Starcraft 2!!!

[earlofnim]

It was just recently announced today by Blizzard in Seoul, South Korea. According to Wikipedia, it's going to use the Havok physics engine!! All hail Blizzard. This just made my day. Gameplay video here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sog2k6s7xVQ

[Maltor124]

Odd, from that gameplay video I really saw no use of physics whatsoever. Care to explain how it uses them?

[Xerxes]

I don't see a whole lot of ways an RTS could use Havok... now if it were an RPG...:p

[earlofnim]

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starcraft_2 it says "The game will feature the Havok physics engine, allowing 'debris [to] roll down a ramp'".

[Pret.Sal]

SWEET! i love starcraft!!! but yeah, i dont see how it can use physics, but wait, it looks like that it will use physics for the destruction of stuff, i can totally imagine the remains of a battlecruiser falling down a hill

[earlofnim]

My guess is that the terrain will be deformable in some way, and you can shoot it with explosives so that chunks of rock go flying and land on units, or you can just shoot or hit some conveniently placed boulders so they roll down or fly off and hit some enemies.

[Maltor124]

Cool, thanks for the explanation. Still, I think more small unit based RTS' are suited for more advanced physics usage, as you can use it for more of a tactical advantage. Company of Heroes, for example, let you use fully destructible environments, along with other things to help you get a strategical advantage. In a game like this (from what I could see this was certainly not a small unit based RTS), with hundreds of units on screen, it would really play little tactical advantage, which is what the best use of physics is in an RTS, as you can just rush the enemies base/position/hovel/beach/resort/community/cruise liner/etc. with overwhelming numbers.

Plus, I've never really been a fan of Starcraft, so I'm not too interested.

[earlofnim]

Well, Starcraft is about producing hordes of soldiers, and sometimes, battles can last as long as 10 minutes, and everyone gets crowded there, so think of the debris rolling down on enemy units as an alternative to a nuclear explosion, haha. Still, I think you're right about fully destructible environments being placed in small unit based RPG's, but we'll see if Blizzard releases a demo for SC2. It can't be bad, but it would lead away and distract from the Starcraft formula of sending mass waves of units in to just fight somebody, but this is teh future111!1oneone!!!elevenonehundredeleven!!1... So, something new can't hurt.

[Maltor124]

Yeah, people still play Starcraft, which was from, what, 1998? It was great, so this can't be bad. Plus, it's Blizzard, they haven't ever really made a bad game.

Also, that'd be pretty annoying, having debris flying everywhere, killing 32384 men in your 32385 man army in the first 3 min of a battle. Let's hope there's not that much urban combat....

[earlofnim]

I can name one of their bad games, The Lost Vikings. That was for like Gameboy or something, it was virtually nonexistent... I played it on my friend's GB once, I almost cried myself to sleep (sarcasm, sarcasm, wink, wink.)

[Pret.Sal]

i dont think they blizzard is focussing on physics and stuff as much as we think they are

[Maltor124]

Agreed, I kind of doubt it will have that much physics integration. Large scale RTS' rarely do.

[Eanfom]

Agreed, I kind of doubt it will have that much physics integration. Large scale RTS' rarely do.

he physics will probably be a lot like Company of heroes.

[earlofnim]

Well, no one knows yet, besides, the game is still in alpha stage, no one knows much about it. For now, the physics are relatively simple, such as smashing enemies with boulders raining from the sky, but new features might be added when it arrives. If not, there's still mods, of course :)

[soad667]

Well, get armed... with a LOT of patience :p
As we know Blizzard about their great games, we surely know them about their time schedules - a whole eternity till release. And another fact is that a big part of Blizzard has been sold to Vivendi (and the games' rights of course). So, i don't know how someone should feel for an announcement like this. Time will tell ;)

[Maltor124]

Well, get armed... with a LOT of patience :p
As we know Blizzard about their great games, we surely know them about their time schedules - a whole eternity till release. And another fact is that a big part of Blizzard has been sold to Vivendi (and the games' rights of course). So, i don't know how someone should feel for an announcement like this. Time will tell ;)

Really? Did Blizzard sell all of it game rights, along with some of the actual company? Or did it just sell game rights, and will continue to develop the games, only they will be under Vivendi?

[soad667]

Blizzard still exists, but Vivendi has the rights, so they take a big part on the decisions. I read an article about an argument between Blizzard and Vivendi regarding a possible Diablo 3 - if it's going to be MMO or not. Some of the old Blizzard members created another companies, like Flagship Studios (Blizzard North closed completely some time ago). I hope there are still creative minds there and that Vivendi won't sacrifice their ideas for maximum sales,console friendly enviroment and staff like that :confused: :eek:

[Tayg0]

Wow starcraft 2 i remember back when i played starcraft one.... This is going to be.. AWSOME! I can imagine it now..... Have a base at the bottome of a hill with some ships at the to the while your building... Klunk klunk klunk one of your ships come rolling down and you set out to kill the enemy.... Once again... Awsome!:)

[Rorschach]

It'll just use physics as frills, make it seem more appealing. More intrested if they fix omnipresent AI in this one.

[ZimFreak]

many videos including gameplay and cinematics to calm your starcraft needs

http://www.irserious.com/2007/05/19/starcraft-2-gameplay-videos/

[Pret.Sal]

i seriously hope to god that SC2 actually comes out. We all know what happened to SC: Ghost

[ericman666]

that game looks kinda uh... not fun.

[earlofnim]

That's your opinion. 98% of other players like Starcraft. Go die, alright, thanks.

[ericman666]

im not saying its bad.... just my opinion.

jeez.:(

[Great_Pretender]

That's your opinion. 98% of other players like Starcraft. Go die, alright, thanks.
Bigot of the week.
-TGP-

[AJJeko]

My PC probably won't run it. I mean, it's bad.
It's really bad.
It's SERIOUSLY bad. I can tell you the specs if you want.

[Pret.Sal]

if u can run warcraft 3 (also a game i love, I've probably spent most of my time on the comp playing starcraft and war3), then I'm pretty sure u are able to run this one, looks a lot like warcraft right now to me design wise.

[Great_Pretender]

if u can run warcraft 3 (also a game i love, I've probably spent most of my time on the comp playing starcraft and war3), then I'm pretty sure u are able to run this one, looks a lot like warcraft right now to me design wise.
The graphics of Warcraft III are miles behind Starcraft II.

-TGP-

[Maltor124]

Design says almost nothing about how powerful a computer you will need for the game. It's not about gameplay, art style (for the most-part), or storyline. It's about graphics, sound, effects, physics, and everything that is sensory.

Anyways, I've been reading some more into Starcraft II, and I now officially kinda want the game! Yay! The original Starcraft looked sorta like the 231587th game from that time to use the Age of Empires 2 engine.... (It also just happens that every one of those games was EXACTLY like Age of Empires 2, go figure.) But this game looks worth a shot, if they make it of course.