Author: Lisa Clark

Clever SWTOR Guild Names

Do you think your guild has the coolest name for SWTOR? Is your guild name clever, a play on words, a Star Wars pun or something else you deem awesome? Anexxia over at Inquisitor’s Roadhouse says: “Every so often, as you are traveling about in a game world, you come upon a guild name that makes you giggle, or even laugh out loud. Inevitably, if I am able to quickly stop and do so, I tweet out the cool guild name and then go about my business.” To this, I wholeheartedly agree but just like Anexxia, I also agree that Tweets get lost in time and it’s a much better idea to have all of your great SWTOR guild names in one list in one location so you can see, gloat, laugh and admire them all at once. And that is exactly what Anexxia has done in this blog post….

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SWTOR Impressions from a Veteran MMORPG Player

I’ve mentioned before that I have played a lot of MMORPGs. We’re talking years of games- free to play, subscription based, betas and more. I’ve tried every MMORPG I can get my hands on and surprisingly, really enjoyed some of the oddball ones that my friends had never heard of. Since we’re coming up on SWTOR release soon, I thought it was a good time for a write-up on SWTOR compared to other MMORPGs. A lot of my friends and guidlies keep asking me what I think so here we go. The sci-fi genre of MMORPGs takes up a very small piece of the pie compared to your typical medieval genre. This fact alone sets SWTOR apart from the sea of other games out there today. So what other aspects set it apart and in what ways is it similar to other MMORPGs? TOR is not so far different from…

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SWTOR Strategies Turns 3 Years Old

  Will you be around to celebrate with us on November 3rd? We’re having a birthday here soon as the site turns three years old! This is our very first post ever on the site- have you read it yet? Back then, we were talking about the announcement of SWTOR. Details were still coming in and we didn’t know a lot about it yet. All we knew was the title and obviously, the theme and that it would be an MMORPG. After what many people considered to be the failure of Star Wars Galaxies, gamers were super pumped about SWTOR. Do you remember when you first heard about SWTOR? Where did you hear about it? What did you think? My first thought was “I’m so excited!” and my second thought was “I hope they don’t screw it up!” Three years later, we are nearly there to launch date and so…

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What will you be playing to level 50 first?

Most everyone planning to play SWTOR is asking the question, “What will you play?” I know I get asked pretty regularly on my Twitter and Facebook and by real-life friends and buddies from other games. The big question is “Are you playing SWTOR?” followed up with “What are you going to play to 50 first?” A poll on the official forums asked this question and some of the results are not that surprising. Is this because gamers are just that predictable or are certain classes more appealing than others? Let’s take a look at what classes took the top slots for votes. Is it what you would think? Taking the top of the poll is Sith Sorcerer with nearly 14% of the votes. Next in line is Sith Juggernaut with 10.01%. Next is Sith Assassin with Jedi Guardian right behind. At the bottom with the least votes were Gunslinger and…

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Project TOR- Fan-site PvP Faceoff – NYCC 2011

Project TOR Organizes a SWTOR Fan site PvP Faceoff at NYCC 2011! What happens when you gather a bunch of SWTOR fan site members together in one place and give them a chance to check out the game they are super excited about? Well, if that game has PvP then you can bet there will be some friendly challenges come about. That’s exactly what happened at NYCC 2011 with the fansite faceoff. This video is a great break from the SWTOR previews and impressions we’re seeing from NYCC 2011 and the release of the press embargo on Star Wars The Old Republic this week and it’s great for laughs, too. Find out how the fan-site PvP Faceoff came to be.

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SWTOR Game Testing Halted- New Build Development in Progress

Big changes are happening in SWTOR game testing from what we hear. This is expected as we grow closer to the eventual launch of Star Wars: The Old Republic. We are down to less than two months before the December 20th worldwide launch and fans are growing more anxious than ever. If you’re part of the current game testing group, you might be even more anxious than usual, since you cannot play right now. All game testers had to uninstall the game last night and servers go down for an indefinite amount of time. They are pulling this beta test block down and installing the new block over the weekend (and until who-knows-when). They have not told any game testers how long it will take or what changes will take place. They asked all game testers to uninstall the game and all content and wait for word (via the forums)…

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Activision Blizzard Stock Ticker Report: Any New Tricks Up Their Sleeve?

