I wonder how much of this is age related. ROTJ came out when I was three, so for most of my childhood we kids still loved Star Wars, but adults, having lived through the hype of the late 70s and early 80s, were pretty much sick of it. From about 1985 until 1995 there wasn’t anything Star Wars in the stores at all. Nothing. I got my Star Wars fix off of old Star Wars Marvel comics in the 25 cent bin at the local comic shop, and a couple of video games. It came on TV once a year, but mostly it was kind of a cult thing like Pulp Fiction; a good movie but that’s about it. Certainly not a major cultural force anymore. I remember being amazed when they announced the Thrawn trilogy; for a lot of us this was as close as we ever figured we’d…
TOR date set to be announced later this month or sometime in October
Battlefield 3 pre-orders hit 1.25M: During the Citi 2011 Tech Conference on Wednesday, September 7, Electronic Arts CFO Eric Brown announced that Battlefield 3 pre-orders have hit around the 1.25 million mark, and are tracking ahead of previous Battlefield games. “To date we have about 1.25 million preorders on Battlefield 3, so it’s still well ahead of its predecessor title, Battlefield: Bad Company 2, in regards to preorders in the same number of weeks till launch,” he said during the conference, which was listened to by Gamasutra. “So it’s doing very well.” You can read more details in this article on VG 24/7. More exciting news from the Tech Conference: Star Wars: The Old Republic is still aiming for a Q4 release, but, as the firm mentioned earlier in the year, it is prepared for a possible slip into Q1 2012. “We have a date set internally, with a lot…
Is There a Point to SWTOR Being Fully Voiced?
One big selling point of SWTOR by BioWare is that it is fully voices and highly story-based. But is the whole “fully voiced” thing a bit overrated? Others have said it before but MMOCrunch published an interesting story on the very same topic recently. The author points out, “While it seems to be a giant step forward in terms of immersing players into the game and story-line, one quickly realizes that it’s probably going to be pointless in the long run.” Could there be some truth to this? I think the idea and the concept behind total voice acting sounds awesome but is it really going to make that big of a deal in the grand scheme of things? The MMOCrunch article goes on to say, “I know for me, unless there’s vital info in the quest description, I’m not going to read it.” Well, this isn’t the case for…
Star Wars: The Old Republic European beta testing delayed
On the official forums, European SWTOR fans have been asking and asking for info about beta testing and beta access. Finally, a long-awaited answer was given, although it might not be exactly what some were hoping for. European beta testing will be delayed. Star Wars: The Old Republic European beta testing has been delayed. Stephen Reid, Senior Online Community Manager addresses the issue in full detail with a lengthy post that is very important to EU players. His post begins: “We can understand the frustration here, but unfortunately we got stuck between a rock and a hard place with no realistic scenarios where we’d please everyone.” So you can just imagine that what he has to say is not going to be good for European players. This post also talks about issues related to voicing/languages that will be available to different regions: “Also, this is a good opportunity to talk…
Facebook Image of The Week #28
Wednesday is a great day. Not only are we have way through the working week, but BioWare also release a new Screen shot on there Facebook page. Tricked out of their land by the Hutts, many native Evocii are forced to live in run-down settlements scattered across Hutta.
