StarCraft II to be Split into 3 Separate Games

Quote from 2d-chris

They might add some special units for the 2nd and 3rd game? But you can only use them in MP if you own them?

If you're refering to the "units will now be unique to the campaigns" comment, I imagine it's refering to stuff like the High Elves and Naga in Warcraft 3 - which only appear in the single player and don't really have any place in multiplayer.

Quote from Taylor

If you're refering to the "units will now be unique to the campaigns" comment, I imagine it's refering to stuff like the High Elves and Naga in Warcraft 3 - which only appear in the single player and don't really have any place in multiplayer.

Or Kerrigan/infested kerrigan in starcraft 1

most likely the battle.net will combine all three games when they are all out so people with all 3 games can still play with one that only owns one.

So basically what you buy is just the single player games.

edit; i also believe that you will not be able to play as the xel'naga any time soon.

Quote from twiz

If you're refering to the "units will now be unique to the campaigns" comment, I imagine it's refering to stuff like the High Elves and Naga in Warcraft 3 - which only appear in the single player and don't really have any place in multiplayer.

Or Kerrigan/infested kerrigan in starcraft 1

Kerrigan was just a named Ghost unit.

I didnt actually see the comment above me I was just speculating. I'd prefer to have everyone playing the same MP no matter what version you have, but then a part of me wants the 2nd and 3rd mission packs to include more than just SP story. Suppose new MP maps would be a good place to start, and if they do introduce a new units into MP give it to everyone as a simple MP patch.

Completely agree with you there. And if people aren't interested in the single player they won't have any incentive to buy them outside of custom games...

Though, I’ve got a friend who is a major Starcraft 2 nut and it sounds like they’re doing some pretty conservative changes to it. The Black Hole ship seemed to be a good example: it used to be a one-only, end-game uber-unit that could destroy a screen irregardless to what was on it, but it's been reduced and reduced until it’s pretty much a normal unit. They seem very scared of messing up the balancing and new units could be a spanner in the works. I’m not saying it won’t happen, but I think we’ll have to wait and see.

I'm pretty indifferent to this news. If I like the first release and each release adds additional units and shit I'll probably buy the lot regardless of what they charge. If the preceding releases don't add additional multiplayer content I won't bother with them.

Quote from Taylor

Completely agree with you there. And if people aren't interested in the single player they won't have any incentive to buy them outside of custom games...Though, I’ve got a friend who is a major Starcraft 2 nut and it sounds like they’re doing some pretty conservative changes to it. The Black Hole ship seemed to be a good example: it used to be a one-only, end-game uber-unit that could destroy a screen irregardless to what was on it, but it's been reduced and reduced until it’s pretty much a normal unit. They seem very scared of messing up the balancing and new units could be a spanner in the works. I’m not saying it won’t happen, but I think we’ll have to wait and see.

Yes I agree its a good example to conservative things happening but I think you are drawing the wrong conclusions from it. I don't believe they made it into a "regular" unit because they were afraid of messing up the balance, I think they made it into a regular unit because it was actually messing it up. Blizzard has always tried to make sure that things are well balanced and when you are going to make a sequel to a game that is so successfully balanced then I understand completely that they will mostly just copy what is done in the first game. When you look at it that way, trying new things would actually be time consuming and worthless since you can't really make something perfect better.

The more like the original, the better for me and it seems most other people would be happy with just a visual update and a new Sp story, I get really fustrated with the recent trend to add super sized - end game units. I know why they include them, but I prefer fighting it out with normal units and taking the time to win properly. It's not like MP games of starcraft go on for ever, infact allot of matches are over in 20 mins or less.

I'm excited to see what new units they add, but i'd love it done in a Broodwar way, add but don't go silly and break the game.

Blizzard know what they are doing, I have complete faith in them to get SC2 out and really fun. I would say there is no developer out where who I trust more to release the game when it's really ready. (Ok maybe Valve and don't mention WoW launch as a bad example of releasing a game early, MMO's are different thing all together)

Quote from Thrik

Just a bit weird. Will the engine/features/GUI/whatever change between them too? Or will they all be patched simultaneously as if all one release?

as with previous blizzard games we patch everything to be the same, version engine wise and UI wise, I think the UI and engine will be pretty solid by the time Starcraft 2 comes out, and that any changes you see between release 1 and release 2 etc.. would be patched in all the clients just as we have done with the past games.

Quote from Taylor

Completely agree with you there. And if people aren't interested in the single player they won't have any incentive to buy them outside of custom games...Though, I’ve got a friend who is a major Starcraft 2 nut and it sounds like they’re doing some pretty conservative changes to it. The Black Hole ship seemed to be a good example: it used to be a one-only, end-game uber-unit that could destroy a screen irregardless to what was on it, but it's been reduced and reduced until it’s pretty much a normal unit. They seem very scared of messing up the balancing and new units could be a spanner in the works. I’m not saying it won’t happen, but I think we’ll have to wait and see.

while this is true, it was soon found out that uber units just had a hard time fitting into the game, Starcraft did not really have uber units and after much much play testing a lot of those units are just not normal units much like they would have been in Starcraft.

Quote from Sindwiller

Learn to read people:

Wow, great. They're just copying Valve - the bad way. I hope that the single campaigns are long as fuck though. Blizz can go shove it up their asses otherwise.

the singleplayer is pretty long and its pretty different then most RTS singleplayers. We have allowed the player the ability to kind free roam if they want to do but still go down the path.

Quote from Skjalg

Yes I agree its a good example to conservative things happening but I think you are drawing the wrong conclusions from it. I don't believe they made it into a "regular" unit because they were afraid of messing up the balance, I think they made it into a regular unit because it was actually messing it up. Blizzard has always tried to make sure that things are well balanced and when you are going to make a sequel to a game that is so successfully balanced then I understand completely that they will mostly just copy what is done in the first game. When you look at it that way, trying new things would actually be time consuming and worthless since you can't really make something perfect better.

Quote from wacko

while this is true, it was soon found out that uber units just had a hard time fitting into the game, Starcraft did not really have uber units and after much much play testing a lot of those units are just not normal units much like they would have been in Starcraft.

I concede to both of you. I think what I wanted to do was make a comparison to different design philosophies and how they are erring on the side of caution, but the example was misconstrued.

Quote from Erratic

My guess is they'll just split the userbase as with any expansion for a game. Only this time it has the potential to splinter the community into three groups instead of two like in the past.

I don't see this being a problem. Surely the MP game will be a constant, and if either of the later releases change it, it'll be patched into the first one.

Didn't Dawn of War handle this pretty well, too? You can play games with anyone who owns any of the expansion content but only play the new races if you own that expansion? I know they had big-time compatibility patches before each expansion came out.

(edit: jumped the gun before reading page 3, wacko already covered this. Fail is me!)

I heard that the different campaigns for SC2 are supposed to have 26-30 missions each? Is this right? Because if so, these absolutely are as long as Starcraft 1's lone campaign. SC1's campaign was 30 missions, with Brood War being 28.

StarCraft 2 Trilogy Releases Will Be Years Apart

http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/55283

Quote from wacko

Wow, great. They're just copying Valve - the bad way. I hope that the single campaigns are long as fuck though. Blizz can go shove it up their asses otherwise.

the singleplayer is pretty long and its pretty different then most RTS singleplayers. We have allowed the player the ability to kind free roam if they want to do but still go down the path.

Sounds nice

What?

Restricting a team is fair enough, but potentially limiting all teams by stopping the use of added units (as we can assume 3 teams will all be playable) could be very much a major draw back. I'd just add those extra units for everyone playing MP when the new expansion are released.