News

Conquest Week Watch – Results for week 3

Editor

SWToRConquest.com compiled the final results for week 4 of Conquest Battles in SWToR. As a reminder the battle lasted from September 9 to September 15 and saw multiple guilds fighting over planet dominance.

Out of the five planets that were available for invasion this week (Tatooine, The Black Hole, Quesh, Nar Shadaa and Makeb), two (Tatooine and Nar Shadaa) offered the most closely-fought-battles. The closest-one, took place a the Harbinger server where more than 5 guilds went neck-in-neck right up to the last minute.

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Expansion Initials Revealed – SOR Teasers

Lisa Clark

We have some exciting expansion news today as we look at the teaser images and video file names, we see some leaked hints at the expansion title. This isn’t data-mined info but rather what Bioware themselves put out on the official news site. You’d think they had learned their lesson about this sort of thing in the past, or maybe they did it on purpose to stir up some more hype for the new expansion. If you at the file names for the images in the news post, you will see they are saved as “SORTeaser”, meaning the new expansion will be called SOR. See for yourself here: http://www.swtor.com/sites/all/files/en/vc/09162014_SORTeaser/SORTeaser_550x120.jpg http://www.swtor.com/sites/all/files/en/vc/09162014_SORTeaser/SORTeaser_854x480.jpg http://www.swtor.com/sites/all/files/en/vc/09162014_SORTeaser/gt_sor_FINAL_US.mp4 So what might it stand for? Forum members and Redditors are taking their guesses and we have one of our own. Shadow(s) of Revan sounds like a good bet to us since it also fits well to the Forged Alliance…

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SWToRConquest.com releases conquest tracking widget

Editor

Want to show off your guilds’ accomplishments at your guild website and don’t know how? Fear not – SWTORConquest.com has got you covered! They recently announced a very cool plugin that allows you to show your guild’s conquest score at your website.

We tried it with our guilds’ WordPress website and it works very well with both pages as well as BBPress forums (you can embed it within forums posts very easy).

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Patch 3.0 details to be released soon

Editor

Senior producer, Bruce MacLean was once again at the SWToR.com forums and this time let us know when Patch 3.0 information is going to be released. In specific, responding to a fan’s post he mentioned: You nailed it. We have been holding back 3.0 details because <SPOILERS!!>. But now that Forged Alliances is out there with this morning’s launch of 2.10 we’re letting folks have a little time with Rakata Prime and then spilling the beans on 3.0. Look for a teaser within a week, and then a full announce before the end of month! There you have it! Next week we should have a teaser trailer on the next chapter of SWToR while the full reveal will be later this month!

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Conquest Watch – weigthed results for second week

Editor

The second week of Guild conquest is over and all guilds are already starting to plan their strategies for the next week. With the launch of swtorconquest.com we had the opportunity to keep track of all battles especially the ones that in some cases were decided at the very last moments. It’s encouraging to see more and more guilds trying their hand at conquest even though the current system is heavily weighted towards larger guilds. While Bioware is fine-tuning the system, the community once more came up with its own solution.

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Get them while they last! Voss Embassy Sign to be removed when Patch 2.10 drops

Editor

The title is pretty self-explanatory but today Community Manager Eric Musco posted the following message at the official forums: Quick reminder before 2.10 drops tomorrow. Currently, if you visit the Binary Star Realty vendor, you will find the Republic Voss Embassy Sign is available for 1 credit. As a note, that item being on the vendor was available for only a limited time and it will be removed tomorrow with 2.10. So stock up on your 1 credit signs while they’re cheap. Thanks everyone. PS – On the vendor, there is a known issue where the items name appears to be blank, the name appears as just a set of brackets []. That is the Republic Voss Embassy Sign.

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Think you know Star Wars? Think again!

Editor

With Star Wars Episode 7 and upcoming releases from Disney and Lucasarts, Screencrush.com took a closer look at some lesser known facts about the original two trilogies. Al Pacino as Han Solo? It’s not as far fetched as you might think! While some of the information shown is somewhat known, there are also some other interesting tidbits of information that I am sure very few people know about. For example – did you know that stormtroopers and bounty hunters have a really hard time seeing when they wear their “buckets”? Maybe you do but you wouldn’t expect them to knock their heads against door openings on screen!

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SWToR makes Gamespot’s top 10 Free-to-Play PC games list….and that’s a good thing!

