Starcraft II $60 ??

[BasiliskWrangler]

...and the digital version is no cheaper than the box version.

I'd love to play the game, but $60 just isn't going to happen.

[ManusDei]

Wait till the 2 extensions are out, I guess they will do some "pack" that will be to a real price (not inflated).

[CrazyBernie]

I'm sure Activision is to be thanked, that and the 100 million dollar budget.

[macdude22]

...and the digital version is no cheaper than the box version.

I'd love to play the game, but $60 just isn't going to happen.

It seems these days digital versions are routinely more than boxed versions, sans the occasional steam 75% off sale. Redonkulous!

[BasiliskWrangler]

Eh, who am I kidding. I really wanted to give it a try, so I bought it. Let's see, it's been about 5 years since I played a good RTS, so I'm sure things have changed a bit...

[Started game, made a Battlenet account]

I'll try a new game 1-on-1 against another newbie online. Okay...start by laying down some buildings, collect some resources, scout surrounding areas for strategic defensive points...

...then the other guy rushes me with a dozen aerial assault ships and wipes me out. Total game time was about 12 minutes.

Good to know that early rushing is still a viable strategy. I also remembered very quickly why RTS games are not my favorite anymore.

[CrazyBernie]

Ha ha! Well when I get back to TN this week, we'll have to play some Human vs AI matches.... ^_^

It'd probably be somewhat beneficial to play through the campaign and get used to the units (the Terrans, anyway)... although I'm not familiar with what tech is available in MP. IIRC though, some of the units are campaign only.

Unfortunately, the game doesn't have any pre-matchup skill determination. So where the game is this fresh, there's still a lot of pro-RTS types that are getting on and showing up as newbs.

[MaximB]

Although Blizzard made Mac client for SC2 they didn't make a GNU/Linux client - I don't care how well it runs on wine but I won't support a company that doesn't support my OS of choice, specially when they already have Mac client.

The $60 for a race is the other issue, it's just wayyyyyyyyyyy to much to pay $60 for 1/3 game, even for a full game that a lot of money.

And despite the activation, the cracked version is already out long time ago.
And I totally understand the people who choose to pirate it.

[CrazyBernie]

Although Blizzard made Mac client for SC2 they didn't make a GNU/Linux client - I don't care how well it runs on wine but I won't support a company that doesn't support my OS of choice, specially when they already have Mac client.

*shrug* Can't comment on that.

The $60 for a race is the other issue, it's just wayyyyyyyyyyy to much to pay $60 for 1/3 game, even for a full game that a lot of money.

$60 is a lot to pay for a game... if you're talking about a game like Call of Duty: Modern Warefare 2 and only playing the single player campaign. The single player campaign encompasses all of 6 hours. Where the value comes into play is for those who are looking to play multiplayer. I'm not a huge fan of competitive multiplayer, so MW2 is a terrible value for me... thus it is unlikely that I will pick it up.

That being said, SC2 in its current form is NOT a third of a game. It's a full 26 mission campaign (technically 29, if you count the three branch choices). Blizzard split it up because if they had done it the way they wanted, it'd be another couple of years before the game was released... which would be bad from a financial standpoint. This allows them to spend the time to make each race's campaign a full blown story with more detail and more gameplay.

Having purchased the game and played through the single player game, I feel the game is an excellent value... with decent replayability. You can still play all of the races in the multiplayer, and I can do co-op vs the computer with my buddies (which is the type of multiplayer I prefer). It remains to be seen how the "expansions" will fair from a value standpoint.

Keep in mind that $50 has been the pricepoint for new (triple-A PC) games for a loooong time. Compare that to movie theaters, which seem to raise their prices every year.

And despite the activation, the cracked version is already out long time ago.
And I totally understand the people who choose to pirate it.

Careful what you say about piracy on a forum who's developer's entire business can hang on just a few sales lost to piracy. Best to say nothing at all... 'cause it makes it sound like you're justifying your own pirate tendicies but covering it up by generalizing.

