StarCraft (series)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The official logo for the StarCraft franchise.
The official logo for the StarCraft franchise.

StarCraft is a military science fiction media franchise created by Chris Metzen and Bill Roper and owned by Blizzard Entertainment. The series centers on a galactic struggle for dominance between three species - the adaptable and mobile Terrans, the insectoid Zerg, and the enigmatic Protoss - in a distant part of the Milky Way galaxy known as the Koprulu Sector at the beginning of the 26th century. With the first game, StarCraft, released in 1998, the series has grown to include a number of other games as well as eight novels, two Amazing Stories articles, a board game, and other licensed merchandise such as collectable statues and toys.

The original game and its official expansion, Brood War, have been praised as one of the benchmark real-time strategy games of its time, gathering a solid following across the world, particularly in South Korea, where professional players and teams participate in matches, earn sponsorships, and compete in televised matches.[1] As of May 31, 2007, StarCraft and Brood War combined have sold almost 10 million copies.[2]

The title can be spelled either as StarCraft or Starcraft. Both versions appear in official sources, including the games themselves, although since the announcement of StarCraft II Blizzard Entertainment has used the spelling StarCraft exclusively.

Contents

[edit] Story arc

The story focuses on the activities of the three species in a part of the Milky Way known as the Koprulu Sector. Millenia before any of the events of the games, a species known as the Xel'Naga genetically engineer the Protoss[3] and later the Zerg[4] in attempts to create pure beings. These experiments backfire and the Xel'Naga are largely destroyed by the Zerg.[4] Decades before the beginning of StarCraft in 2499, the hardline international government of Earth, the United Powers League, commissions a colonization program as part of a solution to overpopulation. However, the computers automating the colony ships malfunction, propelling the Terran colonists far off course, arriving at the edge of Protoss space.[5] Out of contact with Earth, they form various factions to maintain their interests. The Protoss are intrigued by the behavior and mentality of the Terrans, remaining hidden to examine the humans and protecting them from other threats without their knowledge. However, the Zerg begin to target the Terrans for assimilation[4] in its quest to assimilate the Protoss to become a perfect race, leading the Protoss to attack tainted Terran colonies to contain the Zerg infestation.[6]

StarCraft begins just days after the first of these attacks, where the predominant Terran government, the Confederacy of Man, is in a state of panic as it comes under attack by both the Zerg, the Protoss as well as increasing rebel activity led by Arcturus Mengsk against its rule. The Confederacy eventually succumbs to the rebel Sons of Korhal when it uses Confederate technology to lure the Zerg into attacking the Confederate capital. During the assault on the capital, Arcturus Mengsk abandons his psychic second-in-command, Sarah Kerrigan to the Zerg, who capture and infest her, creating their "greatest agent". This betrayal causes Mengsk's other commander, Jim Raynor to desert him with a small army. Mengsk goes on to create the Terran Dominion with him as its emperor. The Zerg are then attacked on their primary hive cluster by Protoss forces commanded by Tassadar and the dark templar Zeratul, who through assassinating a Zerg cerebrate inadvertently allow the Overmind, the Zerg's supreme leader, access to the location of the Protoss homeworld. The Zerg promptly invade in an effort to complete their quest for perfection. Pursued by his own people as a heretic for siding with the dark templar, Tassadar returns with Zeratul to the Protoss homeworld. With the assistance of Raynor and the templar Fenix, Tassadar is able to launch an attack on the Overmind and ultimately sacrifices himself to kill the creature.[6]

In Brood War, the Protoss led by Zeratul and Artanis are trying to recover from the death of the Overmind and begin to evacuate their surviving population to the dark templar homeworld under a fragile alliance between the two untrusting branches of the Protoss. On the dark templar homeworld, they are misled by Kerrigan into attacking the Zerg in order to advance Kerrigan's quest to secure power over the Zerg after she reveals that a new Overmind is in maturation. Meanwhile, Earth decides to take action in the sector, sending a fleet to capture the Terran Dominion and enslave the Overmind. The UPL, reformed as the United Earth Directorate, is successful in capturing the Dominion capital and enslaving the Overmind, but due to the efforts of a double agent working for Kerrigan, Samir Duran, it is unable to capture Mengsk. Kerrigan, allying with Mengsk, Fenix and Raynor, launches a campaign against the UED, recapturing the Dominion capital. However, she turns against her allies in vengeance for abandoning her to the Zerg, and Fenix is killed as a result. She later is able to blackmail Zeratul into killing the new Overmind, giving her full control over the Zerg. After defeating a retaliatory attack by the Protoss, Dominion and the UED which results in the destruction of the UED fleet, Kerrigan, supported by her Zerg broods, becomes the dominant power in the sector.[7]

