I wrote yesterday about how SWTOR was set to be a game to span decades. It’s also a game that seems to bring generations together. I’ve actually met countless people when talking about SWTOR who say they will be playing with their children, parents, siblings and other friends and family. My mom is 50 and she’s a big Star Wars fan. She’s interested in the game because of the storyline. My 5-year-old plays Lego Star Wars on his DSi and is just as excited that mommy will be playing TOR. But we’re not the only ones who have seen that SWTOR can bring generations together. Hellsworn made a heartfelt and interesting post about it on the official forums recently. He says: “So I am a older player. in my mid 40’s. So Star Wars in near and dear to my heart as it brings back very fond memories of my…
Author: Soeren Kamper
Video Roundup – the international pre-order madness
FTWBroadcasting has released an in depth video about the international pre-order madness. It includes videos, articles, and answers to many of the key questions out there for the international community.
Actual Confirmation – No Region IP block
When it comes to region blocks and no SWTOR on initial release to certain areas of the globe, there have been many, many questions. Allison Berryman, Senior Community Coordinator for SWTOR attempted to clear up some of the questions on the official SWTOR forums. In a post from earlier, Berryman explains: “Hello everyone. We know that you have questions about this topic, and we hope to have more clarification for you all very soon. For those who may not have seen Stephen Reid’s tweets from this weekend regarding some of these subjects, I’d like to share that information here. Regarding whether the game will block players from some regions by IP address: currently, there is no plan to block players from the game by regional IP blocking. Playing on servers physically distant from your location might mean you experience some issues with latency, but at this time we don’t plan…
Community Interview with James Ohlen
Of all the interesting interviews coming out this week and past weekend from SDCC, there was a great on one the SWTOR forums from community members GamewizX and Montybrython. If you’ve spent any time at all on the SWTOR, you probably know these two. Well, they were able to interview James Ohlen, Game Director of Star Wars: The Old Republic, and barrage him with questions directly from the community. You can find the entire lineup on the official forums and even post your own comments to the discussion. Here are some of the highlights: XYondaimeX asks: Will there be a Guild “tabard” (not an EXACT guild tabard ala WoW, just something to display a guild symbol.) or some other way to dis play a guild emblem? James Ohlen: Currently there is no sort of Tabard or emblem however it is something that is huge that we are missing. Jooki asks:…
BioWare Hopes to Expand Star Wars: The Old Republic into 2025
As reported by Darth Hater in a SDCC panel, BioWare hopes they will take MMORPG Star Wars: The Old Republic into many decades. What many are calling the first game to usurp World of Warcraft, it’s definitely possible if they pull it off. They hope to take SWTOR into 2025. Senior creative director, James Ohlen, explained at Comic Con that they the game has 19 major worlds. “Then we have an indeterminate number of minor worlds. And our goal, obviously this being an online game, that we’re hoping is going to last for decades, we’re going to be, obviously, adding more to the galaxy map as the game progresses.” He said. Ohlen adds, “We want to add dozens of worlds. Hundreds of worlds eventually. In 2025, we’ll hopefully have 500 worlds.” That is an enormous game! With each of the six classes promising 200 hours of gameplay, not counting things…
The Guild Sphere: The Rakatan
The Rakatan Infinite Empire has chosen site. You guys are all fucked! But It seems like they are nice guys. Read on below. Where did your guilds name come from? The name ‘The Rakatan” comes from an exploration of Star Wars lore that pre-dates the age of KOTOR, SWTOR, and the classic Star Wars galaxy at large, yet the themes presented by the Rakatan legacy are inexorably intertwined with the fate of the galaxy as a whole. The Rakatan Infinite Empire, for those who aren’t particularly familiar with the lore, was the Galactic Empire that constructed the star forge that figures prominently in the first KOTOR game, is at the crux of the Jedi Civil War and is ever present in the Star Wars backstory. The Rakata themselves were a sort of “master race” that became affiliated with the dark side of the force, founded the first truly galactic empire,…
BioWare Base Q&A #3 Video: SDCC News and Updates
Gamespot talks to Cory Butler, Bioware Producer, at San Diego Comic Con in one more piece of their great coverage of SDCC so far. Butler gives some general information about the game, most of which we already know, but interesting anyway. While this video doesn’t say a whole lot that hard-core fans of SWTOR don’t already know, it’s a great video nonetheless and it’s also very helpful if you’re still trying to convince your significant other of why you dropped that $150 on the Collector’s Edition pre-order. Check out the video here:
Teasers Of Star Wars: The Old Republic: The Lost Suns Issues #4 And #5
Dark Horse had good news for Star Wars comic fans recently. Not only will the Star Wars comics be available in digital format but they also released a small preview of each of the remaining two issues of Star Wars: The Old Republic: The Lost Suns series, Issues #4 and #5. They are available for pre-order but previous issues sold out super fast so don’t wait if you want to get your hands on these comics for yourself. Here is info from Dark Horse on each new issue: Star Wars: The Old Republic: The Lost Suns Issue #4 Captured by the evil Sith Empire, Republic spy Theron Shan is about to find out what secret sacrifice brought about the end of the great war. But once the Imperial’s covert activities are revealed, will he be able to act on his devastating discoveries? Star Wars: The Old Republic: The Lost Suns…
No SWTOR for the Aussies- Maybe Someday but Not at Launch
We previously wrote about how (and potentially why) there was no pre-order available for SWTOR to Australia, or anyone outside of the US and Europe. While many were searching for answers and speculating on the reasoning behind this, Darth Hater set out to get us some answers at San Diego Comic Con this weekend. They posed the question to Stephen Reid as follows: Darth Hater: We know that publishers have a variety of problems when trying to launch a game overseas that range from regional politics, ratings boards, server infrastructure, localization, distribution, and more. Why did you choose not to launch in certain regions? Stephen Reid: The answer is “none of the above.” We didn’t make that decision because of ratings board issues, localization or whatever else. What it ultimately comes down to is simple, but it is kind of a difficult concept to grasp: it is about quality of…
Dallas Dickinson Interviews from Comic Con
There’s lots of cool stuff coming out of San Diego Comic Con this week, part of which are great interviews with Dallas Dickinson, Director of Production on Star Wars: The Old Republic. The first, with fansite TORWars, has a lot of great information. Here he discusses some of the reveals from SDCC such as the speeder bikes, the model they are based on and the fact that they are now tweaked so that the rider does not get knocked off so easily (although it is still possible to get knocked off). While he could not go into a lot of detail, he also talked about the customizable companions and teased about some new changes such as being able to interact with the companions and control them during combat scenes in the game. To what extent this will be, we do not know yet but he says it will be released…
Star Wars Classic Movie Mash-Up Posters
More impressive poster based shenanigans have come to my attention from Design You Trust, who have posted (via artist Matt Ranzetta) three mash-up posters melding classic movies with a Star Wars flavour. The posters, based on three of the most iconic films of modern cinematic history are each an accomplishment of simplicity and observation, and the artist deserves a hearty pat on the back for pulling them out of his clever head. Ranzetta actually released the posters, including the two further additions I have included below back in 2010 to huge acclaim, and thanks to the response, actually released both prints and T-shirts based on all five designs. Do yourself a favour, try and get your hands on at least a couple. As promised, here are the other two posters that make up the series…
The SWTOR Forum Walkthrough Episode 2: Attack of the Dopes
A few weeks back I posted the first episode of RussellW218’s SWTOR Forum walkthrough videos, which chronicled a mind-boggling real thread from the forums in which an obvious idiot aired his “opinions” on how to make SWTOR all sorts of awesome. Didn’t really paint him in the best light, but then the guy clearly didnt understand the fundamental nature of MMORPG gaming. Anyway, here’s the second episode, animated in the same way using XtraNormal (despite the posters continued assertions that it sucks), in which a new forum user – Mrs. “”Paylin” – shares some of her own suggestions for The Old Republic that she feels will be absolutely earth-shattering. Needless to say, it doesn’t quite work out that way. Greatest line… “”Welcome to Star Wars, houses can now fly.”” Seriously, these forum moderators need knighthoods, one for the shit they have to put up with from morons trying to suggest…
Star Wars Blu-Ray Boxset: Teasing The Deleted Scenes
For Star Wars fans, there’s pretty much only one blu-ray release to pay any attention to at all this year, and the long-awaited high-definition treatment of George Lucas’ galactic franchise epic will finally land on shelves on September 12th in the UK. I’m in the lucky position where I’ll probably get hold of a copy to review early on, but for everyone else the prospect of having to wait just a couple of months will seem a yawning chasm of time stretching before them. So it’s with great pleasure we can bring you a teaser video of some of the Deleted Scenes to be included in the mammoth Complete Saga blu-ray release. I still maintain that the cover should have been better thought-out, but the following teaser at least shows promise of the exciting content within… Exciting times ahead what with SWTOR and this blu-ray about to land in the…
