This week, Zero Punctuation reviews Star Wars: The Old Republic. Escapist Magazine did not have nice things to say about SWTOR. It’s a 5-minute, fast-paced rant about how much SWTOR sucks (in short) but self-admittedly is nothing more than a “preview” as he doesn’t spend enough time actually playing the game to give it a real review. Ben “YAHTZEE” Croshaw is notorious for not liking MMOs. In fact, his criticism was somewhat mild considering his distaste for the genre. It’s amusing, I’ll give him that, but I really don’t think he gave SWTOR enough of a chance. Since he doesn’t like MMOs, it feels like he just went into the game wanting to hate it and where do you get with an attitude like that, really? You get just what you ask for. Yahtzee chose a Smuggler as his class but doesn’t seem too impressed with it. My Smuggler is…
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MMOMFG.com Reviews SWTOR after Level Cap
What happens when you reach the level cap in an MMO? This is what many refer to as the “endgame experience”. For many gamers, they never reach this level cap, especially if you’re not a big MMORPG fan. Some gamers pick up an MMO and grow bored of it before they reach this cap. Still others, accustomed to the WoW-style of play, will power level to the cap and then try to experience all the end game aspects before growing bored and moving on to a new game. One self-professed non-MMO fan has made it to the level cap in SWTOR and this just might be saying something about BioWare and their ability to create a game that all types of gamers can get into. A review over at MMOMFG.com explains: As I’ve mentioned time and again, MMOs are not my favorite genre. While I was a big, big fan…
Escapist Magazine SWTOR Review
You know how we are all about giving you great reviews of SWTOR. This is partly because we want you to hear other opinions of the game, including those from other publications and fan sites. We know that gamers vary in their likes, interests, personalities and gameplay styles so hearing reviews from different sources can help cater to those different types of gamers. Escapist Magazine has a great review of SWTOR, complete with a video, to share with you and we thought it’s worth mentioning. If you have the time, head on over and read their editorial and give the video a play-through. If you can, come on back over here and tell us what you think. Were they spot-on with their review? Anything you agree with or that you don’t agree with? Here’s a snippet: Most MMORPGs have far too narrow a definition of the term “RPG.” For them,…
What Culture Review of SWTOR
So what do you think of SWTOR so far? Are you loving it or still deciding whether or not you want to drop the cash on it? If you’ve tried MMOs before, you know what a time and money sink they can be and that can be frustrating if the game turns out to be a disappointment. This is where great reviews come in handy. The problem with MMO reviews is that the games are so large and multi-faceted that it’s difficult to get all the important info you need into one review. This is why the best reviews are thorough and in-depth and broken into different sections to fully describe the different parts of the game. Here’s another excellent and thorough review of SWTOR from What Culture. We feel it fully covers what you want from a great MMO review and it’s more than worth your time to give…
Gamespot Video Review of SWTOR
Kevin VanOrd (Senior Editor) dispenses Lightsaber justice in this video review for Star War: The Old Republic from GameSpot. It’s 7 ½ minutes of review of SWTOR from the guys who get to review games for a living over at GameSpot. It’s fun, it’s thorough and it’s visual. If you don’t like reading though pages of opinion from a reviewer or skimming over snippets without feeling like you’ve learned anything new, then this video review might be perfect for you. They mention story, dark side and light side points and the one annoying feature that the rest of us have noticed already- there is no real mechanical benefit to staying neutral. Since the gear is all for light side or dark side points, you pretty much end up going one way or the other in order to get the gear you want. Anyway, check out the video yourself for the…
IGN’s Final Verdict on SWTOR
A gigantic MMO deserves a gigantic review and that’s just what IGN has given us for their “final verdict” detailed review of SWTOR. This review comes after 160+ hours of game playing time and IGN leaves SWTOR with a 9 out of 10 stars. This is a very thorough descriptive write-up of SWTOR from the IGN reviewers. They talk about the cinematics, the character creation and storyline, quest givers and other NPCs and much more. The review takes us deeper in to the game than many other “overviews” that claim to be reviews. Here’s a snippet: The classic scrolling yellow text of the films begins immediately after you’ve created your character, accompanied by the Star Wars theme. There is, in my mind, no better way BioWare could have kicked off your adventure. The text briefly explains who you are and in what context you’re entering the galaxy. It’s unique to…
PC Gamer Review SWTOR- Lengthy Observations
You know that we’re always looking out for you and bringing you great reviews and previews of SWTOR when we find them. While you’ve probably had a chance to check out the game for yourself by now and if you don’t own it yet, you probably know plenty of friends who do, we still like to pass on good reviews when we find them. This very lengthy write-up by PC Gamer is worth taking a read (or at least a skim) over because it has so much great info on the game from a reputable source like PC Gamer. The review is based on 85 hours of playtime in the game so you will get a lot more from your typical blogger preview out there. They played as an Imperial Agent to level 35 at the time the review was written so it does not contain information on certain endgame…
How the Old Republic Didn’t Change MMOs from Escapist Magazine
I read a really interesting piece today from Escapist Magazine. It was part of a weekly column “First Person” written by Boston, MA-based freelancer Dennis Scimeca that I often enjoy. This particular write-up on how The Old Republic didn’t change MMOs is spot-on with how I feel about the game in many areas. Let’s start with saying that it’s not a negative review. In fact, the columnist seems quite content with SWTOR as far as the game itself goes but he makes some very valid points about the MMO aspects and how there are certain things that just cannot be revolutionized yet in the genre. While SWTOR has done some things that no other MMORPG has done, there are still some things that it just hasn’t changed about the genre in SWTOR. However, it may not really be BioWare’s fault. I mean, this is reportedly one of (if not the)…
