I brought you the story of layoffs at BioWare Austin yesterday. This was the second set of layoffs for the company this year and it seemed to come as a big shock, even to those affected. What would you do if you showed up for work one day like usual and were told to pack it up and go home? In this economy, there are probably many readers who can relate. Layoffs were first confirmed by developer Ben Marshall, who wrote the following in a status update on Twitter (the update has since been deleted): “Anyone know of a web developer position open in the Austin, TX area? Second round of layoffs at BioWare Austin and my name was on the list…” We also told you just recently about Georg Zoeller’s departure from the company. BioWare has yet to a announce replacement for Vogel as executive producer. Also announced today: EA to…
Author: Lisa Clark
Jedi Council Podcast – First Interview with Joveth Gonzalez Since Taking Over
Hosts Brian and Jason interview Joveth Gonzalez, Online Community Manager to tell us more about SWTOR and what he’s up to since taking over this new position in the community. You can listen for yourself here. The Jedi Council asks Joveth a little about his background and history in video games and he shares some information about the companies he has worked for, projects he has worked on and more. It’s a great chance to learn more about Joveth and the games he has worked with. He talks about how he came to BioWare and why he loves BioWare games. They also ask him about the direction of the new community team, the changes that have taken place in BioWare community team and how it all works. Joveth breaks down what the different teams do and how they bring us information as well as how they process information that is…
New Layoffs at BioWare and Rich Vogel is Gone, Too
It seems there has now been another big rash of layoffs at BioWare Austin, which truly saddens me. These are members of our community here in Austin and hard working people just like those of us who enjoy playing the games that they help to create. A big portion of the community team was laid off: https://twitter.com/VivoEstSomnio https://twitter.com/PhoenixRed https://twitter.com/MarkDouville https://twitter.com/JustinJKruger https://twitter.com/PariahLoki https://twitter.com/_Chanell_ https://twitter.com/Dalmarus One Redditor who goes by the name ‘pandas_mom’ says her family is being affected by these layoffs: My husband was one of the ones that got laid off today. Bioware moved us in April with our 3 kids from DC, we put every penny we had down on a fixer upper house, and now this. I am scheduled for 3 major surgeries on Friday, my husband just had a slew of MRI/MRA tests Friday to look for a suspected brain tumor, and our middle son who has…
HK-51 Revealed!
SWTOR/BioWare had some exciting news to reveal today. In this update at SWTOR.com, they tell us about HK-51. Buried deep beneath the icy surface of Belsavis rests an army of the deadliest, most feared machines in the known galaxy. Thought to have been lost when an Imperial freighter was destroyed, they have recently been rediscovered by a group of renegade Sith Lords. Now both the Sith Empire and Galactic Republic seek to control these dangerous weapons for themselves. Those who are brave enough to venture into the wreckage will emerge with a powerful new ally. We are excited to unveil the dangerous assassination droid HK-51! Cold, calculating, and ruthlessly efficient, HK-51 will stand by your side and loyally follow your command as you and your allies continue your journey. Journalists were given a brief preview of HK-51 at E3, but now we are happy to be able to show everyone…
A Balance Sage SWTOR PvP Guide
What the balance Sage lacks in glamour and color, it makes up for by being one of the deadliest DPS on the field when played correctly. The developers describe the Sage as a perfectly balanced class because you can contribute to the gameplay in a positive way no matter what type of situation you end up facing. This awesome class is hard to catch or kill and it’s very fun to play. PvP Balance Sage Playstyle As a balance sage, you’ll need to use a combination of techniques when in a PVP setting in order to come out on top. This includes using snares and other forms of crowd control (CC) while kiting until your enemy stops in their tracks, which is when you’ll want to start nuking them. If your sage is being used as a healer, you should also use these techniques to help keep your opponents at bay…
SWTOR Course of the Force Machinima Made by Bioware
Remember when we told you about Course of the Force the other day? “Course of the Force concludes at The Balboa Theatre in San Diego as Chris Hardwick, Ashley Eckstein, Alison Haislip and Alex Albrecht live stream the lightsaber making its way to it’s final resting spot.” BioWare has a great fun lightsaber relay race where they have taken characters in the game of SWTOR and programmed them to run the relay. We see Satele Shan a shifty Smuggler, Darth Malgus and more. But that’s not all… the video also checks in with Matt and Johan from the Nerdist podcast. Ever wonder what they’d be up to in game Then Alison Haislip and Alex Albrecht talk about the Jawa Pleasurebarge, the King of Fast, and more. And of course, there is a highlight reel for those of you who were not there who want to catch up on everything that happened at Course…
Reminder: Lapsed Players have until July 17th to Check out the Game for Free!
