Doing last weekends Comic-Con in Dallas, BioWare took the opportunity and hold a a Community Cantina. If you haven’t read about the Comic-Con yet, Lisa had posted a few interesting reads about it. You can check them out here and here. No one from swtorstrategies was at the Community Cantina, but luckily Crafter over at ootinicast.com posted a lengthy write up of what was said by the developers. Some of the most interesting news is: Guild Ships will come eventually – When they look awesome ( They are Damion Schubert’s baby) A big PvP patch is coming soon Same-gender romance was not part of the original design team’s implementation, so it didn’t get included. Moving forward they will not make the same mistakes. Additionally more story content is coming, but no ETA We will probably never get flying mounts Check out the full write up over at ootinicast.com
News
Damion Schubert Response to Collections Set Restrictions
Sometimes there are times when a company representative just needs to come forward and admit that they goofed. BioWare did that today in regards to collections set restrictions. In this official developer post, Schubert explained the situation.
Dark Horse: Digital Give Away 1 Million Free Comics For 2nd Anniversary!
Do you love free comics? As part of their two-year-anniversary promotion, Dark Horse Comics gave away 1 million free comics. How awesome is that? Were you able to snag some of these free comics for yourself? If so, we want to hear about it. What titles did you get? As they state on their blog, “As part of the celebration of the second year of the company’s digital initiative and proprietary storefront, fifty free single-issue comics were made available for only forty-eight hours. In that time, thousands of fans took advantage of the offer and downloaded their favorite Dark Horse titles, to the tune of a million copies!”” This is really a fantastic example of the growing interest in digital comics as a new way to enjoy some classic comics and new releases alike. If you’re new to digital comics, you will have to try it out for yourself. While nothing…
EA Planning for New LA Based Studio
News came in today that Electronic Arts is planning for a new Star Wars focused studio in LA. This is the most recent in news about EA and their new rights to create Star Wars games from here on out. DICE LA, as the studio is being called, will be focused largely on mobile titles geared towards the mass casual game space. In true LA style, the studio will also have a “fitness center, cafeteria, sports field, sand volleyball court, basketball court and more.” A tweet from the Battlefield account has revealed some of the jobs on offer in the new LA-based studio, offering some insight into what DICE LA will be working on. IGN ran a story with the following info: According to The Wall Street Journal, it’s still being decided whether the studio will focus on brand new franchises to do with the IP or continue existing series. DICE general manager…
Lucasfilm Registers Domains for Star Wars Games
Are you ready for some new Star Wars games? Seriously, who isn’t? All of us here at SWTOR Strategies love Star Wars and while we also love SWTOR, we’re all about seeing what new games are going to come from this new partnership and contract with EA. We’re dedicated to bringing you any news about Star Wars games which is why we’re excited that Lucasfilm has registered a group of Star Wars-related domain names, according to Fusible. Several of the new domains reference Star Wars themes, including the following: Star Wars Alliance Star Wars Rebels Star Wars Wolf Pack Wolf Pack Adventures Order 67 Bothan Spies Gungan Frontier 2 Gungan Frontier 3 Gungan Frontier 4 Wookie Hunters That’s unfortunately all we know at this time and none of the registered names match any current projects so it’s hard to say how soon (if at all) these new games could be coming. Still, it’s…
SWTOR Game Update 2.1: Customization coming tomorrow
Game update 2.1 is expected on May 14 and update 2.2 is set to roll out on June 11. So tomorrow is the big day- the new customization game update is coming. As of tomorrow, players of SWTOR will finally have the chance to customize how their characters look. The highly anticipated 2.1 game update will be here which allows players the chance to change the colors of selected armor, as well as to give their character a complete makeover, if wanted. You can change the looks and features of your character from a simple hair dye to a full makeover with a new look. It’s all up to you. So if you’ve grown tired of looking at the same character all this time, this is your chance to mix it up a bit. Additionally, the Cathar species (yay!) will be available through the Cartel Market. It’s going to cost…
TIME talks about SWTOR and EA
