Starcraft 2 is now free to play!

[Rufus]

Download here!

 

[Rufus]

Galaxy editor is included! Will this start a new era for the Hive?

Get excited people!

 

[Abovegame]

What does this exactly mean, what do we get too and what about the Galaxy editor ?

 

[Rufus]

[...]what do we get too[...]

What do you mean?

Galaxy editor? Check!

 

[Abovegame]

I haven't played SC2 that much.Couple of custom games with MiniMage and Tank-Commander.Never opened the galaxy editor but i saw some videos that you can't use the content from the expansions only the base version.

 

[Championfighter25]

I doubt that Starcraft II going free to play will start a new era for the Hive. Maybe now we can have contests more frequently for Starcraft II if anyone is interested in hosting them, but beyond that i don't see anything else changing.
The true new era will begin when Warcraft IV is released! At least let me dream...
I played Starcraft II before a lot, but lost interest at some time since a huge part of the game was locked and i simply couldn't buy it. I may give it another try now.

 

[deepstrasz]

I doubt that Starcraft II going free to play will start a new era for the Hive. Maybe now we can have contests more frequently for Starcraft II if anyone is interested in hosting them, but beyond that i don't see anything else changing.

Not if they keep the editor the way it is (with no easy mode like the World Editor) and don't include a custom campaign section to the game as in The Frozen Throne.

The true new era will begin when Warcraft IV is released! At least let me dream...

Doubtful if they follow the similar model StarCraft II has.

@Rufus StarCraft II is made of three games. Which one are we talking about here? Wings of Liberty only (as the logo shows) or all three? If not all of them, what does the Galaxy Editor include?

 

[Rufus]

I'm not too familiar with Starcraft, so I can't answer that yet. Whoever discovers it can share it here.

 

[Championfighter25]

StarCraft II is made of three games. Which one are we talking about here? Wings of Liberty only (as the logo shows) or all three? If not all of them, what does the Galaxy Editor include?

In the official Blizzard site it says and i quote:
"you can now play all of StarCraft II’s multiplayer, every Co-op Commander, and the entire first campaign in the single-player story, for free."

 

[deepstrasz]

I'm not too familiar with Starcraft, so I can't answer that yet. Whoever discovers it can share it here.

What I get from scrolling down on the game's site is:

 

[Shar Dundred]

Will this start a new era for the Hive?

I used to think like that as well.
Didn't work out and now Hive's SC2 section is rotting in the trash.
Would like to share your optimism, but I can't.

 

[Championfighter25]

What I get from scrolling down on the game's site is:
View attachment 285739

This should be what you are searching for:
http://us.battle.net/sc2/en/blog/21173629/starcraft-ii-going-free-to-play-explained-11-3-2017

 

[Rufus]

I used to think like that as well.
Didn't work out and now Hive's SC2 section is rotting in the trash.
Would like to share your optimism, but I can't.

Well, I thought it may have a different impact this time since it is FREE
Let's hope, shall we?

 

[pyf]

This should be what you are searching for:
http://us.battle.net/sc2/en/blog/21173629/starcraft-ii-going-free-to-play-explained-11-3-2017

Eat at Joe's:

"[...] If you picked up Wings of Liberty previously but haven’t come back to StarCraft II in a while, we’ve got good news for you too—if you purchased Wings of Liberty prior to October 31, 2017, you’ll receive the second installment in StarCraft II’s campaign, the zerg-focused Heart of the Swarm, as a limited time offer from November 8 to December 8. Make sure to log in during that window to claim it! [...]"

Limited Time Offer: Get Heart of the Swarm for Free - Blizzard Entertainment

 

[A Void]

Kinda old news, this has been known for a while now, why post it now? SC2 is pretty much dead at this point, that's why they're making it free to play, don't think it's from the kindness of their hearts. Devs are trying so hard to revive it, sadly, failing horribly. The only thing sustaining SC2 is ladder, tournaments and campaigns.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Kinda old news, this has been known for a while now, why post it now? SC2 is pretty much dead at this point, that's why they're making it free to play, don't think it's from the kindness of their hearts. Devs are trying so hard to revive it, sadly, failing horribly. The only thing sustaining SC2 is ladder, tournaments and campaigns.

Don't forget Co-Op and Arcade/Custom Maps.

The true new era will begin when Warcraft IV is released! At least let me dream...

My main issue with Starcraft II is that while the editor is very powerful, it's also more complicated and cumbersome to use (well, at least for me).

What I hope is that with Warcraft IV they will focus more on making the map editing tools way more simple and intuitive, so that more people might potentially get into map making.

StarCraft II is made of three games. Which one are we talking about here?

Don't know about the Galaxy Editor, but as far as I know what you currently get for free is:
1. Wings of Liberty full campaign and if you owned WoL you get Heart of the Swarm full campaign as well.
2. Full access to multiplayer and arcade.
3. Raynor, Kerrigan and Artanis commanders + all other commanders up to level 5 to play on all co-op maps.