Did you quit SWTOR but now you want to check it out again? Have friends playing and talking about the new stuff but you let your account lapse? All you have to do is log in through the launcher! Now you have some time to check out the game for free and see if it’s worth getting your subscription going again. This post on SWTOR Facebook explains: “Haven’t checked out SWTOR since Game Update 1.3? With Group Finder, Ranked Warzones, and higher population servers, the gameplay experience has never been better! Returning players can check out the game for free up to July 17th (provided that you left on or before June 20th). Just start up the SWTOR launcher and log in now! For more information, check out this handy Help Support page. What are you waiting for? Try it for free! Be sure to share this status and spread…
Synthweaving Leveling Guide 1 through 400
The patterns in this leveling guide for Synthweaving are obtainable from a Synthweaving Trainer only. After you complete a step, train for the next level by visiting the Synthweaving Crew Skill Trainer. The Sith Inquisitor, Sith Warrior, Jedi Consular and Jedi Knight are the classes that can use Synthweaving crafts gear. The primary gathering skill used in Synthweaving is Archaeology using artifact fragments and power crystals. The secondary mission skill needed is Underworld Trading with underworld metals and luxury fabrics. As of now, there are no specific level requirements needed before you can learn and level the patterns to the maximum. The requirements that you’ll find here are the ones needed to use the gear that you craft. Reverse engineering is an option you can use on anything you make. It will allow you to use about 20% fewer materials for this craft than what you’ll find listed in this…
SWTOR: True Server Merge Coming Later this Summer?
While they are still not saying “merge”, it seems a true merge is incoming later this summer. Many people are talking about a server merge on a greater scale and while BioWare is not actually using that terminology, it does seem like this might be what’s happening coming soon. And will it be such a bad thing? Seems like all the players I have talked to say if it makes the game better and gives them more people to play with, they’re ok with whatever BioWare needs to do. In a blog on the official servers, BioWare explains more about the Free Character Transfer Service, server populations and what that means to you and me: Hi everyone, We want to thank all players that have participated in our Free Character Transfer Service. With strong destination server populations, we hope that you’re enjoying the improved gameplay experience and are excited about…
SWTOR: New mount reveal and continuous free trial
As we told you yesterday, BioWare made some big announcements yesterday. Announcements to show that they are serious about bringing new subscribers to the game and also keeping current SWTOR players happy. The first of the great news is that their Free Trial program no longer has a time limit. It will be a continuous free trial so you can download and play up to level 15 for free for as long as you want. You can play all of the game’s eight classes up to level 15 for free to see what you think of them. This is similar to the perpetual free trials other MMOs offer. Also like other games, there are some restrictions on these free accounts: access to the Galactic Market ability to use in-game chat can’t send and receive mail from players However, they will receive in-game mail such as the messages and rewards sent by…
Pachter: “Subscription MMOs have peaked. If Star Wars couldn’t do it, no-one can do it.”
Industry analyst Michael Pachter says that MMOs have peaked. He says that if Star Wars couldn’t make it happen, no one can. It’s an interesting theory from one of the biggest experts in the field but is it true? PC Games explains more: “”I thought Star Wars: The Old Republic would make it big, but it didn’t. It looks like subscription MMOs are as big as they’re going to get – there are only 6-7 million people willing to spend $15 a month. If Star Wars couldn’t do it, made by Bioware, then no one can do it.”” He continues to explain the reasons he believes EA’s stock is dropping. Supposedly, he candidly tells John Riccitiello why no one is buying their stock. I told him: ‘the reason your stock is in the toilet is because you’re in the fifth year of a three year turn around’ says Pachter. He…
James Ohlen Interview about fans, free to play and more
In a fascinating 2,500 word interview, James Ohlen tells Games Industry all about SWTOR fans, the subscriptions and free to play to level 15. We’ve seen interviews with James before but this one is really a lot of fun. It comes across like two pals chatting and you’re really learn a lot more about James and SWTOR from this interview. Here is a snippet from the very thorough interview: Q: You’ve worked on so many epic, single-player games for Bioware where you’ve had almost free reign to produce entire worlds – switching to an MMO in one of the best known universes out there must have been a huge change, and a huge challenge. James Ohlen: Well the great thing is that I had experience of working in the Star Wars universe before, when I worked on the Old Republic. So I’ve had worked in the Old Republic era too. I…
The LEGO SWTOR Sets are Now Available in the US
If you’re a fan of LEGO or Star Wars collectibles, you might already know about the Star Wars LEGO sets. We have several in our home and now, LEGO has released their newest two LEGO SWTOR and summer series sets. While Toys R Us is also carrying them, Amazon is the clear choice of where to get them because they have all the set in stock for retail price, no tax to most states and free shipping on orders above $25. My kids are huge LEGO fans and Star Wars fans so I’m thinking we’ll have to save up for sets for them and for us. These will make a fantastic collector’s piece. LEGO Star Wars 9500 Sith Fury-class Interceptor LEGO Star Wars 9497 Republic Striker-class Starfighter Amazon has both building sets and planet sets as follows in their summer collections. Building Sets: Desert Skiff (reg.$24.99) Saesee Tinn’s Starfighter (reg.$29.99) Republic…
SWTOR on Sale until the 10th- Great Time to Join!