[edit] Video games

[edit] StarCraft

The box art for StarCraft.
The box art for StarCraft.
Main article: StarCraft

StarCraft is a science fiction real-time strategy game that takes place in a distant sector of the Milky Way galaxy. It is the first StarCraft video game and was released on PC on April 1, 1998. A Mac OS version of the game was released by Blizzard Entertainment in March 1999. A Nintendo 64 port including StarCraft, Brood War and a new secret mission "Resurrection IV" was released in the USA on 13 June 2000.[8]

The game's story revolves around the appearance of two alien races in Terran space, and each race's attempts to survive and adapt over the others. The player assumes three roles through the course of the three campaigns: a Confederate colonial governor who becomes a revolutionary commander, a Zerg cerebrate pushing forward the species' doctrine of assimilation, and a Protoss fleet executor tasked with defending the Protoss from the Zerg. StarCraft soon gained critical acclaim, winning numerous awards,[9] including being labelled "the best real-time strategy game ever made" and being ranked the seventh best game of all time by IGN in both 2003 and 2005.[10][11]

[edit] Insurrection

The box art for Insurrection.
The box art for Insurrection.

Insurrection is the first add-on pack for StarCraft. Although developed and published by Aztech New Media it is authorized by Blizzard Entertainment.[12] It was released on PC on 31 July 1998.[13]

The expansion's story focuses on a Confederate colony during the course of the first campaign of StarCraft. As in StarCraft, the player takes control of each race in three separate campaigns. In the first campaign, Terran colonists attempt to defend themselves from the Zerg invasion of the sector as well as from a rising insurgency, while in the second campaign the player directs a Protoss task force sent to clear the Zerg infestation of the colony by any means necessary. In the final campaign the player assumes the role of a Zerg cerebrate, moving to crush all opposition on the surface. The expansion only contains new campaigns and multiplayer maps, it does not include new content such as units and graphical terrain tilesets.[12] Insurrection was criticised by reviewers for lacking the quality of the original game[14] and as a result of its lack of success,[15] it is not widely available. Although the add-on is authorized by Blizzard Entertainment, they offer no comment on support or availability of the game.[12]

[edit] Retribution

The box art for Retribution.
The box art for Retribution.

Retribution is the second of the two authorized add-on packs released for StarCraft. The add-on was developed by Stardock, published by WizardWorks Software and authorized by Blizzard Entertainment.[12] It was released for the PC in late 1998.

Retribution is set during the second episode of StarCraft, revolving around the acquisition of a crystal of immense power connected to the Xel'Naga. Divided into three campaigns, the player assumes the roles of a Protoss fleet executor, the commander of a Dominion task force and a Zerg cerebrate, all tasked with retrieving the crystal from a Dominion colony and getting it off the planet as quickly as possible. As with its predecessor, Insurrection, Retribution does not include any new gameplay features beyond its single player campaigns and consortium of multiplayer levels. The add-on was not received with critical support, instead being regarded as average but at least challenging.[16] As with Insurrection, Retribution is not widely available. Despite authorizing the add-on, Blizzard Entertainment offers no comment regarding support or the availability of Retribution.[12]

[edit] StarCraft: Brood War

Main article: StarCraft: Brood War
The box art for StarCraft: Brood War.
The box art for StarCraft: Brood War.

StarCraft: Brood War is the official expansion pack for StarCraft, developed by Blizzard Entertainment and Saffire. Released for the PC and Mac OS in the USA on 30 November 1998,[17] the expansion directly continues the events of StarCraft. It was later compiled with StarCraft and ported to the Nintendo 64 as StarCraft 64. The port was released on 13 June 2000 in the USA.[8]

The expansion's story continues only days in the wake of the conclusion of the original game, following the moves of the Protoss to ensure the continued survival of their species, the rise to power of the infested Sarah Kerrigan over the Zerg and introducing a new threat to the sector of the galaxy with the intervention of the previously silent witness of the Earth government. In addition, the expansion introduces a total of seven new units with different functions and abilities, improved artificial intelligence behaviour, new graphical tilesets for terrain and improved scripting tools to the Campaign Editor to facilitate cut scenes using the in-game engine. The expansion received critical praise for fixing various balance faults with the original game,[18] development attention on par with that of a full game[19] and for continuing with heavily story-driven single player campaigns.[20]

