As a dedicated Blizzard fan with over two decades of gaming under my belt, I can’t help but feel a mix of excitement and trepidation about the rumored StarCraft shooter. Don’t get me wrong; I’ve been there for the highs (Overwatch launch parties) and the lows (Diablo 4 delays), and I’ve seen Blizzard tackle everything from MMOs to FPS games with varying degrees of success.
Following multiple years dedicated to games like Overwatch and World of Warcraft, creating remasters, becoming part of Xbox, and the release of Diablo 4, Blizzard could potentially be working on an unexpected new game. This speculation arises from an IGN interview with Jason Schreier, a reporter from Bloomberg, about his upcoming book on Blizzard titled Play Nice. The focus is on Dan Hay, former lead of Far Cry, who appears to be developing a shooter within the StarCraft universe at Blizzard since 2022. Earlier reports indicated Hay was managing a survival project called Odyssey, but its cancellation in January 2024 seems to have redirected him towards this StarCraft project instead.
It’s been quite some time since Blizzard has made any major moves with the StarCraft IP following the decline of its competitive scene in StarCraft 2 compared to its predecessor. However, it seems like the right moment for them to take another swing at it. The latest releases under the StarCraft banner were StarCraft: Remastered and StarCraft 2: Campaign Collection back in 2017. These games will be available on PC Game Pass starting November 2024, but otherwise, the series hasn’t had much activity. A new StarCraft game could revitalize one of Blizzard’s most iconic franchises; however, opting for a shooter spin-off rather than a true StarCraft 3 might be a costly misstep.
A StarCraft Shooter Sounds Like The Wrong Move
The main issue here can be boiled down to a single statement, which is that StarCraft fans want StarCraft 3. Despite the fan base having aged significantly and the real-time strategy genre having mostly fallen out of favor alongside StarCraft 2, there is still an enduring passion for the franchise and its gameplay. StarCraft 1 and its Brood War expansion would not have joined Super Smash Bros. Melee and Halo 3 as their communities’ preferred competitive titles without endearing themselves to their players, and the StarCraft community would no doubt receive at least StarCraft 3‘s announcement with open arms.
Blizzard Can’t Afford To Split Its FPS Efforts
Instead of focusing on the rumored StarCraft project being a shooter, it’s essential to consider fans’ expectations. Given Blizzard’s proficiency in first-person hero-centric shooters like Overwatch and Overwatch 2, the new project is likely to follow suit. However, Overwatch has been engulfed in constant controversies since its name switch, and a newcomer, Marvel Rivals, seems poised to challenge it. Introducing another Blizzard game into this saturated market may not create the desired impact, and that’s just one of the challenges a StarCraft shooter might face.
StarCraft Shooters Are Already Saddled With Red Flags
The market for shooter games is flooded, whereas real-time strategy (RTS) games are scarcely found these days, and Blizzard’s StarCraft series has been questionable for quite some time now. This new project, rumored to be the third StarCraft shooter, follows in the footsteps of its predecessors which didn’t survive. Throughout Blizzard’s history, many projects have been scrapped, such as the 2019 shooter set in the StarCraft universe, Ares, and StarCraft: Ghost, announced in 2002 but ultimately canceled in 2014 after years of delays. Even though Nova, the protagonist from Ghost, found a place in StarCraft 2 and Heroes of the Storm, the disappointment over the lost opportunity for a successful StarCraft FPS remains strong among older fans.
The Risk Of A StarCraft FPS Outweighs The Reward
If this new StarCraft game can fight past Blizzard’s cancelation track record, ongoing talent bleed, and hero shooter redundancies, followed up by penetrating a potentially full hero shooter market where Concord just failed, then maybe it has a chance. That’s a monumental long shot, and if the project is still in its infancy, pivoting to a better genre for StarCraft is the better choice. As hard of a sell as an RTS is these days, returning StarCraft to its home genre is still a safer bet than turning it into a shooter.
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2024-10-01 22:05