Patch 1.5 - The StarCraft II Arcade Arrives







Major changes are coming to StarCraft II with
patch 1.5.0. The menu screen will be split into two distinct areas, and each will be focused on a
distinct experience. The StarCraft II section will be where players go for head to head ladder
competition, as well as custom games focused on traditional StarCraft II gameplay, such as melee
maps and micro trainers. Meanwhile, the new
Arcade section will the place where the community can find and play the vast array of custom games that explore the many possibilities of the StarCraf II editor. From tower defense to RPGs and beyond, the Arcade will bring your creations to players around the world. We want the Arcade to offer the best experience possible, so we're making change to improve everything from the interface to the
editor itself. Your input can help us refine it even
further. Here are some of the improvements we already have planned:

Global Changes
- Added StarCraft II & Arcade as game Types
o Creators define which basic type best fits the
game that they have created. Each game will only appear in either StarCraft II or the Arcade.

- Game Genres
o We've used community feedback and the
existing game list to create a comprehensive
menu of genres for creators to choose from. Now
players will have tools to more easily find the
games they are looking for, which in turn gives
creators an easy way to find their audience. Arcade

- Game Presentation
o Browsing
- Browsing for games is a totally new
experience. Players can search for games based o genre, over all popularity, star rating, newness,
and recent spikes in popularity.

o Game Icons
- The game icon contains a large
game image (provided by the creator), the game name, and star rating. Hovering over the icon
displays the game description.

o Game Info page
- Clicking on a game icon brings players into the
Game Info page, a section devoted entirely to
showing off what a game is all about, providing
play instructions, and revealing other important
information about the game.

- All the content in Game Info is under control of
the game creator, except for reviews.

- Joining public matches and creating private
games is done from the Game Info page. This will
be the portal players return to again and again to
play the game.

- Game Info contains these sections:
- Overview: This will contain the game description, as well as screenshots that show off the action.
- How to Play: This is where players will find the
Basic Instructions, How to Win, and Advanced
Instructions sections. This is also useful space for
additional images to help players understand how
to enjoy your creation.
- Patch Notes: You're able to update patch notes
as often as you like, so players can see how the
game is growing and improving.
- Reviews: After playing, players can give your
game a star rating and enter a text review. Once
enough ratings are provided, your game gets an
Average Star Rating. Players can also mark each
other's reviews as Helpful which will ensure that the best reviews rise to the top.

- Tutorial support
o Creators can now publish tutorials. This is a
powerful way to introduce new players and give
them a place to learn the ropes before they dive
in.
o A "Play Tutorial" button appears on the Game
Info page if a tutorial exists. Clicking the Play
Tutorial button launches players directly into the
tutorial game.

- Game exclusive chat channels
o There is now a "Join Chat" button on the Game Info page that allows players to join a channel named after your game, which makes connecting
with other players and creating a community
around your game easier than ever before.

StarCraft II Platform

- StarCraft II is now a streaming game.
o It will only be necessary to download a fraction
of game data to get into the action. We expect to
bring even more players into StarCraft II
worldwide by making access to the game both
easy and fast.

[b]
- Editor
o Added UI XML Editor for adding and modifying
SC2Layout files
o Editor updated to use Visual Styles in Editor
o Added high resolution minimap support
o Font Style editing added to Text Editor
o Added Data Editor horizontal auto-layout to
better utilize available screen space
o User-defined data system, accessed through the
new User type in the Data module as well as the
corresponding functions in the trigger library.

- Cinematic Editor
o New editor module with
powerful tools for creating in-game cinematic
sequences.

- AI Editor
o New editor module for user friendly
management of AI wave timing and composition.

- Galaxy
o Trigger Debug Window support for
breakpoints, stepping through functions, and
variable inspection
o Galaxy script code memory
limit increased; 4x -10x more memory can be
utilized depending on how scripts are being used.

o
Added support for passing structure, array, and function references as function parameters
o
Improved Galaxy error message output

- Actor
o Camera Actor added for controlling
camera through actor events
o Scene Actor added for controlling global actor
settings (Halo settings, Power visual hiding)
o Light Actor added for creating lights in the world
o Terrain Actor added for physics impact FX
support
o Creep Actor added for higher performance creep
effects including creep engulfment
o Ragdoll deaths and support for combat driven
physics impulses
o Added support for water ripples and physics
collision based water splashes
o Terrain squib support for tileset specific dust or
snow clouds FX
o Line and Arc targeting cursor support
o Added ActorInfoDisplay cheat for live actor
debugging

- Game Engine
o Max selection size increased from 255 to 500.
o Added trigger event for Behavior apply/remove
o New Stunned flag for Behaviors that allows
queuing commands

- Graphics Engine
o Added support to define lighting regions in the
game world
o Lighting can now be set per player
o Added unit specific Halo support for pre-targeting
o Anti-aliasing support

- User Interface
o Custom unit status bar support added
o Added new in-game pathing display that shows
the path a unit will take on the minimap
o Added self-cast hotkey support
o Added Font Glow support
o Added powerful control over frames, portraits,
status bars, text, trigger dialogs and more. Full
details, tips, and tutorials are being created to help
creators take full advantage of these tools.

- StarTools
o We're making our internal art tools available to
the public.
o StarTools is a set of plugins for Discreet's "3ds
max", these tools allow advanced users to create,
modify, and quickly preview models and
animations, including particle and ribbon effects,
that can be used in StarCraft II custom maps.


Updating Your Game for Patch 1.5 All game types

- Set up your Type and Genre
o Games published prior to Patch 1.5 will still be
available on the service when the patch goes live.
All user created games will default to appearing in
Arcade, under the their genre.
o Creators will need to re-save their game in the
1.5.0 client version and select the Type and Genre
where they want to their game to appear.

Arcade game types
- Add a Game Icon Image
o The icon image is the first thing players see. It's
a great opportunity to make a first impression on
potential players - check out existing app-stores
for inspiration.
o Game Icon Images are added through the
StarCraft II Editor.

- Add Game Info
o Game Info is where players learn about your
game and see what cool experiences it has to
offer. At a minimum, you'll want to provide a
complete Description, easy to understand How to
Play Instructions, and some screenshots that
make your game look awesome.
o Going a step further and creating customized
images (e.g. a diagram of game controls, or a
simple guide map of the play area) for Game Info
will really help you stand out. The old saying about
"show not tell" should be your motto here! o Game Info is added through the StarCraft II
Editor

Set up a default mode
o From the Game Info page, there's a big "PLAY"
button that most players will use to get into your
game. This creates or joins a public lobby, of the
default mode you define for your game.
o This means you likely want to set the default to
what you consider your core game experience.
o Alternatively, some games have players set up
gameplay parameters after they load into the
match. This is fine, but it's recommended to make
the setup process as streamlined and user friendly
as possible so new players aren't scared off right
when they start the game.

- Build a Tutorial
o Tutorials are a powerful way to introduce new
players.
o Ideally you'll give players a smooth introduction
to game mechanics in a fail-safe environment,
teaching them everything they need to have fun
before they start playing your main game mode.
o Tutorials can also be built and used as a practice
mode for players to experiment in a sandbox type
environment.
o To use the Tutorial feature, first publish the
tutorial map to Battle.net. Then you can configure
your main game to point to the tutorial.