[edit] StarCraft II

Main article: StarCraft II

StarCraft II is a real-time strategy game and the official sequel to StarCraft under development for the PC and Mac OS X by Blizzard Entertainment. The game was announced at the Worldwide Invitational on 19 May 2007 with a pre-rendered cinematic cut scene trailer and a gameplay demonstration of the Protoss.[21][22] At the BlizzCon event of August 2007, a further selection of gameplay demonstrations regarding the Terrans and the new features of the single player campaigns were shown.[23] The game incorporates a new 3D graphics engine and adds new features such as the Havok physics engine.[24] StarCraft II may also incorporate DirectX 10 level effects.[25] The story of the game continues from four years after the conclusion of Brood War.[26] Blizzard Entertainment has not set a specific release date for the game.[2]

[edit] StarCraft: Ghost

Main article: StarCraft: Ghost

StarCraft: Ghost is a tactical stealth game for consoles developed under supervision of Blizzard Entertainment. Announced in 2002, the game was constantly delayed due to various issues, most notably including a change of development team from Nihilistic Software to Swingin' Ape Studios in July 2004. As updates for the game became less frequent and the graphics and game mechanics more outdated, suspicion began to grow that Blizzard would cancel the game. On 24 March 2006, Blizzard indefinitely postponed the game's development.[27]

The story of the game is based around Nova, a psychic assassin in the employ of the Terran Dominion following the intrigue around the type of character in the original StarCraft. Although frequently used as an example of development hell, Blizzard Entertainment's Rob Pardo has indicated that he would like the game to be completed in the future.[28]

[edit] Adaptations

[edit] Novelizations

The cover for The StarCraft Archive.
The cover for The StarCraft Archive.

The StarCraft series is supported by eight novels, with at least two more in the works, all published by Simon & Schuster. At BlizzCon 2007, Chris Metzen stated that he hoped to novelise the entirety of StarCraft and Brood War into a definitive text-based story. The first novel, StarCraft: Uprising, was written by Micky Neilson,[29] a Blizzard Entertainment employee, and originally released only as an e-book in December 2000.[29] The novel follows the origins of the character Sarah Kerrigan. The second novel, entitled StarCraft: Liberty's Crusade, serves as an adaptation of the first campaign of StarCraft, focusing on a journalist following a number of the key Terran characters in the series. Written by Jeff Grubb,[30] it was the first StarCraft novel published in paperback, in March 2001.[30] StarCraft: Shadow of the Xel'Naga, published in July 2001[31] is the third novel, written by the pseudonym author Gabriel Mesta[31] and serving as a link between StarCraft and Brood War. The fantasy author Tracy Hickman was brought in to write the fourth novel,[32] StarCraft: Speed of Darkness, published in June 2002.[32] Speed of Darkness is written from the viewpoint of a Confederate marine during the early stages of StarCraft. The first four novels, including the e-book Uprising, were later re-released as a single anthology entitled The StarCraft Archive in November 2007.[33]

A fifth novel entitled StarCraft: Queen of Blades was published in June 2006.[34] Written by Aaron S. Rosenberg,[34] it is a novelisation of the second episode of StarCraft from the perspective of Jim Raynor. This was followed in November 2006[35] by StarCraft Ghost: Nova, a book focusing on the early origins of the character of Nova from the postponed StarCraft: Ghost game. Written by Keith R.A. DeCandido,[35] the novel was meant to accompany the release of StarCraft: Ghost, but was continued despite the postponement of the game. In 2007 Christie Golden, an author whose previous work included novels in Blizzard's Warcraft series,[36] was brought in to write a trilogy entitled the StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga.[37][38] The trilogy acts as a link between StarCraft and its sequel StarCraft II, with the first installment, Firstborn being published in May 2007[37] and Shadow Hunters, the second novel, being published in November 2007.[38] The final part of the trilogy, Twilight is slated for publication in August 2008.[39] Two more upcoming novels have been announced: I, Mengsk by Graham McNeill and Spectres, which will be a followup to Nova by DeCandido.

In addition to these, Blizzard Entertainment authorized two short stories in Amazing Stories magazine, entitled StarCraft: Hybrid and StarCraft: Revelations.[40] StarCraft: Revelations was authored by Chris Metzen and Sam Moore, two Blizzard employees, and was featured on the cover of the magazine with art by Blizzard's art director Samwise Didier.

