Starcraft II: Heart of the Swarm

 PC
User Score
8.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 1640 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,240 out of 1640
  2. Mixed: 224 out of 1640
  3. Negative: 176 out of 1640
Buy Now
Buy on

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. sayedstafa
    Apr 12, 2013
    6
    It's fun to go back to playing more SC2 after it's been close to 3 years since Wings of Liberty came out. Although, I feel like the story hurt the game a lot. Most of this game consists of you destroying what you worked so hard to accomplish in Wings of Liberty. Because of that, I felt as a player that I did not want to do the mission objectives that I was given. When I as a playerIt's fun to go back to playing more SC2 after it's been close to 3 years since Wings of Liberty came out. Although, I feel like the story hurt the game a lot. Most of this game consists of you destroying what you worked so hard to accomplish in Wings of Liberty. Because of that, I felt as a player that I did not want to do the mission objectives that I was given. When I as a player don't want to do the mission objectives, then how am I really supposed to have that much fun? With that aside, it's still SC2, they didn't do anything to the gameplay to make it worse, it's just the story really hurt the game for me.… Expand
  2. Eternald
    May 5, 2013
    10
    My personal score for this game is 8 but because there is too much hatred from anti blizzard boys around now days i will vote for 10.

    Graphics 8/10 Cinematic 10/10 Music 9/10 Story 8/10 Dialogues 7/10 As far as the campaign goes Starcraft 2 Heart of the Swarm is a very nice game with an interesting story and change of events. However missions felt a bit rushed due to the "beat    My personal score for this game is 8 but because there is too much hatred from anti blizzard boys around now days i will vote for 10.

    Graphics 8/10
    Cinematic 10/10
    Music 9/10
    Story 8/10
    Dialogues 7/10

    As far as the campaign goes Starcraft 2 Heart of the Swarm is a very nice game with an interesting story and change of events.
    However missions felt a bit rushed due to the "beat the time" mechanism but still it was soo fun to play that you will catch yourself finishing the game and you will not understand how the time passed.
    Most of the voice acting is nice and good but there are some parts especially close to the end of the game that seemed cheesy and flat.
    Storyline is interesting and nice however it could be much better, but still is a very nice story with strong elements of hatred, love, revenge, and pain.    … Expand
  3. Dozmo
    May 2, 2013
    8
    A great expansion, but priced a little steeply. The campaign is good (better than Wings of Liberty), the new units are fun, and the Battle.net interface is hugely improved.
    That said, the price tag is still pretty high for an expansion pack, especially when you consider how much you got in WOL versus only the NEW things you get in HOTS.
    Having played hundreds of HOTS games, I think it is    A great expansion, but priced a little steeply. The campaign is good (better than Wings of Liberty), the new units are fun, and the Battle.net interface is hugely improved.
    That said, the price tag is still pretty high for an expansion pack, especially when you consider how much you got in WOL versus only the NEW things you get in HOTS.
    Having played hundreds of HOTS games, I think it is definitely a worthy addition for any RTS fan, but only for RTS fans. If you are simply a casual player your money is better spent on something else.    … Expand
  4. AdderTude
    Apr 25, 2013
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I will admit, when it comes to StarCraft, I am biased towards the Terrans (human power for the win!), so I loved the new tech tree for the Terrans. The campaign for Wings of Liberty was also very well written, coming off in the same Firefly-style presentation. While Jim Raynor's group is still fighting a war unlike Malcolm Reynolds' crew, they're still in the same position: limited resources. The final bug payoff was saving his girlfriend, Sarah Kerrigan, from the clutches of the Zerg and turning her human again.

    When Heart of the Swarm was released, I got my hands on it as soon as possible to see how the story continued. Kerrigan still maintains a level of dominant control over some Zerg but her power is greatly weakened because she's human again. The tutorial was simple (yay) and the addition of hotkeys helped access the hero's abilites quicker (double yay). The Zerg may be complex at first for non-native Zerg users like me, but once you get the hang of the mechanics, they're pretty easy to play. I played the game for several hours, completely immersed in the storyline...until one fateful moment in the game changed that.