Comic-Con ’11: player vehicles
5 new vehicles screenshots was shown at Comic-Con today. Gotter love nice wheels right? And like Boba. We all need a nice wheels:
New Trailer: ‘Join The Fight’
BioWare has used this Friday update to release a new Trailer for Star Wars: The Old Republic. The video was also shown at yesterdays official SWTOR Comic-Con panel discussion. The trailer is made up of only in-game footage and looks really nice. We are excited to present Join the Fight, an all-new in-game trailer for Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ that premiered at San Diego Comic-Con 2011. The uneasy peace established by the Treaty of Coruscant is broken and both the Galactic Republic and Sith Empire build their armies. As both sides prepare for open war, a new generation of heroes must rise up to meet the challenges of a volatile age, declaring their allegiances and fighting for what they believe in.
Joe Johnston Wants a Boba Fett Movie
Not content with bringing one iconic hero of American cinema, Captain America director Joe Johnston has his eye set on another, even more awesome figure for another upcoming project. Boba Fett. That’s if he can convince George Lucas to get on board. I’ll let that sink in. Boba Fett. Just imagine for one minute the possibility of a spin-off of arguably the cult character of the entire franchise (alongside Darth Maul perhaps), playing out like a sort of Die Hard meets Dog The Bounty Hunter. And while I don’t have great faith in Johnston’s directorial abilities (aside from his early work on Jumanji and The Page Master) – he made The Wolfman remember – he does already have experience directing jet-packed superheroey type folk thanks to his time helming 1991’s overlooked gem Rocketeer. In conversation with ScreenRant, Johnston admitted his intentions: “”I’m trying to get George to make a feature…
RE-Live TV from BioWare Base at Comic-Con
Yesterday BioWare had a live Q&A with Stephen Reid, James Ohlen, Dallas Dickinson and Rich Vogel. unfortunately I was sleeping like a baby while it was on, but WeekendJedi and SoMuchMass has made sure the full Q&A is now on Youtube. Here are the highlights ( Thanks to Ask a Jedi): Collector’s Edition store is actually an exclusive location that only CE owners have access to! Items from this store however will not give people an advantage in power, though weapons and armor will be available Color Stone is gold in addition to adding effects Sharding may be used on launch day, only if absolutely necessary (the practice of creating multiple copies of the same area) Advanced Class change is in the game. 1st swap is cheap. After that it gets expensive Companion AI – off-limits for talking about! James Ohlen is in trouble. Companion customization is flexible, but you can’t…
Beta Test Weekends to Start this September
In an official press release from EA, BioWare announces beta test weekends will begin in September. It also discusses the pre-orders starting today and unveils detail of their special editions of Star Wars: The Old Republic. “”””””””””””””As anticipation grows, BioWare also proudly announced today that Star Wars: The Old Republic will open “Beta Test Weekends” starting this September. These weekend play sessions will be open to selected players worldwide and create an opportunity for fans to get a sneak peek of the epic stories, worlds, quests, battles and characters in the game. Please visit www.StarWarsTheOldRepublic.com to register for game testing and to stay tuned throughout the summer for more details as they become available.”” That’s exciting news for those who have been waiting for a chance at a beta that has since been closed to the public. The press release also describes the three versions of SWTOR that will be…
No Australia Pre Orders
We wrote back in June about the rumors of SWTOR being delayed in Australia and it seems like there must be some truth to this rumor. When you go to the SWTOR Pre-Order site, as many were doing today, there are no options for Australia. If you’ve gotten the dreaded: “Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ is not available in your region” Then pre-order is not going to be available in your region; at least not yet. This has some Aussies pretty upset about the news and it wasn’t long before threads were popping up about it. The biggest question from those in the limited regions like Australia, New Zealand and Latin America is “why?” Static52 even brings us a fun little cartoon that expresses exactly how most feel about the issue. Stephen Reid, Senior Online Community Manager, came through with an official response today on the forums: “To all of…
‘Revan’ Cover Art Revealed
I was once told that the older you get, the more you let your body go. Revan is proof of this as he has taken on a few pounds on the cover of Drew Karpyshyn upcoming book. The book will hit the stores on November 15 and will tell the story of what happen to the legendary Sith lord after the KOTOR games. Drew Karpyshyn will be on-hand at Comic-Con for signings, as well as the developer meet and greet at the BioWare Base the next few day.