At New York Comic-Con in 2008, TokyoPop announced that they would be doing StarCraft manga in addition to their highly successful Warcraft manga. Titles announced include Frontline, which will be a series of short-story anthologies, and Ghost Academy, which will be written by Keith R.A. DeCandido and follow several characters (including Nova) during their Ghost training.[41]

[edit] Merchandise

A number of action figures and collectable statues based upon the characters and units in StarCraft have been produced by ToyCom.[42] A number of model kits, made by Academy Hobby Model Kits, were also produced, displaying 1/30 scale versions of the marine[43] and the hydralisk.[44] In addition, Blizzard Entertainment teamed up with Fantasy Flight Games to create a board game with detailed sculptures of game characters.[45] Blizzard Entertainment also licensed Wizards of the Coast to produce an Alternity based game entitled StarCraft Adventures.

[edit] Cultural impact

StarCraft was the best-selling PC game of 1998, selling over 1.5 million copies internationally.[46] As of May 21, 2007, StarCraft has sold 9.5 million copies worldwide,[47][48] with 4.5 million of those copies being sold in South Korea.[47] StarCraft, along with Brood War, remains one of the most popular online games in the world.[49] After its release, StarCraft rapidly grew in popularity in South Korea, establishing a successful pro-gaming scene.[50] Pro-gamers in South Korea are media celebrities with StarCraft games broadcasted over three television channels dedicated to the professional gaming scene.[51]

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Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion.


