I am missing something?

MrTimewalk

I was a HUGE fan of Starcraft 1, played it constantly when it came out for a number of years. Had 8 player lans with just Starcraft being played for the day. Designed maps to beat the band. I'm a big RTS fan, have been since Dune 2 on the Amiga.

But I have to say Starcraft 2 IMHO is complete rubbish. I played the Beta and instantly disliked it. It's a 10 year old game. The graphics apart from the cutscenes are TERRIBLE, Really Really terrible. The gameplay is exactly the same as Starcraft 1 and multiplayer is who can click faster and can be bothered to stick with the game long enough to finish and win.

I really WANT to like the game. Everyone is raving about it. What am I missing? Does it improve if you stick with it?

Dcully

Well you sound like a SC vet so im not sure sticking with it will change your view as you know the gameplay and how it works.
I disagree with you when you say the graphics are terrible.
What spec machine are you running? because for me the graphics are very nice and easily up there with the likes of DOW2,COH etc.
Even more than that is the attention to detail in the maps etc, blizz are masters of this.
Like wow the gfx may not be amazing but they suit the game and again the attention to detail is superb.
I never played SC before so i cant comment on the gameplay being exactly the same as you say but in fairness why change it? if it aint broke etc.

Im no RTS veteran but i disagree also that its the fastest to click that wins, for example i can click as fast as the best of them but i lose more than i win.
To me its all about knowledge of the units and what counters them, managing resources,being proficient at micro managing,and above all timing and knowing when to time your attacks counter attacks etc.

Maybe you have just tired of the genre or maybe even the base building in rts games? If so maybe try DOW2?
Apart from that dude i cant suggest anything else to help you enjoy it more.

MrTimewalk

note: This is not a rant about Starcraft 2 = Bad. I genuninely wonder am I missing something and is it worth sticking with this game.

I'm running an i7 with a 5870 on a 30" screen 2560x1600 with everything on ultra. It's runs as smooth as silk. What I mean is the graphics are to me anyway very poor, I don't particularily like the cartoon look to everything but that's blizzards thing and that's fair enough, but the animation in particular is terrible, really really poor. The units have very few frames of animation and (yes I know it's sci fi) they look very unrealistic.

The whole thing IS polished, very very polished which is great but the whole style looks tens years old. It's Warcraft 3 all over again. I know graphics aren't the be all and end all but they do add to the atmosphere.

I've played all the DOW games. I really liked them, but much prefared Company of Heroes and still do, I think it's streets ahead of SC2 IMHO

Want I really want to know from someone who's played SC2 a good bit is.. is it worth sticking with? Does it get any better? Is it worth getting into multiplayer again?

You make a fair point dcully, maybe I have tired of the genre

Gummy Panda

Blizz games never look bleeding edge. They have always settled for reasonable specs and good polish. Its that style that keeps their games still fresh looking years later.

Look at WoW, it still looks great to me even though its 5-6 years old now.

Dcully

Regarding multiplayer im loving it,im only in bronze league hovering around 60th - 70th spot in my league.
I lose more than i win but im really enjoying the MP.
Since i got placed and ranked ive won 18 lost 25.
At one stage i lost 10 won 0 but im sticking with it, the more i play the more i learn and improve ever so slightly,i even got a 5 win streak lastnight and managed an achievement.
I also enjoy skirmish versus AI, the whole battle.net is fantastic imo.

If you own the game why not stick with it,complete campaign, get your MP ranking etc.
If you still dislike it then so be it ,but no harm sticking with it for a while since you bought the game.

cherryghost

For me, Starcraft II brings back the nostalgia of playing the original for so many years on my caveman PC. I loved every element of it. The crisp motions of the units was mind numbing for me at the time, the strategic element was fresh and amazing at the time.

13 years on, I feel it hasn't lost it's magic. Perhaps you're right though in a number of instances. Games like DoW and CoH have bettered Starcraft in terms of strategic elements and gameplay, but in my opinion those games have their own independant style of gameplay. Starcraft II may not have changed in the years, but it still does what it does perfectly, and nobody can fault that.

The multiplayer element in SCII is fecking great though. It's easily the best matchmaking service I've seen in any strategy game. It'll no doubt be a platform for Starcraft II to be the most popular and most competitive strategy game for years to come.

MrTimewalk

No I have the 7 hour trial and am about 2 hours into it, so am wondering wether it's worth getting or not. Some good points made here so far

Jonny7

I watched early game footage and thought there is no way in hell they will balance a game with units that can walk up cliffs, teleport, lay down invisible barriers, explode, etc, etc but they have managed it.. and with such polish..

I am not bothered with the single player, rarely am with games.. its the multiplayer.. seriously, get a friend who has the game, get voice communication going and enter the 2v2 ladder.. you'll find yourself waking up at night thinking of tactics.. those eureka moments.. my god if I wall off and go straight for a drop I can hit them at about 7 mins with 2 hellions and 4 marines in one dropship.. thats perfect!..

Find your niche, whether its 1v1 casual, custom weird games on battlenet, huge 8 player ffa's, joining a clan, playing random, playing 3v3's.. there is so much to choose from

MrTimewalk

That's the sort of answer I was looking for! Going to go back and finish my 7 hour trial

zoom!

Is your monitor on?

MrTimewalk

I beg your pardon?

zoom!

It must be turned off if you think this game is terrible.

L

zoom! wrote: »

It must be turned off if you think this game is terrible.

Oh my, someone has a different opinion to you. How dare they think differently from the zoom! hivemind :P

I've a few RTS nut mates who think much the same as MrTimewalk. SC2 is definitely not innovative compared to something like Supreme Commander. It's basically the same (decade old) Starcraft with a couple of new tricks.

That said, that's not a bad thing. It's a Blizz game - so it's very polished and a lot of fun.

Single player has a lot of replay value. While the classic Marines'n'Medics will work for most levels on normal, the hard mode achievements will require different tactics for each one.

Multiplayer I've only really dabbled in for the moment, but it seems fairly balanced, with a lot of Rock'Paper'Scissors units in the mix and tactics. Baneling boom is entertaining for example (basically, your Banelings take out enough of their base defence to allow your Zerglings to mop them up while you recover).

In other words: spend your 40, buy the game and give it a fair shake at your leisure. At worst you're out the price of a night out and can have a bit of SC nostalgia.

MrTimewalk

Oh I see Zoom, that was a joke! got me there! boy oh boy that was a good one, fell into that.

I'm starting to think the same thing. I feel like I'm being sucked towards a black hole with this. Will more than likely wind up getting it now. Thanks for all the comments. see yous online

Gummy Panda

MrTimewalk wrote: »

Oh I see Zoom, that was a joke! got me there! boy oh boy that was a good one, fell into that.

I'm starting to think the same thing. I feel like I'm being sucked towards a black hole with this. Will more than likely wind up getting it now. Thanks for all the comments. see yous online

Maybe try look at some replays of top end players.

I recommend replays featuring WhiteRa, Irda (just for his rage quits), Artois, The Little One and Jinro. Also Silver is good especially against Irda in the ESL matches.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IP_ASm0XvvA

zoom!

MrTimewalk wrote: »

Oh I see Zoom, that was a joke! got me there! boy oh boy that was a good one, fell into that.

jeese somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed

MistaMagoo

zoom! wrote: »

jeese somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed

He obviously has issues if he does not enjoy the game

MrTimewalk

Only pulling your chain zoom Will look out for you when I'm online

Played a bit more of Starcraft and had a couple of newphews reeducate me over the weekend, it's growing on me. will pick it up at some stage. thanks for all the feedback