As we reported this week, EA just got the exclusive rights to publish all Star Wars games in the future. As one of the largest video game company in existence, it’s likely EA had to fork out loads of cash to get this exclusive deal. EA will now have the rights to produce Star Wars games for the “core gaming audience” whereas Disney, who canned developer LucasArts just last month, will retain the rights to design Star Wars games for mobile, social and online gamers. So now that the big news has been announced, it seems everyone has an opinion and Time doesn’t seem to be taking a positive stance on this new relationship. Here’s a snippet from a piece they did that discusses the topic and SWTOR at length: And yet EA has a spotty track record when it comes to franchise tie-ins. Whereas handing a major property off…
SWTOR Monthly Revenue More than Doubled with F2P Model
If anyone’s wondering if BioWare has increased their revenues with SWTOR since going free to play, we now have evidence that it has “more than doubled”. This is not a surprise to many who have been following the game but it’s probably good news for investors. Polygon reports on today’s earnings call: Gibeau said the game has grown significantly. “Since it was induced in November, we’ve added more than 1.7 million new players on the free model to the service,” Gibeau said. “”And the number of subscriptions has stabilized at just under half a million. “The really interesting thing that’s happening inside the service right now is monthly average revenue for the game has more than doubled since we introduced the free-to-play option. And as we look forward, we’re going to continually invest in new content for the service and for players every six weeks or so.” As we can…
EA Gets Exclusive Deal to Publish All Star Wars Games From Now On
If you’re a fan who was worried about the future of Star Wars games, then you’re going to either love or hate this news that Electronic Arts has secured an exclusive deal for all Star Wars games made now and in the future.
SWTOR Patch 2.1 Dyes modules Q&A with Bioware
Do you have questions or concerns about the new dye modules coming to SWTOR in patch 2.1? Well, you’re not alone because there is a lot of confusion about the new features, how they will work, how much they will cost, what items will be dyeable and more. So Dulfy did us all a huge favor and got with Bioware for a question and answer session that tells us all we need to know about these dye modules and the new game update. You can read the full Q&A here on Dulfy’s site. Here is a snippet: Patch 2.1 Armor dyes Q&A with Bioware to clarify on some of the questions and concerns players had with the introduction of armor dyes in patch 2.1. 1. How many different dye modules can we expect at release? Will these dyes give off different colors based on the property of the armor? (i.e….
National Star Wars Day… May the Fourth Be With You
Happy Star Wars Day! May the fourth be with you. It’s here, guys- the greatest day of the year- National Star Wars day. May 4 is the 124th day of the year (125th in leap years). There are 241 days remaining in the year. It’s a great day for celebrating all things Star Wars. Whether you spend it playing your favorite Star Wars games or dressing up like your fave characters from the movies, we want you to do something extra special on this great day. Wookiepedia gives us some tips on how some fans celebrate this special day: Typical festivities consist of inviting fellow Star Wars-obsessed friends to stay over, and then watching the series in succession. Lots of snacks, bring lightsabers and Star Wars-themed toys. Lightsaber fights in the early morning hours optional. In the spirit of National Star Wars Day, Mashable brings us 10 Life Lessons from Star Wars. Let’s look at how…
SWTOR Game Update 2.1 Brings Name Updates
We know that SWTOR game update 2.1 is bringing many new customizations. With this comes the name changes we have been promised for quite some time. SWTOR-RP had an exclusive interview with Cory Butler that reveals some interesting info about the name changes: Game Update 2.1: Customization brings us a lot of new goodies to play with, among them being the Appearance Designer Kiosks which allows you to change your character’s eye color, scars, hairstyle, and even species. We had the chance to chat with BioWare Producer Cory Bulter about these Appearance Designer Kiosks and ask him a few questions about this particular feature. Read on below for this SWTOR-RP exclusive! Will the Designer’s features extend beyond the obvious to greater options like character’s name or maybe gender? Character Renames will also be coming in Game Update 2.1 and can be found in the unlock section of the Cartel Market. Gender changes…
Damion Schubert Talks about Free to Play Strategy and Respecting Players Wallets
It has been quite some time since there has been a real revolution in video game design. This is a topic I was just recently talking about with some gamer friends of mine. We are now in the midst of something new and revolutionary in the world of video games- the free to play phenomenon. Not so long ago, free to play and microtransactions were limited to the indie game sphere (and Korean MMOs). But we are seeing this game model enter mainstream gaming and honestly, most people are cool with it. The market is changing and everyone in it (gamers and developers alike) see the shift happening. Gamasutra recently reprinted an article from Game Developer magazine in which Damion Schubert talks about this topic and the changing market. Here’s a snippet: If you look at most hobbies, they allow spending to scale to level of interest. It is possible…
