Starcraft 2 - It is out there

[Sander]

Yeah, fuckin' PC gamers. Always pirating and shit. Good thing all of those console exclusives don't get pirated on the 360

I'd wager they get pirated a lot less, since piracy on consoles is a much bigger hassle than it is on PC. But 'games get pirated' is a nonsense excuse. The only reason there aren't nearly as many PC exclusives is simply that companies make less money off of PC exclusives, for whatever reason, be it increased audience, more money from hardware vendors or fewer lost sales to piracy.

 

[mor]

yep.

also 100K of stolen copies at $44.99 with say 10% profit, means 500k$ dollars the cost of blizzard quality none rushed four AAA titles.

EDIT: its was late the numbers are way off it takes 100million for AAA not 100K.

 

[Phil the Nuka-Cola Dude]

Starting to get a bit disenfranchised with the SC2 campaign. As I progress, it feels more and more like I'm playing an RTS. It sounds stupid, but I don't like when the story-mode of an RTS feels like an RTS. It kills the immersion for me. I don't like being a nameless, faceless puppeteer. The campaigns in Ground Control or Dawn of War 2 (Yeah yeah, they aren't true RTS's), for example, have you controlling a 'Commander' unit, which anchors you in the story.

I'd wager they get pirated a lot less, since piracy on consoles is a much bigger hassle than it is on PC.

Oh, absolutely. Unlike with the PC, there's actual risks involved; like getting XBL banned or even bricking your hardware. You also need a DVD burner. Having that many hoops to jump through is an effective deterrent.

 

[mor]

that a matter of preference, some of us buy RTS games for the RTS this what i liked so much in SC so much, tactics and strategy not wow3/dota heroes BS.


SC2: t-15h.

 

[fedaykin]

i wonder if we ever see SC3, fast peep in piratebay showed almost 100K of pp-l stealing it... (which means few times as many already stole it)

The number of people who pirated The Sims and Half-Life 2 was also huge, yet both games were very successful. I've had a peek at SC2 and there's no doubt in my mind that it's going to be a huge financial success, regardless of that 100K. Long awaited titles are always pirated more than unknown ones. As for me, I'm going to buy the whole package once the Zerg and Protoss campaigns are out.

Hmm, where'd you get the 100K number? I just looked in TPB and the most popular release is being leeched by roughly 13 000. Nowhere near 100K.

 

[SkuLL]

Piracy has nothing to do with it. It's just a handy little excuse for developers to bandy about instead of saying "Yeah, sorry guys; but our publisher owns our souls, and MS/Sony offered them a boatload of cash to develop the game exclusively on their hardware... so... peace out."

Why there are so many console exclusives:

-Consoles are far more accessible to the average, computer illiterate Joe (this is most people). Even grandma can plug in that power cable, HDMI cord, and push start. It's all plug and play.

When the average Joe considers gaming on a PC, he googles 'GAMING PC' and is bombarded with all kinds of technical terms like GPU, CPU, clock speeds and whatnot. Then he looks at the price of the pre-built "gaming" systems (He don't have the know-how or will to shop around for parts and build it himself), sees numbers in the thousands and runs straight to Walmart to grab an Xbox.

PC enthusiasts carefully groom their PCs to keep them in tip top shape, while Console Pete over there just spilled coke all over his 360.

You've also got the previously hardcore PC gamers who got tired of upgrading every 3-4 years and went casual.

The end result of this is that console users VASTLY outnumber PC gamers, and going after the bigger crowd is the best move financially.

-Console gamers are less discriminating when it comes to buying games. Make a bad PC game, and it's not going to sell. At all.

Make a bad console game, and it'll still be purchased by parents/grandparents who don't know any better for Console Pete, or by Console Pete himself because of the {"Kewl"? My native language is retard.} box.

And finally:

-Contracts/incentives provided by The Big Three. EXCLUSIVE TITLES ARE WHAT SELL HARDWARE. When M/S/N (less the case for Nintendo, as their games are typically gimmicky hardware-oriented affairs) wave a huge wad of cash in front of the publishers and say "Alright, you know that new AAA title that's about to go into development? Yeah, you're only going to release that on my hardware.", they see dollar signs and roll with it.

The PC has no such advocate, and that is a HUGE loss.

Note: The above is not a dig at the hardcore console gamers out there (I know there's a couple of you around).

Couldn't agree more. Well summed up.

It was already years ago when I feared that PC's would just stop getting good titles, all for 'piracy reasons' (as the marketing people would have you believe). But it seems that the PC crowd keeps their position - I mean, there still isn't a lot of console-exclusives that I really wish we saw on PC as well...

What must really suck is having an XBOX and your favourite game gets only PS3 release (and vice versa). That's a type of marketing move that would really piss me off.

Speaking of being ripped off, anyone else got suspicious when they announced StarCraft 2 would be split into 3 games? Is the first Terran campaign really that vast that it deserves a separate purchase?

 

[Crni Vuk]

I think some people here do a few things wrong. Comparing apples with oranges and such without keeping the difference in mind.

Take PC vs Console in mind. If you just compare it that way obviously the PC will have less games and less gamers.

