Lost in a Blizzard of Hype

“I don’t care about Starcraft II.” — Me last year.

“Oh my God, is it time for Starcraft II yet?” — Me at present.

Somewhere down the line I will make the grand argument that my reverse course on Starcraft II was born from the unflagging dedication to quality that Blizzard exemplifies in their game development. While the game maker's once mighty guiding North Star is riding low on the horizon of late, its record as a premier game maker remains relatively unimpeachable, so I expect that when I make this argument -- and I will make it -- it will seem pretty damn convincing.

“They just made too good a game to ignore,” I will proclaim emphatically and with the benefit of empirical evidence on my side.

Let me tell you now, it’s a smoke screen made entirely of vaporized, high-grade, Oscar Meyer baloney. A delicious yet questionably toxic smoke screen designed to distract you from the truth, which is that I crossed Blizzard's hype event horizon, and was pulled inextricably into their fold.

I never really really cared for the original Starcraft. I grew up a Warcraft II kind of guy, wielding the unimaginable power of the Orcish Horde across Lordaeron and Kalimdor with impunity. It is, in many ways, the last game that I learned at a depth that made me consistently competitive, and even I — the man that multiplayer games forgot — once invested countless hours on Kali or whatever IPX emulator software I could find holding court and taking on all challengers.

Starcraft failed me not because it wasn’t a well created game. It simply was not Warcraft II. I was a victim of familiarity, and as a result my slow extraction from the RTS genre once powerfully set in motion gathered momentum enough to carry it through decades. In fact, with the possible exception of Rise of Nations, every other RTS game I have played failed for basically the same reason, and so I cared not a whit for Starcraft II at its announcement.

The problem is that Blizzard may be at the top of the game when it comes to promoting their product. There is no better company in the biz at announcing a game. After too many years of website countdowns that lead to the announcement of vague product-point promises and a snazzy logo, watching as Blizzard unleashed videos, gameplay and legitimate content at their announcement set a powerful foundation for mania in the fertile space of gaming media.

It’s like Lays Potato Chips. The more you get, the more you want.

But, it wasn’t until the beta replays starting hitting YouTube that the hook finally sunk its barb into my cheek. Somehow the broadcasting of this game that was still months out, this title that threatened to become an event unto itself, finally fired the right cocktail of chemicals in my brain.

I suppose most of us have had that moment where something you cared nothing about suddenly becomes a thing that you sinfully covet. Watching my first Protoss 4-gate push online as enthusiastic match-casters talked arcane strategies and identified key moments of play by people with unimaginable skill was the zombie bite that muddled my brain and turned me into the mindless automaton I now am.

I’m not suggesting that Blizzard’s approach should be the new model by which every game maker needs to launch a title. Let’s be honest, they can get away with this strategy because they know how to deliver the goods. They have the phenomenal luxury of spending months in a sophisticated beta that outshines most other companies’ release code, because they have authority, they have power and they have leverage. Or, more succinctly, they have cash.

However, breaking from traditional models, even on a budget is not only possible, but potentially a great way of keeping your game current. Look only at what Stardock is doing with Elemental, and you have a great example of how you can leverage a fanbase into visibility.

This industry is far too ridiculously secretive and restrictive, as though every publisher were designing elaborate Manhattan Projects of gaming. There is under-explored benefit to the timely release of meaningful and substantive game information, and by letting a following grow organically rather than through some artificially constructed marketer’s wet dream, there is not only opportunity for generating fan interest, but you might just end up making a better game as well.

As always, Blizzard isn't creating a platform for the new direction all companies should take, but they are showing that by being both daring enough to break traditions and receptive enough to their customers to change course when necessary, they can chart a sophisticated path toward success.

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Elysium wrote:

“I don’t care about Starcraft II.” — Me last year.

“Oh my God, is it time for Starcraft II yet?” — Me at present.

