Few games have had left as much of a mark on the world as the first StarCraft did. It caused the word “zerg” to enter the geekspeak vernacular as a verb meaning “to launch an early attack on an enemy with overwhelming numbers.” It became a virtual religion in South Korea, elevating pro gamers there to the same near-deified status reserved in America for pro athletes. And it left every one of us waiting with baited breath for the past decade, eagerly anticipating the moment Blizzard would release the inevitable sequel into our clutching hands.

But you don’t have to take my word for it. We have two CFD! editors on hand to give their takes as to what makes StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty worthy of nomination for 2010′s Game of the Year.

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Scott: StarCraft II is, in many ways, a safe game. It featured no drastic renovations in the gameplay that made the original a hit, yet it felt altogether exciting and new. The story was much more epic (if a little cheesy at times), and allowed for a customizable experience through user-defined mission order. The multiplayer was refined with a very handy match making system, allowing even StarCraft novices a chance at glory.

What makes StarCraft II great, however, has nothing to do with the additions to this iteration; the gameplay from 1998 is still as addictive as ever, even if the untrained eye sees only simplicity at first glance. No, StarCraft is not on level with Company of Heroes when it comes to strategy, but the micro game is still as important as the macro, and if your plan is to throw a mass of units straight at the enemy base, more than likely your defeat is near. I don’t know if I can quantify what it is that makes StarCraft II so goddamn fun, but I guarantee that after your first victory against a human opponent, you will come back for more.

John: No game this year — not Black Ops, not Reach, nor anything else for that matter — faced the expectations that StarCraft II did. If the campaign wasn’t fun, if multiplayer wasn’t balanced, if it was too much like the original StarCraft, if it was too different from StarCraft… There are a multitude of ways that StarCraft II could have failed to live up to its revered name. But it didn’t. It had its share of rough spots, but SCII proved it was a worthy successor to the classic original, and more than worthy of a Game of the Year nod.

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Did StarCraft II live up to its weighty legacy for all of you out there? Do you think it deserves to be 2010′s Game of the Year? Leave us your comments below and don’t forget to check back every day, as CFD!’s Twelve Days of 2010 continues forward with new content, counting down to the GOTY reveal on New Year’s Eve!