The Electronic Arts Q2 2013 Earnings Conference Call revealed a few tidbits about SWTOR and as you know, we’re always looking for any new piece of information at this point. The haters also latch on to these earnings calls, looking for reasons to say that SWTOR is a sinking ship, but we’re not ready to dub it the TORtanic just yet. In fact, we have high hopes, as does EA, that the new free-to-play model will turn things around and generate a new or returned interest in the game. So did the call reveal anything useful about SWTOR and the future of the game? Well, it was mentioned a little, as no surprise since this game has been a huge investment for EA as a company and investors are eager to see if it’s going to pay off in the long term after those short term initial sales last year. Here are…
Author: Lisa Clark
The Numbers Show SWTOR Isn’t Dying
People tend to take on a “the sky is falling” attitude when things don’t go as planned and gamers are no exception. We are judgmental and opinionated and we want our games to be fantastic. If they don’t hit the nail on the head at the start, we call it a flop. Some are labeling SWTOR in the fail category, but is it really? One member of the SWTOR community started an interesting thread on the forums to show the real numbers behind the game and in comparison to other games. He shows that it’s all about perspective when it comes to how you look at the game. These numbers can give a little more perspective to the whole picture: Direct MMO competitors with a subscription or subscription + F2P model (Western Subscription numbers only): World of Warcraft has ~5.1 million players SWTOR has between 1mil-500k players. Eve Online has…
Disney Set to Purchase Lucasfilm and make ‘Star Wars: Episode 7’
If you’ve been waiting for some new Star Wars movies, then the time has finally come! Walt Disney Pictures has issued a press release announcing that the company has “agreed to acquire Lucasfilm Ltd.” This is HUGE news that can greatly change the future of the Star Wars franchise. According to the press release: Continuing its strategy of delivering exceptional creative content to audiences around the world, The Walt Disney Company (DIS) has agreed to acquire Lucasfilm Ltd. in a stock and cash transaction. Lucasfilm is 100% owned by Lucasfilm Chairman and Founder, George Lucas. Under the terms of the agreement and based on the closing price of Disney stock on October 26, 2012, the transaction value is $4.05 billion, with Disney paying approximately half of the consideration in cash and issuing approximately 40 million shares at closing. The final consideration will be subject to customary post-closing balance sheet adjustments. This is not the first film company that Disney…
EverQuest Next’s Design Scrapped: SOE cites SWTOR, Rift, The Secret World as Reason
Sony Online Entertainment’s EverQuest Next was billed as “the largest sandbox MMO ever designed“ but sadly, it will never be seen by gamers- at least not in the way we first thought. SOE has now decided to scrap the original design for the 3rd installment of EverQuest. As a long time EQ fan, I was interested in hearing more about the reasons for this and how the game design would move forward. Massively talks to John Smedley about it: Massively: Let’s start with EQ Next. When did you make the call to scrap everything? What was it that made you choose to do so? John Smedley: A year and a half ago, we made that decision. I didn’t get to cover this in the keynote, so I should mention it here. The engine and underlying technology has not changed. A lot of the guts and infrastructure are staying the same. What we’re…
Malgus Dressing Up as Revan for Halloween
Halloween is almost here- what are you going as? It’s an excuse to dress up without fear of being judged (but really, do we care what people think?) and there are parties and drinks (if you’re old enough) and don’t forget- CANDY! For a little extra fun this Halloween, why not mix in your love of Star Wars/SWTOR? Malgus seems to be representing Revan this year! When it comes to Halloween, there is usually no shortage of Star Wars themed costumes. I just saw an adorable Yoda getup I’d love for my 10 month old this year. Imagine all the candy he would get! I also saw an awesome costume on Facebook of a little boy who uses a walker. His dad made him a custom Luke Skywalker costume built around the walker. Pretty cool! But this year, it’s likely we might see more SWTOR-themed costumes as well. Will non-gamers…
Subscribers Not Charged Credits for Skill Point Re-specializations
In the news of what benefits subscribers will get, came some very exciting news about re-specializations. Amber Green, Live Community Coordinator, posted a thread on the SWTOR forums that lists the benefits to subscribers. Of this was the news that subscribers will not be charged credits for skill point re-specs. How many people do you think will subscribe just for this benefit alone? Chances are high that players will opt in just to know how many credits they can save from being able to re-spec when and how they need to. Here are some other details from that forum post: Highlights Travel to Section X on Belsavis and learn why the nefarious Dread Guard has seized control of this ravaged sector of the planet! Section X can be accessed on Belsavis and via the daily mission shuttles. HK-51 can now be acquired as a Companion Character! A shipment of the…
