Starcraft

It would seem that the most popular type of video games are those that allow the players to escape into a new universe filled with mystery and fantasy. StarCraft is no different, and is also a science fiction game. The game was first developed in 1998 and since then, there have been many other versions made due to its popularity.

So what exactly is Starcraft about and where is it set? It’s set in a far away galaxy where there is a military. There are three types of species and there have been several attempts to genetically modify the living creatures so that they are 100% pure, without any fault. Unfortunately the experiment went wrong and one set of species, the Xel’Naga was mostly wiped out.

As you’d expect with such a game, there’s an international government that can influence the outcomes. This international government is very similar to what’s known as “The Elders” in the 1990s.

The game is set after the experiment goes wrong and without going into the specific details, there is a war between the various groups and the player is ultimately fighting for total power for their assigned species.

Although this game was released in 1998 and it might have been ahead of its time, games where there’s an interspecies conflict have been done before. It’s nothing new. Although the setting has changed, the premise is exactly the same and that means that anyone who plays the game is really just playing a game they’ve played before. That could take away the excitement and make it rather boring.

Although there may be some variations from other games, the concept is the same and therefore the player may play the game with the same thought patterns. You’re likely to get bored really fast by playing a game similar to others that you’ve played before and that will take away the excitement.

The sci-fi element is interesting but that would only hold your interest for a certain length of time before you’d want to quit to play another game.

Not everyone agrees though, with popular gaming magazines and websites giving favourable reviews overall. The game has been quite influential with 1.5 million copies being sold in the first year of its release. Overall it has sold 9.5 million games and there have been sequels and merchandise sold due to that popularity.

Even though the game was released in the 1990s when technology wasn’t advanced as it is today, thee graphics have also received praise, however it has been noted that they aren’t as good as today’s graphics. That’s not the creators’ fault though. They could only create the game with what they had available to them.

Today technology is advancing much faster than it was in 1998 when StarCraft was first developed and that has naturally influenced more recent models of the game. Unless the player has a high definition television or computer it’s unlikely that they’d notice the difference in high quality graphics and average graphics. It’s much like how when people watched television in the 1990s they didn’t realise the quality was poor until more recent years when the clarity improved significantly.