StarCraft II: Wings Of Liberty (From Gazette)

StarCraft II: Wings Of Liberty

10:28am Wednesday 25th August 2010 in Game Reviews

When Blizzard released the original StarCraft in 1998, it left a huge mark on the existence of PC Gaming. It was something the world hadn’t seen before, and won multiple awards.

And now, in 2010, Blizzard releases a sequel of a game that impressed the public so much.

StarCraft II is split into three separate instalments, the first being Wings of Liberty. This first section is based on the Terrans, human exiles from Earth. It follows the exploits of Jim Raynor as he leads an insurgent group against the autocratic Terrain Dominion. Then the Zerg and Protoss get involved. The Zerg is an ancient alien race out to destroy all humans. The Protoss is a highly advanced race once the most powerful in the StarCraft universe.

Wings of Liberty is primarily a real time strategy game, make a box, move your men, make a base.

On the other hand, it follows an RPG, or role playing game, levelling system. The system is based on unit, building and weapon levelling. The game bases Jim Raynor on his starship, the Hyperion. The starship is able to be fully explored, with areas such as cantina, where you can hire mercenaries to use during your missions for a cup of tea and a bun, well, maybe not.

Mercenaries are elite soldiers you can use once during a mission. They are bought for a fee, depending on their strength.

Another room is the armoury where you can fully customise your units, making them more effective on the battlefields. These upgrades include extra health for your infantry units, or faster moving vehicles, and more. There are also chances of capturing artefacts as bonus objectives during your missions which you can turn into structure or weapon upgrades. These upgrade come in pairs. If you decide to unlock a Zerg building upgrade, you cannot then select a Protoss building upgrade and vice-versa.

With StarCraft II mix of RTS and RPG style game play, it creates a sense that you do not play the same game twice. The huge collection of upgradeable units and buildings creates a fully customisable game. I asked at the beginning of the review if Blizzard had pulled it off. I say Yes! Well done Blizzard, keep up the good work!