StarCraft: Ghost

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StarCraft: Ghost
The StarCraft: Ghost subseries logo
StarCraft: Ghost logo
Developer(s)Blizzard Entertainment
Nihilistic Software
Swingin' Ape Studios
Designer(s)Jacob Stephens
(Nihilistic Software)
Dave Maldonado
(Swingin' Ape Studios)
SeriesStarCraft
Platform(s)To be confirmed
ReleaseIndefinitely postponed
Genre(s)Stealth, action
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

StarCraft: Ghost is a military science fiction stealth-action video game under development by Blizzard Entertainment. Set in Blizzard's StarCraft series, the game was announced in 2002 and was to be developed by Nihilistic Software for the Nintendo GameCube, the Xbox, and the PlayStation 2 video game consoles. However, the game's development was delayed several times; it moved from Nihilistic Software to Swingin' Ape Studios, under which the Nintendo GameCube version was canceled. Blizzard later announced in March 2006 that the game was put on "indefinite hold" while the company investigated seventh generation video game console possibilities. The continued delay of Ghost has caused it to be labeled as vaporware, and it was ranked fifth in Wired News' annual Vaporware Awards in 2005. Although Blizzard Entertainment refuses to list it as such, video game journalism outlets including IGN and GameSpot list Ghost as canceled.

Unlike its real-time strategy predecessor StarCraft, Ghost is a third-person shooter, and was intended to give players a closer and more personal view of the StarCraft universe. Following Nova, a Terran psychic espionage operative called a "ghost", the game is set four years after the conclusion of StarCraft: Brood War and covers a conspiracy about a secretive military project conducted by Nova's superiors in the imperial Terran Dominion. Very little of the game's storyline has been released; however, in November 2006 after the game's postponement, a novel was published called StarCraft Ghost: Nova which covers the backstory of the central character.

Gameplay

Campaign

Because of StarCraft: Ghost's stealth-based gameplay, the player's character Nova must sneak to reach objectives and use darkness and shadows to remain undetected. Nova is equipped with a personal cloaking device that allows for temporary concealment, yet some hostile non-player characters have access to devices and abilities that render cloaking useless.[1] Nova is also equipped with thermal imaging goggles and a special EMP device for disabling electronics and vehicles. Despite the focus on stealth elements, Ghost also includes a complex combat system. Blizzard also planned on including a small arsenal of weaponry with assault and sniper rifles, grenades, shotguns, and flamethrowers.[2] In addition, Nova can engage in hand-to-hand combat and can use these skills to eliminate enemy threats quietly. If alerted, enemy characters will hunt for the player, set up traps, and fire blindly to penetrate Nova's cloaking device.[1]

Nova engages a group of Terran guards in a firefight

Nova is highly agile, acrobatic, and able to perform a variety of maneuvers such as mantling and climbing ledges, hanging from pipes, and sliding down ziplines.[1] The player also has access to Nova's psionic powers, such as the ability to improve her speed and reflexes drastically, which are honed through her training as a ghost agent.[3] Vehicles also form a crucial part of the game; Ghost includes many of the vehicle units from StarCraft and StarCraft: Brood War. Some vehicles, such as space battlecruisers and starfighters, only play support roles, while other vehicles, such as hoverbikes, scout cars, and futuristic siege tanks, can be piloted by the player.[4]

Multiplayer

The multiplayer mode in StarCraft: Ghost departs considerably from the stealth-based mechanics of the single-player portion. It aims to give players a personal view of the battles from the real-time strategy games of the series. Accordingly, Ghost's multiplayer is structured around class-based team gameplay and fighting in a variety of game modes. Ghost incorporates traditional game modes from multiplayer video games such as deathmatch, capture the flag, and king of the hill, but also introduces two game modes specifically designed for the StarCraft universe. The first is "Mobile Conflict", which requires two teams to fight for control of a single Terran military factory with the ability of atmospheric flight. Using vehicles and team tactics, both teams must first board the structure and then capture its control room to fly it to the team's starting point. The structure must then land and be defended from capture by the opposing team for a set amount of time.[5]

