The company that always took Mac gaming seriously isn't letting up
The fine folks at Blizzard have been at the Mac gaming party forever, earning much respect and loyalty for their policy of simultaneously releasing games on the Mac and Windows. And between the long-anticipated sequel to the widely loved StarCraft franchise and the World of Warcraft: Cataclysm expansion pack for the world’s most popular MMO, Blizzard has a huge 2010 planned.
After more than seven years of development, StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty, is finally slated for release July 27. The sequel to the legendary sci-fi real-time strategy game and its Brood War expansion includes a primary chapter called StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty, focused on the Terran race, and two roughly 30-level expansion packs: Heart of the Swarm and Legacy of the Void, which focus on the Zerg and Protoss races, respectively. “The story kind of got away from us and got really, really big,” jokes Blizzard’s design director Dustin Browder.
StarCraft II prompts you on your next move, such as what to blast with your laser drill.
StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty centers on protagonist Jim Raynor as he leads an insurgency against the Terran Dominion. Most levels are played as the Terrans, following a nonlinear structure in which players choose the story path as Raynor takes on missions to earn upgrades and additional units for later. But Blizzard reps did confirm that gamers will play as the Zerg and Protoss races throughout the game.
Blizzard’s games always have a long learning curve, but a redoubled effort has been made to make StarCraft II easier to pick up. In addition to the tutorial mode, instructional movies are available in missions, plus more tips and movies can be found in the Help menu. Forgot which structure you need to build next to get the weapon you want? Simply open the Help screen, look at the technology tree, and you’re good to go.
StarCraft II's nonlinear single-player mode starts on an interactive version of the battleship Hyperion.
While multiplayer StarCraft on Blizzard’s Battle.net service has always been fun, it’s a little like wandering into the woods and inviting every nearby creature to eat you--the service is packed with power players, and it’s survival of the fittest. To help fix this, the new tutorial system includes nine challenges that bridge the gap between single-player and multiplayer game modes. They also teach the skills needed for multiplayer gameplay, such as defending a base and effectively managing resources. In one, you can only control the game with hotkeys--a little tough love to show you how much faster hotkeys are when you’re playing online.
StarCraft II's protagonist, the hard-drinking insurgent hero Jim Raynor, gets by with a little help from his friends.
Better yet, Battle.net has a new algorithm to match opponents more fairly. When you’re on a winning streak, the application will give you tougher competitors to test your mettle. Feel like you’ll never win again? The game will seek out more evenly matched players and offer bonus points for beating a favored opponent. StarCraft is all about multiplayer, and if Blizzard can get this just right, the seven-year wait will be completely forgotten in a flash.
To many Mac gamers, there is but one game, and its name is WoW. For those faithful and the series’ many other fans, the most hotly anticipated Mac gaming release is the World of Warcraft: Cataclysm expansion pack, which aims to literally change the face of the World of Warcraft map. In the third expansion, the dragon Deathwing--the final opponent from Warcraft II--will resurface through a dimensional barrier, causing a cataclysm that reshapes much of the map’s surface. This will tear apart existing towns, such as the Horde capital of Orgrimmar, flood some areas, and level others. The changes will also introduce two new races: the werewolf-like Worgen for the Alliance, and the Goblins for the Horde.
Cataclysm will also raise the level cap from 80 to 85; allow flying mounts in new areas; and introduce a revamped stat system, archaeology as a secondary skill, and new guild modes, battlegrounds, and dungeons. Even better, players can now select from expanded race and class combinations when creating characters--if you wanted to be, say, a Blood Elf dentist, um…you still can’t. But you’ll have more choices than ever before. No release date had been announced as we went to press, but Blizzard’s plans for Cataclysm shows the company’s dedication to keeping its flagship MMO fresh for newbies and veteran players alike.
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