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…
SithTalk ep 51 – Jedi Sulu? Oh My..
Sith has just launched it’s podcast number 51 were they talk about the George Takei April Fools post as well as JJ Abrams and the Star Wars episode VII. The guys also talks about the new Log In procedures that started at the official Star Wars: The old republic website yesterday, and of course the upcoming expansion Star Wars: The old republic: Rise of the hutt cartel. Check it out below:
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…
Scheduled Maintenance: April 2nd, 2013
Just a quick heads up to let you know that BioWare will be taking down the servers tomorrow April 2nd for Scheduled Maintenance. It more than likely is the changes to the display name only login and security key self service changes with this patch. You can read more about this here ( Display Name Only Log In – Coming April 2, 2013) And the announcement below. On Tuesday April 2nd, all game servers, SWTOR.com, and the launcher, will be unavailable as we perform scheduled maintenance. Patch 1.7.3a will be implemented during this downtime. Details are as follows: Date: Tuesday April 2nd, 2013 Duration: 6 hours Time: 1AM PDT (9AM BST) until 7AM PDT (3PM BST) Thank you for your patience as we maintain service for Star Wars™: The Old Republic™.
J.J Abrams talks Episode VII
I’ve been a fan of Abrams for a long time now but these days, when you mention the name JJ Abrams, one question comes out of everyone’s mouths: “When will we learn more about Episode VII?” It’s safe to say that Star Wars fans all over are excited about the new movies and while Abrams was able to work on Star Trek with some level of objectivity, we have to wonder if he will do the same with Star Wars. He is admittedly a big fan and it begs the question of how he will approach this very big task. Empire Online had the chance to sit down with Abrams for a bit and ask him a few questions about Episode VII and his plans for the movie series: “I don’t know because we’re just getting started. So it’s a great question that I hope I’ll have a good answer…
SWTOR Sith Inquisitor Sorcerer PVP Build For 2.0
This post will give you a PVP build for the expansion pack 2.0 in SWTOR. The class we are going to focus on is the Sith Inquisitor Sorcerer. Point Allocation: 2/2 Will of The Sith 3/3 Calcify 2/2 Disintegration 2/2 Parasitism 3/3 Force Horrors 1/1 Death Field 3/3 Sith Efficacy 1/1 Madness 2/2 Corrupted Flesh 1/1 Wrath 1/1 Deathmark 2/2 Haunted Dreams 2/2 Lingering Nightmares 2/2 Lightning Burst 3/3 Creeping Death 2/2 Devour 2/2 Focal Lightning 2/2 Shapeless Spirit 1/1 Creeping Terror 3/3 Seeping Darkness 2/2 Force Weaver 2/2 Reserves 2/3 Electric Induction You can also see how to allocate the points here: For complete leveling guides and build guides updated for 2.0 head over to http://www.swtorsavior.com
Tales from the Imperial Fleet
Major Brelga shifted uncomfortably. Sith Lords were always unsettling – a fact someone serving the Empire quickly came to terms with – but Lord Veskis made him especially uneasy. “So Major,” hissed the hooded figure. “Do we have a deal?” “… so I slammed the Jedi against the cliff face, then turned and sliced his padawan nearly in half! The soldiers with them wet themselves and ran!” “My dear, you’re so beautiful when the bloodlust rises in you <3” “Did you see the new robes Darth Jiannis was wearing? It looks like she skinned a Varactyl for them.” “Ugh, I know. It’s like all the good fashion designers work for the Republic.”” “Reports say the base was obliterated. Excellent work, hunter! My Lieutenant objected to collaborating with savage aliens. But he was wrong about you and your team!” “Ah yes, Lieutenant Orbos. A real… shame he didn’t survive the battle….
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…
Game Developers Conference 2013: James Ohlen talks about SWToR’s woes during launch
Bioware’s creative director James Ohlen recently spoke at the Game Developer’s Convention about SWToR’s launch and provided a plethora of details about the game’s launch. Among other things, he mentioned that Bioware significantly underestimated how quickly players can burn through content and found itself in a difficult spot. The development team originally expected that story lines would keep gamers engaged for at least five months – an expectation that as we all know didn’t prove to be true. Bioware’s creative director James Ohlen During launch, subscribers spent an average of 40 hours per week playing SWToR, while in some cases they would reach 80-120 hours on average per week. These extended gaming sessions lead to having close to half a million players at endgame content within a month’s period since launch.
SWTOR Sith Inquisitor Sorcerer 2.0 Leveling Build
In this post we are going to give you a build for the Sith Inquisitor Sorcerer that you can use with the new 2.0 expansion. This build has been developed using the PTS so there may well be some changes but it should get you started. 3/3 Calcify 3/3 Force Horrors 2/2 Disintegration 2/2 Oppressing Force 2/2 Parasitism 1/1 Madness 1/1 Death Field 3/3 Sith Efficacy 2/2 Corrupted Flesh 2/2 Haunted Dreams 1/1 Wrath 1/1 Deathmark 3/3 Creeping Death 2/2 Devour 1/1 Surging Speed 2/2 Shapeless Spirit 1/1 Creeping Terror 3/3 Seeping Darkness 2/2 Force Suffusion 1/1 Sap Strength 1/1 Lucidity 3/3 Electric Induction SWTOR Sith Inquisitor Sorcerer 2.0 Leveling Build: Still a mock up leveling build and this may change but if you are looking for a headstart to get ready for patch 2.0 this should help. Thanks to the guys over at http://www.swtorsavior.com/ for this one.
