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Starcraft 2 Beta

Well i downloaded the beta last night from file shack and I pretended to be important while I installed it and launched the game. That was a pretty cool feeling at least seeing the menu screen and a little music. Then you get presented with a big fail message that you can't login brought me back to reality. :( I needs access!!

Also Blizzard did state that the game would be released in 2010, so you will lose the bet to your friend. Blizzard isn't one to say a date and then push it back what they do is they don't release any dates for years and years but now they have spoken and sometime in 2010 will be it I feel like it will be towards the Holiday season.
 
http://www.livestream.com/finalflight?utm_source=lsplayer&utm_medium=flash&utm_campaign=playerlinks

He usually goes on a 6-8 hour binge of Excellent and humorous shoutcasting. He has recently gotten his Livestream account viewer cap raised. There are plenty of great matches of down to earth players. Watching him shoutcast is amazing, especially when the players do terrible, terrible, damage to each other.

He will be shoutcasting again later tonight at 8PM EST. Come join us SC2 fans!

What makes this great is that he is shoutcasting for the fans, we have a lot of fun and lots of random matches. If you're into that kind of stuff, this is for you!

Also, the stream is in top notch quality, possibly the best on the net right now for SC2.
 
Great game! Anyone else think its a little weird to be able to nuke rush? Had some pretty funny experiences with it though : ) ...
 
Arggg my connection here is too slow for his HD Stream. Will have watch some at home tonight...
 
I work next door to a public library, ran over and watched a Team Liquid stream over my break...pretty nifty (and amazing that there's 500+ people watching a channel at any given moment). Husky was online but testing out various units against other units. Jumped on to another game right when the player was starting a game of T vs Z, the sent a scout early and he expected a rush, he tried to prepare but was overrun by roaches. Next game he switched to Protoss and ended up playing the same guy. Near the beginning I was sure he was gone, he had all zealots and the guy sent in Mutalisks, he made some stalkers and chased them off. Then he got almost overrun but held off an attack and warped a few guys over to the enemy expansion and killed it, then rushed the Zerg base and surprised him and won.

Being a noob who's not really been into online RTS gaming I thought it was pretty impressive. While I doubt either gamer was stellar both were quick and seemed quite coordinated. I need to practice a loooooong time before I'm even near that quick...and there's no "equal skill level" matchmaking on SC1...DOH
 
Has anyone tried sc2 with 3d setup yet. I thought I read that it was going to fully support it.
 
Syntaxx said:
Well i downloaded the beta last night from file shack and I pretended to be important while I installed it and launched the game. That was a pretty cool feeling at least seeing the menu screen and a little music. Then you get presented with a big fail message that you can't login brought me back to reality. :( I needs access!!

Also Blizzard did state that the game would be released in 2010, so you will lose the bet to your friend. Blizzard isn't one to say a date and then push it back what they do is they don't release any dates for years and years but now they have spoken and sometime in 2010 will be it I feel like it will be towards the Holiday season.
Click to expand...

Blizzard beta generally last 4-6 months. I know it seems crazy but I think we'll be seeing the game late-summer or early-fall.
 
kabob983 said:
Being a noob who's not really been into online RTS gaming I thought it was pretty impressive. While I doubt either gamer was stellar both were quick and seemed quite coordinated. I need to practice a loooooong time before I'm even near that quick...and there's no "equal skill level" matchmaking on SC1...DOH
Click to expand...

I'll tell you right now, get used to binding keys to buildings and managing them as you're fighting. It takes practice but it makes all the difference.

The majority of my Starcraft 2 games have been won by better macro, in that my speed with the keyboard enabled me to have a better economy with more workers and also to crank out reinforcements faster. Get used to having your base on 1, Nexus/Barracks on 2, Robotics/Factory on 3, etc etc. This way you can always be cranking out workers and armies even when you're in the middle of a fight with a lot of macro.

The fact that you can bind multiple identical structures to single keys and give them all the same waypoint makes the game much much more accessible and manageable than Starcraft or Brood War ever were.
 
Actuary said:
Late in the sense that 2 rounds have already gone out, which I've potentially missed out on.
Click to expand...

Ah yes, there's that. :(

Like I said before, I hope all SC fans get a chance to play. Most of the keys given outside of opt-ins were Blizzcon 08 attendees, primarily WoW players that may not necessarily be into RTS games (most of my MMO friends aren't).
 
I was reading this article that shared an interview done by YGosu (korean fansite), which basically interviewed 2 professional korean players who are in the beta about their experiences. The players claimed that the Battle.net system is excellent and easy to jump into and that the game is looking great. Some of the downsides included sound effects needing some work but the game feels like a compete game. Do you guys have any insight and thoughts on what you think of the game (those with beta keys of course) ?

Source (mentioned above):
http://mygadgetnews.com/2010/02/24/starcraft-ii-wings-of-liberty-community-thoughts/
 
Serpico said:
I'll tell you right now, get used to binding keys to buildings and managing them as you're fighting. It takes practice but it makes all the difference.

