Dustin Browder, the Lead Game designer for StarCraft II reveals some interesting insights into the design process that IGN Au has recently made public. Browder declares that the process of creating is starting from the scratch, the team doesn’t mind about the things that belonged to the StarCraft I trying to insert new changes with whatever they may influence in the process of designing. These new approach is at the same time challenging because it brings upfront problems that need balanced in a totally exciting and varying manner.
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He agrees with the fact that analyzing the gamers playing online with their own way of doing specific things was of a great help to the creators of the games making them realize how the modern RTS is defined and cast in the competitive gaming. The team is striving between what is good and what is bad and lately they have reached the point where they are aiming for the beta testing phase.

On a pre-beta version viewed by the designers team there were things to be changed, such as a Roach that wasn’t necessary meant to make tons of damage, maybe to name it a Zealot to take over its features, and you end up creating other characters which you haven’t thought about from the beginning. The purpose of these preliminary tests is to take you deep into the process revealing situations that you might have missed at the initial drawing, in this way enabling you to add or subtract features that change the set of the game.

The act of changing altered the way one Zerg feels, turning a Baneling into a much more adequate unit, for instance the changed Roach won’t be able now to step on him any more, Roach having Hydra to act together even though Hydra as a part of its own in that it can get a position in order to defense a base, and as such becoming a golden feature. The Roach in its turn has a combo that is very powerful and through this feature it can determine a strategy for the enemy player as well, defining this characteristic called the positional strategy, which can be very exciting for the fans of this game style.

StarCraft II is seen as a Team Fortress, as Dustin Browder likes to compare it to, and this because the game has class counters that allow you to establish what is the most important in your strategy: bringing the wrong weapon or how to use the weapons that a gamer has? But anyway RTS is still an RTS and the designers are aware of the fact that scouting is getting more and more powerful with stakes getting raised as well, that’s the reason why they start introducing units that do the killings in a balanced way of displaying the game.

Dawn of Discovery is a game that invites you in the complex world of exploration the seas with their deep blue, building cities and trading in a quite new experience for the games of the same nature. The exploration carries you to new found island which you can possess and build your own settlement with your shipyards and market of goods for your people, everything being conceived in a manner that doesn’t make the game accessible to everyone.
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Dawn of Discovery is known to be the fourth in the series of historically themed “Anno 1404 outside of North America” providing a linear campaign and an abundance of possibilities to customize the gameplay. The story goes like that: you are caught in a religious conflict and improbable alliances between West and East where you have to perform rather the role of a missionary for nobility than acting as a noble yourself. The continuous play mode allows you to set your own goals for bearing a victory and to keep a charted eye on the course of your actions on your way to achieving your goals.

The main action is that of discovering new islands with the purpose to build different items, to cultivate goods and make all the efforts to bring your society on higher levels of everyday living. If your society that you create is advanced enough you can gather gold in taxes, but having an outnumbered population may lower the level of your riches. The more your population grow and your society is advancing, the more their needs so you have to thoroughly plan all your moves in producing goods, building items, and prevent at the same time cities to operate on deficit.

It is a pity that the game doesn’t provide any tutorial on how to build a society that can be both profitable and efficient, but the bright side is that once you are into it , the game proves to be quite rewarding. Your society is divided in two social layers, and while the peasants are easy to satisfied, the wealthy ones are harder to please because their demands are even bigger.

Dawn of Discovery is a multitasker game with you having to keep constant control on the things that take place on the screen involving you in multipurpose actions and at the same time to take a look on the East side and figure what is there that it has to offer. Trading is a way to make you gather recognition as a leader in this way opening new accesses for you to the technology of the Orient this feature allowing you to create Eastern settlements, too.

Playing the continuous mode there are options to customize the game according to your needs in regard to sizing the islands, balancing conditions, including the possibility of setting your standards to lead you to success. But this success comes mostly from your way to make and keep your society flourishing, all these you have to do it all by yourself since there isn’t any other possibility to share the experience with other players. The graphics and sound of the play are very well rendered and while playing it you are able to hear even the waves of the sea crashing by the shore.

Dawn of Discovery truly deserves its title as you are cast in an experience where you can discover your skills as a strategic social leader as well as a good manager of the space that you own.

Blizzard has done it again. With the new release of StarCraft II, Blizzard continues to be the point of reference for collecting the real time strategy gameplay in a multiplayer beta system and new elements of the game to be revealed.
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What is new?
Let’s first take a look at the Terran’s strategy; the Medic and Dropship are gathered into one Medivac unit that seems to heal better than a Medic, it is able to keep your biologicals in a top shape, while the new Reaper units can blow a big part of opposing armies with fast-firing pistols. The Vulture (Jim Raynor’s conception) is replaced by the fire-breathing Hellion (a fast moving vehicle that throws flames) and the Firebat with Marauder (an armored infantry unit), both of them appear to be more effective.

In the beta system, Terran air units have suffered changes too. The new unit type called the Viking is enabled by shifting between a ground-based walker mode and an air-to-air combat flight mode, but when shifted to the latter it brings more damage to capital ships. The existence of Thor, a giant robot, brings a plus of excitement though its 250 mm strike cannons that can blow powerful targets.

The next look we take at Protoss where Dark Templars are still to be found but merged into Archons, Stalkers have replaced the Dragoons in the functionality mode, but otherwise Dragoons are presented as Immortals (with the ability to strengthen up their shields to reduce damages), and Phoenix is the new air-to-air fighter of Scouts and Corsairs. There is present the massive Colossus, a spindly-legged robot, equipped with powerful lasers which sweep through masses of enemy units and as it has a spider-like ability to move it can also climb cliffs fro getting good firing positions. The strategy of the Protoss is upgraded to enable a fast close in on ranged targets, but when multiple caster units are selected and you use an ability, only one unit will spend the energy to be cast. Although the ReaverDrop strategy is taken away, the Protoss episode is still fun to play.

And the last, the Zerg, is replacing the Defiler with Infestor, the Guardian with Brood Lord, while the Devourer is gone. Banelings are used as effective suicide bombers and while they explode they can blow much more costly targets due to their big punch package. The Zerg episode introduces the Roach a new ground unit which is able to regenerate health at an alarming rate that can be upgraded and have great defensive options that keep the enemy forces at bay. Infestor proves to be a new menace, it can spawn Infested Terrans, spread plague, and take control over the minds of enemy units. The Mutalisk weapon is as usual an effective multi-purpose one, for those who are familiar with the game.

StarCraft II is displaying a high demand for players that have got enough skills to put up with the new forms of strategy the game shows, so if you think you can manage, than take your chance and engage yourself in this adventurous trip that StarCraft II with new exciting strategies is offering.