The second game mode is "Invasion", in which two teams fight for control of mineral resource nodes. Whenever teams capture a node they gain points that can be used to purchase classes and vehicles.[6] In all of the team-based game modes, teams have access to four Terran unit classes: light infantry, marine, firebat, and ghost. The light infantry class has minimal armor but a larger range of weapons,[7] while the marine is a heavily armored soldier with an assault rifle and grenades.[8] The firebat is a heavy marine armed with a flamethrower and napalm rockets.[9] Finally, the ghost is a variation of Nova's character in the single-player mode, and is equipped with a cloaking device, thermal vision, EMP device, and sniper rifle, but lacks the speed ability.[10] Due to the size of the armor worn by marines and firebats, only ghosts and light infantry can pilot vehicles.[11]

Synopsis

Ghost takes place in the fictional universe of the StarCraft series. Set in a distant part of the galaxy called the Koprulu Sector, the series begins in 2499. Terran exiles from Earth are governed by a totalitarian empire, the Terran Dominion, which formed through deceit, military might, and revolution, but is opposed by several smaller rebel groups. Two alien races are soon discovered by humanity: the insectoid Zerg, who have begun to invade planets controlled by the Terrans; and the Protoss, an enigmatic race with strong psionic power that are attempting to eradicate the Zerg.[12] Ghost takes place four years after the conclusion of StarCraft: Brood War, in which the Zerg rose as the dominant power in the sector and left both the Protoss and the Dominion in ruins.[13] The game follows the story of Nova, a young ghost agent—a human espionage operative with psychic abilities—in the employ of the Dominion.

Nova, the game's protagonist, appearing in a cinematic from Ghost

Although the game has been indefinitely postponed, the backstory for Nova was released in 2006 in the novel StarCraft Ghost: Nova by Keith R. A. DeCandido. It was meant to accompany the game's release, but was published in 2006 after development halted.[14] In the novel, Nova is a fifteen-year-old girl and daughter to one of the ruling families of the Confederacy of Man, an oppressive government featured in StarCraft. It is eventually overthrown by rebels, who go on to form the Dominion. Nova has significant psionic potential, but has been kept out of the Confederate ghost operative training program because of her father's influence. After her family is murdered by rebels, Nova loses control of her mental abilities, accidentally using them to kill 300 people around her home. She flees from her home before she is caught, and is later forced to work for an organized crime boss as an enforcer and executioner. Eventually, she is rescued by a Confederate agent investigating her disappearance during a rebel attack on the Confederate capital that leads to the Confederacy's destruction. Nova is consequently acquired by the newly formed Terran Dominion, who erases her memory and trains her as a ghost agent.[15]

Few details have been revealed about the story beyond Nova's backstory. Under emperor Arcturus Mengsk, the Terran Dominion has rebuilt much of its former strength and controls a new military formed to counter the Zerg. To further bolster the effectiveness of his military, Mengsk initiates a secret research operation codenamed Project: Shadow Blade and places it under the command of his right-hand man, General Horace Warfield. In the program, an experimental and potentially lethal gas called terrazine is used to enhance the genetic structure of the Dominion's psychic ghost agents. The process is described as changing the agents into "shadowy superhuman beings bent on executing the will of their true master". It is into the midst of this that Nova finishes her training and is dispatched in operations against the Koprulu Liberation Front, a rebel group challenging Mengsk's empire. However, Nova's mission leads her to uncover a conspiracy involving Shadow Blade that causes her to question her loyalty to the Dominion and could upset the balance of power within the galaxy.[16]

Development

Development on StarCraft: Ghost began in 2001 under Nihilistic Software,[17] with the aim of releasing the game for the Xbox, PlayStation 2 and Nintendo GameCube video game consoles in late 2003. Despite positive reactions from the press when told that Ghost would be available for video game consoles,[18] the game was consistently delayed, and during the third quarter of 2004, Nihilistic Software discontinued their work on the project.[19] Blizzard stated that Nihilistic Software had completed the tasks it had been contracted for and the game would be delivered on time.[20]

