StarCraft’s 25th Anniversary

Developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment, StarCraft was initially released on the 31st of March 1998; it was the eighth game to be released by Blizzard Entertainment (while under that company name). Though millions of gamers are likely familiar with the franchise, they may not be aware of its fascinating history.

StarCraft came out at a time when Blizzard was riding high, having already released Warcraft: Orcs & Humans (1994), Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness (1995), and the first Diablo game (1997); the company had built a solid reputation very quickly, and people were eager to see what they would do next. Unfortunately, when StarCraft was first revealed to the public in 1996, the game received a lacklustre reception from fans. This was due to the fact that, at the time, StarCraft looked like a reskinned version of WarCraft II. The user interface and graphics looked lifted right from Blizzard’s earlier work. Due to this response, it became necessary to overhaul StarCraft’s engine (previously, it used WarCraft II’s engine). This was actually done in a matter of weeks, if you can believe it. The changes allowed for improved graphics and unit abilities (such as Zerg units burrowing) that were not possible prior to the overhaul.

With this entry, Blizzard Entertainment wanted to get away from the two-race (Orcs and Humans) combat of their earlier WarCraft games, opting to go for a three-race formula — this proved vital to StarCraft’s success. Each race (Terrain, Protoss, and Zerg) had its own strengths and weaknesses, and in the coming days, players invented thoughtful and creative strategies for each faction when engaging in multiplayer. The story campaign also benefited greatly from having three races, allowing players to understand each faction's agenda and witness events from more than just two sides.

A little-known fact about the original StarCraft is that it actually had three expansions. With Blizzard's permission, Aztech New Media developed: StarCraft: Insurrection (not to be confused with Star Trek: Insurrection) and StarCraft: Retribution. For a time, these expansions were considered legitimate to the canon, but no longer. In December of 1998, Blizzard Entertainment released their own expansion, known as StarCraft: Brood War; this added more story content as well as additional units and structures for all three races.

Although Blizzard did not release another expansion, the franchise was far from done. StarCraft would release just a few years later on the Nintendo 64 (yes, you read that right). On the 13th of June 2000, StarCraft 64 was made available, and it went about as well as you can imagine. Due to the RTS (real-time strategy) nature of StarCraft, the N64 was far from the best way to play the game.

It would take until 2010 (StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty) for Blizzard Entertainment to publish a follow-up to their original game. But even during that downtime, the legacy of StarCraft endured; in South Korea, the beginnings of competitive esports were starting, with StarCraft firmly at its centre. StarCraft II would also enter into the competitive esports arena, becoming even more popular than its predecessor. The franchise would go on to be considered the defining standard for the RTS genre. In 2017, Blizzard Entertainment decided to remaster StarCraft and its expansion StarCraft: Brood War, allowing the game to be played with HD graphics for the first time.

What do you think of StarCraft? Is it your favourite franchise from Blizzard? Let us know down in the comments section.