    After being deceived by the Dominion that Raynor had been killed, Kerrigan goes about the sector regaining control over the Swarm until she heads to the true Zerg homeworld, outside of Terran space. Here she learns that the original primal Zerg have no psi ability whatsoever (and thus no connection) and live in pack through domination. It is here that Kerrigan decides to re-infest herself and return as the Queen of Blades once more, pretty much giving a giant middle finger to everything that Raynor (and the player) did in Wing of Liberty. Except here's the catch: the old Queen of Blades was controlled by a fallen Xel'Naga, whose name is revealed as Amon. He wants to return to the galaxy and wipe every living being from existence, and he was using Kerrigan and the Swarm to do it. That is, up until Raynor's use of the Xel'Naga artifact severed her connection to Amon. Thus Kerrigan, after re-infesting herself, is still pretty much herself after becoming the Queen of Blades once again. I *hated* that writing, but at the same time, the player realizes that Kerrigan was right. In order to face Amon by the time he returns, she needed to re-assume her identity as the Queen of Blades. The best part of Heart of the Swarm was the conclusion. After assaulting Korhal with the combined forces of Kerrigan's Zerg and Raynor's Raiders, Kerrigan finally confronts Mengsk face-to-face. In one last plot twist, HE HAS THE FREAKING ARTIFACT!! The lying scumbag uses the artifact to torture and weaken Kerrigan. I honestly thought that Megsk would have the last laugh up until Jim reaches through the busted door to destroy the detonator operating the artifact. With no tricks up his sleeve left, Mengsk finally got was what was coming to him and dies (after four games, too). I *will* say that the final battle was a bit disappointing, however. Compared to the finale of Wings of Liberty, this one was pretty easy on Normal. I can't even beat Wings of Liberty on Normal, despite Terrans being my strongest race! (DISCLAIMER: I do not play StarCraft II on multiplayer, so my skill reflects how casually I play the game) In terms of new units, there's not a whole lot to offer. Sure each faction has a couple of new tricks, but that's just it. The addition of only two or three new units per faction really drives home the "expansion" point while the overall game feels a bit like a standalone sequel otherwise. I'm not exactly sure what to expect with Legacy of the Void, but I sure hope Blizzard can pull off a story as grand as Wings of Liberty. Given that it's just the second and final expansion, though, I hate to say that I'm not expecting a whole lot.. Overall, StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm is a great continuation of the story and game I personally enjoyed.    … Expand
  5. EVISpinerd
    Apr 23, 2013
    8
    You won't find a more polished RTS experience than Starcraft II. Heart of the Swarm is a welcome addition to the franchise and although it falls into some very cliche moments during the campaign, the gameplay is what you would come to expect of a Blizzard title. Start to finish, the campaign is loads of fun and worth checking out more than once as there is a large emphasis on choice.You won't find a more polished RTS experience than Starcraft II. Heart of the Swarm is a welcome addition to the franchise and although it falls into some very cliche moments during the campaign, the gameplay is what you would come to expect of a Blizzard title. Start to finish, the campaign is loads of fun and worth checking out more than once as there is a large emphasis on choice. The evolution missions feel a litte bit superfluous but ultimately I understand why Blizzard included them allowing players to test the two distinct changes the evolution will make to a unit before making a commitment. The experience system is a nice touch but it doesn't add too much the whole experience. The real draw of Heart of the Swarm is the multiplayer and it does not fail to disappoint. The new units given to each race may not seem like much at first but they are fun additions and do drastically change the metagame for anybody interested in playing the game competitively. The most welcomed additions are the ones involved with serving the eSports community. The interface has been overhauled, there are more stats, replays can be watched together, and ranked and unranked matchmaking is now available. HotS just brings the most refined and complete service surrounding the multiplayer aspect of the game, which has always been the main focus of Starcraft.