In addition to Nihilistic's work on the game, Blizzard's cinematics team—originally formed to develop StarCraft's cut scenes[21]—created the cut scenes for Ghost's single-player campaign, which are integral to the game's storyline. The team consisted of 25 people compared to its original six and used newer hardware, software, and techniques to create significantly higher quality cut scenes than those featured in StarCraft and Brood War.[22] The game's trailer, comprised entirely of the cinematics team's work, was released in October 2002.[23]

In July 2004, Blizzard Entertainment employed Swingin' Ape Studios to work on the game,[24] later buying the company in May 2005.[25] Despite much anticipation for the game by industry journalists,[26] Ghost was later delayed again and its release date was pushed to September 2005. At E3 2005, Ghost was officially reannounced,[27] but the game's GameCube version was canceled by Swingin' Ape Studios due to its lack of online support.[28] Later, the game's release was again delayed until 2006. Despite the efforts of Swingin' Ape, Ghost still failed to materialize, and eventually in March 2006, Blizzard Entertainment announced that development on Ghost would be indefinitely postponed while the company investigated new options with the emerging seventh generation of video game consoles.[29] Despite its long development history, IGN noted that the concept of Ghost still held promise.[30] Although the game's development was suspended, Keith R. A. DeCandido's novel StarCraft Ghost: Nova was published several months later, in November.[31]

Since Ghost's production halted, new information about it has been released sporadically from Blizzard Entertainment. At the BlizzCon conference in 2007, StarCraft series creator Chris Metzen hinted that elements of Ghost's story may appear in the recently announced StarCraft II. Metzen further stated that he believed Ghost had an excellent storyline that may be told in future novels following from DeCandido's Nova.[32] Earlier in June, Rob Pardo, one of the lead developers at Blizzard Entertainment, indicated that there still was an interest in finishing Ghost.[33] At the D.I.C.E. Summit in February 2008, Blizzard's president Mike Morhaime and Rob Pardo gave a presentation on the company's history. In it, they listed the games that they had canceled, which did not include Ghost. When questioned about this, Blizzard's co-founder Frank Pearce explained that it simply was not in the company's focus at the time due to a finite amount of development resources.[34] Despite this, many of the video games industry's journalists now list Ghost as canceled and consider it vaporware. The game was ranked fifth in the 2005 edition of Wired News' annual Vaporware Awards.[35][36][37]