Gamereactor interviews Greg Zeschuk
Gillen McAllister from Gamereactor asked Bioware Austin head – Greg Zeschuk – a few questions about Star Wars: The old republic. The interview took place at this years Gamescom but is still interesting eaven though it’s a few weeks old. Check it out below:
The Lost Suns: Episode 4 Preview
If you’ve been following The Lost Suns comic series like I have, you will be happy to know there is a new preview of The Lost Suns: Episode 4 available. This episode of The Lost Suns will be available for sale starting on September 14th. It is 32 pages long and sells for $3.50 US. This edition picks up right where episodes 2 and 3 left off and continues the story. If you’ve read the previous comics and want a little preview of what is left to come in the story, then you should check out this preview over at Newsarama, complete with the actual pages of the comic themselves so you get the whole story for yourself. Then run out and buy your own copy on Sept. 14th. If you’re following the stories, be sure to drop in and tell us what you think! Description: Captured by the evil…
Everything you ever need to know about Itemization and Crafting in TOR
Dssurge from reddit urged us to share this TOR Itemization and Crafting info. The original thread can be found here, and has some additional information in the comments section. Here is a run down of Itemization and Crafting in TOR Basic stuff: All characters in TOR use one primary stat of Aim, Cunning, Strength or Willpower. All primary stats give 1% crit for every 140 (at level 50) Aim gives 0.2 ranged damage Strength gives 0.2 melee damage Cunning gives 0.2 tech damage Will power gives 0.2 force damage Endurance gives 10 HP per point. Your primary stat will always give either [Ranged + Tech] or [Melee + Force], so a Trooper will get a tech bonus from Cunning, and a Smuggler will get a ranged damage bonus from Aim in addition to the bonuses they already get from their primary stat. This causes Smugglers to do more damage with Weapon attacks,…
The Guild Sphere: Cerberus
A new week and a new guild feature. This week the republic guild Cerberus took the time to answer our questions. Check it out: Where did your guilds name come from? Cerberus (Our Guild Name) came from the video game series, Mass Effect. Can you give me a quick 2-3 sentance description of your guild? Now Cerberus is a human-survivalist paramilitary group led by the enigmatic “Illusive Man”. We believe that any methods of advancing humanity’s ascension are justified, including illegal or dangerous experimentation, terrorist activities, sabotage and assassination. Cerberus operatives accept that these methods are brutal, but believe history will vindicate them. Basically our motto is “The ends justify the means”. How did your guild come about?. Several months ago, while waiting for the release of SWTOR, my brother and I were curious to play some of the other Bioware games such as Mass Effect 1 and 2. Gametrailers also…
SWTOR Skill Tree Calculator
Every great MMO needs a skill tree calculator and now there is a good one for SWTOR. This Skill Tree Calculator can be used to plan out each class’ talents. It’s basic and doesn’t look all that pretty but it gets the job done and it’s really useful for anyone playing SWTOR, anyone who plans to play or just someone who wants to learn more about what skills and talents the classes will have. Mousing over each talent in the tree will show you what it does and the calculator also shows you how many points you have left to help you plan properly. This saves so much effort when trying to build your talents in-game, especially when you want to avoid wasting points or filling in the wrong talents. Sometimes you just want to see what might open up for you if you choose certain options and the skill…
Interview with Gabe Amantangelo and James Ohlen
During last weekend’s PAX, MMORPG.com Managing Editor Bill Murphy managed to corner Bioware’s James Ohlen and Gabe Amantangelo to talk about PvP in Star Wars: The Old Republic. The interview covered a wide range of interesting topics and brought us a few tidbits of info we didn’t already have. The interview is a good one and is listed in its entirety on their website. Here’s what James had to say in general about PVP in TOR. James Ohlen: But all the really cool stuff we’ll show off at the panel and into the next few weeks too. I think people will be really pleased with world PVP in TOR. The interview talks about Warzones and what we as players can expect to see when the game is released and another great question they ask, “Warzones are the more structured form of PVP, so will you guys be doing anything with…
Christian SWTOR Guild Takes Issue with Profanity in Game
