Once you've completed the campaign it doesn't spell the end of the game, there's a plethora of achievements to earn which cover all the missions, each mission has five difficulties, from very easy, all the way to brutality, which as the name suggests, will really test your skill, and patience. These achievements are interwoven throughout the Battle.net experience, each providing points to show off to your friends, much like a GamerScore from Xbox Live. When one is earned your friends will be alerted via a popup showing what you achieved. Some of them are insanely difficult, surviving an 8 player free-for-all game on insane (the hardest AI difficulty outside of the campaign), others have you rushing the enemy and defeating it in under 5 minutes on all difficulties. Each is categorised into its own separate group which once competed will net you a portrait to use for your account, bragging rights if you will. Achievements are pretty much standard these days, they're offered on Xbox Live, Steam and the PlayStation Network, but Blizzard have created such a diverse set to earn, some of which only the most dedicated and hardcore will achieve, yet they offer something to work towards, even if it'll take you a few years.
Battle.net is Blizzard's own dashboard for multiplayer gaming, it was in the original StarCraft and it's in StarCraft II, yet the service has been completely overhauled, mostly in a good way, but with some drawbacks. Firstly you'll need to create a Battle.net account to play StarCraft II, you'll also need to be connected to the internet to earn achievements, even in the campaign, obviously a move to curb cheating. The new service is designed to be a social experience, you add your friends to the in game friends list, you can see what game they're in, check their stats, and send them messages, you'll also get a notification when your friend receives an achievement as mentioned earlier. The new service also includes voice chat, which works surprisingly well, you hit tab to talk and players in your party can hear and chat back.
One of the main drawbacks with the new Battle.net is the loss of the player chat rooms, cross game chat, and player lobbies, these were a great way to find new friends and gamers on Battle.net in the original StarCraft, each region had its own chat rooms where players hung out, swapped tips, talked trash, and generally had a decent conversation. You could even send players messages with a number of commands if they were on any one of Blizzards games that used Battle.net such as StarCraft, Diablo and WarCraft, because each game used a similar service, each were interconnected. Yet the new Battle.net has lost these functions, Blizzard claims they are aiming to make it a more social experience, but they've taken away some of the most social aspects. When you join a game with other players you can add them to your friends list but when players join a game, they join to play, not to chat and make friends. You can associate your account with Facebook, sending invites out to your Facebook friends and letting them know you own the game, but it isn't a compromise for the apparent lack in features which were one of the staples of the Battle.net games. These missing features do not tarnish the game in any way, they merely tarnish the experience through the Battle.net service, so don't let them put you off, you would be doing yourself a great disservice if you did.
Minus the social drawbacks there are numerous improvements to be found, joining a game is much easier now, the original StarCraft had you browse for a game, if it wasn't full and you got in you would download the map if it was a custom game and have a high chance of being kicked because you were either classed as a "noob" (new player), or of having a slow internet connection when in actual fact it could be the host making it slow. Often you would get kicked and banned from games, the only way to avoid it was to join a game and scream in the chat channel "don't kick me! I'm not a noob!" at times it worked, at most it didn't. In StarCraft II these problems are gone, maps are hosted by Blizzard and you can browse the current popular custom maps or pre-made ones to play on which are hosted by Blizzard themselves and not the player. If you try and join a game and it's full then you'll automatically be put into a new room with the same map and settings for other players to join, it's a much more pleasant experience, making game finding less of a chore.
The multiplayer side is really where StarCraft II will outlast other games in the same genre, there are three highly balanced races to play with on maps of up to 8 players. There are also a number of game modes you can play, team matches, free-for-all, 1vs1's, 4v4's and custom games, these are just to name but a few. Custom games are where you'll find the crazy custom maps people make which can alter the game quite considerably, with StarCraft II's map editor, which anyone can use to create and upload a map, it offers something new every day of the week. Just like the original you'll also be able to play in the leagues and ladders which offer a more competitive style of play for those who think they're the best. There's also leaderboards where you can see your ranking against your friends or your region, each of the league games have set options to make the game fair for all parties and the rewards for winning are not only a place on the leaderboard but also some new portraits if you win a set amount of games, some of which number in the thousands.
The game has been in production for quite a while, yet it doesn't look like a game that has aged before release like others do, it keeps its set perspective and same style as the original, its been given a new coat of paint and some fancy effects, but it works for StarCraft and it works well. The system requirements needed aren't huge, the game was designed to run on aging machines which have seen better days on the lowest settings, for those with high-end gaming PCs then you'll be able to have the eye candy turned to full, and it looks pretty fantastic, especially the in-game rendered cutscenes. The campaign shows off many of the environments you'll find yourself fighting across in multiplayer and each has its own set of quirks and touches, NPC civilians will help destroy an enemy base in one mission and cheer on as you help, in others they'll need your protection, other touches include birds that fly around, animals that populate the landscape, yet the game still keeps its futuristic Sci-Fi feel. The sound effects and music are equally as impressive, Jim Raynor has the voice of a troubled war veteran, you hear it as he conveys himself across to his troops, Tychus on the other hand, Jim's friend, takes on the action hero who just wants to kick ass, he's in the war for the money, plain and simple, yet his deep voice instills a great reflection of the type of character he truly is and what he becomes.
StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty is the natural evolution in the series, it takes what kept the original going for over 10 years, embraces it, builds on it, and improves it. It offers endless replayability through its multiplayer component, the Battle.net service, and all the competitive league matches to custom maps and game modes which can change the game entirely, all of which can be built through the map editor which is included. It is a game that could easily last another ten years, though Blizzard plan on two more games which complete the story from the Zerg and Protoss perspectives, Heart of the Swarm and Legacy of the Void. Even without these it could stand on its own two feet proudly as one of the best RTS games currently available. Fans will love it, making it a must purchase. if you have any interest in the game then you need to pick it up, even if you don't play the multiplayer that often, the campaign is an enjoyable experience which leaves a lasting impression.