Editor

Depending on who you ask, SWToR’s transition to the Free-To-Play (FTP) model was one of the best or worst decisions Electronic Arts and Bioware has ever made. From one side, FTP models are somewhat unpopular with gamers who claim that buying your way into achievements and perks impacts the balance of the game for those who aren’t willing (or can’t) spend the money. On the other hand, some might argue that the model also helps games to become financially viable and remain in operation. In SWToR’s case, the decision to switch from a month-to-month subscription model was originally criticized by the press and still carries a lot of stigma associated with it. More recently however, Electronic Arts announced that their decision is paying dividends that allows them to invest more to the development of the game. Regardless of which side of the argument each one us stand,  we can all agree that it’s a good thing when SWToR…

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SWToR server issues lead to Patch 2.9.0d

Editor

It’s no secret that since yesterday a number of SWToR servers have experienced a series of issues. Lag spikes, dropped connections and queues started with the Harbinger server, and then expanded to Begeren Colony and the Bastion. These issues forced Bioware to take these servers offline for maintenance today. According to an official post by Eric Musco at the SWToR community forums, players in the Harbinger server experienced some “rollback” after the server’s downtime. Musco was also quick to point out that no other servers were going to be affected by this issue. The situation eventually lead to the announcement of Patch 2.9.0d set to be deployed tomorrow.

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New SWToR Conquest Tracker goes online

Editor

With the recent release of the conquest system, fans have been asking Bioware for a way to track conquest scores on their browser. This was a request that also came up during the recent Cantina Tour event two days ago. Lucky for us, we didn’t have to wait long. A new website titled SWToR Conquest tracker provides an alternate way of keeping track of conquest competition across all servers.

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Amazon Purchases Twitch

Lisa Clark

Big news today as Amazon has purchased Twitch. The $1 Billion deal is making headlines all over the Internet as Twitch is the most popular video game streaming site online. Google was making bids for the site through it’s YouTube subsidiary, which some fans were not happy with as they felt it narrowed the options of where to share their game footage and streaming. But Twitch came forward today to official announce the deal was done with Amazon for $970 million. It was approved by shareholders today and will be finalized later this year. Emmett Shear, CEO of Twitch, had this to say on their official blog: Today, I’m pleased to announce we’ve been acquired by Amazon. We chose Amazon because they believe in our community, they share our values and long-term vision, and they want to help us get there faster. We’re keeping most everything the same: our office,…

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Episode VII Update: J.J. Abrams Teases with Droid Hand

Lisa Clark

You may remember several months ago when JJ Abrams kicked off Star Wars: Force For Change, with the intent of raising money for  the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). The grand prize was a trip to the set of Star Wars Episode VII and you better believe there were a lot of fans who wanted a chance to win. Slashfilm.com has an interesting update for us, as well as some details on the “droid hand” Abrams teased in the announcement.  The first video revealed a brand new creature from the world. A second video revealed the new X-Wing fighter. And now, Abrams revealed the results of the initiative and winner’s name with another excitingly cryptic photo. Is it a Episode 7 droid hand? Or perhaps Luke Skywalker’s robot hand? Check it out and read more about the Force for Change winner below. And here you can see the Tweet for yourself if you missed…

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SWTOR Earns $165 Million Last Year

Lisa Clark

According to research and data from SuperData, Star Wars: The Old Republic remains one of the top five subscription MMOs in the world, earning $165 million last year. The ambitious MMORPG started as a sub-based model but then later adjusted to a free-to-play game with paid options and this made all the difference in the world for EA in terms of earning potential. This figure includes subscriptions, expansion packs and microtransactions and it puts SWTOR in 4th place in the world for MMO earnings.  As you can see from the chart, WoW took first place with over $1 Billion in revenue, Lineage 1 took 2nd place with $253 million, TERA: Online took 3rd with $236 million. Some games to come in after SWTOR include LOTRO, EVE Online, Aion, Blade and Soul, Lineage 2, and RIFT. Since 2010, the MMO market has been changing and growing. The pay-to-play model is dying and the…

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What Does It Mean to Be a Gamer Today?