It's been the exact same way for me. My downfall was the commentators and replays, too. For once, the path from newb to hardcore isn't fraught with pain and frustration. Well, less pain and frustration anyways.

"God, about f*cking time" - me when SC2 was finally announced in 2007

"What the hell happened to Blizzard?. I'm not giving them a single penny ever again" - me after Kotick, the removal of LAN support, the transformation of Battle.Net into a ridiculous Facebook clone, the RealID f*ckup, the BNetD suit, the division of the game in 3, the thousand of stupid declarations saying "we know better than you", "what we're doing is so f*cking good that you're not going to miss that", etc, etc.

Kotick corrupted all of Activision, including Blizzard. I'm not buying anything from Acti anymore. I could have made an exception for D3 or SC2 (although only if they had LAN support), but every time Morhaine, Pardo or Canessa open their mouths and say the stupid thing of the month, they make sure I won't. Which is a pity.

But, of course, I still have the old StarCraft. Their loss.

Mmm. Still don't care about StarCraft II. Unless someone buys it for me. And then I might care. A smidge.

StarCraft was my first real RTS, and one I have very fond memories of. But for whatever reason, II just isn't exciting me.

Diablo was wonderful, played through it twice. Never even touched Diablo II. But I am eagerly looking forward to Diablo III. Not sure why. Maybe because my wife is interested in playing with me?

But I appreciate where you are coming from on this Elysium.

While I'm looking forward to it, I think it's going to be something to ask for the holidays rather than right now. I have so much else to play and no time that adding another title to the pile can wait a few months.

Now Civ5 on the other hand...

I just settled up yesterday on the only pre-order of the only Collector's Edition that I've ever bought. But I was hyped about this game before it was ever announced.

frankly, my interest in battle net starts and ends with validating my install key - multiplayer holds no interest for me in Starcraft (outside of AI skirmishes, assuming they aren't zomgcheaters this time around ).

I'm in it for the campaign mode personally, it's looking flippin' nice.

...also the free wow pet in the collectors edition - but I'll deny that in public!

This article was brought to you buy Oscar Meyer and Lays.

Personally I don't buy the premise that excitement for Starcraft II is all hype. Blizzard has consistently made well designed games and SC2 is no exception. It may not have the broad appeal of Diablo or World of Warcraft, I think most gamers have stigmatized the RTS genre as a hardcore niche that they don't care to go into, and that's fine. But for the people who want in then they provide a very rich game that satisfies people who truly care about core gameplay mechanics as well as all the bells and whistles.

This industry is far too ridiculously secretive and restrictive, as though every publisher were designing elaborate Manhattan Projects of gaming. There is under-explored benefit to the timely release of meaningful and substantive game information, and by letting a following grow organically rather than through some artificially constructed marketer’s wet dream, there is not only opportunity for generating fan interest, but you might just end up making a better game as well.

With Starcraft II and Elemental, though, you're dealing with games that have a major emphasis on multiplayer capabilities. Releasing footage and other details regarding gameplay play can't really spoil the experience and, in fact, it can spur discussions in the multiplayer community about strategy, meta-gaming, etc.

I also wonder if some of that secrecy is a byproduct of more instability on game development projects. Any development project, gaming or otherwise, typically flirts with a number of requirements issues or scope creep issues that require a ton of 11th-hour intervention that may drastically affect certain parts of the game. You don't want to show your customers something and then fail to deliver on that.

In the case of Starcraft II, the game was in development for years and, as you said in the article, the luxury of time and money allowed them to put out a beta that was already more fully-realized as a product than many games that ship today. At the time of the first beta, Starcraft II was incredibly stable.

As for Elemental, even if the beta itself didn't have that SCII level of stability -- and really, what does -- it appeared that there was a very clear vision about what was being delivered. They are marching toward a very specific goal, one that appeals to a very specific and under-served segment of the market; even if it shows the game in a somewhat ramshackle state, just getting the game out there gives bread crumbs to a starving mob that's more concerned about the vision being delivered than the specifics. (See also: Frozen Synapse)

For virtually every other game, though, you're staring down a ton of content that carries a lot of contextual importance; revelations of details outside of the opening area can spoil the experience for your potential customers. And who knows if that content is even in a state that can be presented to the public.

