For many MMOs, the PvP is one of the most exciting aspects. Some players choose games based solely on the PvP aspects. We’re still learning about PvP in SWTOR but the good news is that with the past couple of beta weekends and the NDA lifted, we can learn more about SWTOR PvP than ever before. INC Gamers tells us about about three of the PvP Warzones (it’s assumed there are more). The writer, Tim McDonald talks about playing in Huttball, The Voidstar and the Alderaan Civil War and he gives an account of how he felt when playing each of these warzones. Here’s a snippet: “There currently appears to be no way to queue for a specific Warzone, so I’ve played some more than others. To be more specific: I’ve played Huttball 52 million times.” 52 million, huh? Sounds like enough to form a good opinion on the experience….
Author: Lisa Clark
SWTOR Graphic Benchmarks and Maximum Graphics
Are you wondering about the graphic benchmarks of SWTOR? Are you wondering how well your computer will run the game or what your max settings will let you get away with? The SWTOR Beta PCGH Nerd Test will give you some good answers to your nerdy questions. PC Games Hardware was able to take a first look at the current beta build of Star Wars: The Old Republic and they have a few things to offer in ways of benchmarks, which they were kind enough to share online for the rest of us. Some details: “At the same time, we have first benchmark with ten different cards, and it is tested, the CPU core scaling.” “At this point must be emphasized clearly that all tests with a very early beta version of the game were made.” “Anti-aliasing is currently disabled in the game itself and the rest of the engine…
Leia and Han Solo in SWTOR
While we have to admit that what this guy did is pretty cool, we also have to admit that it’s going to be very annoying to see loads of Star Wars movie characters running around the SWTOR universe, especially for those who are serious about their storyline and roleplaying. However, if you’re looking for something fun, here’s how one guy created Han Solo and Leia with the character creator of SWTOR. You can probably play around with the settings and controls and try to create other Star Wars characters that you recognize as well since there is so much customization available in SWTOR. He even tells you the slider numbers so you can make them yourself. And here’s some more fun from Starfleet Dental:
Will SWTOR Steal Players from WoW and RIFT?
Millions of people are anticipating the release of SWTOR on December 20, 2011 but there many who wonder just how popular this game is going to be. Will it live up to all the hype? Will SWTOR steal players from WoW and RIFT? WoW has been around for a long time and it has many loyal players who won’t leave but many have grown bored with this style MMO and they’re searching for something fresh, which is what The Old Republic offers. Rift is a great game that is growing in popularity due to the quality of the game and its well thought-out updates. But will it lose players to SWTOR? A news story from MMOSite reports, “Blizzard admitted that they started to lose World of Warcraft users from the beginning of 2011. Specifically, they lost 600,000 WOW users in Q1 2011, 300,000 in Q2 and 800,000 in Q3.” They…
How to Create a SWTOR Guild In-Game
If you will be playing SWTOR with a group of friends, it makes sense to form up your own guild so you can all play together and take advantage of any guild perks and benefits right from the start. There are two basic ways to form a guild in SWTOR. One is only available pre-launch and you have to be sure your guild is registered with swtor.com‘s guild HQ. This is what we have done for my WoW guild which has many players who will be moving over to SWTOR to play together. For this option, you need to create an account and have at least four people from your guilf who have pre-orders of the game. These pre-orders will only count if they players who purchased them entered their early-access pre-order code. If you purchased the game and did not redeem your code, you have a limited amount of…
EA Makes Right the Wrong of BF3 and Battlefield 1943
A few days ago I brought you the story of EA being sued by disgruntled gamers over their BF3 fiasco. It seems they are taking the issue seriously and have decided to remedy the problem. They have issued a statement on their website that all owners of Battlefield 3 on the PS3 will get a free copy of Battlefield 1943 starting this month. Full details on who is eligible and how to get your copy is available from their site. Do you think this is a good enough response to the whole debacle? Has EA taken the right steps to resolve the matter and smooth things over with gamers everywhere by correcting their mistake and quickly making the game available to those who originally thought they would get it via a promotion? It’s a nice little bonus to anyone who just bought BF3 and might not have even known about…
Last Chance to Finalize Your SWTOR Guild
This is your last opportunity to finalize your SWTOR guild before Early Game Access begins! Phase 3 of our Pre-Launch Guild Program had begun a few weeks ago and according to the news reminder from the official SWTOR site, you are running out of time to finalize your guild. If you are a guild leader, now is the time to make sure you have everything in order for launch. If you have at least 4 members of your guild who have preorderd the game and you want to get guild early access, you will need to finalize the last details of the guild before it is too late. This is your last chance to: Make any changes to your guild Ensure your guild meets requirements for deployment into the game Designate your guild’s Allies and Adversaries Review and accept pending guild applications So what do you have to do? “It’s…
