Blizzard’s StarCraft series is one of- if not the– most popular and competitive RTS games in the world. Since the release of StarCraft in 1998, tournaments have been held worldwide for the PC-exclusive title….We’ll just pretend that StarCraft 64 was never made. What started in South Korea, eventually spread across the world, as several tournaments with the likes of Dreamhack, IEM – Intel Extreme Masters, MLG – Major League Gaming, GOMTV GSL – Global StarCraft II League and WCS – World Championship Series, have all featured the most recent versions of StarCraft during their respective times. In some cases, the winnings for the top player can exceed well over $200,000.
It was revealed that Blizzard filed papers with a California court, demanding a jury trial against 10 individuals who have been accused of cheating in StarCraft II. According to the report, the unidentified players are all guilty of creating, distributing and selling hacking software to be used with the RTS. One cited case of hacking software refers to “ValiantChaos MapHack”, which grants complete map-vision to the player, without having to send a unit out for “scouting”. At the beginning of each match, the player’s mini-map is blacked-out, and will only show the player’s own starting base. The mini-map fills in as units are sent across the map, in search for the enemy player, and other areas that allow for base-expansion.
As hacking a game requires undesired modifications to a published product, the 10 StarCraft II players are in direct violation of the Copyright Act and 17 U.S.C, as “intentional interference” and “trafficking” of hacking or cheating software is strictly prohibited under law. According to Blizzard, the acts of these select players “not only disrupt or impair the online experience… [but] cause serious and irreparable harm to Blizzard and its products”.
StarCraft II uses a ranking and categorical system based on the player’s “build order” (i.e. the order in which structures, units and upgrades are created/applied), speed, and win-loss ratio. Users are placed within a regional leaderboard within one of seven larger leagues- Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, Master and Grand Master.