A report this past week about Activision Blizzard’s stock showed us that they have nothing big going on and stand a chance to drop later in the year. They are the second most valuable game company in the world, below Nintendo, but there are other companies looking to edge in on some of that profit. We’ve heard the comparisons made before, especially in the MMO scene. Time and time again over the past 6-7 years, there have been companies who hoped to do what Blizzard has done with the very popular MMORPG World of Warcraft. The article from Games Industry talks about Activision Blizzard’s stock and how they are faring particularly well against a large platform holder like Nintendo. Titles like Call of Duty and World of Warcraft have helped soar them to their current level but how long will they reign? With many anticipators feeling SWTOR might be the…

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SWTOR Nordic Immersion Day Event

Excitement for SWTOR is going wordwide! Immersion Day has arrived! swtor.dk visited the Nordic Immersion Day Event, which was also under the Star Wars: The Old Republic embargo lifted this week. There were guilds and fan sites who attended on October 15th and now they are able to share their experiences. The event was held at Inferno online, in their e-sport arena in Stockholm, a closed area of the gaming center. The event featured SWTOR fans from Scandinavian guilds who were all super excited to try out the game and learn more about it. The event began with senior writer Hall Hood showing some fun trailers, introducing the classes and the features of the game and building enthusiasm from the crowds. Scandinavian fan sites: Star Wars Sverige, Star Wars Norge and Star Wars DK have videos up of the event. Ruthless Guild Q&A Videos: And for more, check out the…

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SWTOR Review Twitter Roundup

Twitter is abuzz with SWTOR news. There are The Old Republicpreviews and SWTOR impressions, reviews, fan fun and so much more. The closerwe get to the release date, the more we hear about the game details, reviewsand previews from those who have had the chance to play (and are allowed totalk about it) and anticipatory tweets from fans who are beyond anxious. Since today was also the official announcement of Blizzard’snewest expansion for WoW, we saw some SWTOR-related tweets referencing WoW (andgiving me giggles). We also saw links to Friday update info, more embargo impressionsand other tidbits. Here are some highlights. Here is a Twitter roundup from October 21st with just under twomonths to go before release: SWTOR TheOld Republic Take a look inside the digital itemsthat can be yours with the #SWTOR Collector’s Edition. bit.ly/qV0YYX phoenix1914Johnny.Phoeenix 58 days until #SWTORlaunch, maybe five more weeks before we are playing early…

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New WoW ‘Expansion Mists of Pandaria’ Announced as Gamers Wait for SWTOR

We’re down to only two more months until the release of SWTOR (finally) and Blizzard has finally decided to reveal info about their next expansion, Mists of Pandaria. For those who have been waiting for the chance to play drunken Monks, it has arrived! Details: “”This next expansion set is set in a place lost to time for the last 10,000 years. A land of harmony, and beauty, and hope. That is, until we arrived. With all our hate and our violence and our unending faction conflict, the war that is coming for the World of Warcraft will be fought in this gentle place.”” The expansion will have: New Race: Pandaren New Class: Monk New Continent: Pandaria Level Cap 90 Pet Battle System New Talent System Check out the official trailer: Learn more about the fourth World of Warcraft expansion set, Mists of Pandaria, on Blizzard’s official website. Will the…

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Twitter Roundup: SWTOR Impressions and Previews

It was an exciting day for SWTOR in the Twitterverse today. As the press embargo was lifted, we saw media outlets who have been “in” for some weeks now release info, impressions, previews and more of the game. The official Star Wars The Old Republic Twitter feed also tweeted out many of these TOR previews and impressions for us to easily find and enjoy. Here is a Twitter roundup from October 20th with exactly two months to go before release: SWTOR The Old Republic “The Old Republic’s Trooper is a Monster” — a great #SWTOR preview from @IGN: go.ign.com/mZBkEq SWTOR The Old Republic Check out as @MMORPGcom gives us their “Full Beta Preview”: bit.ly/nTCKdw SWTOR The Old Republic Read as @rockpapershot takes us through their playtime with #SWTOR: bit.ly/qTU9x6 SWTOR The Old Republic “The Old Republic’s Trooper is a Monster” — a great #SWTOR preview from @IGN: go.ign.com/mZBkEq SWTORorDie TheOldRepublicOrDie…

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SWTOR Impressions and Previews Roundup