1.6 Million WoW players ‘could switch to Old Republic’ according to surveys
The battle between SWTOR and WoW rages on and as we get even closer to the launch date of TOR (December 20th) we continue to hear talk of WoW players who are or are not planning to jump ship and trade one game for the other. “Analyst house Lazard Capital Markets thinks World of Warcraft could lose between 900,000 and 1.6 million players following December’s Star Wars: The Old Republic launch”, as reported on Computer and Video Games. The stats aren’t really that surprising when you think about it. People are getting tired of WoW. It’s something we’ve written about many times and this also wouldn’t be the first analyst or expert to make such a prediction. The story explains: “A recent survey conducted by the firm in conjunction with Peanut Labs found that over 50 percent of 381 respondents have grown tired of Blizzard’s game.” This really isn’t a…
SWTOR for the Holidays
If you’re looking for a popular game choice this holiday season, is there really any surprise that SWTOR tops the lists? Entertainment Weekly has named STAR WARS™: The Old Republic™ one of their 15 Must-Have Videogames this holiday season and The New York Times has placed STAR WARS™: The Old Republic™ on their 2011 Holiday Gift Guide! With the timely release of SWTOR slotted for December 20, 2011, it’s the perfect opportunity for family members of Star Wars fans or MMORPG lovers to snag a copy of the anticipated game for Christmas. It’s also a great opportunity to do something with that cash or gift cards you get for the holidays. I think it’s a safe bet to say that we will start seeing SWTOR show up on even more holiday wish lists and “best of” lists as we draw closer to the holiday season. For those who have preordered,…
“BioWare Bets Big With the Old Republic” Says Fast Company
Star Wars: The Old Republic is scheduled to launch December 20, 2011 and BioWare’s expectation for its future is huge. With all the time and energy put into this MMO, BioWare bets big that it’s going to be a big hit. The SWTOR headquarters is located in Austin, Texas. This seems fitting to some since the Lonestar State has the slogan “everything is bigger in Texas” and SWTOR is one of the largest MMO to ever be released. Fast Company tells us how BioWare bets big with SWTOR. Is it a bet that will pay off in time for the company? BioWare has put 6 years of testing and debugging into the game and logged 4.6 million hours of beta testing. They are now ready to see if the efforts they’ve put into the game are going to pay off. Will gamers respond to this MMO the way they expect…
Massively Has Some Early Thoughts on SWTOR: SWTOR Preview
Massively had a few things to say about SWTOR and they offered us all this “early thoughts” piece the other day. As far as first impressions go, this one was fair and many gamers want to hear the An excerpt: “I was taken aback by BioWare’s lifting of the NDA on Star Wars: The Old Republic last Friday. Few of us saw that coming. I highly suspect that wasn’t when the devs originally intended to drop the NDA.” Ok really Massively? Because I predicted that one the day before it happened… But anyway, on to their impressions: “I am happy to tell you that I have a Sith Warrior and Sith Inquisitor on Dromund Kaas and Smuggler on Nar Shaddaa with a peppering of other characters on various other planets. I have PvPed alongside one of the best PvPers I’ve ever met, and I have plenty to talk…
Analyst Downgrades Blizzard Stock in Anticipation of SWTOR Launch
Could Blizzard lose more fans as the SWTOR launch date approaches? It’s been called a WoW-killer before but one analyst believes Blizzard stock might take a hit as SWTOR launches. Earlier this month, Activision Blizzard revealed that WOW subscriptions had fallen by 10 percent since March, dropping to 10.3 million worldwide. Now Gamespot reports that age and increased competition for the MMOG market can cause Blizzard to lose more stock. This article explains: In an investor note today, Lazard Capital Markets analyst Atul Bagga expressed pessimism over WOW’s ability to reverse its negative trend. In the process, Bagga downgraded Activision Blizzard’s stock from “buy” to “neutral.” Bagga’s move was primarily motivated by a Lazard Capital Markets survey of online players, which was conducted in conjunction with Peanut Labs earlier this month and polled 381 online gamers. The study found that WOW’s age, as well as increased competition,…
Die Hard Game Fan brings us 10 Thoughts on SWTOR
We keep an eye out for great SWTOR reviews, previews, news and more to help you stay updated before the launch and to be your one-stop source after launch for useful information. That’s why when we come along a post like the one by Ashe Collins over on Die Hard Game Fan, we want to share it with you. Collins gives us 10 thoughts on SWTOR. This was from the perspective of someone who only got to play for a small portion of the game and what it has to offer so we’d call these ‘early impressions” more than anything else but sometimes it is those early impressions that make the difference between whether or not someone wants to buy the game. Each of the 10 thoughts are listed with additional info as to why it made the list. Check out the full article to read all the details. 10…
Will the Novelty of SWTOR Stand the Test of Time?
