June 2009 Press Event Coverage

Irvine, CA

by Rylin

Last Monday Blizzard invited select members of the press which also included prominent admins and staff members from various fan sites within the StarCraft community. Through various circumstances, yours truly was graciously invited to attend the occasion and delve into the details Blizzard set to unveil to everyone at the event.

(The guards carry automatic rifles and I may have spotted a sniper on the roof)

As the event got underway we were all filed into Blizzard’s private theater room lined with comfy leather chairs and a great view of the screen in front of us. Some of the development team was present with Dustin Browder and Robert Simpson (e-sports team member at Blizzard) about ready to get the show rolling. As the lights dimmed, Dustin Browder discussed various aspects of the game in its current state and showed us up on the screen how the multiplayer menus and screens are coming along. Although many were expecting some news on the upcoming revamp of Blizzard’s Battle.net service, they decided to cut that out from the event as they needed to give it that last bit of polish before its ready for the public’s eyes.

(The famed Orc Rider Statue to the left and Nova standing proud to the right)

As the quick introductions and comments about the game winded down, Dustin loaded up a live match between David Kim and another prominent figure I can’t recall as of this writing. Dustin Browder ended up showing about 3 live matches, all of which were discussed in great detail as they unfolded. Questions from the audience followed shortly after and many of which couldn’t be answered in regards to the beta and the updated Battle.net service.

A lunch soon followed in Blizzard’s main eating area and served various hot sandwiches (I went with the meatball sandwich). The photo seen below unfortunately came out bad due to the iPhone’s camera quality limits.

From left to right: AJ (starcraft.org), Derek (friend of AJ), Ryan (starcraftzone.com), Jason (campaigncreations.org)

After finishing up our free lunches (thanks Blizzard) all staff members from various fan sites were taken upstairs where we were able to play the latest build of the game first-hand. To simply say we were able to play the game is an understatement as we were able to play for pretty much the entire day. Many matches took place between various site staff and everyone had a great time playing and competing against one another. Some of us were far more experienced in playing the game and I definitely wasn’t one of them!

Check out these exclusive in-game screenshots

In between playing StarCraft II the majority of the day, we were also offered an exclusive tour of Blizzard’s various offices around the campus including a first ever tour of the development areas where StarCraft II is feverishly being worked on. We were also taken passed a statue of Sarah Kerrigan, ‘Queen’ of the entire Zerg race as seen below in this photo.

(Will this fit in my room?)

Much of the areas we toured were off limits to cameras and other photo-taking devices but it was exciting to see the guys and gals responsible for some of the greatest PC franchises working hard at their desks. Many cubicles were decorated to fit the personality and/or to make each employee feel right at home and some of them were pretty impressive. One such example had one cubicle littered with large plants and other assorted items that made the entire area feel like it was placed in a rain forest – I’m impressed! 

(Carrier artwork adorns the Blizzard library wall)

Lastly, I couldn’t forget to mention we were able to glimpse into the room which looked like NASA mission control that oversees the servers that run the biggest MMO in the world, World of Warcraft. Large monitors were lined across the front wall and rows of desks similar to NASA’s control center were all monitoring the game’s servers and performance 24/7.

Although I’m sure many were expecting something along the lines of a beta announcement or information regarding the improved Battle.net service, the hands-on time the press and fan sites had with the game and the discussions we had with Dustin Browder among others about the game, more than made up for that. Our excitement for StarCraft II has never been greater and seeing the current level of polish first-hand is evident that the beta is likely weeks from going public. Dustin assured us all while chatting with him that all of them are anxious to get the game out there and the moment they feel it’s ready to go, they won’t hesitate to get the beta out there.  Hang in there guys, the beta and the game itself finally have the finish line in sight.