SWTOR 2.0.1 Data Dump
New updates on potential future SWTOR content from this SWTOR 2.0.1 data dump by Werit. As with any data dump, it’s important to remember that the data mined may not end up in the final version of the patch or update. It’s like playing on the test realms or in a game beta; you know that much of what you see does not make it into the final version of the game, or at least not in the same format. So take these data dumps with a grain of salt but they are fun and often, a lot of what is found actually comes out in the future patch. Another SWTOR patch, another data dump! I’ve expanded my data mining tools a bit, so I am grabbing even more changes than before. There are a couple of interesting entries in this patch. It looks like there are two new achievements…
Appearance Designer Kiosks and Armor Dyes in SWTOR
If you saw the latest insider video from Bioware, you might have caught your eye on the new appearance design kiosk and armor dyes they are adding to the game. This will be available in patch 2.1, titled Customization. If you’ve been wanting more customization in SWTOR or are growing tired of your toon’s look, you’re in luck. The appearance design kiosk will give you the chance to change your hairstyle, hair color, eye color, scars and tattoos and even your species. If you’re character needs a makeover, the time is now! It will cost cartel coins but there is also a permanent discount for subscribers so you can save 50% on all actions at the appearance designer kiosk if you sub. You can also choose features that you want and it works on a slider basis, meaning you don’t have to pay full price for a makeover if you’re…
Cathars Coming in SWTOR Patch 2.1!
We’ve been waiting on a new race and we’ve talked about the Cathar here before. Now we finally have the news that Cathars are coming in SWTOR Patch 2.1! Bioware teased previously that the Cathar were coming but then they left us hanging and wondering. A second post filled in more of the mystery for us and now finally, we know they are coming with Patch 2.1.While they officially announced the new playable species last year, we now know that they will be coming to the game and available for purchase with Cartel Coins (no surprise there, right?) The Cathar will be unlockable via the Cartel Market for 600 coins and you can either reroll a new character or you have the option to convert an existing character to the new species. One bonus is that the unlock is account-wide and not just legacy-wide, meaning you can apply it to…
EA Pays Probst Seven Figures, Looks for New CEO
CEO John Riccitiello recently resigned from Electronic Arts but executive chairman Larry Probst is reportedly taking the reins until a suitable replacement is found. But his temporary position of two roles will not come cheap- As reported by GameSpot, an EA filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission last week revealed that Probst will be paid an annualized salary of $1.03 million for the duration of the search for a new CEO. In addition to the seven-figure salary, Probst stands to earn an additional one-time bonus for his work from the Board of Directors for his temporary stint as executive chairman of the company. Of course, Probst will be abstaining from any discussion the board has on that particular topic since it would be a conflict of interest. He is also foregoing his board of directors cash retainer fees (which were $100,000 for the company’s fiscal 2012) for the duration…
Disney Shuts Down LucasArts and Cancels Star Wars Games
(image belongs to Kotaku- see their version for funny annotations that say how we all feel) Just recently we brought you the rumors that LucasArts is facing a shutdown. While we didn’t have enough proof to call it a fact, we highly suspected the confirmation was coming soon. Today was the formal notification. According to a source reliable to Kotaku, the staff was informed this morning that LucasArts was shut down. Publicly, Disney is saying their current games could be licensed out to a different publisher or developer, but according to our source, that’s unlikely. Our source says Lucas has pursued the option for “one or both games,” but nothing happened. “”With the teams now basically being dispersed I think both games are effectively dead forever,” our source said. A second source also told Kotaku this afternoon that the chances of Lucas licensing out 1313 are very slim. The odds are “effectively zero,” the…
Gamestop/Best Buy SWTOR now sells Cartel Coin Cards