WTF: The Dark Side of Love
Alessandra Torresani is insanely hot. This much is certain. Today, I’m also a little more convinced that she is actually also straight up insane, thanks to the video below. Featuring full frontal Sith Lord tonguing action, a Darth toddler and some wonderfully off-kilter humour, the video charts Torresani’s relationship with Darth Vader from the heady highs to the neck-crushing lows. It’s odd, but it’s our kind of odd. I’m pretty sure that putting an oversized Darth Vader helmet on an infant verges on child abuse, but it looks pretty bloody funny. And if it’s done in the name of entertainment, Social Services presumably have to be more lenient. Otherwise those little hairy children they put in Ewok costumes would never have been granted permission to work…
The Guild Sphere: The Crescent Rose
This week I sat down with one of the admissions officials with the The Crescent Rose, a republic RP guild guild focusing on PvE and some PvP. These guys has really thought over everything, so enjoy: Where did your guilds name come from? In every game, we spend time finding a new guild backstory to suit the lore, and we take a name that will suit that backstory. It’s more work, but it gives us a chance to look at the world, and also self-examine every so often. Here, our background writers looked at a few things: The idea that the Republic and Empire aren’t in open conflict, but in a cold war, the thought that Force classes are likely going to be very popular, concepts of secrecy, and we started playing with words and images that would fit those ideas. The word “Subrosa,” or “Under the rose,” got thrown…
Darth Hater Turns 2
Darth Hater celebrates their 2-year birthday/anniversary this week. “Episode 89 “Two Years of Hate” of the Darth Hater Podcast is now live. Check the bottom of the post for the stream and download links. Podcast notes after the jump.”Here are the credits of the 2-year podcast:Intro Justin Lowe – Sado – @zirak Pete Trerice – Misenus – @petetrerice Joshua Ogborn – Sleeper – @dhsleeper Ben – Dover – @doverbsOfficial Darth Hater Twitter Pre-Show Two year anniversary SegmentsFriday Update: Studio Insider, Community Q&A and Final Comic-Con Details Revan Excerpt in Star Wars Insider DevTracker Highlights For The Week of July 14, 2011 Facebook Image of the Week 7.13.11 The Thrill of Victory and the Agony of PvP Lore Update: Jedi Consular Community Poll Would you like to see a player review system added to PVE Flashpoints/Operations?Yes (853 Votes, 66%) No (442 Votes, 35%) Would you like to see the PVP…
SWTOR Currency Sellers Prep for Upcoming Launch
As we get closer to the eventual launch of Star Wars: The Old Republic, we see more and more websites selling in-game currency and power-leveling. It’s an interesting phenomenon but not surprising, really. Everyone is trying to jump in and get their own piece of the SWTOR pie and for those who offer shortcuts in the game, that piece might not be so little. While some still do not understand why gamers would want to fast-track their way through the game, there seems to be no shortage of people willing to buy such services. Some argue that they don’t have the time to level up in the game or farm for currency and that adults who work hard to be able to afford it should be able to pay their hard-earned cash to get more of what they want in the game. Is it really hurting anyone other than them?…