The majority of my Starcraft 2 games have been won by better macro, in that my speed with the keyboard enabled me to have a better economy with more workers and also to crank out reinforcements faster. Get used to having your base on 1, Nexus/Barracks on 2, Robotics/Factory on 3, etc etc. This way you can always be cranking out workers and armies even when you're in the middle of a fight with a lot of macro.

The fact that you can bind multiple identical structures to single keys and give them all the same waypoint makes the game much much more accessible and manageable than Starcraft or Brood War ever were.
Click to expand...

Having my base on 1? Meaning my starting building or just the area of the base (and if the later how is that done?). Do you bind your units to any of your keys? Just seems like to much to keep up with.

Ntee said:
I was reading this article that shared an interview done by YGosu (korean fansite), which basically interviewed 2 professional korean players who are in the beta about their experiences. The players claimed that the Battle.net system is excellent and easy to jump into and that the game is looking great. Some of the downsides included sound effects needing some work but the game feels like a compete game. Do you guys have any insight and thoughts on what you think of the game (those with beta keys of course) ?

Source (mentioned above):
http://mygadgetnews.com/2010/02/24/starcraft-ii-wings-of-liberty-community-thoughts/
Click to expand...

Seems like the majority of the beta players really like it but a few feel like it's drifing from "true" Starcraft in some ways...to each his own I guess.
 
Ntee said:
I was reading this article that shared an interview done by YGosu (korean fansite), which basically interviewed 2 professional korean players who are in the beta about their experiences. The players claimed that the Battle.net system is excellent and easy to jump into and that the game is looking great. Some of the downsides included sound effects needing some work but the game feels like a compete game. Do you guys have any insight and thoughts on what you think of the game (those with beta keys of course) ?

Source (mentioned above):
http://mygadgetnews.com/2010/02/24/starcraft-ii-wings-of-liberty-community-thoughts/
Click to expand...

I have to say that I agree. Getting into a game could not be any easier. Matchmaking is pretty much instant, so you'll have none of the BS waiting like in the original Starcraft, and its also easy to get games together with your friends.

I really really like the game. Micro and macro has been simplified a great deal over the original now that you can set worker waypoints and queue production by selecting multiple buildings. Its a fantastic game and Blizzard did a great job with Battle.net.

The only thing I see them needing to do with BNet is add large chat rooms like you had with the original version. Right now you can only do IM sessions or party chat when you organize a skirmish with friends. Big chat rooms should be coming though, its clearly still work in progress, and I'm sure BLizzard would rather people stress test the game instead of chatting. :)

As for the game, its pretty well balanced at this point. They made up for simplified micro/macro by reducing the amount of resources per mineral patch and vespene geyser, forcing the need to produce more workers and to expand more often. There are also two geysers per base, not one. They also gave the production buildings special magic abilities. The Nexus can speed up research or production of any structure, Command Centers can call in a MULE (uber SCV) or do a radar scan, and Zerg Queens can inject 4 extra larva into a hatchery (its almost like getting a free expansion). All of these drain mana, but its something any good player will keep on top of since they are such useful abilities. In close games it can really make the difference.

A few tier 1-2 units need to be nerfed (hi Roaches) but otherwise its in good shape. What I like is that the changes to units has seriously shaken up the feel of the races. Terrans play much more aggressively now, while Protoss tier 1 units are much weaker than in SC1, but they can also produce units faster to make up for it (Nexus Chrono Boost), while the Zerg feels much more streamlined and simplified compared to the first game, etc etc.

The game is familiar, but with enough things shaken up to keep it feeling fresh.

I really like it, can you tell? :)
 
kabob983 said:
Having my base on 1? Meaning my starting building or just the area of the base (and if the later how is that done?). Do you bind your units to any of your keys? Just seems like to much to keep up with.
Click to expand...

I'm talking about the production facility. So I'd click on my Nexus and hit CTRL+1. With the Nexus selected I then I right click on a mineral patch. This way you can keep pumping out workers that mine straight away with a simple "1e" instead of clicking on the building, clicking on the worker box, clicking on a mineral field, etc. The reason I have buildings on 1-4 is because the hotkeys are all on the left side of the keyboard, and having them closer to hotkeys seems important since I'm more likely to be using the keyboard shortcuts with them while I'm micro-ing a battle with my mouse.

I am currently putting armies on 5. I just started using additional hotkeys for spellcasters like the Protoss Sentry, giving air giving units their own hotkey, etc. I've been taking it one step at a time, practice. Its a lot to relearn for someone that has been out of RTS games for so long.

Well, with the exception of DOW2, but who are we kidding, that game is more like Diablo except with multiple dudes that you control. :)

UPDATE: You can sort through different unit types within a group with the TAB key. This will make selecting spellcasters in a large group much easier!
 
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So they are supposed to e-mail you the key right? I don't have to go searching through my battlenet account or anything?
 
GriMReapeRAK said:
So they are supposed to e-mail you the key right? I don't have to go searching through my battlenet account or anything?
Click to expand...

I'm not a 100% sure on this, but as far as I have heard, yes you get notified for Blizzard closed betas via email. Once you're in, you log into Battle.net to download the client.
 
