Blizzard announces that it will start selling two new Premium Arcade maps with the introduction of patch 4.3.0 from StarCraft II. The two maps are actually more Mods and are not made by Blizzard, but by fans.

StarCraft II will soon receive a substantial update in the form of patch 4.3.0 . The patch also adds the option to the rts to download two new mods for the game. Blizzard scales the mods under the ‘premium arcade maps’, which means that you have to pay for the mods. The mods that Blizzard offers are Ark Star and Direct Strike and both are not made by Blizzard, but by modellers from the StarCtaft II community. Both mods can be downloaded for $ 5 and, according to Blizzard, the modders share the proceeds, although the studio does not reveal a percentage to the makers.

ARK Star is made by Daniel ‘Pirate’ Altman. It is a mod in which the player follows the Sol Seekers, a team of elite templars who are looking for a mysterious weapon, the ARK Star, that has to be turned off. Players create and discover new pieces of equipment to strengthen their team and unlock new talents.

Direct Strike is made by a mud known only as Tya. It is a variant of Direct Strike HotS, a map that can already be played via arcade maps of StarCraft II. The new version replaces the existing one and appears in a free and paid variant. The paid version would look better and also has new forms of play. It is unknown if Blizzard wants to add more maps or mods of fans to the game.