Blizzard Entertainment to offer a range of access options for its upcoming real-time strategy game
Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. today announced that its highly anticipated real-time strategy game, StarCraftII®: Wings of Liberty?, will be available in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand for IDR 700,000 / MYR 248 / PHP 3,500 / SGD 109 / THB 2,500. With this purchase, players will be able to play online for no additional fee through the new version of Battle.net®, the premier online gaming destination for Blizzard Entertainment gamers.
In addition to the unlimited-access option described above, Blizzard Entertainment will be providing alternative pricing options following the launch of StarCraft II. Details and pricing for these options will be announced at a later date.
"One of our design goals for StarCraft II was to make it accessible to a wide range of players, from beginners to veterans," said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. "The same is true with regard to our pricing options -- we want to make sure players have the flexibility to experience the game according to their own preferences and play style."
StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty is the sequel to Blizzard Entertainment’s 1998 hit StarCraft, which has been hailed by players and critics worldwide as one of the top real-time strategy games of all time. StarCraft II will once again center on the clash between the protoss, terrans, and zerg, with each side deploying favorite units from the original StarCraft, along with numerous upgraded and brand-new units and abilities that allow for fresh tactics and strategies. The game's new 3D-graphics engine maintains the speed and responsive control of its predecessor while rendering hundreds of units onscreen for massive battles.
StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty's solo campaign will continue the epic saga where it left off in StarCraft: Brood War®. The storyline chronicles the exploits of marshal-turned-rebel-leader Jim Raynor and features both familiar faces and new heroes. Players will be able to tailor the experience, choosing their own mission path and selecting technology and research upgrades to suit their playing style
throughout the 29-mission campaign.
Several challenge-mode mini-games will also be included, with focused goals designed to ease players into the basics of multiplayer strategies. In addition, dozens of multiplayer maps will be available for competitive play through the new version of Battle.net, which is launching alongside StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty. This new version of the service has been built from the ground up to offer an
unparalleled online play experience, with new features such as voice communication, character profiles and achievements, stat-tracking, ladders and leagues, cloud file storage, and more.
StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty will be available on DVD-ROM for Windows® XP/Windows Vista®/Windows® 7 and Macintosh®. Additional information about the game,
including the release date, will be announced in the coming weeks.
About Blizzard Entertainment, Inc.
Best known for blockbuster hits including World of Warcraft® and the Warcraft®, StarCraft®, and Diablo® series, Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. (www.blizzard.com),
a division of Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI), is a premier developer and publisher of entertainment software renowned for creating some of the industry’s most critically acclaimed games. Blizzard Entertainment’s track record includes eleven #1-selling games and multiple Game of the Year awards. The company’s online-gaming service, Battle.net®, is one of the largest in the world, with millions of active players.
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