This Week I Have Been Mostly Playing…
StarCraft Cartooned on PC
Another day. Another obsession with an RTS. Not just any old RTS the 90’s classic StarCraft. I must have played a good couple of hundred of hours on this title back in the day (thanks Shifty!) but not for about 15 years. One of the major issues with PC gaming is that much older titles do not work on modern operating systems without either a huge workaround or a port from the creators.
Thankfully Blizzard have been working through their old collection to bring it back from the dead. Well the 90’s but that's close enough! I have recently played through Warcraft and Warcraft II but my real love lies with the classic space opera featuring the Terrans, Zerg and Protoss.
For those unfamiliar Real Time Strategy (RTS) titles are built around building a base, gathering resources and raising an army to overwhelm and annihilate the enemy. There are many different takes now but this is one of the classics. Each race has unique units that can be marshalled into destroying the enemy. In my case usually overwhelming an enemy base with far too many of the same unit.
So what’s new here?
To start with it runs very well on Windows 10 and has had a complete overhaul of visuals and audio. It looks and sounds great though the base mechanics are the same. To be fair to Blizzard this was a must as it needed to feel like the original game. And boy its like its 1999 all over again. The countless battles and near deaths. It is a very fun and engrossing game.
It doesn't come without its issues like the rather ‘special’ unit movement. Seeing a team of 6 tanks get caught at a bottleneck for one to turn around and move all the way around the map through an enemy base is rather dismaying. Thankfully this issue is solved in future titles and can be forgiven here. It's not game breaking or anything.
Now I have barely played the new visuals as I have been completely smitten with a new skin pact. The Cartooned version is simply one of the best changes I have ever seen and I love it. The game itself is the same but now has the cutest maps, people and units. Totally fallen for this and I should have gotten it on release. The bad bit is it costs a further £8 but it has been worth every penny. I wish the original title had been like this!
The game also contains the Brood War expansion. Now I know most people will be diving in for the online multiplayer but actually the story is not only brilliant but has some incredible twists and plot changes. They even affect the game play later on. This was released in late 1998 and it feels bizarre to say but I will keep quiet on the rest. Still worth saving the spoilers!
Asking £22 for a very old game with a new skin may be a bit much for a lot of people. Fortunately, here is the free version of the original that can be downloaded and it’s well worth a try. Or just jump straight onto the free version of StarCraft II : Wings of Liberty for a proper modern take!
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