What?
Presentation of a single campaign Heart of the Swarm
Where?
France, Versailles, headquarters Blizzard
Nowadays, real -time strategies are catastrophically few. The genre, which was once considered very simple in production, but at the same time insanely popular among the players, failed a few years ago and curled up in a tube. Instead of several dozen games, two or three began to come out for a year, and this is at best.
So, probably, 2013 can be considered very successful-two loud releases are planned for it, not from any unknown studios, but from real mastodons of the genre. As in the old days, eternal competitors will enter into battle for the sympathy of the player – Command & Conquer and Starcraft. And if the first has chosen quite non-standard methods of attracting attention (for example, a convention-paying distribution model-see more in the article in the neighborhood), then Starcraft 2: Heart of the Swarm remains true. This will be exactly the same classical strategy about the battles of three dissimilar fractions. With a powerful plot campaign for repeated passage and an even more powerful multiplayer part, according to which e -sports tournaments will be held for more than one year.
Everyone has known about how to change the balance in the network game for a long time-who is from the press in the press, and who is also on their own experience, having gained access to a closed beta version. But about a solitary game, the developers were silent to the last. And only recently, finally, they did not endure, gathered journalists from all over Europe in their Versailles office and demonstrated several missions and plot videos from the upcoming campaign for grains. Damn little to play it down properly, but enough to draw the first conclusions.
It's hard to be a queen
As you know, Sarah Kerrigan is the main character of the second episode – a former government assassin, and now also the former Queen of Klinkov. The story of its transformation into the most important Zagig in the Galaxy is devoted to the plot of the original Starcraft, and its miraculous "healing" ends Wings of Liberty.
At the beginning of Heart of the Swarm, Sarah comes to his senses already by a man, but does not see in this a reason to forget about everything and spend the rest of his life with his beloved Savior Jim Reinor. Instead, she leaves the Hyperion cruiser and begins to collect the Crusade against the emperor Arctur Mengsk, who, in general, pulled her into this story.
[[Bullet]] "Captain's Bridge" by Leviathan. Through the hole in the background, a beautiful view of the planet opens, where Kerrigan is now hiding.
What exactly happened between Sarah and Jim, while remaining behind the scenes. In the presentation of missions shown at the presentation, she already travels around the galaxy on the gigantic grave of Leviathan, who plays, in fact, the same role as the “Hyperion” in the campaign for https://magic-reels-casino.co.uk/ terrane – the vehicle, the main base and the main game menu in one building.
Since the grains are fragmented after the queen’s loses, and Kerrigan herself lost most of her abilities (however, not all that a fashionable hairstyle indicates eloquently), she has to collect the army almost from scratch, looking for the remnants of Roy throughout the galaxy.
At the same time, the terrans and protosss are afraid of her, and therefore, just in case, try to kill her – you never know, suddenly she will restore her power and try to lead the swarm again. In general, they think quite sensibly, so the early missions of the campaign are devoted to hiding in the remote corners of the cosmos, increase forces and destroy all witnesses who can report the whereabouts of Sarah.
[[Bullet]] Here he is, Leviathan. "Hyperion" according to Zernov. By the way, the “bridge” is located not in his mouth, but in one of the processes that he can “shoot” for descent to the planet.
Say, on the cold planet Kaldir, where Kerrigan is trying to sit out at first, suddenly a small colony of protosss is discovered, which simply live here. But, barely seeing Zakov, the colonists do not even try to join the negotiations, but then rush to transmit the message to the main fleet, they say, there is a chance to destroy the queen of blades with one blow. And Sarah has no choice but to first destroy all the psi-beaces on the planet, and then begin to start hunting for transport shuttles who try to escape from the planet under the noise and return with reinforcements.
Cosmic raisins
How is it customary Blizzard , Each mission has some highlight and does not at all come down to the algorithm “rebuild the base-accumulate troops-destroy all living things”. Say, on a mission with psi-Mayaks, from time to time, an ice storm occurs on the map, during which all buildings and units freeze, except for frost-resistant Kaldir predators. At first, this is very annoying, since the local fauna gnaws at our army with impunity, but then Abatur finds a way to extract frost -resistant essence from their DNA and instill it with graves. Immediately after this, the storm becomes our best allies, allowing you to frolic with impunity even at the most fortified enemy bases.
[[Bullet]] an ice storm begins, protosss freeze. And the grains have already acquired frost resistance and now frolic in impunity on the basis of the enemy.
The mission with catching shuttles is complicated by the fact that several outputs from the planet are several, and the shuttles themselves start each time from the new spaceport. At the same time, teleporters cannot be ruined, but spacing portions are as much as you like, and with proper dexterity there is a chance to complete the task ahead of schedule, just demolishing all runways.
But the most interesting was the task in which Kerrigan infects a captive colonist with a larva and lets it go. The protosss immediately teleport the captive to their base, after which the larva hatches and begins subversive activities in the camp of the enemy.
