StarCraft: Ghost
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| StarCraft: Ghost | |
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| Developer(s) | Blizzard Entertainment Nihilistic Swingin' Ape |
| Publisher(s) | Blizzard Entertainment |
| Release date(s) | Postponed (very likely cancelled) |
| Genre(s) | Third-person shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single player, Multiplayer |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Rating Pending (RP) |
| Platform(s) | Possibly seventh-generation console systems (PS3, Xbox 360, Wii)[1] |
StarCraft: Ghost was a planned tactical action game for video game consoles developed by Blizzard Entertainment and set in the same science fiction milieu as its popular StarCraft title. Blizzard announced the game in 2002, but on March 24, 2006 announced it would "indefinitely postpone" development[1] (see development hell). Soon afterward, Blizzard removed StarCraft: Ghost from its list of games currently under development, and deleted the official Ghost home page; the URL for that page now redirects to Blizzard's Web site[2] (like StarCraft2.com). As of now, its status is in question, and many fans and analysts, including gaming websites such as IGN, are predicting that it has been cancelled.
Blizzard, a game developer mostly known for computer games, was taking a step in a different direction by producing Ghost exclusively for the Xbox and PlayStation 2 video game consoles. Instead, they have now chosen to reorient themselves on the seventh generation consoles. Earlier, a GameCube version was also planned, but it was already canceled in November 2005. Many in the gaming community were under the assumption that the game was being developed by Blizzard when it has in fact been a third-party project since its inception, starting with Nihilistic (Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects, Vampire: The Masquerade - Redemption) and officially moved over to Swingin' Ape Studios (Metal Arms: Glitch in the System) in July 2004. On May 16, 2005, Blizzard Entertainment acquired Swingin' Ape Studios.
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[edit] Storyline
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The main character of the game is a Terran Ghost (psionic espionage agent) codenamed Nova (aka Agent 12-862) in the employment of the Terran Dominion squadron, Nova Squadron.
Nova's role when the game starts is as an officer in the Terran Dominion, working for Colonel Jackson Hauler in his Ghost squad.
The story takes place four years after the Brood War campaign. Emperor Arcturus Mengsk has rebuilt much of his empire, the Terran Dominion, and built up a new military, despite having to face the Zerg.
The Dominion has not heard from Kerrigan in years, though they believe she could easily eradicate all of her opposition. The Zerg have been quiet, however, and there is something of an uneasy peace.
Mengsk and his new advisor, General Horace Warfield, have begun a secret project codenamed Shadow Blade, which uses covertly acquired Protoss technology. The program uses terrazine gas to alter the genetic makeup of Terran Ghosts, amplifying their psychic potential. These Ghosts are transformed into Spectres - shadowy superhuman beings bent on executing the will of their true master.
A rebel group called the Koprulu Liberation Front seeks to put an end to Mengsk's actions and the reign of the Terran Dominion.
Nova is about to embark upon a perilous mission to uncover the frightening truth behind Project: Shadow Blade - this conspiracy will cause her to question her own identity while embroiled in a struggle between the Terran Dominion and the rebel Koprulu Liberation Front. During the course of the story, she will visit Mar Sara, Ash 'Arak, Abaddon and Vyctor 5 (the latter introduced in StarCraft: Uprising).
Meanwhile, Arcturus Mengsk has succeeded in retaking a number of Terran worlds with a ramshackle army, augmented by robotic and Protoss technology. Artanis attempts to merge the two Protoss societies together on Shakuras, but many Dark Templar resent the presence of other Protoss on their world. Infested Kerrigan continues to mass troops on Char but has not struck against the Terrans or Protoss as of yet. [2]
[edit] New and changed units
Several new units were planned which were not part of the original StarCraft game
- Terran Grizzly - this Terran fighter-bomber can carry 3 passengers in addition to its crew of two. The pilot fires a light gun, while other crew members and passenger can operate a missile turret, two flak cannons, and concussion bombs.
- Terran Stinger - this six-wheeled Terran jeep fills a role in between that of the Terran Vulture and the Terran Siege Tank. It has a crew of two and is equipped with a heavy assault cannon.This unit was originally seen in a cutscene in StarCraft, where the crew was ambushed by the Zerg.
- Terran Light Infantry - security guards found in various Terran installations, they are equipped with lighter armor than Terran Marines. They carry a decloaking device to keep out infiltrators, and can carry Torrent SR 8 shotguns (their main weapon), flak pistols and chain guns. While they can use the C-14 "Impaler" rifle, this is not standard equipment for them. In addition, the light infantry can create and repair automated defense turrets and small chain guns, which have more powerful abilities than the light infantry's own weak attacks. The chain guns can be attached to vehicles.
- Terran Spectre - the result of genetic experiments conducted on Terran Ghosts using terrazine gas, almost nothing is known about these soldiers.
- Protoss Vindicator - formerly known as the Purifier, little is known about this unit. It appeared to carry a single large "lightning gun" on its arm. The Vindicator did not show the ability to move while firing the ranged weapon.
In addition, a number of original StarCraft units were also planned to be changed, some to better suit the multiplayer version of StarCraft: Ghost.
- Terran Marine - in addition to their standard issue C-14 "Impaler" Gauss rifle, Marines can now carry flak pistols and grenades.
- Terran Firebat - in addition to their standard issue Perdition plasma-based flamethrower, firebats can fire napalm rockets, of the guided or unguided variety.
- Terran Ghost - Ghosts would wield an assault rifle/grenade-launcher combination as their standard weapon. It is less powerful than the C-14 "Impaler" Gauss rifle. This weapon is different from the original C-10 canister rifle. In addition, Ghosts can use the BOSON FN92 sniper rifle (which is, again, different from their long-ranged canister rifle from StarCraft). Ghosts would be equipped with lockdown devices such as a missile and the coil gun, which can shut down electronics for a short period of time. Ghosts can develop special psionic abilities to see through walls, increase their speed and cloak.