So, basically the only locked things are HotS/LotV campaign (granted you didn't own anything and didn't unlock HotS for free) and most co-op commanders beyond level 5.

 

[Daffa]

The Galaxy Editor is new I recall...

Anyway, maybe something can be done for this game...

 

[chobibo]

Maybe more people would get interested in making maps for it now that it's free. I never got gud on melee games, have a hard time multitasking...

 

[MasterBlaster]

Maybe more people would get interested in making maps for it now that it's free. I never got gud on melee games, have a hard time multitasking...

I was gold/plat back when WoL launched.

My guess is that with a slightly better gaming setup and practice I would probably get up to diamond in time, but what really killed it for me is that SC 2 like most online games these days has become all about the "meta". I seriously dislike playing games that require me to almost mindlessly execute someone else's build or strategy and SC 2's melee required you to do just that - memorize a bunch of builds and then practice them time and time again. That plus multitasking you mentioned is basically the core of SC 2's melee.

 

[Chaosy]

SC2 is actually a pretty neat game.
I adore the campaigns and co-op.

But I tried the editor a bit, did not like it.

 

[Frotty]

Yes, sadly editor still isn't up to par. There are still limitations to galaxy and one Must use that new OE for almost everything which isn't nice.

 

[Dr Super Good]

One can trigger perfectly smooth movement thanks to movement interpolation, a feature that has existed since SC2 launched. This might not be as smooth as the in built missile system as far as paths go (that has 2 interpolation points per frame instead of 1 so suffers less from position aliasing when curving) however it is still smooth enough for most purposes.

The only thing it has problem with is smooth UI animations. Even those can be worked around if one is willing to model stuff.

 

[ThinhHo]

I downloaded a custom campaign for SC2 free to play and started it from the Galaxy Editor (To what I know, that's the only way you can start your custom campaigns from), the feature is locked since it requires us to make at least one purchase before we can use that feature.

 

[Dr Super Good]

Many campaigns are distributed as separate maps in the arcade/custom games. These should be able to be played for free for years already.

 

[Stefan.K]

I just downloaded it from the link in the first post but when I try to open it I get these errors. First I get the first window on the picture and when I click "ok" I get the other one.

 

[Dr Super Good]

I just downloaded it from the link in the first post but when I try to open it I get these errors. First I get the first window on the picture and when I click "ok" I get the other one.

Are you on Windows XP? No modern Blizzard games run on XP. No one uses Windows XP anymore.

In fact Blizzard only supports Windows 7 (with most recent SP) and newer OS. Soon they will also drop 32bit OS support some time in 2018.

Why? Because supporting XP and 32bit is greatly limiting the performance of their games.

 

[Stefan.K]

Are you on Windows XP? No modern Blizzard games run on XP. No one uses Windows XP anymore.

In fact Blizzard only supports Windows 7 (with most recent SP) and newer OS. Soon they will also drop 32bit OS support some time in 2018.

Why? Because supporting XP and 32bit is greatly limiting the performance of their games.

Yeah I use XP. Too bad. My computer can't run Windows 7 or above. It lags all the time. Well that's another game I won't play..

 

[Dr Super Good]

Well that's another game I won't play..

Well seeing how no modern games run on XP and most do not run on 32bit OS, I doubt this is news to you.

It lags all the time.

XP inherently performs terribly due to bad (no) hardware acceleration support with windows composition. That said your computer sounds so old it probably does not even support hardware accelerated windows composition.

I am running Windows 10 on a 9 year old processor and performance is pretty good considering. Plays HotS, SC2, D3 etc.

 

[Stefan.K]

Well seeing how no modern games run on XP and most do not run on 32bit OS, I doubt this is news to you.
XP inherently performs terribly due to bad (no) hardware acceleration support with windows composition. That said your computer sounds so old it probably does not even support hardware accelerated windows composition.

I am running Windows 10 on a 9 year old processor and performance is pretty good considering. Plays HotS, SC2, D3 etc.

I'm not just that serious about the computer to get a new one just for games. Even if this one lags as hell even when I use my browser. On facebook the most.
My computer is old too. But it still lasts, that's for sure.

 

[pyf]

@Stefan.K : fyi, these are the current official system requirements to run StarCraft II:
StarCraft II System Requirements
(last update was two days ago)

When StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty was first released in July 2010, XP and Vista were (obviously) supported OSes.
What are the System Requirements for StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty

[...] No one uses Windows XP anymore. [...]

** cough ** I doubt it.

XP inherently performs terribly due to bad (no) hardware acceleration support with windows composition. That said your computer sounds so old it probably does not even support hardware accelerated windows composition.

Windows (composition) - Wikipedia
I will have to check it out.
...
...
... Oops, silly me, you mean this?
DirectComposition (Windows)


DirectComposition was introduced in Windows 8. It is included in 32-bit, 64-bit, and ARM platforms.

