Tech Blog

[#1]

The realm of real time strategy games dwindled in the wake of the original StarCraft . Claims were made for its crown, but the stalwart RTS that defined a generation has been loathe to give up its hard-earned conquest of the genre.

The format evolved with Warcraft III , The Frozen Throne , and others like World in Conflict , Supreme Commander , Dawn of War , and Demigod ... and in its evolution they became something new. At the core, however, gamers kept playing StarCraft ; they knew what they wanted and StarCraft was it.

Blizzard Activision shocked the world with the surprise release trailer of StarCraft II at Blizzcon. The tagline? "Hell, it's about time." And so it is - the game has been in production for a legendary length of time, evolving from one game into three separate titles (required, we're told, to contain the sheer epic scope of the story). Blizzard has begun a beta - which you can join by pre-ordering (note: according to the page the offer is valid until May 10th, and once you've received your beta key your pre-order is no longer refundable).

I pre-ordered. I'm in the beta. And yes, it's everything we've been waiting for.

There are huge changes to the world around StarCraft II . There are achievements. Friends lists. Better matchmaking. There's a sense of purpose that simply wasn't there. And yet... it's still StarCraft , and fantastically so.

While the whole thing has a new coat of paint, it's the changes under the hood that are even more impressive. Everything feels even faster, smoother, and more natural that StarCraft (if that were even possible). Forming an alliance on a multiplayer map is as quick as snapping your fingers... and those fragile friendships can be broken just as quickly. You can go head to head in 1v1, 2v2, and so on, or you can take on the computer with a friend. Ranked play will get you into some skill ranked matches quickly, and you'll have a chance to see what you're made of.

This multiplayer beta now includes all three races, to give you a sampling of what to expect in the first game (Wings of Liberty) in multiplayer. It also includes, as of this weekend, the Galaxy editor for creating your own maps.

From your very first moments of the beta you'll get a chance to try out the gameplay, see how the friends list works, and earn some achievements. I trashed my first foe last night (the AI. On easy. Using cheap tactics. BUT I WON!) and I'm already hooked.

If you've pre-ordered and you're in the beta, then let's roll. Hit me up at Threepio.rogerwilco for a match... and take it easy on me. My APM is in the single digits!

[#2]

Neat! Now tell me, why did futureshop tell us we'd get OUR beta keys in one business day? You had no issue getting yours it seems.

[#3]

Well, I pre-ordered on the first day it was available running back almost three years. Might have something to do with that.

[#4]

I don't think when you ordered it should change the fact that it is advertised as 1 business day. Still waiting on mine for a couple days now.

I would've pre-ordered it too back then, but knowing Blizzard's delay with EVERY game it was a safe assumption to not pre-order right away for myself.

[#5]

I also ordered and have not received my key after a business day.

But really, this is Futureshop we're talking about so we can't be surprised. Same guys that didn't honor all those sale contracts during the Xbox 360 fiasco.

[#6]

Your link doesn't work because Futureshop doesn't allow the names of competitors. I mean it all makes sense, why improve customer service when you can just close your eyes and pretend the competition doesn't exist.

[#7]

"(note: according to the page the offer is valid until May 10th, and once you've received your beta key your pre-order is no longer refundable)."

The product page makes no mention of the pre-order being non-refundable after you receive the beta key. I know you people are accustomed to pulling out the rug from under your customers, but this time there's not much sense in how you are going about it. There's no beta code opt-out link or option, so what happens to those that make a pre-order but don't want a beta key and then find a lower price elsewhere or no longer want to purchase the game?

Oh I guess they get locked in to paying futureshop, huh?

[#8]

I've ordered this since Friday and I haven't got one. Disgusting.

[#9]

Well, a lot of ticked off people here. I've sent an email to the folks at FS in an effort to see what's up with the beta keys.

I'm not sure I'd chalk this up to lies or call it disgusting. You're dealing with normal human beings here, people. Let me see what I can do to help, alright?

[#10]

Okay, I'm asking for a little patience here as I've tried to get in contact with the gaming team at Future Shop. It's 9:39PM here on the west coast so I'm not sure anyone is checking their email at this hour.

I'm going to lock comments on this until I've got something definitive to tell y'all.

Edit: 10:18AM - I got a response early this morning from the gaming team letting me know they were working through it. That's gone to the web team and a team called "customer support". It sounds like they'll have a fix relatively shortly, but don't quote me as I don't have anything more concrete. I'll post more info as I get it.

[#11]

Hey folks, sorry for the late reply - yesterday was a bit of a long day.

Okay, so here's the deal: an outage on the weekend caused about 400 orders to be missed on the mail merge that sends out the beta keys. From what I understand, the glitch has been corrected and the keys should have been sent out yesterday. If you still haven't received your key please contact customer support and they'll track it down via the logs.

Those who pre-ordered early were not affected by this, so for those 1000 players they should have received their keys already. Any new orders should get their keys on schedule.

Sorry for having to lock comments on this, but I thought finding a solution was the most appropriate thing. It should be noted that I made the call to lock comments as an independent person and not acting as an agent for Future Shop.

Anywho, hope you're enjoying your keys if you pre-ordered. See you on battle.net.

[#12]

I pre-ordered back in Dec 2007, which is a long way back and I still did not receive my beta key.  Anybody know what's going on with pre-orders from before?

[#13]

As Graham said, contact Customer Support : 1-800-663-2275 │ [email protected] and they should be able to help you out

JB

[#14]

Help you out? I called.. and they said it will take ANOTHER 24-48 hours? That's ridiculous. I ordered the key over a week ago.

Every time I called the customer support they gave me a lame excuse to wait until the next day. Unacceptable.