This is Why SWTOR Matters
Ever gotten on a soapbox when it comes to talking about video games? You certainly wouldn’t be the first to do so. In fact, gamers are often so passionate about their video games that they find themselves on a soapbox quite often. Adam Harshberger of Pexielsordeath.com has a soapbox opportunity to tell us all why SWTOR matters. It seems everyone who has played the game has a strong opinion one way or another about it. For some, SWTOR is just another MMO attempting to rival WoW that will probably wither and wane just like so many others. To some, it doesn’t matter at all. However, to others SWTOR matters and here is a glimpse into why. Harshberger says: “But, regardless, Bioware has succeeded in igniting my brain in ways that only single player games have previously – and, to frank with ya’ll, I can’t stop playing it.” He says that…
The Sith Inquisition: iPhone app Review – Galaxy Link
Good Afternoon Sithizens, We were asked to do a review of an iPhone app by the moderators of swtorstrategies.com, and not being ones to disapoint our masters, we did so eagerly. The app is called Galaxy Link, and although it doesn’t have any links to the game itself due to the fact that Bioware has yet to put out their API for The Old Republic, the app does try to push what usefulness it can with timers, a small social networking tool, and a small encyclopedia of basic information on datacrons. The social networking tools are relatively bare bones, especially because it has no ability to tie into the game itself. It works by you entering the server and character you play, as well as answering some basic questions about them. After completing the short registration, you see a list of everyone else linked into the network, organized in multiple…
Hands On with SWTOR: Natalie Shoemaker and PC Mag SWTOR Review
For five years we have waited for this game. We were not waiting alone. Natalie Shoemaker of PC Mag has been waiting as well and now that the big day has finally arrived, she’s sharing her hands on experience with the Internet world. She starts us off with an overview (for those who might still not know much about the game, yet): “The company has set lofty (read: expensive) goals for itself: A fully voiced game complete with cut scenes. BioWare also hasn’t left SWTOR without the company’s signature touch for creating involved storylines for each character class, as well as dialogue options and a moral choice system that affects certain outcomes of your game (though it’s currently uncertain how much in SWTOR).” She then tells us about some of the basics of SWTOR and what you can expect from the game. Again, basic info for those of us who…
SWTOR vs. WoW Big Media Coverage Roundup
People are talking about SWTOR- this we already know but now that the official launch date has arrived, we see big media coverage at an all-time high. We also continue to see the comparisons made between SWTOR and WoW. USA Today had two stories on the game and it was also covered by large news organizations like the New York Times, The Telegraph, BBC, Daily Mail, and FT.com all of which had something to say about SWTOR and WoW. Big media roundup of SWTOR vs. WoW: New York Times “On Tuesday, Electronic Arts will release Star Wars: The Old Republic, a sprawling multiplayer online adventure that is the first legitimate competition that World of Warcraft has faced for the hearts, minds, hours and dollars of millions of players. “Star Wars” games have been around for decades, but the Old Republic provides the most extensive opportunity to become your own Jedi…
Hands-On SWTOR Review
My pal Jason Thibeault has a great hands-on SWTOR preview to share and with the pre-launch only a few days away, it’s a great way to pass the time and get yourself in the SWTOR mood. This is also an excellent preview for anyone who missed game testing or is just now hearing about the game (have you been under a rock?). We have brought you a lot of SWTOR previews and reviews here and I guarantee you I have read tons and tons of them but there are some things in particular that I really like about Jason’s review. For example, he has a lot of screenshots. These aren’t just typical gameplay shots- he has some great shots of the character selection process and appearance customization which is great for those who did not have a chance to see this in the game for themselves. He also explains the…
SWTOR Beta End Game Review for Level 50 from MMO Champion
With the launch date for SWTOR scheduled for December 20, 2011, Star Wars/MMO fans are interested in learning more about this game. The excitement continues to grow with each passing day and if you’re like most players, you’re searching for all the inside information you can find which is why we want to bring you as many awesome SWTOR reviews as we can before the big day. MMO Champion has a very interesting review on their beta experience end game for level 50. A lot of testers were never able to get that far in the game so it’s pretty interesting, all in all. It talks about some of the things there are to do once you reach level 50 (max level). You can learn a little about the bosses in the game, operations, raiding and crafting. You’re going to get some facts and details with sprinkles of opinion from…
SWTOR Review and Cool Stuff from ZAM
Have you had enough SWTOR reviews yet? Now that the beta testing phase is over and we are counting down the days to the eventual launch of the game, it’s a great time to read over all the good reviews and previews we can find. We’re going to continue to bring you some of the best ones, as well as our own SWTOR guides and strategies to keep you informed and entertained before launch- and beyond. In yet another SWTOR review, we have this from ZAM.com. This is a very long 2-part series of a review/preview of SWTOR based on their beta experiences. Editor-in-Chief Chris Tom talks about what makes SWTOR unique and gives some final thoughts on his experiences. He says: “Yesterday, I went in-depth with SWTOR’s story and gameplay, as well as how it all fits with the MMORPG genre. Today, I’ll be talking about some of the…
Gamepro slams Star Wars: The old republic
We read through many many reviews of Star Wars: the old republic here at swtorstrategies. Most of them are positive about the game, but from time to time you come by people that really don’t like the game. Here is one from gamepro were the staff won’t be playing SWTOR when it comes out in a few weeks.
