Two years ago, an ambitious project was launched with a vision to bring back the nostalgic feel of the beloved Combat Upgrade era of Star Wars Galaxies. This dream, known as the SWG Restoration, was birthed out of a lifelong passion for the game and a desire to provide a platform where fans could relive their cherished memories. Fast forward to today, the project has not only survived but thrived, marking its two-year anniversary with significant achievements and promising plans for the future.
A Journey of Restoration
The journey of SWG Restoration has been marked by several notable achievements. The project has successfully rebuilt and refactored a number of game systems and services. The economy remains stable and the combat system continues to be refined in order to maintain balance between professions. Furthermore, substantial content has been released, including numerous community events and the complete Mustafar. In addition, the first two phases of Jedi Unlock have been released, and the project has introduced various ways to participate in PvP, such as Open World, Invasions, Battlefields, and bounties both on the ground and in space.
Building a Strong Community
One of the significant focus areas of the project has been the community. Recognizing the importance of its players, the SWG Restoration team has implemented strategies to reach out to new audiences and strengthen the existing community. This includes the launch of a new website, the Comlink, which has become a central hub for communication around the project, allowing players to share their own news and ideas with the community. The project has also ventured into new media outlets, including TikTok, to reach a wider audience and increase awareness of SWG Restoration.
Empowering Player Voices
SWG Restoration has placed a significant emphasis on listening to and implementing player feedback. The creation of “Player Voices” allows the community to voice their opinions on elements of the game that need attention or features they desire. This has led to several player-suggested changes being implemented, such as removing Mandalorian Armor Restrictions, removing the Server Progression System, and making Nalargon and Ommni Box Instruments easier to use, among others.
Delivering Content and Future Plans
Releasing content has been a major priority for Restoration in 2023. Notable releases include the Mustafar Droid Army, Mustafar Operational Droid Factory, and numerous events such as the Galactic Senate Inauguration, Dr. Fool’s Toy Tantrum, and the Ewok Festival of Love. The project also looks forward to releasing senate-prioritized content add-ons, like the upcoming title vendor and Bestine Humanities Society Menagire, a new private club that will allow the community to bid on original artwork.
Looking ahead, the team has exciting plans for the future. Outside of the 1.1 roadmap items, which include content additions like the Casino, Nuna Ball, and Podracing mini-games, the team plans to release a major GCW update. This update, which has been highly requested by the community, will include Officer Ranks, Base Busting, and enhancements to the Planetary Control Game, with custom mechanics and brand new features.
Conclusion
As SWG Restoration celebrates its two-year anniversary, it’s clear that the project’s commitment to its vision, dedication to community-building, and responsiveness to player feedback have been instrumental in its success. With a promising roadmap for the future, the project continues to fulfill its founder’s vision to recreate the nostalgic feelof the Combat Upgrade era of Star Wars Galaxies. This dedication to bringing back the beloved game in a new and enhanced form, coupled with a strong community and continuous content releases, gives fans of the game much to look forward to in the coming years. Here’s to another year of successful restoration and a bright future for Star Wars Galaxies. Here is the press release:
Restoration Celebrating 2 Years
June 6, 2023 – With over 45,000 registered accounts since our launch in July of 2021, Restoration has proved it’s a staple for fans who wish to immerse themselves in an open world Star Wars universe. Within the last year, we have:
- Delivered 3 new content areas and numerous player-events.
- Added new space content and balanced the space experience.
- Continued to tweak combat, with major patches for multiple professions delivered.
- Stabilized the player-economy by introducing enjoyable credit sinks.
- Rebuilt or refactored a number of game systems, and behind the scenes infrastructure.
- Introduced a secretive Jedi unlock system.
- Customized PvP with proper incentives.
With regular monthly updates, the future is bright for Restoration.
Looking Forward to Future Content
While we are committed to our overall Project Roadmap, fans can expect the following additions before the end of the year.
64-Bit Client
Hamstrung by the development constraints of 32-bit, this new addition will allow Restoration to enable newer graphics, utilize more memory, and take advantage of new CPU architectures. SWTOR won’t be the only classic Star Wars game coming to modern infrastructure!
The Path
Inspired by the underground Jedi smuggling safe houses popularized by the Obi-Wan Kenobi series, this network allows in-game Jedi to avoid detection and gives them a place to meet, train, and trade.
Combat Balancing
It feels bad to miss a lot. While our previous take on combat was accurate to the experience Star Wars Galaxies offered, we want to modernize quality of life features that help players feel more in charge of their combat experience. This includes changes to the accuracy/defense mechanic, further profession diversity, and new UI elements that indicate hit chance.
Galactic Civil War Update
While our 2.0 publish is still earmarked for the majority of the Galactic Civil War update, we’ve decided to package some exciting high-demand content in 2023. The introduction of Officer Ranks will allow a limited number of players to command powerful NPC forces and reward special perks for their faction. Base busting, and planetary control will also see the addition of new mechanics and features!
Restoration Key Features
- Explore a sprawling sandbox world – From the sprawling cities of Corellia, Naboo, and Tatooine to the treacherous terrain of Endor, Dathomir, and Kashyyyk – immerse yourself in a complex and unique Star Wars Universe like never before.
- Tell your unique story – Pick and choose from 32 different skill trees; social, crafting, science, combat – to create a character unique to you. Found player cities, decorate housing, sell wares or services, host galactic dinner parties – the choice is yours.
- A player driven economy – Certain rewards and mechanics have been removed, worked into the player crafting tree, or made cosmetic only—to ensure players are the driving force in the market.
- Fight in space – Jump to Lightspeed is fully implemented, and players can experience group squadron action in PvE or PvP combat.
- Unique force system – The journey to becoming a Jedi in the era of the Galactic Empire poses unique challenges as a thriving Force Sensitive community to take in a youngling for training is nonexistent. Consequently, the process of becoming a Jedi is a demanding, stimulating, and individualized experience for every inhabitant of the Star Wars Galaxy. Discovery of The Force will require exploration throughout the ground and space on group and solo adventures. Everything encountered along the way, from artifacts and horticulture to creatures and conclaves, will play a role in your saga.
- Developed in tandem with the community – The Restoration team listens to player feedback through its unique PlayerVoice and Senate system, and has exciting new content planned to keep every player entertained for years to come.
About The Restoration Team
Our team of volunteers are all Star Wars fans who enjoyed Star Wars Galaxies. They have the abundant knowledge and passion to present a version of what could have been—if development on the original game had not ceased in 2011. Building off its prior iterations in Restoration I & II, Restoration is the culmination of past efforts and represents our final vision of a fun and rewarding Star Wars MMORPG that we all deserve.
We welcome any questions or comments, please direct them to the team at talonkarrde@swgr.org
For more information, please follow the links below. And may the force be with you.Website –Discord–TikTok–Twitter–Facebook–Press Kit – 1.0 Trailer
