Ep 38: When Gaming Changed Forever | Star Craft Brood Wars
StarCraft was a sensation in the late 90’s and a staple of every PC Gamers’ repertoire. It took the already acclaimed Warcraft formula and brought it to a galaxy far far away, complete with hillbilly military prisoners, vicious bug-o-morphs, and sanctimonious ninja aliens. What started as a flagrant spoof on the Alien movies, Star Trek, Star Wars, and other popular sci fi vibes of the time became a force that ushered gaming and esports into vogue.
Starcraft is also the gold standard in RTS design. It’s three races, the Terran (greedy, backstabbing humans), the Protoss (religious space ninjas), and the Zerg (a race of nope), all are distinctly different from one another but are somehow balanced competitively. This is no mean feat by today’s standards. Each game of StarCraft feels distinctly different from the last with varying terrain and having to reach deep into the capabilities of each race to conquer effectively. This makes it an addicting proposition for even a bunch of lifelong console gamers.
With a sequel out that encapsulates its predecessor with better graphics, familiar faces, and quality of life improvements, Brood War somehow still remains very playable. A remaster launched in 2017 to keep the game fresh, and by community request kept all of its quirks intact.
As if the in-game content wasn’t enough, the expansion allowed players around the world to create their own maps and even some full blown RPGs, all over glorious dial up internet! This was way before Mario Maker and even spawned several gaming genres such as MOBA. Starcraft Brood War is a masterpiece and takes its place in the Retro Game League.
Join the guys and special guest, Mike, co-host of The Old Switcharoo Podcast as they build exactly no stars in StarCraft Brood War. If you enjoy the content, leave a like or head over to your favorite listening platform and leave us a fair rating/review. It’s the best way to keep the channel alive.
Links
Have a game you want to enter into the league or a question of the week?
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Our Theme Music is “Seahorse Dreams”, by Kubbi https://kubbi.bandcamp.com/
Check out Mike and Jaymo on the The Old Switcharoo Podcast: https://www.theoldswitcharoo.com/
Current Standings:
Apricorn Cup:
J.J. Squawkers; Eternal Darkness; Act Raiser; Pokemon GSC; Mega Man Soccer
Poke Ball Cup:
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest; Street Fighter 3: Third Strike; The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages; Final Fantasy Tactics; Legend of Dragoon
Great Ball Cup: Paper Mario
Mike (Lowbacca1997)
Podcast Host/ Streamer
Beginning as a science-driven kid, Mike has always been deep in the nerd realm. He started gaming on Atari - he's not that old, that's just what was available - and so retro gaming has always been present in his life. More of a PC gamer, he has had forays into console gaming for things that PC gaming couldn't provide like the original Pokemon, but otherwise got most of his console exposure at friend's houses, especially Jaymo's. On PC, he's tended more towards strategy games of one kind or another rather than games that favor a single player (from Roller Coaster Tycoon and Theme Hospital to Crusader Kings II and Civ V).
An astronomer by hobby and training, Mike spent several years living in Tennessee while completing a PhD in physics before returning home to Southern California to work as an applications developer managing access to astronomical data, particularly as it relates to the discovery of planets outside our solar system. On the side, he's also the editor and primary contributor to the super-real and super-serious astronomical journal Acta Prima Aprilia, characterized by its annual issues every April First.
In his free non-gaming time, he's usually either going to concerts or watching movies, and he's constantly exploring the weird edges of cinema.