A few months back, we heard rumors about Gamestop and Best Buy selling Cartel Coin cards in their stores that would also get you an exclusive mount. So what did I do? I ran out to my local Best Buy to check it out. Admittedly, I had something else to go for that night anyway, but this just made me more motivated to get in my car and head down to the shopping center. So there I am in Best Buy when not one, but two, friendly employees came over and offered to help me but alas, there were no cartel coin cards. In fact, they didn’t even have a clue what I was talking about. That’s because the information was leaked early and they were not available yet. But these cards were in the works… And the story is that they are finally live! But there are a few…
Reminder: Display Name Only Log In Now Live (Also Self Service Security Key)
Just a friendly reminder that Display Name Only Log In is Now Live. People are still debating if Display Name Only is more secure then email login, but they way I see it there’s now no link between your login name (Display Name) and your email address. If someone gets a hold of your swtor password, they still can’t get your email address because it’s obfuscated (shows up as m*******@gmail.com). That adds another obstacle for them to overcome to hijack your email address (the more important account imo). If someone has control of your email address, you have much bigger problems to worry about than just your swtor account. Keep in mind that their security system has always been built around the assumption that the hacker already knows your username. They’re keeping things secure by using a combination of password and security questions/key. Anyways, below is the news update from BioWare: Display Name Only Log…
SWTOR Climbing Since Going Free to Play
So has changing their game model to free to play had any impact on SWTOR for BioWare? , creative director on Star Wars: The Old Republic says yes at GDC. He revealed that the number of players has now increased to 4.5 million, up from 2 million, which makes it a rate of 10,000 new players each day. This switch to F2P has been a real game-changer for SWTOR, that was losing its player base. Ohlen goes on to explain how SWTOR had more problems on launch than just its subscription model (ya, think?) He explains that the lack of a group finder was a major downside to the game and also the poor implementation of the Public Test Realm (PTS). No group finder meant it was hard to players to get together to experience much of the content in the game and the poor PTS meant there were a…
George Takei to Star in New Star Wars Film
What’s more awesome than Abrams directing both Star Trek and Star Wars movies at the same time? George Takei acting in them both! As he shared on his Facebook wall today, George Takei will be starring in the new Star Wars films, directed by JJ Abrams: Friends, I am thrilled to announce that I’ll be starring in the Star Wars reboot directed by JJ Abrams. I’ll be playing Master Ceti Maru, a member of the Jedi High Council. The new film, entitled “Star Wars: Galactic Empire,” is greenlit and will begin filming sometime early next year. It is truly a moment for The Star Alliance. Thanks to all my fans for their decades of support. Geeks of Doom gives us more info about the famous actor’s new role: Now, the actor, best known for his role as the original Sulu in the Star Trekuniverse, revealed that he’ll be starring in a…
James Ohlen at Game Developers Conference 2013: TOR is one of the largest micro-transaction money-makers for EA
Following our recent post about Bioware’s Creative Director James Ohlen and his speech on the Game Developer’s Conference (GDC), additional details have emerged over at Massively. Bioware’s Creative Director James Ohlen The site has posted a detailed account of Ohlen’s presentation at the event where the latter covered the challenges Bioware faced during launch, its conversion to Free to Play (F2P) and the concerns the Austin-based developer had about Guild Wars 2 and Mists of Panderia. He also went into details about what the studio went through when the game started losing subscribers and how they managed to turn it around with F2P.
How non-paying players can positively impact a game’s success
Since Star Wars The Old Republic (SWToR) changed its subscription model to Free-to-Play (F2P), a lot of opinions were raised about whether it was the right thing to do or not. Some quickly labeled SWToR as a failure that didn’t live up to the hype , while others saw this as a necesary change that helps the game’s long-term growth. Whether this change was successful or not remains to be seen, however first indications as reported by James Ohlen and the recent EA investor’s call are positive. Free-to-play might not be such a bad thing after all! A new article over at Gamasutra.com, argues that non-paying players, actually help the growth of such games. The author of the article cites three major reasons for opening up a game to freeloaders. Among other things F2P players help bring in other new players that eventually will turn into subscribers, they show their appreciation…