OMG StarCraft

Throwing candy in a parade is just like launching missles, right?

This 1v1 match from BlizzCon '09 is between two pro RTS players, one a StarCraft player, the other a WarCraft III player. All-in-all an entertaining match and one I'd recommend any StarCraft fan check out, after the jump.

Boy, just when you thought Web applications couldn't entertain...

Just moments ago I sat front and center at the main stage, here at BlizzCon in Anaheim, Calif., completely enthrawled at what Blizzard's revamped version of Battle.net has in store for all of us. Before I get to the bullet points, let me just say that this all new Battle.net is going to fundamentally change the way all of us play our Blizzard games. Whether you're a WoW addict, a Diablo III fanatic, or a patiently waiting fan of StarCraft 2, this new application will allow you to make friends across all games -- and keep in touch with them where ever they are. iPhone app anyone?

Hit the jumps for all the important quick hit facts.

BlizzCon has only been underway for a few hours and already there's huge news hitting the web. Unfortunately, none of it is StarCraft II related however, that should change a little later today during the Battle.net panel discussion.

So what do we know?

Well, for one, World of Warcraft will have a new expansion pack titled "Cataclysm," and Diablo III's newest class is "The Monk." I'll let Amanda at omgrpg.com go into much more detail on Cataclysm because it seems like a MASSIVE deal for WoW fans. (Obviously i'm a WoW n00b).

For quick hit information we just learned about during the "Heroes and Monsters" panel, hit the jump. To the right is a fan dressed up as Jim Raynor...he had such a great costume, I had to take a pic.

Giant Protoss sentinels guard a relic that Raynor's boys are looking to take. If you missed the 4-minute singeplayer gameplay video, you can find that here.

Only looking forward to StarCraft II’s multiplayer? Think singleplayer RTS is a snoozefest, right? Think again. Blizzard promises to deliver a singleplayer experience unlike any other in their long awaited sequel, and it starts with mission design.

Almost every RTS delivers the same scenario for 8 to 10 missions, across 10 or so maps: Build a base; train some units; go destroy the enemy’s base. The cut scenes may progress a storyline, but the actual gameplay frequently has little to do with it.

Blizzard aims to change that by having a number of mini-game-like scenarios that will not only hold your attention, but help to tie in and progress the storyline. Classic scenarios like “hold out” have their place of course, but there will be some new interesting ones that involve elements of terrain -- like lava rising and potentially destroying all your workers mining the mineral line if you’re not paying attention. Perhaps one of the coolest aspects of singleplayer is the fact that it will incorporate lots of units that you won’t find in multiplayer, such as the Firebat, Vulture, and Medic.

After the jump I discuss the first 7 missions in StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty. Also, there are over 30 new screen shots, complete with captions, for you to browse in the attached gallery.

Note: Since SC2’s singleplayer allows for branching choices, some missions are labeled “a” or “b” to reflect when they become available to you in Story Mode.

Above is a still shot from the "Zero Hour" cinematic, which can be seen here.

Don’t get “Story Mode” and “Singleplayer” confused, because in StarCraft II they are not one in the same. At first glance, Story Mode seems to be the more progressive part of StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty’s singleplayer component, but according to Blizzard, it more compliments than over shadows it.

RTS singleplayer gameplay hasn’t come a long way in over 10 years, in fact, it is among one of the many aspects that has prevented the genre from evolving at the same clip as say, FPS or sports. But Blizzard is looking to change that with Wings of Liberty, and it starts with the all new Story Mode.

This new aspect of singleplayer – which omgstarcraft.com reported on last year at Blizzcon – serves as a way to fill in the gaps between Brood War and Wings of Liberty, flesh out the universe’s lore, and act as a practical way to upgrade your army in between missions. It’s not the only new approach Blizzard is taking to the singleplayer aspect of their long awaited RTS sequel, the context of each mission promises to be original and compelling, but I’ll get into all that in my next post.

A lot more on Story Mode after the jump.

According to a Blizzard press release, Ozzy Osbourne will perform live at BlizzCon '09 on Saturday, August 22. Let's all say a prayer that he makes it until then. Here's a snippet of what Blizzard had to say:

Ozzy Osbourne, the only mortal to openly challenge the Lich King’s claim to the title “Prince of Darkness” and survive, will take the stage live at Anaheim Convention Center to rock the closing ceremonies of BlizzCon 2009.

Although tickets to the convention sold out in minutes, you can still join in with the ‘BlizzCon Virtual Ticket’ live Internet stream or via DIRECTV Pay Per View. The Virtual Ticket will feature 18 hours of BlizzCon coverage, including Ozzy’s live performance, as well as the BlizzCon 2009 exclusive in-game pet: Grunty the Murloc Marine.

Check out the official press release to learn more.

Blizzard dropped the bombshell none of us have been waiting for and all of us have been praying would never come: StarCraft II officially delayed until the first half of 2010.

A few weeks back, financially driven speculation that the long awaited sequel would fail to meet its proposed 2009 release date started to spread around the internet worse then Swine Flu. At the epicenter of the viral speculation was a financial analyst's comments on the Wall Street Journal's Web site claiming he thought it was unlikely that Blizzard developers would meet their self imposed deadline and fans would begrudgingly be forced to wait until 2010. It was at that point when fans got on their knees, clasped their hands together and began praying to Zeratul, Kerrigan, or perhaps Mike Morhaime himself that this long awaited sequel would still release this year -- but no one was listening.

I know what you're thinking: So why was it delayed, what's happening to the beta and is BlizzCon really in 2 weeks because I haven't heard anything about it yet? Read on to find out the answers.

Today, game accessory and peripheral manufacturer SteelSeries unveiled their new line of mouse pads which feature artwork from StarCraft II. The QcK limited edition pads are pretty sleek looking and come in two designs, the “Terran Marine” or “Kerrigan vs. Zeratul.”

“StarCraft and its expansion have together sold more than 11 million copies worldwide, and we believe StarCraft II will prove equally influential and popular, making this a great opportunity to provide gamers with surfaces that help to improve performance and game play,” said Brian Stech, SteelSeries President of the Americas.

The pads are available this month and retail for $14.99 from GameStop and Amazon, but you have the chance to win one for free, right here at omgStarCraft. Just leave a comment on this post giving me one good reason why I should give you the Terran Marine mouse pad.

The contest ends Wednesday, July 22 and the guidelines to play are after the jump:

With the release of UFC 2009, inFamous, Wolverine and a slew of summer blockbuster films, StarCraft II has taken a backseat in most people's minds. Fans are getting tired of hearing about the beta “coming soon” since that's been the word on the street for 3 months now. Even more depressing than that is the fact that we're patiently waiting for the beta – not the actual game; The actual game won't be out until December if we're lucky.

In an attempt to cure some of that depression I've compiled a bulleted list of interesting tweaks in the development of StarCraft II – tidbits if you will to lift your morale and keep you marching to Blizzard's drum.