StarCraft.org's fan content system is being redesigned to create a better user experience. To highlight some of the talent in the community besides progamers, we'll be bringing you some of SC.org's finest fan works each week.
As one of the original fan sites from back in the Operation CWAL days, StarCraft.org has been a nexus of the community for ages. Their server is a goldmine of fan submissions, from mp3s to mods to entire novels, all done in the spirit of StarCraft. After their site became the victim of a worm, they were forced to unveil version 2.0 early, before all the features were ready. Now they are rolling out the final component of version 2 - a redesigned and improved content system.
In an interview,
Schwitzer had this to say,"We were originally forced to switch to StarCraft.org v2 a little prematurely[...]it was up before we really had a chance to fine-tune it. Since it came online, we've realised features we would like to implement and/or bring back that were on the original site."Besides making it easier to sort through all of the fan submissions, the new system allows users to rate and review content in several ways. When asked about the sudden focus on ratings, Schwitzer continued,
Being a community site, we've always put a lot of emphasis on the communities' opinions. The several ratings system will enable members to be more specific about what was good or bad about a submission. Additionally, this information will allow the submitter to gauge what they should improve in future submissions. It will also make it easier for us to recognise candidates for Elite status.
Story of the week » Infiltration by handofzarquon
"The Tarsonian sky was still dark, the light from the planet's orbital platforms providing an eerie blue glow against the blackness[...]Uneventful as it was, nobody noticed the section of the perimeter fence that suddenly had a hole in it, or the slight distortion in the air caused by the cloaking device of a solitary Ghost agent."This story is a few years old now, and is one of my personal favorites. Due to the crash, the author remains unknown. There is a level of quality to this story that has yet to be matched by any other fan fiction.
Comments
Yossarian: "It was great for what it's worth. It's a shame no one looks through the elite fiction anymore."
CommanderS: "Best FanFic I ever read. Keep up the good work!!
Map of the week » The Shifters campaign by JudasCloud
The Shifters campaign has been around for quite a while, but it is still one of the best campaigns made to date. It has a moving storyline, along with great music, cut-scene levels, and challenging missions. You play missions from both points of view. Note that you need to play this with patch 1.08 for the included custom graphics to work. You can use the » 7x patcher to switch patches.
Fan art of the week » "Carriers Have Arrived" by gmvgmvgmv
A beautiful panorama, with the beauty of the terrain hiding the danger that lies in the foreground.Comments
BST_Rhino: "Oh my gosh, that rocks! Just look at that planet in the sky. Wow!"
unholyassassin: "It's the foggy background that is the best aspect of this work of art. Sure there's little texture, but I'm no big texture person myself. Overall, this makes a great wallpaper since it gives a refreshing view."
Strategy of the week » "The Light of the Khala - Protoss Spells and Abilities"
by DrawingBlanks
"This guide covers all of the Protoss abilities, which any good Starcraft player should know very intimately by now, so this is not necessarily a guide for experienced players. Rather, it is geared towards newer, more inexperienced players so as to get a grip on what all of the abilities are and how they could (and possibly should) be used."A nice guide for beginners who aren't completely sure how to use all of their units and their abilities properly.
SC.org staff pick » Battlecruiser Patrol by crazyYoda
Three solitary battlecruisers patrol the deep regions of space, not knowing what they'll find, but ready for a fight. This is a real piece of work.Comments
Schwitzer: "crazyYoda consistently submits high-quality fanart to SC.org, and this is one example of his beautiful 3D creations. The Battlecruisers are rendered so amazingly that this picture looks like it came straight out of a Hollywood blockbuster. This is a highly polished, professional-looking piece of fanart."
A big thanks goes to Schwitzer for making this happen. That's all for this week!
Links
StarCraft.org - News about the revamp
