You can’t complain much when a game receiving a new patch that includes making it being free to everyone, especially for a game as old as the original Starcraft.
The 1.18 update today has made the game free for everyone, available for PC and Mac. Alongside that, plenty of fixes are included in the patch.
Check out the patch notes and download links here. Note that you will need to have the Blizzard app (formerly known as the Battlenet client) to get the game running.
With a new remaster coming soon, it’s nice for Blizzard to hand over the classic RTS to everyone. While Starcraft II’s trilogy release may have been decent, Starcraft: Brood War is still a major name in the esports scene especially in Korea.
Though Korea’s long-running Starcraft league may have discontinued, maybe this free distribution of the classic and a remaster coming soon may spark back the interest with the game.