A screenshot was released of the beta forums and a particular complaint being made by a member of a self-professed Christian guild regarding profanity filters in the game. This has started a debate, as most things relating to religion will do, but I think it’s worthy of being discussed here. Here’s a screencap of the post that supposedly started it all: Would it have been such a big issue if the player wasn’t part of a Christian guild? Is the real issue with his opinions of profanity filters in the game or the guild that he is a member of? The guild, Saints of the Old Republic, is more than 350 members strong and has been around for more than two years. They received a guild beta invite and are entitled to their opinions on the game just like anyone else. However, those opinions will not come without ridicule. Ridicule…
Intergalactic Intel: Faction
Which Side to pick? On Wednesday my power went out. All day. And for someone on break ready to bust through another ten levels in borderlands, it is needless to say frustrating. So I ended up reading Deceived by Paul Kemp. It had been sitting on my shelf for a while and I decided to stop ignoring it and read. I’m not going to give you a synopsis, but it is a good read. But what really caught my attention of the story was the side of the Sith that had not been explored before. Compassion. So being a long time wow player I always love the one question. “Which faction should I play?” To many coming into the game The Horde seem like the bad guys with their undead, magic addicts and monstrous races. While The Alliance seems to be prim and proper with the usual fantasy races with…
SWTOR Simulator Android App –Datapad Lite
One SWTOR fan, a self-confessed altaholic, wanted a TOR simulator app and since there was not one, decided to make one himself. He calls it Datapad and it does some pretty cool stuff. The app is for Android and can be found here. A post on Reddit explains: “It’s not done yet but I wanted to let you guys know about it to get some feedback on what I should change, improve, or add. There’s a Lite (free) and a Full (paid) version, but you can check out all the features in the Lite version.” The app actually looks pretty cool with what it can do. Basics include: multiple characters (Lite is limited to 1) show class / advanced class abilities make multiple skill tree builds (Lite is limited to 1) customize the interface to show/hide stuff you don’t care about And there are some unique things that it can…
Curse Buys Darth Hater Site
The guys over at Darth Hater had some interesting news to share with fans today. They have now joined the Curse Network. In the announcement, they recapped all the work they have put into Darth Hater over the past two years, as well as reiterated the goals of the site. They explained what will and will not change now that they are working with Curse: “By working with Curse, we will provide the community with the world-class technology that we always hoped we could. Whether it is high quality in-game addons or robust out of game features and support, Curse is a well-known and respected entity in the MMO space. Additionally, their website support team will allow us to focus on creating the content you enjoy without being bogged down by the headaches of website management. Gaining access to their experience and expertise, we will be able to realize our…
Interview with SWTOR’s Georg Zoeller
The guys over at TORWars are famous for giving us good interviews on SWTOR from time to time. They recently posted an exclusive interview with Star Wars: The Old Republic‘s Principal Lead Combat Designer Georg Zoeller. It’s not the first interview we’ve seen with him but this one is really in-depth- 1,500 words worth, actually. Zoeller is full of information and knowledge about SWTOR, game design and the industry in general. This is one of the many reasons why fans love to read his interviews. He’s a class act and this interview with TORWars is direct and full of great juicy details and not your typical boring answers to the same old questions again and again. Here’s a snippet: TORWars: How do you go about designing a combat system that will keep players excited and motivated for numerous hours a day, potentially over a number of years? Zoeller: Options. The…
Friday Update: GamesCom 2011 Highlight Video
It’s friday and time for new BioWares weekly updates. This weeks update is a Highlight video of GamesCom which was held in Germany 2 weeks ago. I wouldn’t say GamesCom info, which I’m sure we have all poured over already, is much of an update. But it’s up nonetheless. Check it out below:
SWTOR Unofficial Imperial Agent Trailer
EvadableMoxie from Reddit created his own Unofficial Imperial Agent Traile. I have to say that this is the most epic fan made SWTOR movie I have seen so far. My only complaint is occasionally it was hard to hear the voices over the music, but again, it’s not made by a pro. Check it out below:
