Starcraft 2 – Old Honor Badge

StarCraft and StarCraft Brood War appeared on March 31 and 30 November 1998; it was a time when real-time strategy genre was still shaping its identity. The struggle between Westwood Studios(Command & Conquer series) and Blizzard Entertainment (Warcraft series) made the RTS develop very quickly and gain terrain among the big leaders of the gaming industry. 13 years have passed and we can say that StarCraft was one of the most successful games of all time – testimonies stand not only numerous awards and impressive sales, but popularity that made the dedication of real-time strategies in two directions: the mainstream (even those who do not like the genre heard of StarCraft) and electronic sports (the first tournaments in the world).

Unlike many players that when StarCraft (Brood War and beyond) appeared they were teenagers and known players, many players were in the “junior league” at that time so they liked to button Starcraft like any other RTS at that time. Only after a while, seeing the development and the trend on the gameplay forums regarding the impact that the game made went on playing the game again as it was already a national sport in South Korea.

Or to say that July 27(the launch date for the Starcraft sequel) was for many players the most anticipated day of the past year and this is an obvious truth. The problem in such cases is that high expectations can lead to disappointments at least as large and Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty is not as righteous as we might think if we rely strictly on the reputation of Blizzard. We still don’t know if WoL deserved the Starcraft honor badge.

When it comes to longevity, StarCraft's main advantage was not necessarily single-player campaigns or technical aspects (cinematic films, voices and music), but the existence of three races with different characteristics, but with equal opportunities in multiplayer. Moreover, StarCraft has nothing revolutionary on the technical side, but be viewed as a whole or in parts, was a solid game, a new proof of painstakingly and professionally made game from Blizzard.

These facts made the game played internationally and the game was sold in huge numbers all across the globe. The thing that anyone should know is that this game set a trend. The RTS genre was defined by this game and the expansion packs made the game even more enjoyable.

The trendsetter is hard to surpass by Wings of Liberty because the new game doesn’t bring anything new and even omitting some important moments in the Starcraft universe books. What mostly matters is that Blizzard chose the most secure path to launch the sequel.

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