If StarCraft II is installed on a traditional HDD, the "Preparing" phase takes significantly longer as the game scans roughly 30 GB of storage .
Preparing game data here means building the command queue buffers, synchronizing system clocks (via ICMP or UDP timestamps), and performing a handshake that verifies all players have the same map checksum and data table hashes. starcraft 2 preparing game data
Switching game regions can sometimes force the client to re-verify your account data and complete the "Preparing Data" phase. If StarCraft II is installed on a traditional
It is important to note that this screen is unique to StarCraft 2 . World of Warcraft compiles shaders in the background during gameplay (causing stuttering). Overwatch 2 does it on the main menu. Diablo 3 uses a different system entirely. starcraft 2 preparing game data