The press embargo was up today which means that many members of the media who had been previously invited into SWTOR game testing were now allowed to write about, blog about and talk about their impressions. This means lots of Star Wars The Old Republic previews and impressions for us to enjoy from some of the biggest names in video game/ MMORPG media. When the news first came out, many game testers were confused about what this means and who was allowed to talk about the game. If you’re a game tester, you are still bound by the NDA. The press embargo only applies to a select group of media who already know who they are.   To clarify the confusion on press and the embargoes, Stephen Reid tweeted, “Simple rule on press embargoes: unless you’ve been told you’re under embargo, you’re a tester. Ergo, no, you can’t talk about…

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SWTOR Impressions- A Double Dose of TOR Preview

Now that the press embargo is lifted, we’re finding out some great news about Star Wars The Old Republic. It’s always good to hear and see the impressions of other players, especially if you have not had the chance to try the game for yourself. Two members of the Massively staff, Larry Everett and Jef Reahard have been given the opportunity to play the play the game for the last few weeks and now they get to share their impressions with us officially. As we sit two months before the launch of the game, they are able to share with us their thoughts, ideas and impressions in an unofficial SWTOR preview that everyone can enjoy and appreciate, whether you’ve had a chance to check it out for yourself yet or not. Some background from Massively on the two game testers: “Larry is our SWTOR columnist; he’s been following the game…

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IGN SWTOR Preview: Companions and Crafting

Example of Dark-Side Armor – (Trooper Commando) Now that the press embargo is up, we’re going to see some great new info and Star Wars The Old Republic previews. IGN has hit the ground running with their Companions and Crafting preview that is part of their The Old Republic Blowout section. All this week they will be sharing more information on SWTOR. As they tell us in their first post on TOR, “it’s nice to have talented friends”. Crafting is an interesting process, according to IGN and since it’s also an integral part of most MMORPGs, fans are anxious to know what it’s all about. IGN is a big name in gaming so it’s no surprise that BioWare invited them in for testing. Since we’re a fan site, we’re still bound by the NDA so all we can do at this point is bring you the latest and greatest in…

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TGL Interview: The Doctors from BioWare Talk The Old Republic

The Gaming Liberty did an interview with the Doctors from BioWare about Star Wars: The Old Republic and if there was still anyone left who doesn’t know what SWTOR is, the news is surely getting around more than ever before. They sat down with the founders of BioWare in the newly established BioWare centre in Galway to talk everything from the economy to what fans can expect from Star Wars: The Old Republic. Since they shared the interview on their website, people from all over the world can read it and experience it for themselves. TGL talked to the BioWare doctors, Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk about things like what brought them to Ireland for their new facility, job creation and the economy, aspirations for the Galway facility, SWTOR and how it relates to the Star Wars movies, books and more. They talk Dark Horse comics a bit and the…

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Huttball PvP Live Commentary – Jedi Guardian – NYCC

Our friends over at TGN TV have another SWTOR Weekly episode up and this one is a lot of fun, complete with footage from NYCC and a recap of TOR news from this week. We love the Huttball PvP live commentary video from NYCC and if you haven’t seen it, we think you will enjoy it as well. Check it out: Throughout this week, we continue to see more and more videos and stories from NYCC and since we were unable to be there ourselves, it is our great pleasure to bring these to you whenever we spot them as well. This video has a great “sneak peek” of Huttball, a PvP Warzone in SWTOR. It’s really a fun video with a glimpse of Huttball and hilarious commentary. “This is an objective game; not a killing game, folks!” Since I’m a sports writer as well as a video game nut,…

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Impressions of SWTOR from a WoW Vet: Part 2

Yesterday I brought you a write-up from a Reddit user on his impressions of game testing SWTOR. It seems the post was popular enough that he decided to write up a part 2. Since his initial impression of the game were mostly positive (for which he received some criticism), he has added some downfalls of SWTOR to his Part 2. A snippet: Some troll-being yesterday said that Voidstar was quote “an abomination” which is far from an accurate portrayal of the state of that particular warzone. Voidstar is kind of like Strand of the Ancients in WoW. You’ve got to either blast your way through a series of gates or you have to defend against people blasting their way through said series of gates. Just like Strand there’s a time limit on the game and if the attacker wins, when teams switch sides, the former defenders have their time determined…

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I’m Flip-Flopping on Star Wars: The Old Republic

“My biggest problem now with Star Wars: The Old Republic is that I recently switched my home computer to a Mac,” says Stephen Totilo from Kotaku. This is in the intro to his story of why he’s flip-flopping on SWTOR. All he needed to change his mind about TOR was to play it again for a second time. He says it was like playing a completely different game. He says his first experience was impaired by high expectations and that he is not usually a MMORPG player as getting enchanted with the one MMO can limit you from playing other games. He says, “I tried World of Warcraft for a weekend in 2007, had some fun, but ran away to save my time for real-life activities like playing video games that last less than infinite hours.” He had a chance to try the game again, at NYCC it seems, and…

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Can AoC survive The Old Republic?

