With the campaign complete I turned my attentions towards the multiplayer game. Back in SC1 days I had quite a bit of fun playing multiplayer at LAN parties but never really got into playing online on Battle.net, due to the age of the game and the justifiable fear of getting my ass whooped. After watching a bunch of shoutcasted videos online and losing lots of matches myself I can clearly see how this is Korea's number one competitive sport to play and spectate. I've certainly become an addict. You can keep tabs of my progress through the multiplayer ladder here.
I've been playing Terran mainly but plan on switching to Protoss at some point. The new match making system is really great and most of my games have been with opponents of a similar skill level which has been great fun. Blizzard really got things right with the design with heaps of achievements to collect, automatically saved replays of games to learn from and a really fun ladder system. Then of course there are all the improvements they made to the game mechanics compared to the first one with automining, larger unit groups, smart casting... oh I could so go on. I love this game, the last time I was this into something was that other game from Blizzard.
There are heaps of channels on YouTube to get started with SC2 that I've been following religiously. Husky and HD both do great coverage of professional and high level matches while Day9 breaks down games into what we can learn from the play. Superb stuff.
Alison did manage to drag me away from the computer this weekend for a few social events with family and friends (where I exercised extreme restraint to not talk about Starcraft). While out Alsie managed to pick up a coffee table for our outdoor setting which should make a pretty nifty weekend project and we grabbed a painting for the hallway while at the Portside market.
It should just take a bit of sanding and a new coat of glossy paint to restore this antique. Alsie found it for a steal while out with Elizabeth and it's the perfect size and style that we've been looking for.
Our walls are pretty bare and we are always on the lookout for art to hang, except that being cheapskates we rarely agree with the price tag. Thankfully this one wasn't too pricey and fills out the entrance way nicely. Welcoming and colourful for when I come through the door after work... to play Starcraft...