Lisa Clark

What does it mean to be a gamer today? This is not a simple question. Depending on who you ask, you are guaranteed to get a variety of answers. This is because people look at gaming differently. Most of us probably agree that if you play SWTOR, you are a “gamer”. But what if you play Pocket Frogs or Candy Crush? Is one more of a gamer than the other? Who gets to set the rules about which games make you a gamer and which ones do not? And let’s cast all of that aside for a few and talk about what it really means to be a gamer today. Does it even mean anything? With gaming as mainstream as it is today, it seems everyone does it. Your grandma, that two-year-old waiting for his lunch and playing with mom’s phone. Everyone is potentially a gamer, even if they don’t…

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Swtor considered 3rd best free 2 play game by WatchMojo.com

Lisa Clark

Mojo Games did a list of Top 10 free to play games (PC only). SWTOR was ranked 3rd on the list. We’re happy to see SWTOR still making Top lists like this. There are also some other great games on the list so if you have some free time, you may want to check them out as well (Planetside 2 and Team Fortress 2 being some of faves). Check out the full list for yourself and let us know your favorite – next to SWTOR, of course. Do you agree with the list or do you feel it’s missing something?

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Galactic Living Livestream: Thursday July 10th

Lisa Clark

There will be a SWTOR Galactic Strongholds stream tomorrow, Thursday July 10th , at 1:30PM PDT (8:30 PM GMT). Tomorrow’s stream will cover a first look at the Coruscant Skyrise Apartments. This is your chance to learn more about Galactic living and what we can all expect from Galactic Strongholds. You will have the chance to preview stronghold customization options- something that many of us have been wondering about for a long time.

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Star Wars: Battlefront – Release Date Already Pushed Back?

Editor

Shortly after the E3 trailer of Star Wars: Battlefront was shown, people began speculating a possible release date for the title. A commonly floated time-frame was the first quarter of 2015, placing the game’s release within striking distance of Star Wars:  Episode 7, something which – as I have said before – would indeed make perfect sense from a marketing angle. According to some very recent rumors however, it now looks like a more likely release time-frame for the much awaited title is late 2015/early 2016. While these are indeed just rumors and nothing has been confirmed by DICE in this respect, and while such a push-back of the release date definitely pains die-hard fans of the Star Wars universe, there may unfortunately be some solid reasoning behind it all. While development has indeed begun as evidenced by the above-said E3 trailer, it may already be running late, given how…

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SWTOR Summer Pass- Get it and Save!

Lisa Clark

With summer comes great things for gamers and the SWTOR Summer Pass is a fine example of that! For a limited time only, if you’re not already subbed to SWTOR, you can get a pretty decent discount on a 4-month sub with this summer pass. The 2014 Summer Pass is on sale until June 30th and you can save 33% over the standard monthly cost of a subscription for four months. Here’s what you get with the summer pass: Save 33% over the standard monthly cost for four months of subscription – one-time payment of $39.99USD / 23.99 GBP covers all four months Get unlimited game access to exciting story missions, galactic adventures and more 200 Bonus Cartel Coins to spend on valuable collectibles, XP Boosts, mini-pets and more at the in-game Cartel Market If you’re looking to bring in some friends and family to play with you, to get a discount on…

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SWTOR Los Angeles Community Cantina Q&A Audio (Cana Rum Bar, June 2014)

Lisa Clark

We love to bring you updates from the Community Cantinas that take place in various cities across the map. There is always new and exciting fun to come out of these events and of course, we can’t forget the flash drive goodies. So the Q&A of this Community Cantina was with Eric Musco and you can find a full write-up of that here on 42gaming.com. You can also listen to the video below (audio only). Here is a snippet: Question: When will we know the rewards for Ranked PVP Season 2? Answer: “We do not like to present the rewards and requirements till at least halfway through the Season” Question: Will classes be able to use weapons that are not intended for the class, i.e Jedi using a blaster? Answer: No, one of the reasons is to allow others to identify the enemy’s class in PVP. Question: Will there be…

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Video Game Franchises and a Star Wars Legacy

Lisa Clark

While recording a podcast for my gaming community tonight, we were discussing E3 this year and the announcements that were made. An interesting topic came up; one that I think could use a little more exploration. Basically, we were talking about video game franchises and in particular, franchises that include more than just a line of video games. We have many popular game franchises that started off as movies, comics or books. And there are some that were later turned into movies and books and even TV shows. When a title takes off like this, we are looking at much more than just a series of games. What we’re really looking at is a brand. And the developers who create these games want to keep the fans interested in their brand. They want to take those loyal gamers and turn them into lifelong fans. However, this tactic is not as…

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