- Terran Vulture - the Vulture may be armed with a powerful laser, an autocannon, or a grenade launcher which does concussive damage. The autocannon must be attached by Light Infantry.
- Terran Siege Tank - may have been equipped with plasma cannons.
- Zergling - virtually unchanged from StarCraft aside from a new appearance, Zerglings gain a blood lust ability when moving in groups. They were once shown to have limited cloak detection abilities, but this has not been mentioned since and may have been removed or simply an error.
- Hydralisk - also virtually unchanged, but now has a melee attack.
- Infested Terran - capable of firing poisonous rounds from an "infested" Gauss rifle, in addition to its suicidal explosion ability and a claw attack.
- Mutalisk - fires a bio-plasma attack and can pick up ground units to drain them of life, then drop them to their death..
[edit] Trouble with Development
Reports indicate that most of the people responsible for the development of the original StarCraft have left the company[citation needed], and the repeated setbacks and delays for release — it was to have been released in 2003 — have prompted many to question whether the game will be worth the wait. Most StarCraft fans seem to be pushing for the cancellation of StarCraft: Ghost in favor of a StarCraft II. Blizzard is unwilling to create another StarCraft RTS at present; however they "...fully intend to revisit the world of StarCraft on PC at some point in the future" [3].
Release of the game has been postponed six times already, although this is not entirely unusual with Blizzard Entertainment games. Game development started in mid-2001, with a release date of the 2002-2003 winter. During the summer of 2002, the entire Nihilistic Software development team, the original developer of the game, quit en masse after an internal power struggle with Blizzard Entertainment. At the time, Slashdot and Penny Arcade reported that the team had already completed more than 85% of the game engine and 40% of all level design.
Following the resignation, Blizzard pushed back the release date of the game to January of 2003, only to push it back to "early summer 2003" in October of 2002. Blizzard went out on the market to look for a new development team, while reassuring their customers that there was nothing to worry about, that Nihilistic Software had merely finished the job they were hired for, that there were no power struggles inside the company and that the game would be delivered on time.
By Christmas 2003, they had found their new development team, but they pushed the date even further backwards to "second quarter of 2004".
The game was announced at E3 2005 (and later the date was pushed to September 2005), and the web page was updated for the first time in a year. Blizzard Entertainment also acquired Swingin' Ape Studios as part of a console-dominating strategy. Swingin' Ape Studios cancelled the GameCube version in order to concentrate more on the Xbox and PS2 version. GameCube didn't have the online capability, therefore, it was the first to be cancelled. These announcements seemed to have improved fan opinion of the game, but pushed the release date even further back to 2006.
In late March 2006, Blizzard Entertainment announced that the game has been "indefinitely postponed" for the PS2 and Xbox.
Although no further word has come on Starcraft Ghost's status, in November 2006, a new Blizzard novel, StarCraft Ghost: Nova [3], written by Keith R. A. DeCandido, was quietly published. This has led to speculation that Blizzard is taking the same route with StarCraft: Ghost that was taken with Warcraft Adventures: Lord of the Clans, which was cancelled in 1998, only to have its story released as a novel, Warcraft: Lord of the Clans, written by Christie Golden.
[edit] Platform Controversy
The absence of a PC version, and the change of genre from real-time strategy to action/stealth, has aroused considerable protest from StarCraft fans. Blizzard has repeatedly pointed out that the company is trying to return to its console roots by excluding a PC version; however these claims have had mixed results, as many fans feel that the StarCraft universe, founded as it is on a computer fanbase, is an inappropriate series to introduce a console only game.
Initially, GameCube, Xbox and Playstation 2 versions of the game were in development, however the GameCube version was cancelled in November 2005 when an online multiplayer component was being developed for the game, seeing as GameCube's online play isn't supported as much as the other two systems. The Xbox and PS2 versions were put on indefinite postponing. Blizzard has teased gamers that they are working on a new Next-Gen game (Xbox 360 and PS3) that could be a next-gen version of SC:G. As the Xbox and PS2 stepped out of the limelight of gaming to make way for next-gen consoles, it's most likely that SC:G will end up on next-gen consoles if ever completed.
[edit] External links
[edit] Fansites
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[edit] Media
[edit] Press Coverage
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[edit] See also
- Command & Conquer: Renegade - Another action shooter based on a popular RTS series.
[edit] References
- ^ Blizzard Postpones StarCraft: Ghost Indefinitely, GameSpy March 24, 2006 (retrieved March 25, 2006)
- ^ *Warboards storyline update
- ^ Official StarCraft General F.A.Q.
| StarCraft by Blizzard Entertainment | |
|---|---|
| StarCraft Universe | Gameplay of StarCraft • Psionic technology |
| Species | Terran • Protoss • Zerg • Xel'Naga • Hybrid |
| Factions and Organizations | Judicator Caste • Kel-Morian Combine • Khalai Caste • Protoss Conclave • Pirate Militias • Raynor's Raiders • Sons of Korhal • Templar Caste • Terran Confederacy • Umojan Protectorate • United Earth Directorate • Zerg Brood |
| Locations | Aiur • Antiga Prime • Braxis • Char • Chau Sara • Korhal • Mar Sara • Moria • Shakuras • Talematros • Tarsonis • Umoja • Zerus |
| Characters | Aldaris • Artanis • Gerard DuGalle • Edmund Duke • Samir Duran • Fenix • Sarah Kerrigan • Arcturus Mengsk • Nova • Raszagal • Jim Raynor • Alexei Stukov • Tassadar • Zeratul • Zerg Overmind • Minor Characters |
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