As we draw close to the biggest beta weekend in the history of SWTOR, we take some time to look at all the things that make SWTOR great. It’s an awesome game from a popular title wrapped up in a pretty bow with all the bells and whistles. The amount of polish that has been added to the game is the one thing that sets SWTOR apart from other MMOs that have come before and will likely come after as well. Without this polish and the Star Wars name, it’s just another MMORPG and for many gamers, that’s nothing so special after all. It’s the little details that make all the difference in SWTOR. The voice acting, the animation and of course, the story are all things that make this game stand out from so many others in the market. They make you feel that your character is more important…
EA Being Sued for Battlefield 1943 Broken Promises
Gamers don’t take kindly to being let down. Broken promises over Battlefield 1943 have landed EA in the middle of a lawsuit. US law firm Edelson McGuire has filed a class action suit against EA on behalf of unhappy PlayStation gamers in a bid to get them the free copy of Battlefield 1943 they were originally assured they would receive, Kotaku reports. The promise was made at E3, where Sony executives promised to bundle Battlefield 3 with copies of the new Battlefield 1943. Gamers who bought the game expecting to get Battlefield 3 were highly disappointed. The suit alleges that EA “misled and profited from thousands of their customers by making a promise that [it] could not, and never intended, to keep”. However, the lawsuit is about more than just the broken promise. It also cites the late announcement of the matter, which was made after many customers had already…
SWTOR PVP Zone Outlaws Den
You will find open world PvP with plenty of scum, villainy and excitement to spare at Outlaw’s Den in SWTOR- or at least that’s the idea. There will be a special spot in Tatooine for those who love to take PvP to the next level, those who want a little more risk in that casual trip to the vendor and those who just need something to do to break the monotony of leveling. At the recent fan site summit in Austin, TX, Star Wars: The Old Republic’s Lead PvP Designer Gabe Amatangelo revealed Outlaw’s Den, a place designed to give you all the good stuff you could ever imagine from a PvP free-for-all zone. What kind of goodies await you in Outlaw’s Den? Well, you can kill members of your own faction so there is that… and you can fight for rewards, fight for the vendors or just fight to…
The Unofficial SWTOR Girl Gamers Thread- and Why it’s Not for Me
San Diego Comic-Con 2008. Photo Courtesy of Jason Scragz For those unaware, there is an “unofficial girl gamers” thread on the SWTOR forums. It’s in its 4th incarnation last I checked and is garnering thousands of replies. From this thread has also grown a number of girl-gamer websites for female SWTOR fans such as SW Girls started by Amonette. There’s even a girl SWTOR Wiki. No, I’m not kidding you… It’s the go-to place if you’re a female planning to play SWTOR who wants to hook up with other females but it’s not for me. I just like to play my game my way and meet people along the way, regardless of their sex, race, religion or other affiliation. To me, it just doesn’t matter. This got me thinking about the whole gamer-girl thing and how the video game industry has evolved over the years that I’ve been a gamer….
It’s official- The NDA is no more!
I wrote the other day about how it’s time to drop the NDA for SWTOR. With so many people testing now and an upcoming open beta weekend session, it seems pointless to keep the tight NDA restrictions in place for game testers. Apparently Bioware was thinking the same thing as the time has come. This just in today from GregZeschuk: Folks, As of now, the non disclosure portion of our Game Testing Agreement isofficially lifted. While all players must still accept the Game Testing Agreement,from this point on testers may now freely talk about their experiences thispast weekend in the game, as well as post screenshots and gameplay videos oftheir testing experiences. We encourage you to come join us on the official Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ Forumsto share your experiences! The Star Wars: The Old Republiccommunity site will have a copy of this message on the forums and it…
BioWare Targets November 25-28 for Last Beta Weekend
Earlier today , the official Star Wars: The Old Republic Twitter feed, and Senior Community Manager Stephen Reid (AKA @Rockjaw) confirmed that the ‘everyone is invited‘ beta weekend is on track for November 25-28. This is basically an open beta event and the invites should be coming this upcoming week. But now we also know when we will be playing in this massive beta event. Some have asked if this date for the weekend was intentionally chosen on Thanksgiving weekend, a holiday for those in the United States. Maybe they were thinking fewer people would play during this time? Or maybe the exact opposite was true and they were thinking that people would be off for the holiday season, giving them more time to play and enjoy the weekend. Will you be changing your holiday plans in order to beta test SWTOR? How much time do you think you will…
SWTOR OPEN BETA!