[xolotl]

Although Blizzard made Mac client for SC2 they didn't make a GNU/Linux client - I don't care how well it runs on wine but I won't support a company that doesn't support my OS of choice, specially when they already have Mac client.

In Blizzard's defense, developing for Linux is not easy, and as yet is far from "proven" as a viable desktop OS for mainstream users. Don't get me wrong - I've been using Linux exclusively on my desktops for more than ten years now, so I'm thrilled whenever a game developer does take the time to release a Linux version, but I certainly don't envy the poor game-developer souls who take the time to wade through the complex, ever-shifting, and often ungrateful morass which is the Linux community.

Not that I'm trying to convince you to buy it anyway, or anything like that - I rarely purchase games which don't have native-Linux versions, either. I just focus more on being happy about the native-Linux games which do exist, rather than getting upset about companies which don't.

(Er, getting vaguely back on-topic: yeah, RTSes are definitely Not For Me either. Let's all petition Blizzard to develop an alternate turn-based SC2. :)

[sirdilznik]

I agree sixty bucks is pretty steep for a game. On the other hand this is quite possibly the most anticipated game of all time and the sequel to what is thought of by most as the greatest RTS ever made (until SC2 anyway). From all the reviews I've read it didn't disappoint either though I've yet to play it myself.

[Gandaug]

Here is an interesting little read about how Activision and Blizzard are connected. For me at least it explains much.

http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmes ... _id=128252

I never really cared about Starcraft 2, but I was excited for Diablo 3. Was. Now I'm not so sure.

[Iane]

Try $150 for the collectors edition and you will see $60 for a game is nothing

[TheBuzzSaw]

The complaints about SC2 being "1/3 of a game" are completely unwarranted. The original Starcraft had approximately 30 campaign levels, which gave 10 to each race. In this new one, there are approximately 30 levels given to just Terran, and they are all much higher quality than the first game's campaigns. Either they give us three wimpy campaigns (one for each race), or we wait another 5 years for Blizzard to finish the Zerg and Protoss campaigns (at ~30 levels each). Blizzard is going for a more fleshed out story. Get over it.

The $60 price tag is not justified in most cases, but considering that, to this day, I still fire up Diablo II periodically, Blizzard really does make solid titles. Blizzard games are the only games worth $60 to me. I refuse to pay more than $30 for other games. I wait for sales if I have to.

However... I have passed on Starcraft 2. I have no tolerance for always-online DRM. I want my LAN play. I am not enamored with the new Battle.net. The new map editor is too complex (and the requirement to upload all maps is ridiculous). There are too many stupid decisions that brutally tainted the game. The game's quality really is there (I was in the beta), but it is fundamentally broken. Sorry, I'll pass.

[Arkos]

Careful what you say about piracy on a forum who's developer's entire business can hang on just a few sales lost to piracy. Best to say nothing at all... 'cause it makes it sound like you're justifying your own pirate tendicies but covering it up by generalizing.

*Narrows eyes* That sounds like something a pirate would say...

:p

Anyway, guess you could always wait and buy it used or see if the price comes down.

Personally, I was never much for RTS games either. I've never played Warcraft or Starcraft.

[CrazyBernie]

Honestly, it's more about respect than the act of piracy itself. I don't walk my ass up into a Catholic church and start talking crap about molesting little boys... while a bit extreme, it's the same idea.

I have my own opinions about piracy that might not coincide with staunch anti-pirates, but I certainly believe in supporting developers who make the games I enjoy. As a matter of fact, I've probably spent enough money on video games in my lifetime to support a small nation, and feed all of the hungry kids in Africa. Pretty sad, if you really think about it. So I can't say I'm too worried about ever being called a pirate. Hell, some games I've bought several times over because I've lost 'em between my many moves.

But if my word isn't good enough... have a look-see of my "activity" within the last few months: