...depth.
Yea, sure - it looks nice when you look at it. But upon closer inspection you'll start finding holes.
I realise it's a game and "why should they bother with that much attention to detail?" springs to mind.
Let's just say that I've seen far better stories.
Heck, Arhanas's switch to the evil side was even faster than Anakin Skywalkers.

[General Battuta]

Hmm, I always thought the Starcraft manual came with a ton of depth and consistency.

I agree with those points in regard to Warcraft, though.