Developer Update 10/25: FTP Changes Coming Soon
For those of you on the PTS who have been reporting bugs and giving feedback on the game, your voices are being heard. A recent developer update tells us that there will be some important and interesting changes coming very soon. The forum thread will tell you the full changes and updates but here are some highlights. Free-to-Play players will now get a second quickslot bar. Free-to-Play players will now be able to do 5 Warzones per week instead of 3. The Cartel Coin item lock (i.e. temporary bind) will be reduced to 3 days for Free-to-Play players, and 2 days for subscribers. They added that they found some crucial bugs that needed stomping, which is good. These changes will make their way to the PTS by early next week. Here is some more from that post: There are a couple of key concepts that should be kept in mind…
Guide to HK 51
The HK-51 companion is finally here and this guide will explain what you need to do to acquire one. Some of the tasks are fairly easy but others will be very difficult so be prepared to spend some time on this quest. Before you can acquire your HK-51 companion, you’ll need to gather up a few components and there are seven of them altogether. Scanning for Components You’ll have to scan for four of the seven components. These are the HK Chassis, HK AI Regulator, HK Power Core and the HK Motivator. In Taris, look for the downed Endar Spire. Just north of it, you’ll find the HK Chassis. As you approach the area near the end of the Endar Spire, you’ll notice it starts to gradually close in. This is where you need to start scanning until you find the component. In Hoth, search for the HK Power Core…
Introducing Preferred Player Status
Preferred Player status is incoming and many SWTOR fans are curious just what this means. Will certain parts of the game be unplayable without preferred player status? Will certain zones or features in the game not be in access? All great questions and BioWare took to the forums to clear it all up for us. So just what will preferred player status mean? Here’s the breakdown and explanation from the forums: As a Preferred Status Player, you will gain the following benefits compared to Free-to-Play Players: • The Sprint ability at Level 1 • Access to your Cargo Hold (an 80 item Player Bank) • Access to Secure Trade (starting at level 10) • The ability to send Mail, including one (1) attachment • Increased allowance for chat message frequencies in Public chat channels (such as /general) • An increased Credits Cap • Access to the Who List • Three…
Inserting, Removing, and REing Crafted Mods for Schems is “Unintended” but Not an Exploit
Reverse engineering mods is expensive, especially when you are trying to build up a nice stock of schematics to place on the GTN. When you’re a new player trying to gear up, this can be a real hassle. But there has been a new “trick” found that makes it a little bit easier by bypassing this altogether. The real question is: Is this an exploit? A forum user explains: SomeJagoff As is already known, when you try to RE other people’s crafted mods, it says no research available, however, as I pulled out a mod that I know I bought off the gtn a few months ago to replace with a better one, I noticed that it said 20% chance to research a schem available. Out of curiosity, I threw the new mod that I just bought off the GTN into my armor, then pulled it out, same thing, research…
DarthHater Data-mined Wookie Life Day! Yes it’s Coming!
Lots of exciting news coming out about 1.5 and upcoming SWTOR news, free to play and the Cartel Market. With all of this, the crew over at DarthHater found something else cool. DarthHater discovered something pretty interesting when updating their database yesterday with all the new items included in the PTS patch. They found evidence of a Star Wars-centric holiday event called Wookiee Life Day. How cool is that? This could be a new World Event for the Christmas holiday season. Since the original Star Wars Holiday Special centered around the Wookiee celebration of Life-Day, this gives a lot of opportunity to work this into the game. Here’s the stuff that DarthHater found: Items Life Day Orb Life Day Holiday Holo-Tree Life Day Vestments Life Day Lower Robe Life Day Boots So what do you think? Would you participate in a world event like this? Do you want to see…
BioWare Speaks on the Cartel Market