Yep, I was e-mailed a key. You enter the key via the "add game" option and itll appear with the rest of your games. From there, you download the client.
 
Did a second phase of keys just get sent out? I haven't been paying attention to how they do it, is it on a rolling basis or is it weekly or by phase etc.?
 
Serpico said:
HDStarcraft just posted an awesome TvP game in three parts, all you guys need to watch this (and in 1080p!):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYQ6MeF7DRU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NXLBOlaC6sc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sMyhXI6g48

Excellent game, so incredibly close up until the very end.

And its more proof as to why Reapers are such nasty units. :) People complain about Roaches all the time but all of my losses so far have been at the hands of Terran Reapers, haha.
Click to expand...

nice videos man. I haven't been following SC2 much, but now I'm getting excited.
 
ZerazaX said:
Did a second phase of keys just get sent out? I haven't been paying attention to how they do it, is it on a rolling basis or is it weekly or by phase etc.?
Click to expand...

The beta has only been going for a week so its hard to say. The first wave went out last Wednesday when the beta went live, the second wave went out Monday night (the one I was in via Blizzard friends & family).

Hopefully they accelerate the passing out of keys. Anyone who's a fan should be playing this, it is SO good.
 
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aciddrink said:
nice videos man. I haven't been following SC2 much, but now I'm getting excited.
Click to expand...

HDStarcraft has a great Youtube channel. You should watch Husky's channel too, also great.

http://www.youtube.com/huskystarcraft
http://www.youtube.com/hdstarcraft

HD has the best looking stuff since its 1080p (almost as good as the real thing!), but Husky's is great too; excellent player with very good commentary.

TeamLiquid and SC2GG both have a bunch of steams up, extremely high level players (I think all play Platinum League) and are all very honest about their games. They go through what they could have done better, where they messed up, and then you see them apply it. I've learned a great deal just watching those games.

http://www.teamliquid.net/video/userstream.php

Enjoy!
 
Looks like HDStarCraft records at 1920x1200 instead of 1080p, which is 1920x1080, so the text gets squished a bit and some of it becomes difficult to read after the conversion process.
 
Einhanderkiller said:
Looks like HDStarCraft records at 1920x1200 instead of 1080p, which is 1920x1080, so the text gets squished a bit and some of it becomes difficult to read after the conversion process.
Click to expand...

Yeah, minor issue though since he does such a good job commentating. Its probably for the best since 1920x1200 its his native res. That said, I hope that they get the 16:9 resolutions up to 2650x1440 by the final release (res in beta maxes out at 1920 at the moment). Standalone 27" monitors at that resolution and 16:9 aspect ratio are finally out, and my 27" iMac runs at that resolution/aspect ratio. I'd love to see how SC2 looks running so big and so sharp.

It also appears that 16:9 displays have an FOV advantage over 16:10 displays.

http://serpico74.shackspace.com/sc2fov.gif
 
Einhanderkiller said:
Looks like HDStarCraft records at 1920x1200 instead of 1080p, which is 1920x1080, so the text gets squished a bit and some of it becomes difficult to read after the conversion process.
Click to expand...

One thing worth mentioning about youtube uploads is that it cuts the horizontal resolution in half if you upload at 1080p. Simply cropping off a few pixels or resizing the resolution (maybe to 1072 for mod16 numbers) will keep the full sharpness of the video. The bitrate however, is still atrocious.
 
Again, you can download replays and watch them without a beta key. This means you transfer a few hundred kilobytes and get to watch the game within the engine meaning there's no "oh such awful bitrate" since it will be using your monitor's resolution. Not only does this give a better feel for the game, but you can pause, speed up, or rewind the match to see something. So you can watch people's build order, then pause and look at what building can produce what unit for what price. After you've seen enough starting up previews you can fast forward all future replays to the 7 minute point to see what happens next. During combat you can pause and see what each unit's hp and damage is and then monitor each unit's HP to see how efficiently the attack was.

Watching the replays within the engine is honestly enough for me. I'd only try out the beta since I would be able to play with my friend who I did a lot of original SC with. It's not a finished product, the protoss announcers are annoying, you can't zoom out to actually show the engine is better than the previous, and the game will be $150 when released.
 
Here is a large replay pack from the currently best ranked Euro beta player. I havn't watched any yet, but I heard it's a pretty good pack. [Clicky Click Link]
 
Serpico said:
HDStarcraft has a great Youtube channel. You should watch Husky's channel too, also great.

http://www.youtube.com/huskystarcraft
http://www.youtube.com/hdstarcraft

HD has the best looking stuff since its 1080p (almost as good as the real thing!), but Husky's is great too; excellent player with very good commentary.

TeamLiquid and SC2GG both have a bunch of steams up, extremely high level players (I think all play Platinum League) and are all very honest about their games. They go through what they could have done better, where they messed up, and then you see them apply it. I've learned a great deal just watching those games.

http://www.teamliquid.net/video/userstream.php

Enjoy!
Click to expand...

I've been visiting both YouTube channels over the past few days. I also signed up at Team Liquid (although I'm not sure why as I'm not knowledgable enough to post in the forums and I can watch the streams regardless). Lots of good stuff.
 
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