A few years ago it would have been unthinkable: Blizzard dares to go for the episodic format! With this, the company dares to take another step away from the old image, which was characterized by big releases and eternal postponements for almost two decades. The modern Blizzard is different, now producing multiplayer shooters, Free2Play card games, mobas, even feature films in a chord – so why not break with other taboos and develop a pure single-player DLC for once? In our review of Starcraft 2: Nova’s Secret Missions, we check whether the add-on is worth the money.
Starcraft 2: Nova’s Secret Missions in the test – How much does it cost?
The single-player campaign Nova’s Secret Missions consists of three episodes, each containing three missions. The first package has been available since March 30, and the second episode was released on August 2, 2016. You have a choice: Either you buy all three episodes together, which currently costs 14.99 Euros, but the price will be increased to 22.47 Euros later. Alternatively, you can buy the three packages individually for 7.49 Euros each. The only restriction is that you have to buy the mission packs one after the other. Here you can find the store page with all the details.
Nova’s Secret Missions is standalone, so all you need to play it is a Battle.net account and the free Starter Edition of Starcraft 2, so you don’t need to own any of the three main campaigns (Wings of Liberty, Heart of the Swarm, Legacy of the Void).
00:40
StarCraft 2: Betrayal Trailer for Nova Covert Ops Mission Pack
Starcraft 2: Nova’s secret missions in test – Blizzard-quality episodes
If you think Blizzard has shot its powder after three jam-packed Starcraft 2 titles, you’re wrong: The first three missions in Nova’s Secret Missions offer fresh, independent ideas and, on top of that, are staged in the usual elaborate manner. Where Blizzard is written on it, there is also quality in it! In the first mission package, we already get to see four well-realized videos in which well-known characters like Matt Horner celebrate their return.
The story takes place after Legacy of the Void and focuses on the Ghost agent Nova – which is a good thing! After all, Nova was already supposed to star in the stealth action game Starcraft: Ghost, which was cancelled 11 years ago. So now she gets her big appearance after all. Nova wakes up in a strange facility at the beginning, her memories have been erased. Thanks to her camouflage suit she manages to escape – from here on we take over the helm. Right in the first mission, there’s also a gameplay innovation: While we’re sneaking through the base with Nova, we’re shown the cones of sight of enemy guards. We have to avoid them as much as possible while sneaking up behind the enemies and overpowering them in close combat. Blizzard then crowns the end of our escape with a boss fight that is so unusual and unexpected for the series that the developers are to be congratulated: Starcraft can still surprise!
Starcraft 2: Nova’s secret missions in the test – New tricks and ideas
Although the proven Starcraft gameplay remains largely untouched, Blizzard introduces at least a few small gameplay innovations. For example, we can change Nova’s equipment before each mission, swap our sniper rifle for a shotgun, or use a different type of hand grenade. In theory, this is a nice system, but it doesn’t come to fruition in the first three levels – there are hardly any choices, so hopes are pinned on the upcoming mission packs. The same applies to the troop management, which has hardly come into its own so far, but at least gives a good impression: We are allowed to define an upgrade for each unit in our arsenal, for example, we can give our marines a useful self-healing or screw practical jump jets onto our siege tanks, with which they can jump to higher levels similar to Avenger soldiers. However, we are not allowed to command new unit types; only the enemies have a few new additions in their assortment.
The level designers have also come up with their own mechanics and ideas for the second and third missions, so it’s not enough to just build a base and flatten the enemy. For example, we have to fend off onrushing hordes of enemies that attack us on fixed paths, just like in tower defense. Or we occupy civilian buildings with troops, which then decimate the attacking Zerg, while we fight our way to the second half of the mission, which once again leads us into an underground base with sneaking interludes. The levels never get really exciting, but they are fun and convince with attention to detail. For example, Nova gets an energy sword in the third mission, which she literally uses to cut enemy soldiers to pieces – including brand-new, particularly hefty death animations.
Starcraft 2: Nova’s secret missions in the test – lots of fun, little scope
The only sticking point: the fun is over quickly. On the normal difficulty level, you’ll be through in 60 to 90 minutes; if you choose a higher level, you might be busy for a bit longer. The third mission, however, is much longer than the two before it – if Blizzard takes this level as a benchmark, the next two mission packs could well take 2 hours or more. At an optimistic estimate, Nova’s secret missions would take a total of 5 to 6 hours to complete – and that would still be perfectly fine at the price of 15 Euros. Update: On the next page, we’ll check how much scope the second of the three episodes offers.
next page
Follow us and check out our social media accounts on Twitter, Facebook & YouTube ►
● on Twitter ► esport.directory
● Facebook ► esport.directory
● Youtube ► esport.directory
StarCrafttips, StarCrafttricks, StarCraftcheats, StarCrafthacks, StarCrafthacks2022, StarCrafttipspro, StarCraftpaidcheats, StarCraft, StarCrafttipsandtricks, StarCrafttipsandtricks2022, StarCrafttipsandtricksforbeginners, StarCrafttips, StarCrafttricks, StarCrafttrickshots, StarCrafthacks, StarCrafthacksfree, StarCrafthacksfree2022,