    There are some flaws in terms of the narrative and how safe Blizzard played it in terms of adding new units and gameplay, but what is included is honed and polished to the T. If you're an RTS fan, or just a fan of PC games, HotS is well worth the 40 dollars, especially if you own Wings of Liberty. You will have fun with this game.    … Expand
  6. Ccx55
    Mar 18, 2013
    0
    This expansion does nothing to improve on the fundamental flaws of Starcraft, it only adds a few gimmicky units. I would not recommend this expansion to anyone it's as much a waste of money as the original game.
  7. valero
    Mar 31, 2013
    2
    you are paying 10$ per new unit they added
  8. Necrotaur
    Mar 13, 2013
    8
    The Heart of the Swarm campaign is enjoyable and continues the storyline from where Wings of Liberty left off. It play similarly to WoL in that there are upgrades to choose from and you can do some missions out of order. The missions themselves are a little bit more guided you don't really have the freedom to just build a base and go to town due to certain mission parameters.The Heart of the Swarm campaign is enjoyable and continues the storyline from where Wings of Liberty left off. It play similarly to WoL in that there are upgrades to choose from and you can do some missions out of order. The missions themselves are a little bit more guided you don't really have the freedom to just build a base and go to town due to certain mission parameters. Multiplayer adds a few new units, and a lot of them will be familiar if you've played Brood War.… Expand
  9. MayhemMike83
    Apr 26, 2013
    8
    A solid expansion but not worth 40€, the campaign is really well done and the new units add more depth to the base game but that's it.
    Try to get it for 30€ or less
  10. kabilaking
    Apr 25, 2013
    8
    I Loved this expansion and I still think a strategy game does not even come close to Starcraft 2. I really liked the story and controlling the swarm was awesome and upgrading them to my will and doing evolution missions. This game also has some RPG elements as you upgrade Karrigan as you go further into the story. Story took me like 20 minutes per mission usually but I am not a hardcoreI Loved this expansion and I still think a strategy game does not even come close to Starcraft 2. I really liked the story and controlling the swarm was awesome and upgrading them to my will and doing evolution missions. This game also has some RPG elements as you upgrade Karrigan as you go further into the story. Story took me like 20 minutes per mission usually but I am not a hardcore player so others will do it a lot faster. So like 10 hours maximum to complete this which aint bad. There are bosses in game which do look cool I remember one in particular but no spoils but dont pose any real challenge which is a shame. Also this game did feel easier that starcraft 2 which for me aint bad as I am a noob but to hardcore players would be disappointed. The thing that bothers me most about expansions for games like this is lack of new units not many have been added which is a shame but apart from that game is an easy 8.0/10 for me.… Expand
  11. AntivanChicken
    Mar 16, 2013
    7
    This is review from single-player's only point of view!

    Where WoL had this Firefly-like feel of ridiculously tough space cowboys, HotS has only Kerrigan to offer and she has half of Raynor's charisma. Sure, bazillion times his power, but still half charisma. Same goes for the rest of her little helpers when compared to Hyperion's crew. As far as story goes, I enjoyed WoL much better,    This is review from single-player's only point of view!

    Where WoL had this Firefly-like feel of ridiculously tough space cowboys, HotS has only Kerrigan to offer and she has half of Raynor's charisma. Sure, bazillion times his power, but still half charisma. Same goes for the rest of her little helpers when compared to Hyperion's crew. As far as story goes, I enjoyed WoL much better, mainly thanks to better characters.

    Of advertised 27 missions, there are 7 evolution missions that are basically tutorials. That leaves 20 missions, which is still fair, I guess. Especially since HotS is expansion and not a full game. Just please, don't lie to us next time, Blizzard.

    The main issue for me is the gameplay the game is easy. I'm not an RTS expert and I'm too lame to play multiplayer matches so I expect an RTS game to be moderately challenging for me when I choose Normal difficulty. This game is not. You basically don't have to build your base. No, not even all the available buildings to unlock all your recruitment options. You don't have to bother with defense most of the time (unless you're playing defense mission). You don't even have to hotkey different groups of your units All you have to do is recruit few units, hit F2, set attack move to the center of the enemy base and repeat until enemy cracks.
    This in fact does terrific job of creating this Zerg "we are numberless" feeling. However, it's not that terrific when it comes gameplay, so I consider it more of a bug than a feature. In WoL I somehow cared for my units, I would use Siege tanks and Banshees to carefully remove enemy base's defenses and retreat for repair to prevent losses (concept of tougher and more unique mercenary units that were gone once killed was encouraging this careful gameplay that actually felt like I was deploying some strategy). Not in HotS. All because Kerrigan is immortal and her powers granted by leveling are so ridiculously overpowered. Especially one of them deprives any unit that has no anti-air capability of any value.

    However, despite these flaws, I still stormed through the campaign, giving it almost every single moment of my free time and I felt compelled to finish it all the time. So, there must be something to it. For example missions are quite diverse...