If you’ve been thinking about finally joining SWTOR or maybe you want a second account or an account for a friend or family member, then there is no better time than now. There are great new additions to the game, free to play up to level 15, server transfers to increase server population and so much more. And now, for a limited time only, you don’t even have to pay full price for your copy. SWTOR on Gamestop on Sale If anyone was thinking about jumping in, Star Wars: The Old Republic is $19.99 at GameStop until the 10th. SWTOR on Amazon on Sale And if you prefer to make your purchases from Amazon, it’s also $19.99 on Amazon currently but it doesn’t say how long it will stay at that price so buy it now while you can. Remember Free to play up to level 15 starting the 10th of…
Course of the Force with Video ‘Nerdist’s Journey’
Lucasfilm Ltd., Nerdist Industries and Octagon have teamed up to present Course of the Force, an Olympic torch style relay run with lightsabers, where participants will make a journey from Santa Monica to San Diego while benefiting the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Here’s a fun event for a very good cause. In the days leading up to San Diego Comic Con, the official Course of the Force will take place. On July 7, Course of the Force will kick off with an event at the Santa Monica Pier at 10:00 a.m. The relay will start later in the day and end at Redondo Beach. As the Course makes its stops along the iconic California coast, Star Wars™-themed parties, contests and live Nerdist shows will cap off each day for fans to enjoy. There will also be ways for fans to take part in this history relay event with special sponsor promotions. July 7, 8 and…
EU now Allows the Sale and Purchase of SWTOR Accounts
Is it legal to sell your SWTOR account if you are no longer playing it? If you live in Europe, it will be. A European court has now deemed it legal to resale the rights to used software licenses, no matter how or where they were obtained. This includes video games like SWTOR. “A European court has ruled that it’s permissible to resell software licenses even if the package has been downloaded directly from the Internet. It sided with a German firm in its legal battle with US giant Oracle.” Basically this means that you can buy and sell your SWTOR account as you please in Europe. But what does this mean for items or credits? That we are not sure on yet. The article explains: “The ruling made it clear that trade in used software was permissible even if the software had not been shipped on a physical medium…
The Official SW.com Blog Returns
It’s baaaaccck! The Official Star Wars blog tells us: “It’s been just about two months since we put this blog on hiatus to update its design and develop a new approach to content. It took a bit longer than we had hoped, but we’re glad to say that starting today, we’re back… with a few exciting changes.” I know a lot of fans have been waiting a long time to hear this. So what kind of changes can you expect to encounter now that it’s back? Here are some changes: Supervising Director Dave Filoni will be sharing insights and stories from behind-the-scenes of The Clone Wars, along with other cast and crew. We’re going to open up the Lucasfilm archives, with J.W. Rinzler and others sharing never-before-seen images, videos and stories from the making of the films. Resident Star Wars experts Pablo Hidalgo and Leland Chee will be sharing details about…
1.3 Augments: How to Add Augment Slots to Gear
It’s a common question going around now because everyone wants to do it but it’s not as easy or as obvious as you might think at first. How to add augment slots to gear? Once you figure it out, you’ll say “duh!” but let’s do a quick little overview of the process. What gear slots can be augmented? All of them! How do you do it? Well, you know Dulfy has a guide for that! Here Dulfy gave us the overview (from PTR): Hey everyone, I am sure you all know by now that there is a new way to add augment slots to gear in 1.3. I am going to walk you through the process currently on PTS right now so you will be well prepared once 1.3 lands on the live servers. What is happening to my current augmented gear? Your current augment slots on existing gear will…
Reddit, SWTOR and an Autistic Student Who Needed Help
