People are talking about SWTOR- this we already know but now that the official launch date has arrived, we see big media coverage at an all-time high. We also continue to see the comparisons made between SWTOR and WoW. USA Today had two stories on the game and it was also covered by large news organizations like the New York Times, The Telegraph, BBC, Daily Mail, and FT.com all of which had something to say about SWTOR and WoW.
Big media roundup of SWTOR vs. WoW:
New York Times
“On Tuesday, Electronic Arts will release Star Wars: The Old Republic, a sprawling multiplayer online adventure that is the first legitimate competition that World of Warcraft has faced for the hearts, minds, hours and dollars of millions of players. “Star Wars” games have been around for decades, but the Old Republic provides the most extensive opportunity to become your own Jedi warrior, Sith assassin, snarky smuggler or powerful sage.”
The NY Times writer talks about WoW, it’s successes and how SWTOR will compete with the MMO-giant from Blizzard. He recaps what industry analysts have said about SWTOR and the appeal of a Star Wars themed game of this nature.
The Telegraph
“Electronic Arts is hoping that a multiplayer online video game based on the Star Wars series can give it the edge over Activision-Blizzard’s World of Warcraft.”
Well, that pretty much sums it up, doesn’t it? in this editorial by Shane Richmond, the Telegraph explores why SWTOR might rival WoW and why it could just be the last subscription-based MMORPG released successfully. It’s also believed to be the most expensive video game ever made. Will it live up to all the hype?
BBC
“Reputed to have cost more than $130m (£87m) to develop, SWTOR is a bid to grab a chunk of the lucrative gaming market for publisher EA.
It faces stiff competition from established titles, such as World of Warcraft, and many free-to-play games.”
Here we have the same old song and dance but this time from the BBC. This story explores the game and how SWTOR differs from WoW and what unique things it has to offer that WoW does not. Reading this piece will also give you a pro and con review from staff who played the game for themselves.
Daily Mail
“World of Warcraft is the most popular ‘online world’ ever created – playing host to 10 million gamers who battle its dragons, demons and dungeons, or just fight and trade with each other.
It’s also a money machine that generates a reported $500 million a year in subscriptions and disc sales – making its owner Activision the biggest games company on Earth.
But tomorrow, gaming giant Electronic Arts unveils one of the most expensive games ever made – Star Wars: the Old Republic. The game aims to outpace Warcraft’s swords and sorcery with interstellar travel, lightsabers and the world of Yoda, Darth Vader and the galactic Empire. If it succeeds, it could push EA ahead of its bitter rival Activision.”
FT.com
“A long time ago in a galaxy not so far away, Electronic Arts was the number one video game publisher and Activision its closest rival.
Then Activision joined forces with Vivendi’s games unit in 2008 to become the industry leader, adding its Blizzard division and World of Warcraft, the biggest online role-playing game.
But now the empire is striking back. EA launches Star Wars: The Old Republic on Tuesday, with hopes of winning the loyalty of online gamers to the George Lucas sci-fi franchise and eventually overtaking World of Warcraft.”
This is another fun read that discusses the game and also compares SWTOR and WoW with a look into what the future might hold for each.