Many people are talking about SWTOR and the impact it will have on other similar games in the industry. It’s been called a WoW-clone and a WoW-killer and there have been comparisons made to Rift and other MMOs. Just in time for another MMO comparison, Massively brought us an article that asks Can AoC survive The Old Republic? Massively says: Even if you’re heavily invested in other games, chances are good that you’ll at least try SWTOR, amirite? I myself will be moonlighting in a galaxy far, far away at some point, and while I don’t plan on making a permanent home there, it will likely take a chunk of my gaming time for a month or two. Truer words could not be spoken. Just about every MMO player I know wants to at least try SWTOR. Some if for no other reason than to stubbornly prove it’s not going…

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General impressions of SWTOR beta from a WoW veteran

One game tester posted today while the servers were down for maintenance about his impressions on the game so far. As a WoW veteran, he had some opinion about SWTOR so far. This is a great write-up on one person’s perspective from the game and what they have gotten out of it so far. Since so many people keep comparing SWTOR to WoW, it’s interesting to hear from WoW players who are getting to try their hand at SWTOR. A snippet to start: First of all, I’m a real sucker for animations. I think that, for MMOs in particular, the animations make or break a game. I have, for instance, played Rift and feel like the characters are stunted, wooden puppets without much range of motion. The attack animations in Rift (et al.) are boring and unimaginative to the point that, by level 10 you’re really hoping for something new…

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Interview: Daniel Erickson and Stephen Reid

Kay White had the privilege of interviewing Daniel Erickson, Lead Writer for BioWare’s Star Wars: The Old Republic at NYCC and allowed TORWars to print the story. I love Erickson and the fun and humor he brings to every interview or chat about SWTOR so I was definitely interested in giving this one a read. On Saturday at New York Comic Con, in between some hours of being shoulder-bumped by geek-crazed New Yorkers, I got to enjoy some minutes with Daniel Erickson, Lead Writer for BioWare’s Star Wars: The Old Republic. Mr. Erickson, with grace and animated humor, gave out details of the writing process, resolving questions that have gnawed at me since I played my first BioWare game, Dragon Age: Origins. He also discussed content balance, titles, voice actor availability, character surnames, and a skinny little bit about slave bikinis. You will need to head on over to TORWars…

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Darth Malgus Action Figure Coming From Hasbro

Are you a fan of Darth Malgus? Would you be enough of a fan to buy this action figure? Darth Malgus will now be an action figure, thanks to Hasbro. This is pretty cool news for any SWTOR or Star Wars fan and collector. Stephen Reid tweeted a picture of the action figure this week. ToyArk.com announced at the Hasbro Star Wars panel that Darth Malgus will be available as Wave 3 of the Star Wars Vintage Collection this coming April. Since he is expected to be a major character in the game, this is fun and exciting news. On their website, ToyArk also has some great slideshows from the Star Wars panel and some other SWTOR and Star Wars related news. It’s definitely worth heading over to check out their slides and stuff.

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Zayne Carrick returns in Knights of the Old Republic – War!

At New York Comic Con, Dark Horse announced the next installment in the life of Knights of the Old Republic hero, young Zayne Carrick. Written by John Jackson Miller, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic: War begins in January! It’s explained on Faraway Looks: The Blog of John Jackson Miller: “The Jan. 11, 2012 release date is almost six years after the publication of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic #1 — but it’s set not long after the end of Knights of the Old Republic #50, and Zayne’s peace and quiet following that series is short-lived. He’s not a Jedi and the Mandalorians are invading — and with his homeworld of Phaeda under threat, Zayne’s luck holds true. He gets drafted!” He continues: “It really is a true jumping-on point. If you haven’t read any KOTOR comics at all — or if you’re a regular who’s read…

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