I've gone from this game being my most anticipated ever to a wait and see.

The nice Activision price structure and not knowing exactly what the online requirements are and the consequences of wishing to play offline mean I can't even consider a pre-order.

This article was brought to you buy Oscar Meyer and Lays.

Nonsense. I have never been, nor never shall be, a shill for any producer of delicious food stuffs. The fact that delicious Oscar Meyer meats are good for your heart and your health, and can be purchased at your local grocer for some of the lowest prices in the pre-packaged meats industry did not impact my mention at all.

For virtually every other game, though, you're staring down a ton of content that carries a lot of contextual importance; revelations of details outside of the opening area can spoil the experience for your potential customers. And who knows if that content is even in a state that can be presented to the public.

The point, which I tried to make, was not to mimic. It was to break the mold in a way that makes sense for your product. The current standard model can be extremely stifling and even counter productive.

Me, I loved Starcraft but I'm lukewarm on Starcraft 2. Part of is the higher awareness of the ultra-competitive play that I was never exposed to with Starcraft because when it came out, online play was far more primitive, less accessible, and much less structured. Competitive RTS play doesn't appeal to me; in fact, I find it kind of a turn-off.

My other turn-offs include talking during movies, bad drivers, and ninja looters.

If you don't find competitive play to be exciting, I'd suggest watching an episode of the Day 9 Daily. The man's enthusiasm is infectious. It may not hook you in but if you have even a smidge of competitiveness Day 9 is the one to get you excited about Starcraft 2.

Elysium wrote:

The point, which I tried to make, was not to mimic. It was to break the mold in a way that makes sense for your product. The current standard model can be extremely stifling and even counter productive.

Yep, understood. I was just trying to walk through some of the immediate issues that other game projects may have to deal with; that standard model may be in place due to the nature of the games themselves, rather than some short-sighted marketing/PR.

Beyond that discussion, I can definitely identify with your migration away from the RTS genre, because my own departure mirrors yours, almost exactly. I spent tons of time with Warcraft II, but initially dismissed Starcraft for appearing to be Warcraft In Spaaaaace. (And, even after returning to it in retrospect, I ended up respecting the game more than I actually enjoyed it.)

I jumped back in with a brief flirtation with Kohan, before jumping head first into Rise of Nations...and I've basically ignored the genre ever since.

It's kind of weird, but I feel like I reached a point where I really didn't even want anything else from the genre and, as a result, really didn't care about anything else that came out afterwards. I'm not sure if that's due to perception of a "same-ness" surrounding the genre's recent history, or due to the fact that I just enjoyed Warcraft II and Rise of Nations that much.

I might pick it up eventually, but after how much I got stomped every time I tried beta, will avoid multiplayer like the plague.

I played a little starcraft. A little WarCraft, 6 months of WoW. A ton of Diablo, a good deal of Diablo2. And now I gotta go log into Impulse - when is Elemental due?

Quintin_Stone wrote:

Me, I loved Starcraft but I'm lukewarm on Starcraft 2. Part of is the higher awareness of the ultra-competitive play that I was never exposed to with Starcraft because when it came out, online play was far more primitive, less accessible, and much less structured. Competitive RTS play doesn't appeal to me; in fact, I find it kind of a turn-off.

Yeah, with the beta I really discovered that I don't much care for multiplayer RTS either, with it's required study of build orders and encylopedic knowledge about what unit counters what, playing others that take the whole thing way more seriously than I would ever be prepared to.

