StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm Aussie launch party guests revealed

Earlier this month, Blizzard announced launch event plans for RTS title StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm. The official Australian launch party will take place on March 11 at Federation Square in Melbourne from 8pm.

Blizzard Australia has revealed details on the line-up of special guests in attendance. StarCraft II eSports community commentators Leigh "Maynarde" Mandalov and Sean "Flamga" Krauter will be in attendance.

The event will also feature live StarCraft II show matches played by Australian professional gamers Andrew "mOOnGLaDe" Pender, Jared "PiG" Krensel, Mark "yang" Richardson, and Daniel "deth" Haynes.

A developer panel will be hosted on the night with game director Dustin Browder and 3D artist Luke Mancini. The panel is to include both developers in a Q&A session, as well as a cosplay contest, music videos by Viva La Dirt League, and prize giveaways.

The Blizzard autograph table and game pre-order pickup will become available once the clock ticks over to midnight. Fans who are unable to make it to the event can catch the action being streamed live. More details about the launch event can be found on the Blizzard website.

In addition to a standard edition of StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm, attendees will have the opportunity to purchase a collector's edition of the game. The collector's edition includes a behind-the-scenes DVD and Blu-ray, soundtrack, art book, mouse pad, and in-game content for StarCraft II, World of Warcraft and Diablo III.

Heart of the Swarm is the second instalment in the StarCraft II three-part series. The Zerg-centric expansion will follow 2010's StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty and precede the final entry, StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void. The game is scheduled to launch in Australia on March 12.