    Overall, even though the game has its flaws, at least from single player only point of view, it still gets green score from me for this... "something-to-it factor" that made me play all the way through it.    … Expand
  12. slic
    Jul 30, 2013
    0
    Remember when you could turtle in your base, build defenses, build a powerful upgraded army, advance tactically and slowly towards the enemy base while taking all the time you need? Well Blizzard doesn't! This horses**t of a campaign is nothing but timed missions, it's all rush rush rush. No more experimenting with awesome new units and playing around with them, no more playing at your ownRemember when you could turtle in your base, build defenses, build a powerful upgraded army, advance tactically and slowly towards the enemy base while taking all the time you need? Well Blizzard doesn't! This horses**t of a campaign is nothing but timed missions, it's all rush rush rush. No more experimenting with awesome new units and playing around with them, no more playing at your own pace and formulating attack and defense strategies, now you have FREE and UNLIMITED units and all you have to do to win a mission is select them and press "A" at the enemy base; and even if you don't want to do this, you have no choice since every mission is a race against the clock and is annoyingly scripted. I can't even remember building a single base defense in the entire campaign. "This is how you are supposed to play the zerg" Blizzard says, well in that case please don't call this piece of fecal matter an RTS game because it has absolutely no relation to classical RTS games (especially starcraft 1). It plays more like Call of Duty.

    And that's not even the worst part. The story looks like it was written by a ten year old. There are no more plot twists, everything is predictable and cliche, and the dialogue is cringe inducing (example: "My queen, your hatred is burning like a star"). The days when you would play a mission for hours and then near its end start to foam at the mouth while you await the awesome revelation in the story, they are gone. You feel more and more boredom as you click "next mission", and your only motivation to finish is a feeling that you just want to get this s**t over with. There is absolutely nothing to like about this story, it's all about the angry girlfriend on a quest for revenge. How the heck can anyone even relate to her? Who cares about some hysterical b*tch and her love driven rampages?
    And why the heck are zerg humanized? Why do they spare civilians? What happened to the mindless swarm that ravages human populations across the galaxies? Now they feel like nothing but a tool for some b*tch's personal vendettas.
    And speaking of the star of the show, do you remember when Kerrigan was a cynical badass "Queen b*tch of the Universe" who cared for nothing but power, expansion, and the glory of the swarm? Well now she's a sensitive Queen heroine who cares about saving humanity, and of course her paramour Jim Raynor. Here's a summary of the game's dialogue without giving away spoilers:
    "O Raynor, Raynor! wherefore art thou Raynor?"
    "But, soft! what light through yonder window breaks?
    It is the east, where Char is burning."
    And even this incredibly simple story managed to have more plotholes than Swiss cheese. I can't even call them plotholes since they're absolutely nonsensical and serve nothing but to advance the story to the predictable and hurried ending.