With some students, it takes a teacher willing to go the extra mile to really reach them and help them. In a truly heart-warming story, we see just how far one teacher would go to try to connect with a new student. When Lyobel got news of a new student with little time to prepare, we see how an entire Internet community came together to help via a video game and Reddit. BioWare, first to respond to the post, also sent some signed posters to the teacher and student. What a wonderful memory they will always have together! This post on Reddit gives the full story: Hoi! Some of you might remember me, if that is the case I congratulate you on excellent short-term memory! I am, for those who don´t, a special education teacher, who got a new student dumped on me without much time to prepare. What I…
Understanding Ranked Warzones
What are ranked warzones? Ranked warzones are a new form of structured PVP ins SWTOR which offers 8-player teams the opportunity to face others in competitive, ranked matches. It’s a step up from regular, random PvP. Ranked Warzones is the new way for players to take part in PvP play; it’s BioWare’s answer to the next step in competitive PvP. It gives teams a chance to compete against each other in ranked matches. If you want to take part in Ranked Warzone matches, you’ll need to put together a team that has at least 8 players. This rule may change later but as of now, you cannot compete in these matches if you don’t have the required number of players. So it’s time to start rounding up your best PvPers in the guild or at least, your best buddies that you know you work well with. How It Works To begin, your…
Stephen ‘Rockjaw’ Reid’s New Job
Yesterday we told you the story about David Bass getting a new job for WildStar at Carbine Studios. Now we can tell you that Stephen ‘Rockjaw’ Reid has also got a new job! Great news for the Community Manager let go from BioWare Austin. It was a sad day for me because I really liked Stephen. I have a signed poster framed on my wall from him. That’s not the kind of thing you get every day. He’s funny, he’s personable and his passion for video games emanates from his pores (nope, that’s not sweat!). Stephen is blogging “while not really blogging” over on Tumblr these days and if you want to keep track fo what he’s up to, you can follow his posts. His recent post explains a bit about what he’s been up to and where he is now working: I’m back at Gazillion Entertainment, back working on…
David Bass Senior Community Manager for WildStar at Carbine Studios
I will always have a soft spot in my heart for David Bass. We met, we chatted, I have a pics of him in my phone… but he’s bid adieu to Austin and moved on to new ventures after leaving BioWare/SWTOR. Personally, I’m super happy to see he’s landed a great new job and doing what he’s so great at. If you’ve been wondering where he went, you might be happy to know he is now the community manager/coordinator for Wildstar! Massively even scored this awesome interview with him if you want to learn more about his new job and what the position entails. Here’s a snippet from the interview: At BioWare, you were the Senior Community Coordinator for guilds and fansites. How does this job differ, and what experiences will you pull from your past work into this one? Carbine’s strength is that the community team is intimately involved…
Is 1.3 Worth Returning to SWTOR For?
Some players have given up on SWTOR. Now will 1.3 be enough to relight their fires and bring them back to the game? Bioware certainly hopes so but what are the players saying? Well, the overall atmosphere is pretty positive. With server transfers solving the problem of no one to play with and all the other additions and updates, SWTOR is a new game. Some say it is finally the game it should have been at launch. Maybe BioWare was too rushed to launch it fully complete but whatever the reason, players are now saying they’re happy with the outcome of the game. Ranked warzones, new gear, looking for group finders and more mean the game is now more accessible than ever before. When you add to this that there will be more updates, more new content and free play up to 15 levels, you can see why the interest…
Can You Level as a Pair in SWTOR?
For many years now, my husband and I have played games together as a couple. Many games are designed to be played this way but even those that are not, we find a way to enjoy the experience together. In SWTOR, we leveled several characters as a team and in some ways, it was more difficult than in other games. It seems many aspects of SWTOR are designed for solo RPG-like play. However, there are many great ways to enjoy leveling as a pair in SWTOR. If you have a spouse, partner or friend you want to play with, you can begin from level 1 and go to 50 together. Here’s a mini-guide on how to do it. First, consider your class pairings. Some will work better than others because you start on the same planet or because your skills pair up well. For some your companion skills will work…