Landophiles Unite! Join The Fight For Justice
This year’s PAX (that’s the Penny Arcade Expo for the uninitiated) was overrun by a gaggle of devotees, hell-bent on highlighting a cause that they feel warrants world-wide, if not galaxy-wide coverage. These people, who are traditionally seen wearing blue capes and moustaches march under the banner of The Lando Society, and expouse better living by the teachings of Lando Calrissian, the coolest cat in the entire Star Wars universe. At PAX their devotion reared its head in a different way to usual, with the Society uniting to march on the Expo in order to protest that their hero – their swarthy, moustachioed messiah – has been cruelly left out of the SWTOR character list. Okay, so that’s not the whole truth, because Lando wasn’t born until 3500 years after the time of STWOR’s setting, but you can’t fault their commitment as they’re pushing to convince Bioware to include a…
The Guild Sphere: Sons of Anarchy
It’s Thursday and time for a new guild feature. This time “Sons of Anarchy” some old school star wars fanboys playing for the Sith empire took some time to answer our questions. Check it it out below: Where did your guilds name come from? I’m an avid fan of the show Sons of Anarchy, as I was watching the last season and following the Old Republic I began thinking how to incorporate the two. Can you give me a quick 2-3 sentance description of your guild? Sons of Anarchy is a guild with something for everyone; the founding members of Sons of Anarchy have over a decade combine MMO experience, in PVP as well as end gaming raiding and leadership. We know that there many potential members out there that can’t play at the drop of a hat, we understand that. That’s why we have general open membership; no level requirements just a strong…
The Best Worst Foreign Versions of Star Wars
Foreign variants are a wonderful thing: in the film world they invariably provide sarcastic writers like myself with ample ammunition for ripping the proverbial out of them. And today, thanks to The Swedish Bed, we have a collection of some of the best (for that read worst) foreign versions of Star Wars. The original article lists a number of reimaginings, but I’ve just chosen the four most entertaining (for the rest, head over to The Swedish Bed by following this link). Warning, they’re not exactly as well made as the original trilogy, but then not even George Lucas managed to recapture that quality with his own follow-up trilogy, so it’s probably to be expected… Brazilian Star Wars Not really a straight reimagining, but you’ll find that none below are either, but that villain is definitely familiar… Japanese Star Wars Commercial Something tells me this one slipped through the net of…
Most Beta Testers Would Recommend SWTOR to Friends
We received a screenshot of a poll supposedly published in the beta forums for SWTOR. It’s unofficial but based on the same question that testers are reportedly asked throughout their experience in the beta version of the game. The question is: Based on your experience today, how likely are you to recommend SWTOR to a friend? They are then asked to vote on a scale of 1 to 10 with 1 being the lowest and 10 being the highest. At the time the screencap was sent to us, 823 people had responded. Here is the breakdown of the responses: 1- 13 1.58% 2- 3 0.36% 3- 13 1.58% 4- 12 1.46% 5- 45 5.47% 6- 26 3.16% 7- 61 7.41% 8- 99 12.03% 9- 81 9.84% 10- 470 57.11% So the numbers show us that most people who are testing who took the time to find and then respond to…
Old Republic Release Date Tied to Beta, Says EA
EA says, “We don’t want to happen to us what happened to WoW,” in reference to their launch and not in reference to success, of course. EA Labels boss Frank Gibeau explained to CVG that while they have a date for the SWTOR launch, the deciding factor will rest in the hands of the beta testers. The date is tentatively set for “holiday 2011” but will be dependent upon fan reactions to the beta of the game. “We’re driving towards a date, but the very issue you raised is why we’re not announcing a date yet because you want to make sure that these services can last a decade,” the exec said. He adds, “It is definitely tied to the beta test feedback that’s ongoing and so far, so good. We feel good about the date that we’re heading towards but you’re right, you could have a Crazy Ivan show…
Facebook Image of The Week #27
It’s that time of the week again. The time were BioWare gives updates there facebook page with a new screenshot of Star Wars: The old republic. This week we get to se more Jedi action, as a Jedi Shadow strikes down a Sith soldier: Concluding a fierce battle on the battered world of Corellia, a Jedi Shadow strikes down the last of an Imperial patrol.