[SPOILERS] HotS Cutscenes - Youtube Playlist

[Visions of Khas]

So I haven't looked at any of these yet because I hope to get the game in the next couple days; but in case anyone wants to spoil it for themselves, here are these lovely cinematics.

I've already heard that the story of HotS is "lazy" and "cliche-ridden", so I'm feeling a little uneasy as I wait for my copy.


Here ya go: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...87sivuoOegvdYR

[DarthYam]

Personally, I thought it was fine, and that those who complained are bitchiing because the story didn't go the way they wanted. So in all honesty, don't worry what idiots think

[Visions of Khas]

Hoping you're right, Darth Yam.

[Hawki]

Having watched mission 1 of HotS, I already have problems with it. Still, hopefully it's the exception rather than the rule.

[LordofAscension]

Overall, I enjoyed the story much much more than WoL.

And there is that scene in the cell - that scene made me very happy. Finally a little bit of closure on that particular point. Though I really wish that he had said: "What about Fenix, the Matriarch, and all of the others who fell before the swarm!"

But hey, at least Fenix was acknowledged.

~LoA

[Hawki]

For me personally, so far...it's...okay, for me. What's irked me the most so far is all these little things - why does the Gorgon-class battlecruiser look like a Super-class battlecruiser when it was established through the Bucephalus that they're souped-up Minotaurs? Why can the special ops dropship go into warp space from inside a planet's atmosphere? Why was a leviathan just left lying around Char/Kaldir by the protoss/Dominion? Why did Blizzard cut out the original Lessara story? What was Valerian's plan exactly to make Kerrigan control zerg? And when she proved that she could control them, why didn't he keep her in the damn cell, not just go "okay, you can go with Raynor, I trust you not to build up an army or anything."

Still, there is some good stuff. I like the interactions between characters (even if they cut out Lessara's original character development). Fenix is a nice touch at the end of the day. I like the little nods to WoL through Nova and Izsha, namely the choices the player made (Tosh and the Char missions for instance - guessing the dialogue changes, if not, I take it back). I've so far only watched gameplay videos, but the missions look like fun. But...I dunno. It just feels...'small.' More tepid and safe. There was a certain granduer to WoL's story(telling) that HotS lacks so far.

[LordofAscension]

Yeah, I am actually going to write a review. I've noted quite a few of the things you brought up, but overall the story seems better to me. WoL was meandering, full of odd dialogue, and tried to force levity and emotion. I think that IT lacked grandeur. It was far to microscopic in scope - where was the intergalactic battles. You could just crush Kerrigan, etc. I like this a bit better - but then again, I need so spend a lot more time with it.

~LoA

[Hawki]

Saw some more and...god, this was a disapointment. Storywise at least. It's...it just...well, gah. Zerus in-range and a jungle planet? Never explained. Stukov's ressurection? Barely touched upon, so anyone who isn't familiar with Ressurection is screwed. Abathur's hinted betrayal arc? No sign of it. The metamorph? Replaced with primal zerg, an idea that isn't bad in itself, but they're Zerus zerg, and Zerus has apparently been retconned to some jungleland. Lessara's story? Killed off. Literally. Izsha being a former Amanda Haley? I don't know if that backstory still exists because there's no sign of it being mentioned. Wings of Liberty? Well, we can forget all about the themes and motifs of that particular game given how the terrans are screwed over.

Actually, that's technically not a net negative. HotS is a zerg story, it remains focussed on its goal, and since Kerrigan is similar but different to the QoB, it didn't feel like a waste of time entirely...yet I guess you could say the point of WoL was just to re-infest Kerrigan so we could tell her story. A story that, IMO, is the weakest of the four StarCraft games Blizzard has produced (SC1, BW, WoL, and HotS, not counting other games/expansions in the analogy). While I wouldn't call the story outright bad, it's still a letdown. Partly of what it is. And partly because it feels like a hollow shell of what it could have been.

[The_Blade]

Amon made my day. I just love that name.

[PhanttoM]

I'm halfway through the campaign, although I ended up doing things in a different order;

I've done all the Zerus missions before going to char, so when I get to the Warfield cutscene Kerrigan will be in her evolved state - Heh, I guess Warfield's line: "You're not even human anymore" carries more weight this way.

*Edit - Thought I was over halfway through, I'm just halfway.