But wait a min ? Is that really correct. Well why not copare PC vs X-box, or PC vs PS3, PC vs Gamecube etc. And suddenly you get better numbers and things are more acurate.

You simply cant compare the PC vs "all platforms". Thats not going to work. The reason why it doesnt work is cause you have already enough competition between the platforms like the X-box and the PS3. They get many times enough exclusives and have slightly different specifications. So if you really want to compare it, do it right. And you will realise that compared to the indidivual platform the PC isnt that bad when it comes to numbers and games.

The reason why the PC really is in a disadvantage is the marketing. A game on the console can be much easier sold as "family friendly" while the PC is still see as a technological machine with the focus on work or beeing a platform for "geeks" (if that is the truth of not is a different story of course). So it is much easier to sell games on the console to the whole family and giving it a friendly image. You have to get those people that only have the best of their children in mind. And with hackers, porn, internet etc. in mind they get scared away. Even if its just ignorance as like everyone knows violance is on the Console just as present like in PC games. If not even more. But its marketing that sells. Like proven with the crap Oblivion and Fallout 3 which got sold as deep RPGs. Thx to the marketing gurus.

 

[SharkClub]

Yeah, fuckin' PC gamers. Always pirating and shit. Good thing all of those console exclusives don't get pirated on the 360

You got me wrong there, I'm talking about when I see [specific person] complain and then [specific person] pirate. These kind of people exist all over the place.

And this,

I'd wager they get pirated a lot less, since piracy on consoles is a much bigger hassle than it is on PC.

And to top it off. The bullshit governments make up about piracy numbers is what's scaring developers away from the PC, I think.

 

[SkuLL]

And to top it off. The bullshit governments make up about piracy numbers is what's scaring developers away from the PC, I think.

I agree. Can't really assume that every downloaded copy = lost sale. Especially with increasing download speeds worldwide - it's almost faster these days to download a movie than rummaging around your DVD collection looking for the original.

 

[Guiltyofbeingtrite]

I could be totally wrong, but I think the amount you have to read is a big factor in the draw of people to console gaming, and games are having less and less text as the years go by, but this might only apply to RPGs.

More and more games are ditching content and reading it for you such as the transition from Morrowind to Oblivion. I haven't played Dragon Age but a lot of people say DA2 is doing this as well. And instead of needing to read like in Fallout 1 and 2 Fallout 3 just reads for you AND like Oblivion places a marker where you need to go, so now all you have to do is open the damn book and close it. Even games widely considered RPGs by console players require absolutely zero reading, like Bioshock.

 

[mor]

I've had a peek at SC2 and there's no doubt in my mind that it's going to be a huge financial success, regardless of that 100K.

SC2 sure the problem is with smaller titles, which is why we hardly see anyone trying to be original because they get their pay check mostly during the first two month.

so they copy paste what works make more action oriented games, make flashy graphics, turn on the hype and pray that the game wont be leeked before the release day and that that copy protection will hold as long as it can.

Hmm, where'd you get the 100K number? I just looked in TPB and the most popular release is being leeched by roughly 13 000. Nowhere near 100K.

checked it again only 45K now (search for starcraft and sort be leachears) the rest must be already playing it (there is probably few times as much on private and other trackers)

I agree. Can't really assume that every downloaded copy = lost sale. Especially with increasing download speeds worldwide - it's almost faster these days to download a movie than rummaging around your DVD collection looking for the original.

agreed but here i refer to new releases (not "older" content) you know those that greeted by tens of thousands crying for a proper crack, saying its the developers fault that they steal the games because of its to high prices.

as for the "older" content, for every guy who does it there is 10 who dont, here they even the 360 is sold with a chip inside, so do you want to guess how many PC titles are bought vs stolen

 

[Kilus]

Speaking of being ripped off, anyone else got suspicious when they announced StarCraft 2 would be split into 3 games? Is the first Terran campaign really that vast that it deserves a separate purchase?

Wings of Liberty is around the same size of the campaign from Starcraft 1.

 

[SuAside]

My copy finally turned up. Sitting through the install right now... Hope this is worth it.

Beta was fun, but I suck at multiplayer RTS games like SC or WC.

 

[fedaykin]

Speaking of being ripped off, anyone else got suspicious when they announced StarCraft 2 would be split into 3 games? Is the first Terran campaign really that vast that it deserves a separate purchase?

The Wings of Liberty campaign is 26 missions. SC1 had 30 missions, 10 per campaign. So yeah, WoL is a complete game, if you also count all the cinematics, and there are quite a lot of them.

Wings of Liberty is around the same size of the campaign from Starcraft 1.

You mean around the same size as all SC1 campaigns put together.

checked it again only 45K now (search for starcraft and sort be leachears) the rest must be already playing it (there is probably few times as much on private and other trackers)

I checked it again too, sorted by leechers. It's 15K now. Are you sure you don't need new glasses?

