Planet busters

GAME OF THE WEEK:STARCRAFT II: WINGS OF LIBERTY, 16 cert, Blizzard, PC *****

After more than 10 years, StarCraftfans have been given the next instalment. The real-time strategy game has been in development since 2003, and was announced in 2007 before beta versions were unveiled earlier this year. There's a lot for StarCraft IIto live up to, with the potential for disappointment high. Thankfully, it's as good as it should be after all this time.

Featuring three different races (Terran, Protoss and Zerg), StarCraft IIputs you at the heart of a battle where strategy is everything.

Wings of Libertyis the first installment of a three-part game. This time out, you take on the role of Jim Raynor, a rebel with the intention of bringing down the Dominion and leader Mengsk. Set about four years after StarCraft: Brood War, Wings of Libertyretains many familiar faces, including Artanis and Sarah Kerrigan.

The good news is that it does the single player campaign almost as well as the multiplayer online modes. It features 10 missions for each of the three races, which means there’s plenty to sink your teeth into before going online to try out your skills. And it has resisted changing things just for the sake of it, so you’ll find some familiar tested elements.

But it's online multiplayer action that I found really addictive. Whether you are playing over LAN or online through Blizzard's Battle.net servers, the competitive side of StarCraft IIis so compelling that it's hard to log off.

The strategy elements have been well thought out, always keeping you thinking and trying to decide on the correct counter strategies. And there are plenty of multiplayer maps to work through.

StarCraft IIis not without its detractors. The lack of drastic change has been touted as both a negative and a bonus. But it's as near to perfect as you're going to get, and after the length of time it's taken to bring this to gamers, it's nothing less than what it deserves.