Say your StarCraft II match ends prematurely, either by crash or lightning strike or murder or whatever. Right now, your only option is to suck it up and start a new game. But when Blizzard releases the expansion pack Heart of the Swarm, you’ll be able to recover a crashed match by loading up the replay and jumping back in.
IN BRIEF: Heart of the Swarm, the first expansion for Blizzard’s Starcraft II, will be in playable beta at this year’s MLG pro gaming championship in Anaheim, which runs from June 8-10.
The real-time strategy game’s official multiplayer mode is now up to season seven, Blizzard announced today. Rankings will be reset once again. So now’s your chance to prove to the world that you deserve better than Bronze. [Blizzard]
Some people might try to convince you that video games are a waste of time. Here’s the perfect retort.
Anyone who has ever played any multiplayer game seriously to any degree will have those days — days when it seems like you’re simply getting destroyed one game after another. On days like those, Blizzard’s new custom game — Starcraft Master — are a godsend, providing you with the chance to increase your skillset without the intensity of a multiplayer match.
Two great flavours of geek culture collide in this custom map for Blizzard’s RTS super-success. Starrcaft player/modder Kenneth Tran’s built an homage to Episode V of George Lucas’s space fantasy films, substituting planet Braxis for the icy world of Hoth where The Empire Strikes Back took place. On The Dominion Strikes Back, the Rebel faction must hold out for 45 minutes while the opposing Dominion faction must crush the Rebels. Tran’s work doesn’t map one-to-one to Empire Strikes Back, but does a nice job of imagining what a siege would feel like if you were fighting alongside Luke and the resistance.
The first 30 seconds might be a little slow, but once the music starts you will happy you stuck around — even if I’m not sure what the music has to do with Christmas or Starcraft 2.
Welcome to Training With The Pros, a week-long series where we’ll be talking to some of Australia’s best professional gamers to find out who they are and what tips they have for those aspiring to play at their level. First up is Andrew “mOOnGLaDe” Pender, the top-ranked StarCraft II player in all of South East Asia.
It’s only 45 seconds long, but you may still want to sit down.