References

  1. ^ a b c Remo, Chris (2005-11-05). "StarCraft: Ghost Preview: single-player". Shacknews. Retrieved 2008-04-11.
  2. ^ "Covert Ops: Weapons". StarCraft: Ghost. Blizzard Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2006-02-06. Retrieved 2008-04-11.
  3. ^ "Covert Ops: Psi Powers". StarCraft: Ghost. Blizzard Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2006-02-06. Retrieved 2008-04-11.
  4. ^ "Covert Ops: Vehicles". StarCraft: Ghost. Blizzard Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2006-02-06. Retrieved 2008-04-11.
  5. ^ "Multiplayer". StarCraft: Ghost. Blizzard Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2006-02-06. Retrieved 2008-04-11.
  6. ^ Remo, Chris (2005-11-11). "StarCraft: Ghost Preview: Multiplayer". Shacknews. Retrieved 2008-04-11.
  7. ^ "Multiplayer Characters: Light Infantry". StarCraft: Ghost. Blizzard Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2006-02-06. Retrieved 2008-04-11. {{cite web}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; 2006-03-17 suggested (help)
  8. ^ "Multiplayer Characters: Marine". StarCraft: Ghost. Blizzard Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2006-02-06. Retrieved 2008-04-11. {{cite web}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; 2006-03-17 suggested (help)
  9. ^ "Multiplayer Characters: Firebat". StarCraft: Ghost. Blizzard Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2006-02-06. Retrieved 2008-04-11. {{cite web}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; 2006-03-17 suggested (help)
  10. ^ "Multiplayer Characters: Ghost". StarCraft: Ghost. Blizzard Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2006-02-06. Retrieved 2008-04-11. {{cite web}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; 2006-03-17 suggested (help)
  11. ^ "StarCraft Ghost (Xbox)". 1UP. 2005-10-28. Retrieved 2008-10-05.
  12. ^ "The Story So Far: Part 1: StarCraft". Blizzard Entertainment. 2007-11-21. Retrieved 2007-11-22.
  13. ^ "The Story So Far: Part 2: The Brood War". Blizzard Entertainment. 2008-04-16. Retrieved 2008-04-16.
  14. ^ Metzen, Chris (November 2006). "Foreword". StarCraft Ghost: Nova. Simon & Schuster.
  15. ^ "Covert Ops: Nova Backstory". StarCraft: Ghost. Blizzard Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2006-02-06. Retrieved 2008-04-15.
  16. ^ "Covert Ops: Story". StarCraft: Ghost. Blizzard Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2006-02-06. Retrieved 2008-04-15.
  17. ^ "Press Release". StarCraft: Ghost. Blizzard Entertainment. 2002-09-20. Archived from the original on 2002-10-04. Retrieved 2008-04-16.
  18. ^ "TGS 2002: StarCraft: Ghost Impressions". IGN. 2002-09-20. Retrieved 2008-04-23.
  19. ^ Adams, David (2004-06-22). "Nihilistic Exits StarCraft: Ghost". IGN. Retrieved 2008-04-16.
  20. ^ "FAQ". StarCraft: Ghost. Blizzard Entertainment. 2004. Archived from the original on 2004-07-01. Retrieved 2008-04-16.
  21. ^ "Joeyray: Blizzard Movie-Making". 10th Anniversary Celebration. Blizzard Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2001-04-18. Retrieved 2008-01-08.
  22. ^ "Interview with the StarCraft: Ghost Cinematics Team". StarCraft: Ghost. Blizzard Entertainment. 2003-03-12. Archived from the original on 2003-03-12. Retrieved 2008-10-06.
  23. ^ Parker, Sam (2002-10-25). "StarCraft: Ghost trailer". GameSpot. Retrieved 2008-10-06.
  24. ^ Van Autrijve, Rainier (2004-07-07). "Blizzard Taps Swingin' Ape to work on StarCraft: Ghost". GameSpy. Retrieved 2008-04-16.
  25. ^ Vasconcellos, Eduardo (2004-05-16). "Blizzard Gets a New Monkey on its Back". GameSpy. Retrieved 2008-04-16.
  26. ^ "E3 2004: StarCraft Ghost". IGN. 2004-05-11. Retrieved 2008-04-23.
  27. ^ Clayman, David (2005-05-18). "E3 2005: StarCraft Ghost Returns". IGN. Retrieved 2008-04-16.
  28. ^ Thorsen, Tor (2005-11-03). "StarCraft: Ghost not beaming onto GameCube". GameSpot. Retrieved 2008-04-16.
  29. ^ "Blizzard Postpones StarCraft: Ghost Indefinitely". GameSpy. 2006-03-24. Retrieved 2008-04-16.
  30. ^ "StarCraft: Ghost Goes To Heaven?". IGN. 2006-03-24. Retrieved 2008-04-24.
  31. ^ "StarCraft Ghost: Nova (Mass Market Paperback)". Simon & Schuster. Retrieved 2007-12-02.
  32. ^ "Starcraft Panel Discussion: Lore". GameSpot. 2007-08-08. Retrieved 2008-10-05.
  33. ^ "Blizzard Still Has Hope For StarCraft: Ghost". Slashdot. 2007-06-28. Retrieved 2007-11-29.
  34. ^ Totilo, Stephen (2008-02-13). "Blizzard Explains Why StarCraft: Ghost Wasn't On The DICE Canceled Games List". MTV Multiplayer. Retrieved 2008-04-15.
  35. ^ "StarCraft: Ghost". IGN. Retrieved 2008-04-15.
  36. ^ "StarCraft: Ghost". GameSpot. Retrieved 2008-04-15.
  37. ^ Kahney, Leander (2006-02-06). "Vaporware: Better Late Than Never". Wired News. Retrieved 2008-04-15.

External links

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