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BlizzCon 2009: StarCraft Ghost lives on (in spirit)

Kevin Kelly — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 21:00:00 EST

During the StarCraft 2 gameplay panel at BlizzCon, Dustin Browder spent much of the time talking abut the upcoming map editor that ships with SC2. If he's to be believed, it's the most powerful piece of software on the planet. Which might be a slight exaggeration. Those developers all have bias running in their veins.

However, we were fairly impressed when they showed us that the editor allows first-person game creation. What?! Yes, that even includes details as far down as UI manipulation and an inventory system. That's a lot more than you'd expect from a simple "map editor." One employee-created game was an FPS featuring a very familiar, bouncing-ponytailed Ghost that was created in just a few days.

Blizzard officially put StarCraft: Ghost on indefinite hold back in 2006, and they've been telling us here that it's still the case. Although some enterprising modder/mapper out there might just want create their own version.

BlizzCon 2009: StarCraft Ghost lives on (in spirit) originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 22 Aug 2009 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Interview: Dustin Browder talks StarCraft 2 development and delays

Kevin Kelly — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 17:59:00 EST

Dustin Browder is the man in the hot seat as Blizzard's lead designer for StarCraft 2. Ultimately, he's the one you can heap the blame (or the praise) upon when the final product finally ships. At the time of this interview, we didn't officially know SC2 would be delayed, but given the sheer amount of things they'd shown us during our visit, it became clear that there was no way StarCraft 2 would make 2009.

Still, Browder talks about the reasons for the delay, and ultimately gamers are going to be happy that they chose to make the game better, rather than rush it out for the holiday shopping frenzy. Read on for the full interview with him where we talk delays, easter eggs, the new matchmaking system, the single player experience, and hidden items in the game, including a fully playable Lost Viking arcade game with a data editor that will let you make your own scrolling shooters.

Gallery: Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty - Single Player

Continue reading Interview: Dustin Browder talks StarCraft 2 development and delays

Interview: Dustin Browder talks StarCraft 2 development and delays originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 17 Aug 2009 17:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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BlizzCon 2008: The costume and dance contest

Kevin Kelly — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, Mac, PC, Action, Adventure, RPGs, Video, MMO, Fashion, Galleries

One day of BlizzCon is already behind us, and with it came the announcement of the Wizard class for Diablo III, the fact that Starcraft II is going to be a trilogy, and the truism that World of Warcraft players really love their costume and dance contests.

Check out the video of the pants-off dance-off above, hit the links below that for some highlights, and then be sure and crawl through our galleries below for all that we've seen so far. Today brings more panels, more Diablo III news (omg wtf?!), and a closing ceremony featuring Patton Oswalt, Video Games Live, and Level 80 Elite Tauren Chieftain. We'll be bringing you audio and video, so keep watching.

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: Costume Contest

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: The Experience

BlizzCon 2008: The costume and dance contest originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 11 Oct 2008 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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BlizzCon, day one

Elizabeth Harper — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: PC, MMO

Were you one of the many who didn't have the opportunity to make it out to Blizzneyland... er, we mean BlizzCon, of course... this year? Never fear, because Joystiq is on-hand to tell you exactly what's happening on the show floor. Enjoy BlizzCon from the comfort of your desk chair, away from the lines and the crowds and the delicious Diablo 3 gameplay... but we digress. On with the show. See our live coverage of:

The convention floor, full of all sorts of shiny temptations for your inner fanboy (or girl).
The uneventful opening ceremonies. I hope you weren't expecting a big announcement!
The many fans attending in costume and the costume contest.
Panels on World of Warcraft's user interface, the game's classes, the game's art, and the arena PvP tournament.
Diablo 3 news ruled the day, with the announcement of a new class (the wizard), plenty of wizard info in their class panel, new screenshots & cinematic, gameplay video, and hands-on gameplay.
The news that StarCraft 2 was being released as a trilogy (with one game for the Terran campaign, one game for the Zerg campaign, and one game for the Protoss campaign) left some people cold, but we've got to say the gameplay Blizzard is showing off still looks incredible.

Stay tuned for more news from Blizzneyland... er, BlizzCon... throughout the day.

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: The Experience

BlizzCon, day one originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 11 Oct 2008 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Blizzard announces Starcraft II, Korea implodes with joy

Alexander Sliwinski — Sat, 19 May 2007 03:16:00 EST

Filed under: Mac, PC, Online, Strategy, MMO

It all lead up to this: StarCraft II. After months of speculation Blizzard announced today at their World Wide Invitational in Korea that their next big project is StarCraft II for PC.

Blizzard president Mike Morhaime says, "With StarCraft II, we'll be able to do everything we wanted to do with the original StarCraft and more ... We recognize that expectations are high following the long-running popularity of the original game, but we plan to meet those expectations and deliver an engaging, action-packed, competitive experience that StarCraft players and strategy gamers worldwide will enjoy." Meanwhile, IGN's man in Korea, Charles Onyett says, "SC2 looks, at least visually, strikingly similar to SC1 - both in unit and map designs."

This has been Blizzard's longest gap between releases. Blizzard had a consistent two-year release schedule (not including expansion packs) since 1994 with the original WarCraft. That streak was broken in 2006 when StarCraft: Ghost was ~~killed~~ indefinitely postponed. Although no release date has been given for StarCraft II, hopefully gamers won't have to worry about another installment of the series being "postponed."

Gallery: Starcraft 2

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

Continue reading Blizzard announces Starcraft II, Korea implodes with joy

Blizzard announces Starcraft II, Korea implodes with joy originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 19 May 2007 03:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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