Still not in beta yet? Are you itching to get your chance to try SWTOR for yourself before launch? You are in luck because we found a great little piece of info today straight from the source himself, Mr. Stephen Reid. Stephen Reid tweets: “Everyone who signed up for #SWTOR testing (yes – everyone), including those redeeming keys from our partners, will get invited next week.” This means everyone! Basically this is now going to be an open beta situation where anyone who is interested in getting to play, will get to play. It’s beneficial for them to do it for a variety of reasons. For one, they get to test the servers and make sure they have stability for the loads of people who are going to want to play. Another benefit is that this will give more people the chance to be sure they want to fork out…
May the schwartz be with you: Awesome Star Wars Advertisements
May the schwartz be with you this holiday season, especially if you are shopping at Curry’s PCWorld. The British electronics store has gone all out for its Christmas campaign, licensing the cast of Star Wars for a series of ads that get you in the Star Wars holiday spirit. You can see Darth Vader, Chewbacca and R2D2 shopping for gifts, exploring the store, learning new things and even finding potential love. Currys PC World 2011 Official Ad – Vader’s Visit Director’s Cut (Darth Vader Star Wars) In this one, Vader himself stops by to ensure staff have been properly trained. Currys PCWorld Official – Chewbacca Makeover Here Chewbacca learns why a great hairdryer is a girl’s (or wookie’s) best friend. Currys PCWorld Official – R2D2 Error Poor R2D2 runs into a bit of trouble. Currys PCWorld Official – R2D2 & Hetty Hoover But don’t feel too bad for R2D2 because…
Should SWTOR Drop the NDA Already?
The NDA, or non disclosure agreement, on SWTOR is what prevents testers from talking about certain aspects of the game when they play it. These types of legal agreements are in place to protect a company’s creative licenses and for a game like SWTOR that is highly based in story, it’s to be expected. MMORPG writes in a column that they believe it just might be time to drop the NDA already. They think since beta testing is being offered to basically everyone, that it’s time to drop the NDA. They write: “Recently, BioWare concluded their largest Beta Test Weekend yet, and they’re already in the process of revving up for a final big smash of a Beta Test Weekend. If you thought this past weekend was big, well it looks like everyone who has signed up for Game Testing, as well as those who never bothered, will have a…
Leaderboard: SWTOR vs. GW2 cinematic cutscenes
Justin Olivetti from over at Massively had a few things to say about SWTOR cutscenes- a huge part of what TOR is all about. Star Wars is all about the storyline and in SWTOR, this is one of the things that we see which sets in apart from other games, namely other MMORPGs. But they are not completely alone in this as GW2 has some cutscene action of their own. Olivetti decided to explore this area of the game in a Leaderboard column for the popular gaming website, Massively. He says: “OK, you knew that sooner or later there’d be a face-off between Star Wars: The Old Republic and Guild Wars 2 in this column, although today’s poll might not be what you were expecting. Instead of getting into “Which game that hasn’t released is better than the other game that hasn’t released?” let us examine each title’s approach to…
SWTOR had over 1 million hours of testing last weekend
We know that last week’s SWTOR game testing weekend was massive. It was the largest beta weekend so far and quite possibly the largest beta weekend for any MMORPG in history. Just how massive it was, we had no idea. But BioWare has now revealed that over a million hours of testing went into the MMORPG Star Wars: The Old Republic last weekend. 1 million hours!Tens of thousands of people played the game in order to test for a smooth launch coming December 20th. With only a month to go, it was the perfect time for BioWare to see if the servers would handle such a large influx of players. It’s also a fantastic opportunity to get more gamers into the SWTOR rage who may not have previously pre-ordered the game. BioWare co-founders Greg Zeschuk and Ray Muzyka told Eurogamer about the weekend game testing event in an interview at…