StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty

StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty
StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty cover artwork, depicting protagonist Jim Raynor
Developer(s)Blizzard Entertainment
Publisher(s)Blizzard Entertainment
Producer(s)Chris Sigaty
Designer(s)Dustin Browder
Programmer(s)Carl Chimes
Bob Fitch
Artist(s)Samwise Didier
Writer(s)Chris Metzen
Andrew Chambers
Brian Kindregan
Composer(s)Derek Duke
Glenn Stafford
Russell Brower
Neal Acree
SeriesStarCraft
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows[4]
macOS[5]
ReleaseJuly 27, 2010[1][2][3]
Genre(s)Real-time strategy
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty is a science fiction real-time strategy video game developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment. It was released worldwide in July 2010 for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X.[6] A sequel to the 1998 video game StarCraft and the Brood War expansion pack, the game is best known as the original installment of StarCraft II which was later followed by a number of expansion packs.[7] Wings of Liberty has been free-to-play since November 2017.

Like its predecessor, the game revolves around three species: the Terrans (humans), the Zerg (a super-species of assimilated life forms),[8] and the Protoss (a technologically advanced species with vast psionic powers). Wings of Liberty focuses on the Terrans, while the expansions, Heart of the Swarm and Legacy of the Void, would focus on the Zerg and Protoss, respectively. The game is set four years after the events of 1998's Brood War, and follows the exploits of Jim Raynor as he leads an insurgent group against the autocratic Terran Dominion. The game includes new and returning characters and locations from the original game.

The game was met with critical acclaim, receiving an aggregated score of 93% from Metacritic, and it has been cited as one of the greatest video games ever made. Similar to its predecessor, StarCraft II was praised for its engaging gameplay, as well as its introduction of new features and improved storytelling. The game was criticized for lacking features that existed in the original StarCraft game including LAN play and the ability to switch between multiplayer regions. At the time of its release, StarCraft II became the fastest-selling real-time strategy game, with over three million copies sold worldwide in the first month.

  1. ^ "StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty in stores starting July 27, 2010". Blizzard Entertainment. 2010-05-03. Archived from the original on 2020-11-09. Retrieved 2010-05-16.
  2. ^ "Starcraft II launches July 27" Archived 2012-01-07 at the Wayback Machine. GameSpot. Retrieved July 11, 2010.
  3. ^ "On Kotaku". Kotaku.com. 2010-05-03. Archived from the original on 2010-07-09. Retrieved 2010-07-26.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference officialfaq was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ "StarCraft II unveiled". IGN. 2007-05-19. Archived from the original on 2009-01-06. Retrieved 2009-01-06.
  6. ^ "Release Summary". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 2011-09-03. Retrieved 2011-01-29.
  7. ^ "StarCraft II split into trilogy". GameSpot. 2008-10-10. Archived from the original on 2019-09-29. Retrieved 2008-10-10.
  8. ^ "Zerg". Blizzard Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2019-02-16. Retrieved 2011-01-29.