I enjoyed single player Starcraft back in the day - on the N64 of all things. But in the end I realized that the single player mode just isn't enough to interest me in Starcraft II, the gameplay itself just hasn't aged well IMO, especially with so many other demands on my time these days. Canceled my Amazon preorder after a week or so of beta play, so this should be my last commentary on the matter.

The funny thing is that I started out the same way. Warcraft II was my real introduction and obsession with RTS games. I never fell in love with Starcraft, but I did play it a bit.

I've enjoyed plenty of RTS games since Warcraft II, but Starcraft II holds to so many of the past tropes of the genre that I'm not interested. Basically, I'm a zoomed out kind of player. I like tactics more than clicks per minute. I'm not trashing Starcraft II in any way, but I find nothing to be excited about with its release. I am, however, interested in watching the competition community that surrounds it.

Damnit, Elysium.

For the sake of my family and budget I was trying to temper my excitement for this. You reminding me of how awesome the Battle Reports are has blown the lid off.

You are now honor bound to write my wife a letter convincing her of why I should be allowed to buy this after she already bought me my birthday present. Also, you need to explain to her why I'm allowed to play Starcraft II instead of finishing remodeling the basement.

For shame.

Edit:

Warcraft II was my first RTS. It was definitely one of my formative games.

Don't know if it counts, i'm a little off on terms, but I believe my first RTS was Dune II: Something something Arrakis. Game blew my mind and loved it. I still play it on my DOSBox.

Never really played another game like that up to Starcraft, and it was not the multi that hooked me, but the storyline. The single player campaign made it all worth it, and even more when Brood Wars expansion was released. Such rich characters and storylines, I wanted and needed more.

Starcraft II makes me believe they will deliver in that department. I've been hyped with this game since the moment Zeratul saw in hybernation tanks Protoss/Zerg hybrids. I need to know what happens next. Screw clicks per minute and "my zergling runs faster than yours". I'm in it for the story.

PS: Is Dune II an RTS? I'm confused...someone please help.

kexx wrote:

Don't know if it counts, i'm a little off on terms, but I believe my first RTS was Dune II: Something something Arrakis. Game blew my mind and loved it. I still play it on my DOSBox.

...

PS: Is Dune II an RTS? I'm confused...someone please help.

No worries. Not only is Dune II: Battle for Arrakis an RTS, but it's one of the earliest (and most notable) games in the genre.

Cool! Thanks for clearing that up!

Elysium, I also cut my strategy teeth on Warcraft II and no other RTS has since held such a dear place in my heart. Since then I've discovered that I either like turn-based/RTS hybrids like the Total War series or extremely tactical RTSes with minimal base building like Dawn of War.

I know there's stuff in this game I won't like, including watching drones mine vespene gas. But I am looking forward to the single player campaign and doing co-op multiplayer. Word is the AI at higher levels is pretty brutal, which will make for interesting comp stomp sessions.

PyromanFO wrote:

If you don't find competitive play to be exciting, I'd suggest watching an episode of the Day 9 Daily. The man's enthusiasm is infectious. It may not hook you in but if you have even a smidge of competitiveness Day 9 is the one to get you excited about Starcraft 2.

At this point, I think I've spent more time watching Day 9 Dailies than playing the beta. Curse whichever one of you suggested him so many months ago.

I'm a bit surprised no one has mentioned the editor. I'm very eager to try out the single player campaign, but I think I'm more excited to see what will be the next Tower-Defense or DOTA-like creation.

Just based off some of the youtube videos I've seen of early creations in the beta, I'm sure there's going to be a huge amount of worthwhile content that we don't even know about yet. Perhaps another new genre? Warcraft III effectively spawned (or at least popularized) two brand new genres, and Starcraft 2's level editor looks to be much more robust.