At first, while it is small, you have to hide in the smoke from the patrols and rummage through ventilation, but then the larva ends up in a local zoo, where there is a plenty of rare animals and gains enough biomass to evolve into the queen. Now she can lay eggs and grow a small detachment of gralyings that will help to walk in the base openly and eat everyone in a row to grow even more. In the end, she already leads the small branch of the swarm, which clears all the premises without problems, after which the connection with Kerrigan is lost and the newly made queen remains left to herself. A kind of gun hanged on the wall, which is not yet known, as and when to shoot.
If you want to do well – do it yourself
Kerrigan herself is present in most missions as a hero – that is, an almost ordinary fighter, but with enviable health, unique skills and the ability to swing. Only unlike Warcraft 3 , Where growth in levels took place right on missions, Sarah will gain experience only for completing tasks – both main and side. Do you want it to grown as soon as possible to the maximum, seventies – do everything in a row.
[[Bullet]] Tree of the development of Kerrigan skills. At the peak of development, she will learn to drop the landing and call the whole leviathan on the battlefield.
With each new level, it will receive advantages for attack and protection, and from time to time – a new skill that will have to be selected from two proposed. However, this choice is not final, skills can be shuffled at any time in an evolutionary chamber under the alert supervision.
There you can also choose an amplification for your troops. Each type of graves has three options to choose from. Say, grains are fast, painfully biting or strong, and hydralinks can either shoot further, live longer, or enter the furry mode, temporarily inflicting increased damage. Here, too, you can change the choice at your discretion, trying different combinations, so you will not have to think seriously.
Once and for all
But what to decide once and for the rest of the remaining campaign is with modifications of the troops. Abatur in his closet will from time to time open or derive new varieties of grains adapted to a specific environment. Say, on one of the planets where the lava regularly floods the lowlands, abandoned and wild gibbings learned to jump onto the ledges and thus survive. And on the other planet there are monsters that can be divided in half at the time of death and continue to fight as two independent individuals. Their DNA, instilled in the same gibbings, leads to the fact that at the time of the explosion they break up into two smaller gibbings – and they explode again.
[[Bullet]] What grabings do you prefer – fast, strong or kussy? However, you can change your choice at any time.
Only one subspecies is allowed to leave yourself for good. However, before providing a choice, we will be shown a couple of “training” missions, where they will explain in detail how both modifications are different. And there you yourself decide who is more valuable – the graighings that can jump onto the ledges and attack from the unexpected side, or those sitting in the eggs for three and hatching from there in a second.
On this elections in the campaign, by and large, end. As in the first episode, we will be allowed to decide on the procedure for fulfilling the missions, but such that, having completed one mission, you will not see the second one at the same time, there will be no longer in the game. The campaign will become more linear, and perhaps it is for the better – you will not have to guess which of the side ends is more canonical.
In the vastness of Battle.Net
Of course, the supplement will also set up a network game, where, in addition to new detachments and balancing, a huge number of online services will also appear. For example, players will be allowed to unite in clans – analogues of guilds from Mmorpg. Perhaps later a full -fledged clan war will grow on this, while the benefits of guilds are limited to general chat, symbols and convenience of finding a partner for the game.
[[Bullet]] once Sarah was fair-skinned and red-haired, now it looks more like a Latin American. The developers explain this by the influence. Are they really Mexicans?
Another interesting function: search for players nearby. In the most literal sense of the word – geographical. A dozen parties with a neighbor through the wall is already a good reason to meet and make friends, and in principle, it will be easier for players to unite with each other.
For lovers of watching replacements, they have provided joint viewing functions from different computers. In addition, now every replane can not only look, but also at any time intercept management and bring the party to the end on their own. Here you won in the match with a friend, and he said "this is all because I accidentally built barracks instead of a factory". Well, now you can rewind the time ago and prove that even the construction of a friend’s factory would not save and you still win it in any circumstances.
In addition, who at least once in his life did not dream of being in the place of e-sportsman, who loses because of some stupid mistake, and do everything for him “as it should”. Well, now there is such an opportunity: take any replane and play as you think it is necessary.
Cyberzer
Another pleasant trifle is a function that allows you to continue the game after breaking the connection with the very moment when this gap occurred. No more crook with the boost of the Internet in losing moments.
[[Bullet]] Lefts know how to jump, the right breed like rabbits. The choice, as usual, is yours.
For those who just want to play on the network, without thinking about their rating, or to train with living people before climbing in Ladder, Unranked-Boers are provided. And those who have just met Starcraft 2 and are not yet confident in their abilities. One of them is a usual battle against AI, where tasks are constantly issued like “Bring the number of workers to eight”, “Build barracks”, “Enter the side base”, and so on – until the chains of buildings are completely memorized. The second mode is based on the fact that the AI will automatically adapt to the player’s level: the better he will cope, the more aggressively he will behave the computer.
And finally, the most noticeable innovation – pumping will appear in the multiplayer. Each victory will give a certain amount of experience, and players will constantly grow in levels. This will not give any advantages in battle, as a reward for experience it is planned to give out portraits, huts and other decorative gizmos – up to alternative skins for ordinary troops. Black zilotes, graiglings with dragonfly wings and marines in sophisticated armor will instantly give an experienced fighter.