[edit] References

  1. ^ Cho, Kevin (2006-01-15). Samsung, SK Telecom, Shinhan Sponsor South Korean Alien Killers. Bloomberg.com. Retrieved on 2006-08-18.
  2. ^ a b Kalning, Kristin. "Can Blizzard top itself with 'StarCraft II?'", MSNBC, 2007-05-31. Retrieved on 2008-01-01. "StarCraft, combined with its expansion Brood War, have sold nearly 10 million units." 
  3. ^ Underwood, Peter; Roper, Bill; Metzen, Chris; Vaughn, Jeffrey (1998). "Protoss", StarCraft (manual) (in English). Irvine, Calif.: Blizzard Entertainment, pages 70-90. 
  4. ^ a b c Underwood, Peter; Roper, Bill; Metzen, Chris; Vaughn, Jeffrey (1998). "Zerg", StarCraft (manual) (in English). Irvine, Calif.: Blizzard Entertainment, pages 50-69. 
  5. ^ Underwood, Peter; Roper, Bill; Metzen, Chris; Vaughn, Jeffrey (1998). "Terran", StarCraft (manual) (in English). Irvine, Calif.: Blizzard Entertainment, pages 25-49. 
  6. ^ a b The Story So Far: Part 1:StarCraft. Blizzard Entertainment (November 21, 2007). Retrieved on 2007-11-22.
  7. ^ The Story So Far: Part 2: The Brood War. Blizzard Entertainment (2008-04-16). Retrieved on 2008-04-16.
  8. ^ a b StarCraft 64 for N64. GameSpot. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
  9. ^ Awards. Blizzard Entertainment. Retrieved on 2007-11-28.
  10. ^ IGN's Top 100 Games. IGN (2003-01-01). Retrieved on 2006-08-18.
  11. ^ a b c d e Official StarCraft FAQ at Battle.net. Retrieved on 2007-07-19.
  12. ^ Insurrection: Campaigns for StarCraft for PC. GameSpot. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
  13. ^ Kasavin, Greg (August 26, 1998). Insurrection: Campaigns for StarCraft for PC review. GameSpot. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
  14. ^ User review figures for Insurrection: Campaigns for StarCraft. GameSpot. Retrieved on 2007-07-19.
  15. ^ PC Game Reviews: StarCraft: Retribution. GameGenie. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
  16. ^ StarCraft: Brood War for MAC. GameSpot. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
  17. ^ Emery, Daniel (August 12, 2001). PC review: StarCraft: Brood War. CVG. Retrieved on 2007-11-04.
  18. ^ Saggeran, Vik (December 23, 1998). StarCraft: Brood War for PC review. GameSpot. Retrieved on 2007-11-04.
  19. ^ Chen, Jeffrey (June 07, 2002). StarCraft: Brood War review. IGN. Retrieved on 2007-11-04.
  20. ^ Onyett, Charles (2007-05-18). Blizzard's Worldwide Invitational -- The StarCraft 2 Announcement. IGN. Retrieved on 2007-05-19.
  21. ^ Park, Andrew (2007-05-18). Starcraft II warps into Seoul. GameSpot. Retrieved on 2007-05-19.
  22. ^ Pardo, Rob. StarCraft II Under Construction [Development commentary]. Blizzcon: GameSpot. Retrieved on 2007-08-04.
  23. ^ Blizzard Entertainment Licenses Havok Physics Technology. Havok (2006-09-14). Retrieved on 2007-05-24.
  24. ^ FAQ for StarCraft II. Blizzard Entertainment. Retrieved on 2007-05-19.
  25. ^ Park, Andrew (2007-05-20). Blizzard outlines StarCraft II gameplay. GameSpot. Retrieved on 2007-08-20.
  26. ^ Blizzard Postpones StarCraft: Ghost Indefinitely. GameSpy (March 24, 2006). Retrieved on 2006-03-25.
  27. ^ Blizzard Still Has Hope For StarCraft: Ghost. Slashdot (28 June 2007). Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
  28. ^ a b StarCraft: Uprising (eBook). Simon & Schuster. Retrieved on 2007-12-02.
  29. ^ a b StarCraft: Liberty's Crusade (Mass Market Paperback). Simon & Schuster. Retrieved on 2007-12-02.
  30. ^ a b StarCraft: Shadow of the Xel'Naga (Mass Market Paperback). Simon & Schuster. Retrieved on 2007-12-02.
  31. ^ a b StarCraft: Speed of Darkness (Mass Market Paperback). Simon & Schuster. Retrieved on 2007-12-02.
  32. ^ The StarCraft Archive: An Anthology (Trade Paperback). Simon & Schuster. Retrieved on 2007-12-02.
  33. ^ a b StarCraft: Queen of Blades (Mass Market Paperback). Simon & Schuster. Retrieved on 2007-12-02.
  34. ^ a b StarCraft Ghost: Nova (Mass Market Paperback). Simon & Schuster. Retrieved on 2007-12-02.
  35. ^ StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga trilogy interview with Christie Golden. Blizzplanet (02 April 2007). Retrieved on 2007-12-02.
  36. ^ a b StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga #1: Firstborn (Mass Market Paperback). Simon & Schuster. Retrieved on 2007-12-02.
  37. ^ a b StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga #2: Shadow Hunters (Mass Market Paperback). Simon & Schuster. Retrieved on 2007-12-02.
  38. ^ StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga book 3, Twilight (12 September 2007). Retrieved on 2007-12-02.
  39. ^ StarCraft is an Amazing Story. IGN (1999-03-23). Retrieved on 2006-08-19.
  40. ^ :: Blizzplanet :: New York Comic Con 2008 - Tokyopop Starcraft: Frontline, Starcraft: Ghost Academy, Warcraft Legends & Warcraft: Dragons of Outla
  41. ^ "Blizzard tackles toys". IGN (September 1998). Retrieved on 2007-07-08.
  42. ^ 1/30 scale Terran marine model by Academy. Hobby Outlet. Retrieved on 2007-07-08.
  43. ^ 1/30 scale Zerg hydralisk model by Academy. Hobby Outlet. Retrieved on 2007-07-08.
  44. ^ Wilson, Kevin (2006-06-13). Playtest in Minneapolis at the Source on 6/16/06. Boardgame Geek. Retrieved on 2006-08-19.
  45. ^ StarCraft Named #1 Seller in 1998. IGN (1999-01-20). Retrieved on 2008-01-01.
  46. ^ a b Kelly Olsen (2007-05-21). South Korean gamers get a sneak peek at 'StarCraft II'. USA Today. Retrieved on 2008-01-09.
  47. ^ Seth Schiesel (2007-05-21). To the Glee of South Korean Fans, a Game’s Sequel Is Announced. The New York Times. Retrieved on 2008-01-09.
  48. ^ Rossignol, Jim (2005-04-01). Sex, Fame and PC Baangs: How the Orient plays host to PC gaming’s strangest culture. PC Gamer UK. Retrieved on 2006-08-20.
  49. ^ Ki-tae, Kim (2005-03-20). Will StarCraft Survive Next 10 Years?. The Korea Times. Retrieved on 2007-04-26.
  50. ^ Evers, Marco (2006-02-06). THE BOYS WITH THE FLYING FINGERS: South Korea Turns PC Gaming into a Spectator Sport. Der Spiegel. Retrieved on 2006-08-19.

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