    If you are a fan of the original series, then do yourself a favor and stay away from this game.    … Expand
  13. wordy_actions
    Mar 15, 2013
    8
    A solid addition to Starcraft 2. The campaign has a wide variety of fun missions, and the added units in mutliplayer add a needed shift in competitive strategy. If you don't already like Starcraft, you probably won't like this, but for any fans of the series this is a must.
  14. Kenmei
    Mar 16, 2013
    8
    Every fan of Starcraft will love this game. The classic gameplay is there and all the multiplayer emphasis is still present. The campaign this time around is a more linear experience. While the missions are varied and there is plenty to do, there are zero side missions, beyond the zerg evolution upgrade missions. That added onto the very bland story, one that makes the whole point of theEvery fan of Starcraft will love this game. The classic gameplay is there and all the multiplayer emphasis is still present. The campaign this time around is a more linear experience. While the missions are varied and there is plenty to do, there are zero side missions, beyond the zerg evolution upgrade missions. That added onto the very bland story, one that makes the whole point of the Wings of Liberty story feel useless, lowers the score for me. Still, there's alot here to love, especially if you like the multiplayer. This definitely feels like an expansion, as it should. But there just didn't seem like alot of thought went into the story at all, which is sad since alot of people like the Starcraft story.… Expand
  15. ludiq
    Mar 17, 2013
    8
    I love StarCraft. WoL lacked a lot of things that HotS adds. There's still more to be wanted but overall Blizzard have stepped up a lot. The campaign was rather short, but god damn those cutscenes! I'm still getting chills thinking about them, I even teared at the end. Epic, epic, epic! Good job, Blizzard! BW>HotS in terms of multiplayer but HotS is still an incredible, INCREDIBLE game
  16. Maxson
    Mar 16, 2013
    8
    Not bad for a expansion, but Wings of Liberty's campaign is still better. In my opinion the campaign in this expansion is okay..but thank god the cinematics are amazing!! When it comes to cinematics you could always count on Blizzard. I noticed some graphical upgrades, especially how the zergs looks now...scary lol. The game looks great for a Blizzard game. Can't for the final expansionNot bad for a expansion, but Wings of Liberty's campaign is still better. In my opinion the campaign in this expansion is okay..but thank god the cinematics are amazing!! When it comes to cinematics you could always count on Blizzard. I noticed some graphical upgrades, especially how the zergs looks now...scary lol. The game looks great for a Blizzard game. Can't for the final expansion maybe 2-3 years.… Expand
  17. matty_o
    Mar 19, 2013
    8
    Thoroughly enjoyable, however rather short, no protoss missions and sadly not as memorable as Wings of Liberty was. This game did not hit home as it should have, but was still a good game.
  18. ktamlyn
    Mar 17, 2013
    7
    I like the subtle improvements and the cinematics are amazing. As others have stated the plot is wholy not engaging though its not as full of holes as people say, its just not good, nor do I empathize with the characters. In fact I empathize more with the empire's troops needlessly being killed in the plot-line more than ANY of the main characters. Its still in the macho rouge guy styleI like the subtle improvements and the cinematics are amazing. As others have stated the plot is wholy not engaging though its not as full of holes as people say, its just not good, nor do I empathize with the characters. In fact I empathize more with the empire's troops needlessly being killed in the plot-line more than ANY of the main characters. Its still in the macho rouge guy style vein of the previous Star Craft storyline, the problem is the now the main character is a woman who has lost her humanity yet somehow she still loves Raynor? kind of a weird mix. If her struggle was more gradual than I could buy into it. Some complain its too easy, well then I say pursue the achievements, not just beating the missions once on normal. The game is the same Star Craft 2 we love and for motivating me to play SC2 some more, this gets a 7. If the plot was better, than I would have given it a better score. Star Craft 2 first storyline was strong for all its flaws, this plot-line is not strong.… Expand
  19. L4rry
    Mar 15, 2013
    8
    Starcraft 2 is the best real time sci fi strategy game out there. Period.

    Pure gameplay, math, strategy, and last but not least APM. The campaign was fun, didn't really have high expectations for that though, I played all sc campaigns, they all seem the same to me, ending in some big battle where you have many bases and tons of units. The downsides: The races aren't that    Starcraft 2 is the best real time sci fi strategy game out there. Period.

    Pure gameplay, math, strategy, and last but not least APM.

    The campaign was fun, didn't really have high expectations for that though, I played all sc campaigns, they all seem the same to me, ending in some big battle where you have many bases and tons of units.

    The downsides:

    The races aren't that balanced, and they CANNOT be exactly balanced because they're so different.

    And last, as in any game you ll play against guys who have a TON of games played and know the game much much better, which is kinda ridiculous.

    Mirror match-ups aren't that fun.    … Expand
  20. comiekilla
    Mar 19, 2013
    8
    This is a great game. I did not like it as much as the first one (wings of liberty) or Starcraft one but it contains tons of nostalgia and brings me back to the good old days. I did miss the money from WOL and the arcade game. Also, it is harder to immerse myself with characters that are not human (obviously). But the game is great and I recommend it to anyone who has played the lastThis is a great game. I did not like it as much as the first one (wings of liberty) or Starcraft one but it contains tons of nostalgia and brings me back to the good old days. I did miss the money from WOL and the arcade game. Also, it is harder to immerse myself with characters that are not human (obviously). But the game is great and I recommend it to anyone who has played the last two games. Even on my laptop that is about three years old I could play it on max and it ran very smoothly. You can play it offline which is great.… Expand
  21. kazannova
    Apr 30, 2013
    4
    i dont know why people like this game, compare to other game it doesnt have that much to offer its the same old game but different pant. i think this game is just for the fans of the old one
  22. spore1999
    May 24, 2013
    10
    A very omnipotent creation from Blizzard,challenging as well true game-play for a strategy game.It's exactly what someone could want to be in a game type like this.
  23. HUDWheels
    Dec 8, 2013
    0
    The online matchmaking is dreadful. I stopped playing for a few months, started again and was put into Silver league. My first 6 matches were against:-
    - Gold
    - Gold - Platinum - Diamond - Gold - Gold and guess what...I lost them all because I'm A SILVER PLAYER WHO SHOULD BE PLAYING SILVER PLAYERS NOT PLATINUM OR DIAMOND PLAYERS. Don't waste your time on the campaign either,    The online matchmaking is dreadful. I stopped playing for a few months, started again and was put into Silver league. My first 6 matches were against:-
    - Gold
    - Gold
    - Platinum
    - Diamond
    - Gold
    - Gold

