Son of a bitch!! Had written 3 paragraphs about it, and accidentally went back a page. ><


I can't remember what all I'd said, but basically, the graphics are stunning, the implementation has been wonderful in every way, so far, and the missions' replay value is definitely one of the highest I've seen in an RTS.

You gain access to technology based on the races you encounter in missions, and the rewards from each mission are so helpful that you truly feel like you've been rewarded for your efforts. You receive credits that can be put toward upgrading the effectiveness of units you have discovered, or hiring hero squad versions of those same units, which can then be used for the rest of the game, regardless of death.

I like the way blizzard has allowed you to talk with friends no matter what you are doing in your game (other than a loading screen), whether in a cinematic or in mid-fight, or in the menus, or just fiddling around in your ship.

I like the way blizzard has handled mission objectives and achievements. Many of your mission objectives collide with one another depending on play-style, such as having a bonus objective to beat a mission in under a certain amount of time, while having a 2nd objective of not losing any buildings, or obtaining all the alien technology you can. The game keeps track of your best outcomes for each objective so that you can replay the mission and play it in a different style, so as to obtain any objectives you were not able to complete before, and still have credit for the previous completed objectives.

So far, the difficulty is not outrageous, even though I am still early in the game, but there is still Brutal difficulty to play, once I've finished this playthrough. Most of the difficulty I've encountered has been due to achievements and bonus objectives I wanted to obtain.

As for the multiplayer, there are plenty of accounts from the beta, and it does not appear to be that much different.

Overall, I am very pleased with the game, and I can see myself getting just as excited for the expansions.