Blizzard announced that two premium community made maps are available in StarCraft 2 Arcade. The two new maps accompany patch 4.3.0 and have been created by prominent members of the StarCraft community.
Blizzard is promising that these maps will offer two different experiences and that a share of proceeds from sales will go directly to the creators. The maps are available from the Blizzard Store and each costs $6.95 AUD each ($4.99 USD).
The two maps on offer are Ark Star and Direct Strike, created by Daniel “Pirate” Altman and Tya respectively.
Premium Community Maps StarCraft 2 Arcade
Ark Star, created by the winner of 2015’s Rock the Cabinet contest Daniel Altman, is a tactical, turn-based RPG starring the Protoss. An elite Templar team named the Sol Seekers are on a mission to destroy the Ark Star weapon.
Players will be able to find, craft and upgrade new equipment, level up their characters and even unlock new abilities. Players who purchase the map will also get a free and exclusive portrait.
You can check out a trailer for the Ark Star map at the end of this post.
Direct Strike Map
Where Ark Star is a turn-based RPG, Direct Strike is an evolution of Desert Strike HotS which is one of the most popular maps in the Arcade. Direct Strike is free, but players can choose to upgrade to a premium version which includes cosmetics and new modes.
Direct Strike puts players on either side of a tactical tug-of-war and requires players to spawn enemies into the staging area before sending them in waves towards the enemy.
Direct Strike replaces Desert Strike HotS, but those who don’t purchase the premium version will still be able to enjoy Direct Strike. The new game modes in the premium version include Sabotage and Switch.
Sabotage conceals players’ staging areas and includes unit bans while Switch lets players change their race mid-game. The included cosmetics can be applied to the staging area and workers.
To access the premium community maps follow these steps;
- Go to Custom > New Premium Maps
- Or you use the drop-down filter menu and select Premium Content.
- Once you select your map of choice, click Map Info and select the Premium tab
Both of the premium community maps are available now.