Do you have questions about the Cartel Market? After the update to the public test server (PTS) yesterday, there were many questions coming from the community about the free-to-play cartel market and how this will work. Will items disappear? What does the timer mean? Can you still trade an item if it is modified? Lots of great questions are arising! BioWare answered these questions and provided info on some other areas of the cartel market and how it will work. See below: Allison Berryman I can clarify that the item will not disappear after the timer is over – after that time period, the item is no longer bound to you and can be traded! Allison Berryman The items do not disappear after 5 days; after the timer expires, they are no longer bound to the player and can be traded. Please also remember that we are currently testing the…
SWTOR Nominated for Ultimate Game of Year + Best MMO
Where other MMORPGs have text boxes, SWTOR has lavish cut-scenes and full voice acting. Join either the Sith or the Republic and carve out your own amazing Star Wars legend. Do you love SWTOR? Want to see it recognized with a gaming award? This might be your chance. SWTOR is nominated for Ultimate Game of the Year and Best MMO over at Golden Joystick. It’d be great for SWTOR fans to see the game take a golden gong in either category this year. And now you can literally see it because it’s all going to be streamed live on their site and synced on YouTube. The Gamemaster Golden Joystick Awards are turning 30 this year (just like me) and this year the celebrations are going even bigger. In addition to SWTOR, you will see other fun and popular games named at the awards such as Angry Birds and Skyrim. VOTING…
Companions 101: Kira Carsen
Here we are for a new installment of Companions 101 and this week it’s all about Kira! Courtney Woods is our guide into the world of Kira Carsen and everything you need to know about her backstory, emotional attachments and understanding Kira. Be warned that all of these Companion segments could contain story spoilers. Here is a snippet: The best kind of padawan should challenge their master… or at least, that is what Kira Carsen believes. Kira is not your typical Jedi, raised on Korriban in the Sith Academy, she has witnessed the brutality of the Empire first hand. After escaping from Imperial Space, Kira had to look out for herself until Master Bela Kiwiiks found her and brought her to into the Jedi Order. It isn’t surprising that Kira and Kiwiiks share a special bond, but Kira was afraid to share her past until she could prove herself as…
Razer Creates Customized Star Wars SWTOR Blade Gaming Laptop
I like Razer. I currently use one of their gaming mice and I have used their products several times over the years. Well, now they have something new which is totally awesome for SWTOR fans- a limited edition SWTOR Blade gaming laptop. This isn’t the traditional Blade with some new SWTOR graphics slapped on it, however. Razer says they are pulling no punches with this laptop and that it has been built from the ground up with SWTOR gamers in mind. Razer’s Blade is a lightweight but well-built laptop for playing high-end games and the SWTOR version is painted in matte silver with laser etching all over. It’s fully customized with a backlit keyboard and SWTOR logo on the lid. Specifications include a 17.3-inch display, Intel Core i7 quad-core processor, 8GB of dual-channel DDR3 RAM, Nvidia GeForce GTX 660M 2GB GDDR5 and SSD drives. If you want it, it’s going…
How Much Do You Love SWTOR: Enough to Get a Tattoo?
How much do you love your game? Star Wars fans are notorious for going to extremes to show their love and support for Star Wars and SWTOR is no exception. While some will call the game a failure, there are others who put their heart and soul into building and creating the game and still others who were just really big fans. Some loved the game so much they got SWTOR tattoos. While a video game might not be permanent, a tattoo is so what will become of these people who love the game so much, they got a permanent reminder of it on their bodies? Let’s explore this thought for a minute. We know the BioWare doctors got launch tattoos for SWTOR and there were many other members of the BioWare Austin team who did the same. They worked hard on this project and it’s not surprising that they…
Subscription vs Free-to-Play Features
With the free to play model added to SWTOR, more fans get to enjoy the game. You can play as much or as little as you want without worrying about having to pay a monthly subscription or trying to “get your money’s worth”. However, the subscription model still exists which brings up the very important question of “What’s the difference?” To encourage those who want to continue paying for a subscription, there are some additional features to thank you for your time and for playing. Learn more about the differences between the two types of play. Subscription vs. Free-to-Play Features A Galaxy of Possibilities for Every Player. Preferred Status – Making a purchase will unlock access to the following features: The ability to run faster (Sprint) starting at Level 1. Cargo Hold access (Bank Slots) and higher login queue priority. Increased access to Chat and Secure Trading. NOTE: Characters must…
Want to Play Pazaak for Yourself?
