As dozens of rifle-wielding marines took up positions along a rocky path, and siege tanks clamped spider-like legs deep into the earth, and immense Battlecruisers slowly skulked toward an enemy base with lasers bristling, and the once-calm field erupted into an apocalyptic battle, I couldn't help but think of chess.

The first reference to an early version of chess was made in the 5th century AD. Thought to originate in India, the famous board game--then called shatranj, referring to the four divisions of the Persian military--took nearly a millennium to develop into the version we are familiar with today. In that time, kingdoms would rise and fall, and countless generations lived and died. Now chess is an institution, one of the world's best-known games, and a standard by which some of our greatest minds have been measured.

In some ways, this reminds me of StarCraft II.

Okay, so our wait for a StarCraft revision hasn't quite extended into a millennium yet, but 10 years is a long time in this wireless world of instant information. Unlike the dusty days of historic progress, our achievements are studied with electron-microscopes. Our revolutions are charted and predicted by analysts. Our great discoveries come on a daily basis, and are largely taken for granted.

That is, until I played StarCraft II.

Sitting down to grip the mouse, I was nervous for two reasons, one more immediate than the other. Somewhere out there, amidst the sea of computer terminals and Blizzard reps, my multiplayer opponents were putting on headsets and readying their hotkeys. Who were they? Lanky Warcraft players stumbling into the big-boy StarCraft arena? Korean masterminds jumping into their competitive flight-suits? Confused mainstream press still trying to figure out how to use computer? It was impossible to tell. Before I could think about fleeing to save my dignity, the loading screen came up, the driving Terran music faded in, and the whirring sound of SCVs filled my senses. My nerves slowly relaxed. My worries faded away.

In practice, playing StarCraft II is like going home--except that someone's rearranged the furniture a little.

But what an improvement in design. Along with everything I mentioned on the first day (and in the BlizzCon podcast), I discovered some wonderful little touches in my second play session. These helpful changes probably won't seem monumental on paper, but in the heat of battle, they are absolutely essential.

While my teammate got to work on being useless, I went about forming a defensive perimeter around my forward expansion base. First I needed some gas to get my factories churning out them sweet tanks. Selecting an SCV worker, I set him to work on a Refinery, and pointed my Command Center's rally point near to the soon-completed building. Soon SCVs were pouring out of the center, wheeling themselves over to the Refinery as usual, and then, unexpectedly, gathering gas without another command.

Worker units on the whole are much more automated than in the past. You begin with six of the peons now, rather than four, which is certainly one way to decrease round durations. Once you actually begin to build, any grievances you had with StarCraft's original interface melt away. The new foundation-placing grid guides you on exactly how much space is left to build a Commander Center. Buildings can now be queued up on top of other obstructing units--the building simply commences when the unit moves along. By holding down shift, multiple buildings can be queued up for one worker, which will diligently move from project to project while you handle other business. Like regular unit waypoints, these worker waypoints are connected with simple lines that indicate the unit's future pathing. Simple features, but they are immeasurable in their value.

After a few minutes of resource gathering I had a small squad of tanks ready to go, which brought me to my next revelation: selecting a deployed siege tank now brings up a ranging perimeter display. While each unit seems to have its own range statistic that is readily available--as indicated by the "4 to 5" increase in range that the U238 Shells grant a Marine--I only noticed the actual display with stationary units and buildings such as siege tanks and Sensor Towers.

Upset that there's still a five-unit cap on most training queues? Perhaps to maintain balance, this hasn't been changed much--except in the case of the Terran Barracks. Now the building can be specialized with two potential add-ons: one which enables the training of medics, and the other which allows for two entirely separate marines to be trained simultaneously. Each slot has a queue of four rather than the usual five, but that still represents a Zerg-like boost in per-building unit production.

Another similar addition is the Merc Haven, where the jet-pack equipped Terran Reapers are trained. Four of these units can be pumped out in mere seconds, though a cool-down restricts any more production until the building has recharged--a period of about 30 seconds. Like the multiple Marine queues, these cool-downs feel Zerg-like in their function, allowing for short bursts in unit spawning. It will be interesting to see where Blizzard takes the Zerg race, and whether there will be any change to the three-egg Hive formula.

At this point, the opposing team had already overrun my teammate's initial forward base. Out of the corner of my eye, a sullen looking man stood up from his computer, tearing off his headset in disgust and storming off, the epitome of the average Battle.net user. "GG," I thought to myself in a most sarcastic, bitter tone. It was only a matter of time now. Building countless bunkers and missile turrets, I dug in for the long haul, hoping in vain for a tie by time-limit. Remember the Alamo.

Needless to say, I didn't last long. After a vicious barrage of Yamato cannons and Interceptor swarms, I conceded the round, eager to begin anew with a less-challenging partner, and a different race: the Protoss.

Executor: Read on for a look at the winning side of the Protoss, and a reflection on the game as a whole.