 

[Xellos]

Starting to get a bit disenfranchised with the SC2 campaign. As I progress, it feels more and more like I'm playing an RTS. It sounds stupid, but I don't like when the story-mode of an RTS feels like an RTS. It kills the immersion for me. I don't like being a nameless, faceless puppeteer. The campaigns in Ground Control or Dawn of War 2 (Yeah yeah, they aren't true RTS's), for example, have you controlling a 'Commander' unit, which anchors you in the story.

[spoiler:fafd74cdf7]AFAIK Heart of the Swarm will be focused on developing Kerrigan in an RPG fashion so You should be satisfied. http://starcraft.wikia.com/wiki/StarCraft_II:_Heart_of_the_Swarm[/spoiler:fafd74cdf7]

 

[Sander]

Stop it with the piracy talk and especially the explicit references to where people are downloading.

 

[mor]

i am only at my 12's mission and so far i cant be more happy with the game.

finally a game that kept its basics and improved upon them instead of adding stuff for the sake of adding stuff because its 2

i love the gameplay, the different units, the interface tweaks, even the 3d models doesn't look bad as i fear.
i really enjoy the missions little things like day/night, lava, etc adds more verity to gameplay and make the game much more interesting than the usual you are here they are there kill them get more units repeat.
plus its cleverly designed tutorial allowing you to familiarize with each units and learn different tactics to deal with different threats although it doesnt feel like one.

i like the bonus objective and the mission stats and timing for different difficulty levels that allows you ever improve.

i love the 'DoW 2' campaign style, with their the research/armory adds a feeling of progression and require you to make a choice and adds re playability value.
the rare attention to detail is amazing the ever changing news, dialogue, descriptions in the lab zerg/prot tanks or just reading some description really adds to my game experience and in the same time its done in a none intrusive way and even the mini game is great. (lost vikings )

and most importantly its just the SP, its nice to see such attention to SP on MP oriented game, if they make diablo 3 half as good as they made SC2 there will be a lot of happy diablo fans out there.

 

[UncannyGarlic]

Starting to get a bit disenfranchised with the SC2 campaign. As I progress, it feels more and more like I'm playing an RTS. It sounds stupid, but I don't like when the story-mode of an RTS feels like an RTS. It kills the immersion for me. I don't like being a nameless, faceless puppeteer. The campaigns in Ground Control or Dawn of War 2 (Yeah yeah, they aren't true RTS's), for example, have you controlling a 'Commander' unit, which anchors you in the story.

It depends on how powerful the commander units are. I thought that SC did a good job with it as the units were better but not broken while games like Warcraft 3 and Warlords Battlecry have way overpowered heroes.

Speaking of being ripped off, anyone else got suspicious when they announced StarCraft 2 would be split into 3 games? Is the first Terran campaign really that vast that it deserves a separate purchase?

I'm none too pleased but each is supposed to be around 30 missions (which is what the original game and Brood War had each) and they are supposed to have different twists. My biggest concern is the price tag, unless they add a lot of crap then I'd hope that it comes out for $40, I'm not too keen on SC2 being $60.

Take PC vs Console in mind. If you just compare it that way obviously the PC will have less games and less gamers.

Actually the PC has the most games and the most gamers, it almost certainly has less titles of budget of console games and the majority of games are really simple ones. Flash games and stuff like what Pop Cap sells are very popular and well played, they simply work with much smaller dollar amounts (flash games generate revenue through ads).

I could be totally wrong, but I think the amount you have to read is a big factor in the draw of people to console gaming, and games are having less and less text as the years go by, but this might only apply to RPGs.

Actually RPGs for consoles seem to be adding reading material (though they are moving more and more towards fully voice acted games). JRPGs in particular have been adding more and more text with each new generation of consoles (though I'm not sure about the current generation).

PC RPGs are a different bag and it would seem that western developers are in fact reducing the amount of text. I wouldn't say that's necessarily a bad thing though and you do have to consider that more can be shown than in the past, through graphics and voice acting. Still, there definitely is less text in most RPGs.

agreed but here i refer to new releases (not "older" content) you know those that greeted by tens of thousands crying for a proper crack, saying its the developers fault that they steal the games because of its to high prices.

Well it is true, people don't feel that games are appropriately priced and companies are fixated on big budget games rather than examining alternative models like Pop Cap Games's (which is extremely profitable and, I'd imagine, lower risk).

and most importantly its just the SP, its nice to see such attention to SP on MP oriented game, if they make diablo 3 half as good as they made SC2 there will be a lot of happy diablo fans out there.

I've always been pleased with their singleplayer campaigns in their RTSes, StarCraft in particular. 98% of the multiplayer I played in StarCraft was Use Map Settings anyway so, meh.

 

[mor]

agreed but here i refer to new releases (not "older" content) you know those that greeted by tens of thousands crying for a proper crack, saying its the developers fault that they steal the games because of its to high prices.

Well it is true, people don't feel that games are appropriately priced and companies are fixated on big budget games rather than examining alternative models like Pop Cap Games's (which is extremely profitable and, I'd imagine, lower risk).

they can think/feel whatever they want, stealing on the other hand is something different.

 

[The Dutch Ghost]

So how many of you have found and played the secret mission?

Much to my shame I had to use assistance to find it.