StarCraft Ghost Revival

There once was a time when gamers thought Duke Nukem: Forever would never be released. It had been brought back to life, canceled, pre-ordered and indefinitely delayed on numerous occasions, but eventually found its way to shelves (and unfortunately, mediocrity).

In terms of similar waiting times, it's been ten years since StarCraft: Ghost was announced, and there are still those who hope for its eventual completion. The project was never officially canceled by Blizzard, leaving an inkling of hope that the game may eventually come to fruition. Just don't hold your breath.

After confirming that StarCraft 2: Heart of the Swarm is 99% complete, lead designer Dustin Browder gave his thoughts about the currently-in-limbo Ghost project:

"There are no plans. I'm not saying we won't ever, but I'll tell you what I do know: There are no meetings going on. There is no team. No one talks about doing it. It doesn't mean that in two years from now, we won't have those meetings, the team won't be formed, but there is literally nothing happening around that game right now that would indicate that there's any likelihood that it will happen. It's just as likely we'll do that again as Lost Vikings 3 or whatever. There's just no guarantees one way or the other, but nothing is happening."

The important thing to note from Browder's words is that the project has never been officially closed. On one level or another, the Blizzard high-ups evidently decided that they've invested enough in Ghost for a potential release, whether it be recreating the game on next-generation technology, or even porting it to a platform like Xbox Live.

StarCraft Ghost Screenshot

StarCraft: Ghost would allow combat inside buildings and structures like Command Centers.

For those who may not know, StarCraft: Ghost was a third-person shooter centered around Nova, an elite Ghost operative who must utilize stealth, darkness, weapons and even hand-to-hand combat to complete objectives. The game takes place four years after the conclusion of Brood War, once the Zerg have become the most prominent and powerful species, leaving both Terran and Protoss forces scrambling for survival.

In addition to this gameplay, it was also confirmed that Nova could even pilot popular series vehicles like siege tanks and vultures as she eventually faced off against all three species.

Fans of StarCraft 2 may remember the character from the stellar Wings of Liberty campaign, where she was featured as playable unit - which may indicate Blizzard is at least making an effort to keep her relevant. Nova also features prominently in several of the StarCraftfranchise books (one of which was originally supposed to accompany Ghost upon release), which makes completing the game tie-in a sensible idea, provided the studio can find the time.

After the StarCraft 2 trilogy is done and the development teams are left deciding their next project, it seems like Ghost may just be the perfect one to bring back to life.

Would you like to see StarCraft: Ghost? Were you excited when it was almost completed years ago?

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Source: Kotaku