    and guess what...I lost them all because I'm A SILVER PLAYER WHO SHOULD BE PLAYING SILVER PLAYERS NOT PLATINUM OR DIAMOND PLAYERS.

    Don't waste your time on the campaign either, it's pointless.    … Expand
  24. AC1DSKU11
    Mar 15, 2013
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Blizzard has managed to bring back a sliver of the old magic with HOTS. It doesn't exactly live up to Brood War or Frozen Thrown in terms of expansions but they made quite the solid effort. There are quite a few interesting units and missions throughout the campaign. While the game is plagued by horrible mission types forcing the player to escort and protect heroes and destroy structures a few missions managed to shine above the rest. With a little more work and restructuring the story and game play could have been absolutely brilliant (the ending cinematic shows that). On the whole the campaign keeps the Starcraft universe interesting without bogging it down to heavily with bad mission design Campaign: 7/10. The multiplayer is an entirely different story, while there are the expected balance issues from the start the matchmaking and interface drastically improve the quality of the multiplayer experience. This quality of community content and level of enthusiasm is very difficult to find these days in games and is absolutely above par Multiplayer: 9/10. On the whole I would give Starcraft II: Heart of the Swarm a great 8/10… Expand
  25. patyomkin
    Mar 22, 2013
    0
    As usual, unbalanced game play. Funnily easy campaign in brutal mode, but the ai is shamelessly cheater in versus mode. Constant server side lagg in my region, f.ing annoying...
  26. althea
    Mar 15, 2013
    8
    I had to uninstall Starcraft 2 completely before I was able to install this expansion, so I had to wait hours to play it. Besides that it's a nice game. The campaign is amazing.
  27. Absynce
    Feb 25, 2015
    0
    this game is trash, as Starcraft 2 has always been, its about who can hit the most keys per minute in a sim city world. it should be a combat game, try making something new that resembles Myth: The Fallen Lords and maybe we buy your garbage.
  28. Skulb
    Mar 30, 2013
    5
    As usual with a Blizzard game there`s a lot of polish to HotS. The MP engine, the in game interface and unit control is all great as is the graphical quality and the sound. In fact, if you love playing MP RTS games with lag HotS is just about the perfect game.
    Unfortunately I don`t and consider e-sports about as entertaining to take part in as math exams, and more stressful than Christmas    As usual with a Blizzard game there`s a lot of polish to HotS. The MP engine, the in game interface and unit control is all great as is the graphical quality and the sound. In fact, if you love playing MP RTS games with lag HotS is just about the perfect game.
    Unfortunately I don`t and consider e-sports about as entertaining to take part in as math exams, and more stressful than Christmas shopping. It`s OK to watch, but just like with downhill skiing, Tour de France or professional wrestling I`m more than happy not to ever participate in it.
    Which leaves the single player campaign, which is to be perfectly honest full of some of the most lame ass writing you`re likely to have ever seen. Cliche on cliche piles onto the never ending monologue of weirdness and bravado of Kerrigan. I don`t think I can remember the last time I had a more overwhelming desire to kill off the main character in the story of a video game. It is just too bad to even properly describe in words.
    The story itself might be OK actually, but it`s just the way it`s being told. Until otherwise proven by Blizzard my opinion is that the entire scripting crew of SC2 have bee fired because they had too much talent,, and have been replaced by 3 illegal aliens being held prisoners in a broom closet by evil Blizzard accountants and forced to write scripts for the SC2 franchise, unless they wanna be handed over to immigration.

