Tl;dr: StarCraft, one of the cornerstones of Blizzard Entertainment, is one of the original players in the strategy genre and played a decisive role in shaping the genre – especially in the field of e-sports. The series celebrates its 20th birthday today. ComputerBase looks back on the eventful history of the cult series and gives away a fan package.
Another 20th birthday
Update 08.04.2018 14:20
After Warcraft and Diablo already celebrated their 20th anniversary in 2014 and 2016 respectively, StarCraft also looks back on 20 years of gaming history on March 31, 2018.
As with the publisher’s 25th anniversary in February 2016, Diablo’s 20th anniversary in December 2016, or 15 years of Counter-Strike in June 2014, ComputerBase is looking back at StarCraft’s history for the occasion. Fans of the Terrans, Zerg and Protoss will also have the chance to win a prize at the end.
StarCraft from 1998 to 2018
Strengthened by the successes of Warcraft II and Diablo, Blizzard Entertainment turned its attention to the next project, which appeared worldwide in the form of StarCraft on March 31, 1998. Apart from the same genre, the game also made use of the technology of the Warcraft series in the form of the Warcraft II engine.
StarCraft
There were also similarities beyond that. StarCraft, for example, also relied on a three-part division of the parties represented in the game, which could be played quite differently, and oriented the (individual) game strongly according to these races. The player went through the events of the Terrans, Zergs and Protoss in the course of the campaign. The associated background stories were brought to the player via dialogs and video sequences, in addition to content in the manual. One of the main features of StarCraft up to now was the balance between the three races, which still showed its weaknesses in the original game.
The story began with the Protoss cleaning up a Terran planet after it had been infested with a Zerg parasite. The events surrounding Terrans Jim Raynor and Sarah Kerrigan took their course after corruption and intrigue, while among the Zerg, the Queen of Blades was “born”. After fighting and wiping out an entire Zerg swarm, the Zerg learned the coordinates of the Protoss’ hidden home planet and immediately attacked it. Despite strong opposition, the Protoss managed to repel the attack and kill the Zerg overlord, the Overmind.
StarCraft: Brood War
StarCraft: Brood War, an expansion to the original game, was released that same year on December 17. In addition to new game scenarios that tie in with the events of StarCraft, the expansion brought with it new units in particular. The weaknesses in the balance of the three races, which had been criticized in StarCraft, were addressed.
StarCraft (Image: Blizzard Entertainment) Image 1 from 5
Once again, the game was divided into three episodes dedicated to the respective races. For example, the story addressed how the Protoss had to leave their devastated home planet and relocate. Sarah Kerrigan and Jim Raynor also continued to take on leading roles when it came to destroying the United Earth Directorate in addition to destroying a weapon against the Zerg.
Over 10 million copies sold to date.
With 1.5 million copies in the first year alone, StarCraft was the most successful game of 1998. And with over 10 million copies sold, StarCraft and its expansion are still one of the best-selling real-time strategy games of all time. Around 5 million units are said to have been sold in South Korea alone. In 2000, the first part and the expansion were also released for the Nintendo 64 with moderate success.
Despite its dusty age and outdated graphics, it continues to be one of the most popular titles in the genre, largely due to the e-sports sector. However, StarCraft and the Brood War expansion were not only successful in their own right, but also fundamentally involved in the spread of the strategy genre in the e-sports world. StarCraft was and is an integral part of many e-sports leagues. The biggest impact, however, was in South Korea, where the game became almost a national sport, and games played by professional players were watched by thousands of spectators.
The publisher showed what value the original StarCraft has for Blizzard in 2017. After 19 years, Blizzard once again gave the game a patch and also made it free for everyone. In addition, Blizzard polished the game fresh in StarCraft: Remastered at a price of around 15 euros. Besides improved graphics and widescreen support up to 4K resolutions, StarCraft Remastered also offered leaderboards and matchmaking.
Graphic comparison SC (Image: Blizzard Entertainment)
Graphic comparison SC Remastered (Image: Blizzard Entertainment)
StarCraft II
After 12 years of silence in the StarCraft universe, StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty was released on July 27, 2010. Unlike its predecessor, Blizzard split the game directly into three separate episodes, each dedicated to one race. Blizzard relied on the Havok construction kit for the engine.
StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty
The first episode, Wings of Liberty, highlighted Terran history surrounding the events four years after StarCraft: Brood War. In it, Jim Raynor and Sarah Kerrigan, between whom a bond existed, continued to play supporting roles. Raynor, who was by now a rebel and plagued by feelings of guilt regarding Kerrigan, opposed the Terran League and tried to overthrow it. Apart from the rebellion, a mysterious artifact was the linchpin of StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty.
StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty, as well as the multiplayer mode with all units, including those of subsequent episodes, has also been playable for free since November 2017.
StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm
After about two and a half years, the second episode of StarCraft II, Heart of the Swarm, was released on March 12, 2013. The Zerg episode built on the events of Wings of Liberty.
Although Sarah Kerrigan was turned back into a human by the artifact and mistreated as a test subject on the part of Crown Prince Mengsk, she still had ties to the Zerg, who continued to view her as their queen. Driven by revenge, Kerrigan built a new swarm and launched an invasion of the planet Korhal, the seat of the Terran League.
StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void
With Legacy of the Void, the third and final episode was released two and a half years later on November 10, 2015. After the expulsion from their home planet Aiur by the Zergs, the Protoss now wanted to conquer it back.
The campaign also depicted the battle against the Amon. A being of the creation race Xel’Naga, which originates from the void and wants to subjugate all races. With an alliance, all races faced the threat and destroyed the Amon in the culmination of the series.
The epilogue showed Jim Raynor sitting in a bar two years after the destruction of Amon, when suddenly the human Sarah Kerrigan enters the room. Both were thereupon never seen again. Peace reigns between the Terrans and the Protoss. Only the Zerg, under the leadership of the new king Zagara, fight for their home planet Char.
Not as successful as the predecessor
Despite the extremely large community around StarCraft, the second part could not fully match the success, both in terms of sales figures and e-sports importance, of the first part.
Regarding the sales figures, Blizzard only gave small insights. The first episode Wings of Liberty sold around 1.5 million copies within the first 48 hours – as much as StarCraft in its first year. In the first month after release, around 3 million copies were sold. StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm, on the other hand, sold around 1.1 million units in the first 48 hours. However, final figures are not available.
A documentary on the anniversary
Blizzard is not celebrating the StarCraft anniversary with an event like they did for the Diablo anniversary, but is instead letting the full story unfold with its own documentary called “StarCraft is Life: A Celebration”. Review. The documentary should be available on StarCraft’s YouTube channel later today. In addition, the game will be honored in a special Twitch event.
In addition, the rest of Blizzard’s StarCraft games will also be receiving tarnished in-game items.
Sweepstakes
To celebrate the anniversary, ComputerBase and Blizzard-Entertainment are giving away a final StarCraft fan pack. The participation in the sweepstakes is possible until Saturday, April 7, 2018, at 23:59. The winner will be announced on Sunday, April 8, 2018, via the notes on the ComputerBase homepage. Good luck!
StarCraft fan package
- Board Game: StarCraft Board Game
- Vinyl: Revolution Overdrive: Songs of Liberty
- Mouse pad: Steelseries QcK StarCraft Esports XXL
- Collectible figure: Noobz – Raynor (BlizzCon exclusive)
- Book: StarCraft II: War Stories – Project Blackstone
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