Ahhhh, that's the stuff!  As we wake up today on what would ordinarily be just a normal Tuesday, we instead find ourselves awakening to the continuation of what is arguably the greatest strategy game of all time

StarCraft has sold over 11 million copies since its release back in March of 1998, which is enough to put it on the list of the best selling games of all time.  The RTS took the world by storm enabling a hit expansion, multiple novels, dedicated television shows, professionals sponsored players, and now the sequel that is sure to be the top-selling game of the summer; StarCraft 2: Wings of Liberty.

StarCraft II picks up with our old buddy Jim Raynor as he must fight the Zerg hoard to save the galaxy and pay a visit to his old friend and betrayer Sarah Kerrigan…

Although this sounds like the makings for a pretty good MMO RPG, StarCraft 2 (SC2) is a real-time simulator (RTS) with an immersive storyline, addicting gameplay and amazing graphics.  SC2 also offers single player and multiplayer modes for hours of entertainment.

Single player gives you the option of playing in a well thought out campaign with a compelling back story and a strong voice cast.  Or if you simply want to beat up some computer players, you have the ability to create single matches against the AI without assistance or with other computers on your team for some co-op style play. And of course, challenge mode in which you face multiple computers on various difficulties all trying to kill you at the same time.

Multiplayer offers the same ability to create games both with and without computers, friend or foe, but as you would expect, with your friends over Blizzard’s own in-house multiplayer network.  Although, this isn't your grandpa's Battle.net.

Review for StarCraft II

8.0

Now for gamers who are disabled StarCraft II is an amazingly accessible game.

Click here to read the review

Bnet, as the cool kids call it, has been completely redesigned to offer more flexibility, achievements, and the controversial Real I.D.  The controversy comes into play because of the integration of Facebook and your real name. If you so choose, players can identify and friend you under your Real I.D., allowing them to find you no matter what screen name or game you're in at any time but at the cost of them knowing your real name.

You do not have to take advantage of the friends feature but it is one of the features Blizzard redesigned Battle.net to be able to handle.  As annoying as it is to some, the feature makes getting games with your friends much easier than it used to be.

In addition, if the original gameplay isn't your thing, StarCraft II comes with its own custom map editor that allows players like you and me to come up with our own ideas on what a good map should be.  Veterans will recall games like Zone Control, Evolutions, Golems, RPGs featuring heroes, and many other custom-made delights that are only limited by our imaginations.

The only downside is that it will be a couple of months until the really good custom maps start to appear as the SC2 fans around the world begin to decipher the map editor and figure out how to put together tomorrow's greatest maps.

Did You Know?Strange that the lead producer and the lead art director from Starcraft II are both colorblind to some colors and yet colorblind options were not pushed through for the initial release. You can check what other things we learned when we interviewd Chris Sigaty Lead Producer of Starcraft II right here.

Now for gamers who are disabled, StarCraft II is an amazingly accessible game.  To start with motion impaired gamers; the good news is the game can be played with the mouse only - after entering your password, of course.  There are keyboard shortcuts for every single menu item, unit command, camera control and building but you must use the mouse to place your buildings and command your units in battle.

There is a built in mouse sensitivity adjustment slider, however, it is set to 50% as the default setting. It was very difficult for me to use the mouse well enough to reach the options screen.  In addition, the game screen comes on at a higher resolution then you may desire.  It may be a good idea to have someone with you when first installing the game until you get the options situated as your desire.

Once these problems are taken care of, the game settings can actually be set to the point where everything is so sensitive it is difficult to control, which is music to the ears of those who have very little range of motion.

Whether you use a mouse, a gamepad, or a joystick, every setting from the mouse speed to the camera scroll speed and drag-box speed can be set incredibly high.

You can also put StarCraft 2 into windowed mode, which will allow your on-screen keyboard to work properly.  There were some minor issues during beta that seem to have been worked out now, such as some on-screen keyboards not being recognized but most of the difficulties seem to have been ironed out.

One of the most annoying problems with both the original StarCraft and WarCraft 3 is in order to join games you have to have the ability to type in the name of the game and the password. That meant you would have to keep the game in windowed mode, which makes scrolling around the map with your mouse incredibly annoying, in order to join password-protected games with your friends.

The one nice thing about Real I.D. is that with a click of the mouse you can invite your friends into your game or have them invite you without the need for any keyboard interaction. This is especially useful for those times where you don't want to use your OSK or Voice Command software while you are on a voice chat with your friends.

In fact, in yet another positive feature for the motion impaired gamer, Blizzard included a voice chat directly into the game without the need to download any additional programs. Of course, if you are a shy person like me and prefer anonymity, you can turn this feature off.

One-handed gamers will need to decide what apparatus you need to play the game. If you can only use the keyboard then you will have a very difficult time. If you can only use the mouse or only use the mouse and keyboard separately, you'll have a relatively easy time.  This game is very mouse heavy with a lot of clicking but not like mashing buttons either.

Visually impaired gamers will also be relatively well-off in this well thought-out, accessibility-included game. You can zoom in and out as you need in order to see the action.  Most everything is clearly marked on menus and game creation screens.

Conversely, some of the units build order descriptions and instructions are a little bit small. Also, the game uses a very faint dashed line to point out where a unit is going to go or what structure it is assigned to. I could not find a way to change the color or stroke weight of the line to make it easier to see.

Colorblind gamers are relatively set this time around.  The mini-map features true to life colors that are easily discernible from one another.  However, it should be noted that each of the units are shaded by the color of the person who owns the units and since each person chooses their own color, there is the possibility of red and green confusion.

Change your color to something you can see easily and you should be fine.  Moreover, there are dozens of maps and eventually there will be hundreds of maps all with different colors. Some of them are going to be more difficult for certain visually challenged gamers than others. Choose your battlegrounds carefully and when possible, fight where it is easiest for you to see.

Deaf gamers are given just about everything we ask for in an accessible title with StarCraft 2.  First, underneath the gameplay options is an option for subtitling. We recommend using subtitles during the single player campaign and multiplayer matches.

They did a good job with including all of the important subtitles in a clear and easy-to-read font. Actually, the font is relatively easy to read in the subtitling and regular chat as a medium-sized white Times new Roman like font on a mostly transparent black background.

Also, depending on your level of hearing there are multiple settings to make the game enjoyable for you. You can use subtitles, turn off certain sounds, make other sounds louder, turn off the background noise and refuse voice chat.

Most Deaf gamers and hearing impaired gamers want the ability to alter different levels of sound to make things more enjoyable for them and we’re happy to report this game will give you those options.

Finally, although SC2 is too difficult to use with only one-switch, the game speed can be slowed down as slow as you like allowing those with assistive devices such as headmice and trackballs to keep up with the game.

Overall, StarCraft II is an amazingly brilliant game from the makers of World of Warcraft.  Almost every single option you can ask for as someone looking for a decent accessible gaming title is delivered willingly in this state-of-the-art RTS.

If you are looking for a really good strategy game with high accessibility standards and multiple levels of options, we recommend you give StarCraft II a try!