The popular game StarCraft was the second computer game that I played since I started learning about computers, and I am indeed thankful to have met StarCraft instead of the other games of that era; had I tried something else, I would have immediately quit and never played any computer game again.
But there was something about StarCraft that got me addicted to it, along with millions of other computer players around the world.
The StarCraft game was released in 1998 by Blizzard entertainment after the success of its previous game Warcraft. After its release, StarCraft was so well received by computer gamers that it paved way to the releases of its expansion – StarCraft: Brood War and twelve years later, the sequel StarCraft 2: Wings of Liberty.
StarCraft has become so popular that there are terms being used today by many gamers that originally came from this game like the word “ComSat”, which means that the enemy player is spying your computer monitor to see where you are. In the game, ComSat is a special ability granted to the human race to spy the map and locate their enemies. StarCraft revolutionized the real-time strategy gaming as the first game to have three distinct races, and its success paved the way for the creation of many space-oriented games that we know today.
What made StarCraft remain popular among players all these years?
The answer is very simple: StarCraft is the first of its kind. It’s like what my folks say here: “The first game is always the most popular, ’cause every game after it is simply an imitation.”
Another factor is the game’s simplicity – there are no complications that cause the player to eventually quit because he’s tired of figuring out how the thing works. The aim of the game is simple. You set a location by choosing a map; add other players and select any of the three races – Human, Protoss and Zerg – to form an army and crush the opposing players’ forces and dominate the game.
Each race is unique; Protoss units are very powerful, but take a long time to build and deploy. On the other hand, Zerg units can be created quickly but are weak. The Human race sits in a balance between the two, but relies more on strategic attacks. These qualities give the player the ability to formulate a strategy of his own, by experimenting on the units strengths and weaknesses.
StarCraft’s campaigns are also very interesting to play; the story takes place in a distant future where the human race lives on several planets and are scattered over the galaxies, and are facing the threat of the superior Protoss species and the infestation of the Zerg, an alien race with features similar to the movie “Alien”.
These are only a few reasons that kept StarCraft a hit amongst computer games all over the world. An expansion to the sequel is soon expected, and everyone is eagerly waiting to get their hands on the game that made history.