Want to learn more about Pazak and how you can play it for yourself from your computer any time you want? Are you a Star Wars fan or former KOTOR player? In the era of the Old Republic, Pazaak was the most popular card game of an enormous number of sentiently creatures and most Star Wars fans know all about it. While it has yet to make it into SWTOR, you can play the game online at: http://www.pazaak.org/play You don’t need to download any software, as Pazaak Cantina Online runs directly in the browser. If you haven’t played it, are you wondering what Pazaak is? Let’s explore. Pazaak, an ancient game dating back to Old Republic times, was a popular card game in which the goal was to reach 20 without going over, or at least come closer to it than the opponent. (Sounds a little like Blackjack, no?) The player with…
GDC Online 2012: SWTOR’s Damion Schubert Dissects Story as a Mechanic
This is a spinoff of the story we just recently brought you from Gamasutra but it goes back to the original source, Damion Schubert and what he has to say about SWTOR and story as a mechanic in the game. It’s definitely a different approach than other MMOs have taken at the game mechanic and we know how important BioWare places their storyline so if anyone could pull it off, we suspect it would be them. However, I bet no one knew exactly how hard it would be to pull it off and to sell it to the gamers. At the Game Developer’s Conference right here in Austin, Schubert talked about this challenge in more detail. Massively had a nice story covering what Schubert says at the conference and their own take on it. Massively reports: At the Game Developers Conference in Austin, Texas, this week, Schubert spent an hour explaining the…
Are UI Mods Killing MMORPGS?
In the world of MMORPGs, there are many tools designed to help us advance in the game more quickly and enjoy the game more. Mods and addons allow us to do this and often take on a life of their own with the many things they allow you to do in the game. UI mods are especially popular, changing the look of the user interface and allowing you to personalize your game like never before. I have been playing WoW since beta and long before the days of mods that currently rule the game. GameSpy has a really interesting piece about World of Warcraft mods and how they are affecting the game which has me thinking about how they affect MMORPGs in general and how we see them. Have we become dependent on these addons to enjoy our games fully? While I’ve been one to enjoy my fair share of…
SWG Emulator- Check it Out!
Are you a Star Wars Galaxies fan who was sad to see the game go? Well, you’re not alone- which you probably know already- and there are actually many communities devoted to doing more with the game and making it live on in more than just our memories. If you want to learn more, just head on over to their website where they explain what they are all about: SWGEmu is an acronym/abbreviation for Star Wars Galaxies Emulator. Star Wars Galaxies is a massively multi-player online role playing game introduced by Sony Online Entertainment in the year 2003. It is the game this project focuses to recreate at a specific milestone referred to as Pre-CU, or Pre-Combat Upgrade. The Combat Upgrade was a set of game changes which radically changed the game-play, to the dislike of thousands of players. These changes led to the founding of this project, in an attempt to “recreate”…
Whiners Need to Quit Playing Video Games! Says Pachter
We’ve talked about Michael Pachter here before (many times) and one thing we know about the Pach man is that he does not hold back. He’s passionate about the video game industry and for several years now, GameTrailers has played host to Pach Attack, a weekly, 7-minute Q&A segment featuring games industry analyst Michael Pachter as he answers related questions submitted by viewers. But what he said in this week’s episode, hosted on Saturday, might strike a chord with some gamers. He talks about the closure of Pandemic and the departure of BioWare founders Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk and says: “”I think that we’ve seen a lot of nasty stuff lately,” he said. “I think that the whining about the ending of Mass Effect 3 really very much could have been the straw that broke the camel’s back for the doctors. I mean, if you look back at the BioWare…
Ask Mr. Robot Character Profile and Combat Logs are updated for 1.4!
If you’ve been waiting on an update from Ask Mr. Robot, it’s here now. Ask Mr. Robot Character Profile and Combat Logs are updated for 1.4! So now you can insure that you are getting the right gear for your toon and taking your gear in the proper direction. Newly updated for 1.4 so you can stay up to date on your characters, use their character build, browse the armory or even use the SWTOR skill calculator to plan your character or see that you are making the right choices in your character. Ask Mr. Robot is a fantastic tool to have in your SWTOR toolbox. Their team works very hard to stay up to date and give you what you need, when you need it. Mr. Robot’s Star Wars: The Old Republic Tools: Character Builder Build your SWTOR character! Includes gear, companions, skills, crew skills, guild, server, and more….
SWTOR’s Complex Challenge: From Gamasutra
“BioWare’s Damion Schubert is a systems designer, not a writer. Yet he ended up dealing with those elements anyway, as the first designer with MMO experience on a team of traditional BioWare writers. His job was to tell them what elements of an MMO need to be considered in the story design process.” This is from an intro to a story from Gamasutra about SWTOR and the challenges they have had to face with the game. They talk about the complex challenge that SWTOR faced- BioWare story in an MMO world. One thing that I love so much about Gamasutra is the quality in which they can make a point. Some will say that SWTOR failed, although there are still many hardcore fans who stand by the game. There are others who believe it failed on a subscription model but is going to do just fine as f2p. But when…