A detailed SWTOR Beta Review by a MMORPG veteran
When it comes to SWTOR reviews, we’ve got you covered. In addition to writing our own, we like to bring you the best of what we find on the Internet from other fans, game sites and more. We stumbled across another SWTOR beat review from an MMORPG veteran who has a lot to say about the game. And when we say a lot, we really mean it! Merecraft of Far Beyond My Capacity wrote over 8,000 words about SWTOR beta. That’s like a small book! If you want to learn more about the game from someone who has firsthand MMORPG experience, this one is worth your time. Even if you just skim over the sections that interest you, it’s worth it to check it out. Merecraft is a 12-year veteran of MMOs who has been playing the game for some time now and the drop of the NDA means he…
INC Gamers SWTOR PvP Preview
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….
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…
Smuggler hands-on from MMOSite
The Smuggler class in Star Wars: The Old Republic is a classic piece of Star Wars lore but what we see in SWTOR is an interesting take on the Smuggler class story. It will be different from the archetype you’re used to and BioWare has some fun things in store. If you want to learn more about the Smuggler, short of being able to play it yourself in game testing, then check out the hands-on from a site that’s been able to play and share (within the NDA, of course). MMOSite.com has a great hands-on SWTOR review of their experience with the Smuggler. If you were trying to make up your mind about whether or not to play a Smuggler, check out this SWTOR preview: Here is a snippet: “Things start to get exciting by level 10 after the “tutorial” aspect of the game comes to an end and players…
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…
MMOSite Previews SWTOR
As we get closer to the eventual release of SWTOR, we see more reviews and previews coming out. For those who have not yet had a chance to beta or review the game, these previews and write-ups are a great way for us to learn more about the game. But as I always warn here, you have to take it for what it’s worth, which is another person’s opinion. As far as opinions go however, we can usually rely on the gamer sites like MMOsite to give us good reviews and previews of upcoming games and that is exactly what they’ve done here. Their preview is a great overview of the game for those who do not have the time (or desire) to want to go through all the videos, trailers and other information out there about SWTOR. Here’s a snippet: One of the most prominent aspects of SW:TOR is…
Beta tester/Former professional game tester reviews SWTOR
Here is one of the most interesting SWTOR beta reviews I have read yet. This Beta tester/Former professional game tester posts their experience with SWTOR on Reddit. It begins: “I’ve been in beta for about two and half weeks and I used to work for a large and famous video game company as a game tester. I would like to think I know a little bit about testing games, but this is just a general outline of what I think of the game and where it’s heading.” The review goes on to tell us what SWTOR is: “A really solid MMO that will be successful. Simply put, there is nothing that WOW does better, and the baseline for TOR leaves a lot of room for improvement and fun. Unless something insane happens and the game goes off the deep end, I don’t see it failing like most MMOs.” And then,…
SWTOR Tester reviews his 20 days long test session
Betacake brought us another beta tester review, this one from someone who tested for 20 days before the write-up. This is certainly a significant period of time to give a sufficient review but of course, it’s just one person’s opinions. These are one person’s ideas of what is good and bad in the game but still, it is very useful when learning more about SWTOR and what we can all expect. Here’s a snippet of the intro: First to my characters: So far I have played 5 characters and followed the story. As far as possible I have done all the quests I have found and did not skip any – unless group quests I did not get a group for. The list of my characters are: Sith Inquisitor: Sorcerer – lvl 27 – currently on Nar Shaddaa (story line for that planet finished – on her way to Tatooine) Sith Warrior:…