Developers behind the sexy adventure game BoneTown have now released a trailer for their new project BoneCraft.

BoneCraft is a fantasy/sci-fi game parodying the MMORPG powerhouse World of Warcraft / Starcraft. The game is also noted to contain the likeness of elf and orc ‘women/men of the night’, and wild adventuring drunken space marines. We have no premise of what the other gameplay will be just yet, but you can bet your +2 Vorpal Long Sword it will be 18+ content.

And just know that you were warned now, before you get to the ‘elf toe licking’ scene. NSFW.

Yeah, it's been 12 years but I'm baaaaaaaaack.

Nearly 12 years after the original was released, Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty finally saw the light of day when it launched yesterday. Fans of the first game, and its resulting expansions, had been eagerly awaiting the launch since rumors of a sequel surfaced several years ago. And after I had played the demo and participated in the beta, I was among those anxious fans.

I received my copy yesterday and quickly made a beeline for my PC when I got in the door. On opening the package, I was pleased to see that Blizzard had included a pad of paper as they did in days of old but instead of the Blizzard watermark, there was a watermarked Wanted poster for the game’s protagonist, James Raynor. It was a nice touch and a timely one since I was running low on my old Blizzard notepads.

I’d been a little concerned that I would have to go back and load up the original game and expansions to get back up to speed on the storyline. While Starcraft was an RTS, there was a great story being told as you fought for survival. But my fears were unfounded as during the install of Wings of Liberty, the backstory was told in a series of slides voiced over by the Adjutant, the AI that served as your tutor when you originally began the first game.

Fans of the original will be happy to hear some familiar voices returning to the second game. Robert Clotworthy has returned to voice James Raynor and the dictator Arcturus Mengsk is once again voiced by James Harper. It was good to hear those familiar voices speaking all new dialogue as the story began to unfold.

After staying glued to my monitor for nearly two hours, I can safely say that Blizzard has managed to capture the spirit of the original game while advancing the gameplay mechanics and the story line as well. When the first mini Zerg Rush came blasting towards my front lines, I felt a surge of excitement. As my marines happily slaughtered the encroaching alien horde, I was surprised by the familiar feeling surrounding it all but rather than feeling like I had “been there, done that???, I was happy to be there again.

There’s been some marked improvements on gameplay, as one might expect after 12 years. Units and buildings can be upgraded between missions and rather than the “tech??? advances one makes on the battlefield which disappear between missions, the units carry the improvements with them into each fight. Several of the old units make their return into the fray, marines, firebats, medics, but there’s also new and improved units to play with as you progress through the story.

Unfortunately, I was unable to sample the multiplayer mode due to some problems on Battle.net (no surprise considering everyone was probably trying to play all at one time) but I suspect that it will be as fulfilling as the original. I’ll update our Busy Gamers out there as soon as I am able to get in a game.

All in all, my initial reaction is to recommend this game to anyone who may have been a fan of the first. Single player missions last night lasted anywhere from 10 to 25 minutes so it may be possible to get in a quick session or two before our busy lives demand our attention. I’ll post up a full review as soon as possible.

Gritskrieg – End of Line

Starcraft II - in stores July 27

(Gamespot) – Many-a-PC gamers’ summer plans were ruined this afternoon, when Blizzard Entertainment announced the long-awaited launch date for its real-time strategy game, Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty. The first installment in the three-part sequel will launch worldwide, China excepted, on July 27 for the PC and Mac and will retail for $60 in the US. The game will also be available in a deluxe $100 Collector’s Edition that will include a 176-page art book and a flash drive preloaded with the original Starcraft and its Brood War expansion.

Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty will focus on the human Terran campaign with a 29-mission single-player campaign. However, the multiplayer component will also let gamers wage interstellar real-time strategy warfare as the hivelike Zerg and technologically advanced Protoss factions. Eager gamers who preorder the RTS via GameStop will be able to join the ongoing Starcraft II beta. (Orders cannot be canceled once GameStop sends out the beta key.)

Starcraft II is the first new stand-alone game from Blizzard Entertainment since 2004′s World of Warcraft, which has dominated the subscription-based massively multiplayer online role-playing market. Wall Street analysts are bullish on the RTS’s potential sales, with Pacific Crest Securities’ Evan Wilson predicting the game will sell over 6 million copies. Wedbush’s Michael Pachter believes that combined with the launch of the latest WOW expansion, Cataclysm, Blizzard could see game sales of 12 million units this year.

(Korea Times) – The news just keeps getting worse for computer games giant Blizzard Entertainment, which is reeling after Korea’s Games Rating Board moved to ban youngsters from playing its upcoming title, “StarCraft II.”

StarCraft II was obviously the most anticipated launch of 2010, being the sequel to the original game that has sold more than 5 million copies since its 1998 release, while singlehandedly spawning a whole new industry of ‘PC bangs’ (commercial gaming lounges), and professional gaming leagues within a movement dubbed as e-sports.

The decision by the Games Rating Board, a unit of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, is certainly a letdown, although Blizzard can file an objection within the next 30 days.

A Blizzard Korea spokeswoman said the company has yet to decide whether to challenge the decision by Korean game censors. Should Blizzard opt to adjust the disputed parts of the content and retry the whole reviewing process, as it did with the first game, the release of StarCraft II would likely be delayed until next year.

“We have nothing to say at this point. We are discussing our official position on the matter as well as what would be the right reaction,” she said.

The Games Rating Board’s decision to designate StarCraft II for gamers 18 years and older came as a surprise, as it was the same panel that gave an over 15 rating for previous test versions of the game last year.

Blizzard, however, was seeking something similar to the over-12-rating it got from North America, and requested a re-evaluation in April with a release candidate (RC) version of the game.

At least for now, the move seems to have blown up in Blizzard’s face, with the Games Rating Board insisting on getting stricter on the game’s level of violence, foul language and depiction of drug use.

“Considering that the RC version of the game is closer to what will be sold on the shelves compared to the beta versions, we looked more carefully at the content,” said an official from the Games Rating Board.

“However, this rating is not final, as Blizzard will get the chance to object to it.”

[Full article at Korea Times]