 

[MasterBlaster]

I'm not just that serious about the computer to get a new one just for games. Even if this one lags as hell even when I use my browser. On facebook the most.

Well, if your computer lags as hell even when browsing the internet, I'd consider buying a new one more like a general quality of life improvement If you do not intend to play newer games, you could get yourself a decent all-round PC for relatively cheap Still, it's your choice, though

 

[Stefan.K]

@Stefan.K : fyi, these are the current official requirements to run StarCraft II:
StarCraft II System Requirements
(last update was two days ago)

Thanks! Even thought it doesn't mean nothing to me as my PC is 512 mb RAM and 128 graphic card. Pretty low I know.

Well, if your computer lags as hell even when browsing the internet, I'd consider buying a new one more like a general quality of life improvement If you do not intend to play newer games, you could get yourself a decent all-round PC for relatively cheap Still, it's your choice, though

Yeah I know and am aware of it. But I doubt I will get a new computer in the near future.

 

[Dr Super Good]

DirectComposition was introduced in Windows 8. It is included in 32-bit, 64-bit, and ARM platforms.

I was referring to WPF and DWM technology. Rather than GDI which used to be used.

Before all windows had to be composed by GDI. This meant that in order for part of a window to be drawn the OS first had to signal the application to redraw that part of the window or even the entire window. If the application was too busy to process the event then that window may be unresponsive or show visual garbage. Even moving a window required the entire window content be redrawn. Redrawing of windows with GDI was once hardware accelerated, but with XP introducing GDI+ hardware acceleration became less common. Windows Vista disabled GDI hardware acceleration completely but a small part of that functionality was restored for Windows 7.

WPF technology meant that a window is composed of a list of drawing instructions. When part of a window needed to be redrawn the OS could query the windows drawing instructions directly and redraw that part itself without having to notify the application at all about this happening. All the drawing instructions are vectorised allowing for the OS to easily hardware accelerate them.

The reason modern OS feel a lot more responsive is a large combination of factors. All standard windows, eg Explorer, were made to use WPF allowing them to be inherently more responsive and less computationally intensive. Windows Vista introduced a Desktop Windows Manager to compose all Windows which was designed with parallelism in mind so multiple windows can be composed at once. GDI applications also render to buffers with the DWM system responsible for displaying them meaning that moving windows no longer requires any GDI redraw event which greatly improves move responsiveness of even old GDI applications. Windows 7 improved on this further by allowing some very basic hardware acceleration for GDI.

This extract from Wikipedia explains everything...

 

[pyf]

@Stefan.K: for the record, this is what Blizzard says officially about XP and Vista compatibility:
Windows XP and Windows Vista Aren't Supported

Please do note that it also applies to StarCraft


** Update **

Might be worth reading maybe?
https://us.battle.net/forums/en/bnet/topic/20759436103?

 

[pyf]

** Update **

Might be worth reading maybe?
https://us.battle.net/forums/en/bnet/topic/20759436103?

@Stefan.K: did the link I provided shed any light regarding your issue?

 

[Stefan.K]

@Stefan.K: did the link I provided shed any light regarding your issue?

I didn't checked it yet. I am really busy with my college and i am away if my computer. I will check it out.

 

[Rui]

No one uses Windows XP anymore.

@Stefan.K if you are trying to run StarCraft II, don't bother. Blizzard ended Windows XP support for SC2 on the first week of October. I have all system requirements for SC2 and, when I try to launch, the app throws an error explicitly saying my OS is no longer supported and that I must upgrade.

 

[pyf]

According to the thread I linked to earlier, this issue is not limited to XP and applies to recent versions of the app ("9601, 9665, 9669, 9679 all have the same problem")

Has someone tried to launch the game with an older version of the App?

 

[Dr Super Good]

According to the thread I linked to earlier, this issue is not limited to XP and applies with recent versions of the app ("9601, 9665, 9669, 9679 all have the same problem")

What issue? I can confirm that SC2 works on reasonably modern hardware and a fresh Windows 10 install. If there is an error saying a DLL is missing then it is either missing from the OS due to corruption or unsupported OS or it is missing from the drivers due to corrupted or unsupported drivers.

StarCraft II does not work on XP and Vista anymore. I am not even sure disk version run on XP anymore as I recall them requiring internet activation and that only works for the latest patch version of StarCraft II which does not support XP and Vista.

 

[pyf]

According to the thread linked above, even some people with officially supported OSes may experience issues with the current versions of the Blizzard App. There are some official solutions in the thread (which do or do not work), as well as unofficial workarounds by Blizzard enthusiasts (which also do or do not work)


Blizzard is quite active in the thread. Therefore it is both worth mentioning and checking out imho:
https://us.battle.net/forums/en/bnet/topic/20759436103?