StarCraft: Ghost [Canceled] [Xbox]

For the species of person known as a "gamer," there are so many games and so little time.

It isn't often, though, that a game comes along that might have the chance of entertaining not only typically male gamers but a wider audience, particularly women. Starcarft: Ghost -- coming early next year from game developer Blizzard Entertainment -- could be one of those games.

Ghost will be coming out only for PlayStation 2, Xbox, and Gamecube consoles. There is no version planned for the PC -- a first in some years for Blizzard, which since the late 1990s has developed only for the PC and is considered the industry's preeminent developer of PC games.

Ghost takes place far in the future when humans have colonized a far reach of the galaxy, only to encounter a malevolent alien species known as the Zerg, as well as the mysterious Protoss.

Players of Ghost will assume control of the character Nova, a female "Ghost" operative in the Terran army. Ghosts have capabilities that include being a sniper, turning invisible and calling in strikes by nuclear weapons or from big siege tanks or skyborne battle cruisers. As Nova, you are sent on missions that range from solo operations to taking part in massive battles.

There are at least three reasons why folks other than seasoned game players might want to check out this game. The first is obvious: The main character is female, thus perhaps easier for women to identify with than, say, the male Terran space marine who is the protagonist of the upcoming Doom 3.

Second, the game designers emphasize that while Ghost is an action game, you don't just shoot everything in sight. You also actually have to think your way in and around some pretty tough situations.

"There are action elements to the game," said producer John Lagrave. "But we also emphasize that there is a lot of adventure to the game and stealth game play as well."

Most of all, what has long distinguished Blizzard games is the way they draw you in with storylines and plot twists that are compelling (at least by the somewhat adolescent standards of video games). Blizzard rose to greatness with PC games that are now classics, including Warcraft, Diablo, and Starcraft -- all of which had gripping story lines that were the video game equivalent of stay-up-all-night page turners.

Lagrave promises that Blizzard is upping the ante with Ghost. He put the timeline of the game somewhere near the end of Starcraft: Brood War -- the expansion pack to the original Starcraft that furthered the saga of the Terrans, Zerg and Protoss.

"What we're going to do in the game is to introduce the story through cutscenes and cinematic events and in-game chatter, because if you've never played Starcraft you wouldn't know what the heck is going on," Lagrave said. "There are these three warring sectors that are always battling, and you're plunked into a very scary and dangerous place. Yeah, you're well trained and have some amazing abilities, but it's a dangerous world."

Lagrave was reluctant, for obvious reasons, to give up too much of the storyline, but indicated that Nova grows as a character and faces some interesting moral dilemmas as it unfolds. She starts out as a fresh recruit who follows orders and is eager to prove herself. But as events progress, she finds herself being charged with doing things that are morally edgy and that cause her to question her commanding officer.

Because the game comes from Blizzard, you can expect a lot of spit and polish, as well as something that's visually rich. The game was supposed to be released at the end of this year, but has already slipped into early 2004. Given Blizzard's reputation for not shipping games before they're darn near perfect (unlike other publishers who will rush games out to meet promised release dates), don't be surprised if the Ghost release date slips again.

Lagrave said there are no plans to make a PC version of Ghost because the game has been specifically designed for the technology, prime play characteristics and controls of a game console. The move is a risky one for Blizzard, given its background in developing only for the PC. But it's a potentially lucrative one, given the huge growth of the console market and relatively stagnant sales of PC game software.

"We'll see who buys it," said Lagrave of the audience for Ghost. "Are women interested in a female character? We sort of hope so."