Anyways, I'm fully on board the hype train. I know there's been a lot of drama surrounding Blizzard lately, but all of that nonsense does little to phase my enthusiasm for another finely polished Blizzard game that's guaranteed to suck away countless hours of my life.

paketep wrote:

"God, about f*cking time" - me when SC2 was finally announced in 2007

"What the hell happened to Blizzard?. I'm not giving them a single penny ever again" - me after Kotick, the removal of LAN support, the transformation of Battle.Net into a ridiculous Facebook clone, the RealID f*ckup, the BNetD suit, the division of the game in 3, the thousand of stupid declarations saying "we know better than you", "what we're doing is so f*cking good that you're not going to miss that", etc, etc.

Kotick corrupted all of Activision, including Blizzard. I'm not buying anything from Acti anymore. I could have made an exception for D3 or SC2 (although only if they had LAN support), but every time Morhaine, Pardo or Canessa open their mouths and say the stupid thing of the month, they make sure I won't. Which is a pity.

But, of course, I still have the old StarCraft. Their loss.

Went somewhat the same for me.

Announcement at Blizzcon 200x -> "Yeah. GIMME GIMME GIMME!"

Activision stunts episode 1 -> "What are they doing? Thank god they're not in charge of Blizzard."

Beta starts -> "Where's my key?"

More Activision stunts and Blizzard CEO now reporting to Kotick's right hand -> "Uh oh, this won't end well."

Incredbile fail at selling BlizzCon tickets -> "Well, if Blizzard doesn't care about their fans, I don't know who does."

Beta access a few days before Beta 1 ends -> "Well, after days of downloading, I suppose I could check it out. Now let me just login to see... MOTHERF***!"

Real ID stunt -> "How about you play hide and go f*** yourself. And you bet your arse I'll be making some sweet money reselling the two CEs I preordered."

Beta 2 starts -> "Meh. Can I trade this in for a FF14 beta key?"

Great going, Blizzard. And I am sure, I am not the only Blizzard enthusiast that got turned off by their ludicrous business practices. You know, us core gamers, we're smarter than your average Facebook user. Try pulling a "Zuckerberg" or "Kotick" on us and we're gone.

I am at the point where I acknowledge SC2 will be a great game, but I love my dignity as a gamer and customer just a little too much to reward their recent business practices and community work with my money.

Color me also uninspired. When it was announced I was excited, once the beta started I was hooked, a few weeks later I'm set to watch all the developments concerning SC2 from afar.

The final nail on the coffin for me was the zone (America, EU, Asia, etc) locking per account. Both SC and War3 had that, but since you could create as many Battle.net accounts as you wished, you could always buy 1 game, create X accounts, have fun games with friends from all over the world.

I hear they might add a way to get around that post-launch, but I'm not buying something while the egg is up in the chicken's ass, as we say around here.

There's also the issue concerning hype. It destroyed Dragon Age for me. Thankfully, I'm coming back to it and rediscovering the great game that it is, which is a bit different from the game I thought it would be before launch.

Now hype only manages to make me more careful. Yes, I know Blizzard delivers the goods, but I like my stuff after the dust is settled.

I'm still in the "don't care about Starcraft 2" camp, but it certainly isn't because I'm immune to hype or begrudge them repeating their success with the same game again. I just don't care about Starcraft. Once they finally get around to finishing up Diablo 3, I will speak of nothing else for weeks.

Although I feel a faint tingle from StarCraf 2 sending its vibes through the universe, it's still far cry from the outright all-consuming frenzy that engulfed the entire world (Ok, some parts of it) leading up to the arrival of Modern Warfare 2. NOW that was the hurricane of hype. Compared to that, Blizzard/Activision don't even seem to be running a real marketing campaign to speak of.

Like others, I'm excited for the Starcraft II single player campaign. I've enjoyed watching Youtube videos of "pros" tearing each other up, but I've accepted the fact that I will never be able to do 200 actions per minute and memorizing build orders isn't my cup of tea. I might indulge in multiplayer for fun, but only in friendly matches.

Also, Diablo III, can't wait! Blizzard knows how to pick my pocket.

semba2020 wrote:

Tango Sucka!

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