Summary
Hit real-time strategy gameStarCraft 2has received a new update, almost 9 months after its last set of balance changes.StarCraft 2has received continual support from its community and developer Blizzard for almost 14 years, since the game’s first release in 2010.
With an active scene that stretches all the way back to the original 1998 title,StarCraftis arguably one of the longest-lasting major competitive gaming communities ever.StarCraft’s community has lasted through multiple rereleases of the game over the years, and in the process has become one of the originators of the competitive gaming eSports scene. Meanwhile, support forStarCraft 2is in its 14th year sinceStarCraft 2: Wings of Libertylaunched in July 2010. Despite developerBlizzard officially ending content development onStarCraft 2in 2020, the game has received regular balance adjustments and bug fixes, led in part by a community-run council dedicated to maintaining the health of the game’s ongoing competitive scene.
That Community Balance Council has just released a new patch for the game. Finalized after multiple weeks of testing via public test servers, the latestpatch notes forStarCraft 2detail changes for the game as it upgrades to version 5.0.14. Targeted entirely at multiplayer and not affecting anything to do with the story-driven campaign orStarCraft 2custom campaigns, the patch notes cover adjustments that affect all three of the game’s playable factions.
New StarCraft 2 Update Makes Changes to All 3 Races
The newStarCraft 2update 5.0.14 patch notes discuss a series of balance-related changes. The changes address units in all threeStarCraftplayable races, potentially altering the quality of different matchups. Of particular concern is the competitiveness ofpopularStarCraft 2Zerg unitsagainst Protoss, which received an overall buff. However, the Council noted that the “extensive testing” required to fully evaluate the impact of the changes to Protoss would significantly delay the patch’s release. As a result, the Council opted not to proceed with “experimental” changes to Zerg and would instead monitor Zerg vs. Protoss matchups going forward.
Other changes are more divisive, particularly an increase to the supply cost of Terran Ghosts, the iconicStarCraftspecial forces unit. According to the patch notes, members of the Balance Council were not in “full alignment” regarding the change, but as the change was “desired by the community,” it would move forward despite complaints from professional Terran players. Terran matchups against Zerg and Protoss will then be carefully monitored in the post-5.0.14 competitive environment.
It’s encouraging to see longstanding and community-driven support for a game as old asStarCraft 2. In an age where games with a live service component can get shut down months or even weeks after they launch, to know that developers and community members can be dedicated to keeping a title thriving for over a decade is refreshing. The support also bodes well forStarCraft 2’s potential future prospects, especially in light ofrumors about a newStarCraftshooterbeing in development.
StarCraft 2 Update 5.0.14 Patch Notes
Early Game in Protoss versus Terran
Community Council Comment: We believe that the Energy Recharge ability has found its place in Protoss builds and has been very helpful in scouting and defending in various scenarios. With a couple of small adjustments below, we feel that the current set of Protoss and Terran changes is an overall improvement for Protoss gameplay stability in the early game compared to the previous patch.
Nexus
Community Council Comment: The increased range will allow Protoss players to be more flexible when placing Shield Batteries while defending their bases and expanding to new locations, without boosting the offensive capabilities of Shield Batteries.
Mothership
Ultralisk
Community Council Comment: We would like to continue following community feedback on the identity of these powerful units. The Mothership is back to its original power level, and increasing its size back to 5.0.11 fits this change perfectly. This adjustment may also slightly help in focus firing the unit in the Zerg versus Protoss matchup, where Abduct is no longer a counter. For the Ultralisk, the original idea of reducing its size was to minimize cases where it got stuck behind other allied units, an issue now resolved with the push priority change included in this patch.
Removed changes
Community Council Comment: We received feedback from both Terran players and players from other races indicating that they did not feel positively about this change, as it did not unlock any new playstyles while negatively impacting existing ones. While we still see potential in adjusting the Thor, this unit will remain unchanged from 5.0.13 in the upcoming patch.
Lategame Concerns
Ghost Nerf
Community Council Comment: We have heard major concerns from multiple professional Terran players about the Ghost nerf, and there wasn’t full alignment among Balance Council members regarding this change. However, we also believe that proceeding with this change was desired by the community, so we would like to move forward with the Ghost supply nerf for 5.0.14 while continuing to carefully monitor its effects in both the Terran versus Zerg and Terran versus Protoss matchups.
Zerg versus Protoss
Community Council Comment: With the Mothership no longer being abductable and the overall late-game Protoss army being stronger after the Tempest change, we are concerned about the potential state of the Zerg versus Protoss late game across different levels of play. We received suggestions for some experimental changes to address this matchup, but they would require extensive testing, which would significantly delay the release of the patch. Therefore, we will not proceed with any experimental changes for now and will carefully monitor the state of this matchup going forward.
StarCraft 2
WHERE TO PLAY
The ultimate real-time strategy game.The Galaxy is Yours to Conquer: Experience the game that redefined the real-time strategy genre. Terran, Zerg, or Protoss – do you have what it takes to become the galaxy’s greatest commander?With large parts of StarCraft II’s single-player and multiplayer modes accessible for free, it’s never been a better time to begin your StarCraft II story!Command the mechanized Terrans, psi-powered Protoss, and insectoid Zerg. Lead the Terrans across the galaxy in a quest for glory, redemption, and revenge. Grow your skills and climb the multiplayer ladder in the world’s premier real-time-strategy esport.