Sparkling shells
Changes in the graph is noticeably more modest. The engine is obviously used the same, improvements affected only special effects. In addition to brighter explosions and particles saturated with particles, the developers improved the behavior of corpses and fragments from the dead equipment.
[[Bullet]] – after a moment this larva will settle in the body of a captive colonist and thus with impunity will penetrate the headquarters of the protoss.
Having twisted the entire graphics to the maximum, it will be possible to observe how the carcasses of the fighters have fun from the explosions, how the Torahs kick piles of iron, remaining from enemy tanks, and how piles of all sorts of trash scattered during the hit, scattered in the level. However, in the heat of battles you will still not be up to them.
Starcraft 2 – of those games in which we recommend that everyone without hesitation, even those who are completely indifferent to the genre. The campaign in it is not made for a checkmark, as some players mistakenly believe. This is a strong plot, excellent production, really interesting missions with all kinds of non -standard conditions – in a word, excellent entertainment is far from one evening, especially if you take care of the search for secrets and getting achievements.
And there is no reason to believe that in Starcraft 2: Heart of the Swarm will be different.
We will wait?
Continuation of the best strategy of 2010, where basic principles will not change by iot, but new detachments, new campaigns and new functions will appear. Everything is the same, but more, higher and more colorful. The occasion to go on vacation for two weeks and in the next couple of years not to remember the existence of other strategies at all.
Percent of readiness: 95%
Grands with a human face
If you are rounded, then there were only two and a half of the hero at the grains – in fact, Sarah Kerrigan, the superno and a certain number of “brainwater” “brains”, called cerebrals, are too faceless to remember them by names. But the developers no longer want Zeregov to be perceived as a continuous biomass, and they prefer to expand the list of heroes. So yes, in the second episode of Starcraft 2 we are waiting for much more talking grains than we saw in all previous games of the series.
So, a little about game characters.
Exhaustion
A reasonable process on the body of Leviathan, speaking the Winchester, to which Kerrigan, when he was his queen of blades, recorded all her plans and fabrications. Having become a person again, Sarah lost direct access to information and is now forced to receive it by the old fashioned way, in a voice. Exhalation acts as the chief adviser in the campaign, but it is completely indifferent to what is happening – has no opinion, just knows everything about everyone. In fact – a Zernovsky analogue of ship artificial intelligence, Cortana from insect world.
Abatur
Grain-scientist, no matter how wild it may sound. Apparently, another process of Leviathan, which has its own mind and insurmountable craving for the genetic modifications of everything that will reach. Declares his addictions in the first dialogue, paying attention to the imperfection of the upper extremities of Sarah and offering them to tear and replace them with something more functional. At his leisure, he indulges in the removal of new individuals of grains and always complains about the lack of fresh genetic material. It is in his "Cabinet" that all studies, improvements and tests of new troops are conducted.
Za’gar
One of the many Korolov Korogov, who, as it turned out, are not at all brainless units on the battlefield, but even personalities with characters and preferences. Stereotype military adviser, subspecies “aggressive general”, in another universe, she could call with a thunder or Colonel Quorich. Corgov believes the highest race, obsessed with the idea of military dominance over the galaxy, and Kerrigan on the topic “not kill” considers all the moral torments. It will be very surprised if, at the end of the plot, a military coup does not think in order to obtain sole power over the swarm.
Other queens
At the time of the disappearance of the queen of blades, almost every of the queens-wings tried to lead the swarm, taking part of the grains and starting a bloody war with each other. Each of them has its own character, someone may be delighted with the return of the supreme power, others will try to defend what they have already caught. Perhaps interesting personalities will meet among them.
Seven facts about Blizzard headquarters in Versailles
1. Calculating the Blizzard office in Versailles is very simple-a black P-shaped building of glass and concrete stands out sharply against the background of ancient European houses.
2. In the courtyard of the building, near the entrance, a bronze statue of the queen of blades in full size was installed. Its height is three meters, the wingspan reaches five, and the whole thing weighs 373 kilograms. The author of the statue – Steve Wong – has 27 years of experience in Hollywood, he created makeup and costumes for the films "Hellboy", "Bitldjus", "Batman" Tim Berton and many others.
3. The rostal figures of the characters from the games arranged around the reception desk are real costumes that were used at various exhibitions and events.
4. There is also a “wall of honor”, where all the rewards received by the studio and some rare souvenir things are exhibited. For example, a full -fledged replica of the sword of Frostmorn or Diorama of the battle from the toys Mega Bloks.
5. The whole building is abundantly decorated with symbols from Blizzard projects. The dining room is marked as the institution of the “captain” of the pies (ship COC, the final boss of the dead cops from the World of Warcraft), and all negotiation rooms are named after gaming locations. Say, we talked with Samuise Didier outside the door of the Tirispal Council, and literally behind the wall there was a heavyhead, where the correspondents tormented Chris Sigati's questions.
6. At the workplace of each of the Blizzard employees, a sign with its name is installed. And the icons of all games in the development of which he participated are attached to it. The longer the employee in the company, the respectively, his collection is richer.
7. Where in the middle of all this came the altar of Captain Picard, we discovered in one of the rooms, is still a mystery.
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