    Honestly though, if it wasn`t for the damn lag I get every time I so much as think about multi player, I might not be so harsh on SC2. But when the campaign is so poorly written I squirm with embarrassment in every single dialogue, and I can`t play multi player because of lag, what is left to like of the things I paid for? Not much is the answer to that question.    … Expand
  29. ploppytheman
    Apr 19, 2013
    7
    Im very fair in all of my reviews and the industry does seem to be in a downward spiral however I thought that sc2 hots was very well done. I wouldnt say single player was great, the story was downright absolute trash, but the gameplay and units are great. A lot of people think that starcraft is only a single player game but its not, its mainly about multiplayer and esports. Dont get meIm very fair in all of my reviews and the industry does seem to be in a downward spiral however I thought that sc2 hots was very well done. I wouldnt say single player was great, the story was downright absolute trash, but the gameplay and units are great. A lot of people think that starcraft is only a single player game but its not, its mainly about multiplayer and esports. Dont get me wrong I loved sc1 and its single player and neither sc2 single or multi can hold a candle to it, but it is still very well done and a good solid game. If you feel you didnt get your money for singleplayer only, you are right, because the game is a multipart package, like taking a slice of cake and saying the cake is too small, its your own damn fault for not playing multi isnt it.

    Blizzard failed in the areas of wow and d3, they are trying to fix starcraft for multi imo, but the campaign story was frankly absolute trash. They made it into a cheesy soap opera and took "queen of the universe" and make her good and shallow, damsel in distress. They turned kerrigan from a cunning cutthroat evil respectable and feared dictator to a weak emotional woman. Now dont get me wrong I hate feminism and all that trash, but this is a joke, they basically destroyed what she was, like sarah conner going back to being a waitress... well I really could go on and on about how everything in sc1 was essentially tossed out for primal zerg wow clone nonsense you can find long posts about it if you look around. Its just so disappointing... the potential sc2 story could have had... WoL had the same problem but at least Jim Raynor and Zeratul seemed in character, at least partially.

    So overall its still a 7 because its a good game, but if I were to rate this on "what blizzard is capable of" or their old standard I would give it around a 4 or 5, because this is shody work. And the campaign story is literally about a ZERO because of how terrible it was, negative even for the lore they spit out and stomped on.    … Expand
  30. teshia
    Jun 28, 2013
    5
    I was very disappointed with Heart of the Swarm. The story was okay and the art direction was pretty good but I found the gameplay lacking. I played through it on Normal difficulty and didn't die once during the entire campaign. That's not Normal, that's Easy, or even easier. I'm no Starcraft expert and couldn't remember what any of the units did when I came back to play thisI was very disappointed with Heart of the Swarm. The story was okay and the art direction was pretty good but I found the gameplay lacking. I played through it on Normal difficulty and didn't die once during the entire campaign. That's not Normal, that's Easy, or even easier. I'm no Starcraft expert and couldn't remember what any of the units did when I came back to play this expansion. It shouldn't have been this easy. I'm not paying good money to walk through it like it was an RTS for kids. Total snore fest. It certainly wasn't like that when I played the first Starcraft game or even Warcraft 2. Come on guys, add some tactics in make me work for it. Hard should be hard. Normal should be normal. Easy should be easy.… Expand
Page:

Awards & Rankings

17
#17 Best PC Game of 2013
33
#33 Most Discussed PC Game of 2013
52
#52 Most Shared PC Game of 2013

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
86

Generally favorable reviews - based on 68 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 66 out of 68
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 68
  3. Negative: 1 out of 68
  1. PC Master (Greece)
    Jun 10, 2013
    90
    The tutorials and the A.I have been improved, giving newcomers the chance to calmly try new tactics… before playing against experienced players that will go straight to their jugular. [April 2013]
  2. Games Master UK
    May 9, 2013
    85
    Accomplished, if not exactly groundbreaking. [June 2013, p.80]
  3. Hyper Magazine
    May 9, 2013
    90
    Heart of the Swarm is ScarCraft made better. Welcoming to newcomers, but never dumbed-down, the franchise at its best. [June 2013, p.66]
See all critic reviews »