Valve has never pulled something like this. Maybe I can blame this betrayal on the fact that L4D was actually developed by Turtle Rock Studios, who were bought by Valve during development. Maybe I can blame this on EA or Microsoft moneyhats. Who knows for sure? What I do know is that I paid $45 for what was essentially a beta for L4D2. Was I stupid to assume that Valve would support Left 4 Dead like it has Team Fortress 2? Perhaps. Doesn’t mean I can’t be disappointed with a company I put on a pedestal for many years now.

Valve can still support Left 4 Dead, you say? Even if they do, the community will be split between the original and its too-soon sequel. The SDK still needs to be released, and they have already announced the sequel. This clearly confirms that L4D is thought of as a console franchise. We all should have figured this out when we first experienced the terrible matchmaking system. A console franchise set to MILK.

So for now, I’m definitely not buying this seemingly cash-in sequel, unless a reasonable price is announced for the PC. And even then, I’ll still be hesitant, considering they could start working on L4D3 upon release, just like they did with L4D2. All this adds up to L4D2 most likely being the first Valve game I don’t pre-order since the original Half-Life. Oh, and Blizzard regaining its foothold on my pedestal. Starcraft 2 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Left 4 Dead 2.

And it still may be a year away.

And that will only be one-third of the single-player campaign.

Wait, WHAT?

No doubt the biggest news to come out of this year’s Blizzcon is that the only campaign that will ship with Starcraft II is the Terran campaign. No Zerg, no Protoss. You’re going to need to learn how to utilize the new units for those two races by playing comp stomps or getting owned by Koreans. Although, there are rumors of tutorial missions for each race.

So expect Starcraft II: Heart of the Swarm in 2010, and Starcraft II: Legacy of the Void in 2011 at the EARLIEST. You’ll have to make due with what better be an absolutely epic Terran campaign and full multiplayer in the meantime (or Diablo III might actually be out by then). The pessimistic consensus seems to be Holiday 2009 for the first part of the trilogy – Wings of Liberty. I’m sure Blizzard knows to make sure that Terran campaign is mind-blowingly awesome, so people are willing to shell out for two more single-player-only expansions.

I just can’t believe how long this damn game is taking. World of Warcraft has really taken over at Blizzard. It’s only natural to make sure your CASH COW OF HISTORICAL PROPORTIONS is first priority. Almost 11 million monthly subscribers. They should be giving Starcraft II away for free. I really wanted to bitch more about this trilogy bullshit, but it would only end in me eating crow when I bought each part on release date and loved every second.

In order to make the wait that much more unbearable, here are four YouTube videos of two matches played at Blizzcon. I hope you don’t get blue balls like I did from not being able to see the conclusion of the second game. I wanted to see massive destruction go down.

Match 1 – Part 1

Match 1 – Part 2

Match 2 – Part 1

Match 2 – Part 2

Yeah, I can’t believe I watched all of those either. The following cinematic washed that shame out of my mouth, though.

2 minutes of the Starcraft II Intro