Is LucasArts Facing a Shutdown?
There is gossip around the Internet about LucasArts- the kind of gossip that makes fans a bit uneasy. After the cancellation of The Clone Wars, there have been fears that LucasArts is facing a shutdown. Reports tell us that there are incoming Layoffs for Lucasfilm Animation and it only makes sense now that Disney is on the scene to get rid of the department that does the very same thing they already do. While fans are really bummed about the cancellation of The Clone Wars, Lucasfilm has promised that the bonus content will still be made available to fans. But this isn’t the only reason people are whispering about LucasArts… A report from GamesIndustry International says that LucasArts told them that everything is going according to plan and that the rumors are just that- rumors. But not everyone is buying that, including ex employees. One ex-LucasArts employee said: “The ‘business’…
Developer Update: Legions of Scum and Villainy
BioWare posted a new Developer update yesterday. From the title, I thought it was going to be a post about the official forums, but apparently it’s about the new Operation players can try out with game update 2.0: Rise of the Hutt Cartel. Legions of Scum and Villiany will be for level 55 players and continues the story line from the trail of the Dread Masters after Operation: Terror from Beyond. Both the Republic and the Empire have heard rumors of a gathering of mercenaries, arms traders, and war beast handlers on the remote desert planet of Darvannis. Intelligence points to the Hutt Cartel as the organization that is gathering an army for an unknown purpose. Both Republic and Empire forces know that the Hutt Cartel must be stopped. Read all about it at the official website. Players arrive outside of a city built into a protective canyon, in the midst of…
1.7.3 Patch Notes – 3/26/2013
BioWare went on and posted that patch notes before server maintenance this time. Pretty awesome thing to do actually, and looking through the patch notes, they are equally awesome. Ready check & Personal Star ship and Finally fixing the double bladed saber issue. This is going to be a good day 🙂 Check out the patch notes below: Highlights Ready Check is now available! Group and Operations Group leaders can initiate a Ready Check by using “/rc” or “/readycheck” chat commands or via the context group menu. Each member of the group will then receive a pop-up prompting them to respond. Responding will place a visual cue on the raid frame or group frame of that player. At the end of the Ready Check, chat feedback indicates whether the group is ready or if not, and lists any non-ready players. Cartel Market General Cartel Market Certificates have been changed to Bind on Legacy. New Items…
Making of Rise of the Hutt Cartel: Part 2
With the big announcement today that Rise of The Hutt Cartel digital expansion will be available on April 14, Bioware also released an interesting video providing more details on the expansion. Among other things, Bioware developers gave out additional information on the continuation of your personal story line as it relates to Karraga the Hutt and the new planet on the expansion called Makeb. The video also provides hints on villains we will face on the new planet and their impact on our game play.
Aggregated 2.0 Fan Site Interviews & Information for ROTHC
There’s an official date for ROTHC and the BioWare PR team has also been in full swing doing interviews with a number of fan sites about SWTOR and ROTHC. To help ensure all the hard work from these interviews is seen, we’re going to try to aggregate all the links here. We’ll be updating this often as more information and posts come out but if you see an interview we’ve missed, feel free to add it to the comments so we can update the list!
APAC/Oceanic Server Merges
Earlier today Community Manager Eric Musco made a forum update regarding the Oceanic issues, with low server population. After careful consideration, and reading though pages after pages of forum rage, BioWare will be merging the oceanic servers into the north American servers. This will off course give the APAC players alot more people to play with, but people are raising their concern about ping time. I personally have no problems as a European when I occasionally play on US servers, but what experience do you guys have? Hey everyone, I have an update for you on our long term plans for the APAC servers. Before I do that though I want to let you know up front that we still have quite a bit of work to do to make this happen so I cannot provide any timeframes for you today. We know that when we asked you, the community,…
PSA – PTS Closing 3/26
BioWare are closing down the public test servers on March 26. This is off course due to the announcement of Star Wars: The old republic Rise of the Hutt Cartel. For some reason we are not getting this information when we actually log into the PTS, but AmberGreen updates us on the forums: PTS Closing – 3/26/2013 | 03.25.2013, 09:43 AM Tomorrow morning, we will be closing the PTS and this forum as we conclude public testing of Game Update 2.0. Please remember that the current build on PTS is not the final version, and there will be updates to what’s here before Game Update 2.0 is deployed to the live servers. Your participation and feedback have been exceptionally valuable, and we appreciate everyone who took time to test Game Update 2.0! PTS Closing Details: Date: March 26th, 2013 Time: 8AM PDT (5PM GMT) Duration: The PTS will remain closed until we…
Rise of the Hutt Cartel to release April 9 (early access)
It’s official! Star Wars: The old Republic Rise of the Hutt Cartel is to be released on April 9 – or at least the early access for people who have pre-ordered the game get’s access to the game that day. Everyone Else will get access april 14. The internet has been busing all day with news and interviews about this, and we will have a write up on Interviews & Information later today. With the news about the release date, BioWare also released the seccond part of the developer dispatch: Making of: Rise of the Hutt Cartel. Check it out below, and check out the official BioWare announcement below that. We’re thrilled to announce the launch date of Sunday, April 14, 2013, for the release of the first Digital Expansion: Rise of the Hutt Cartel. Introducing five new levels of gameplay and the vibrant new planet of Makeb, Rise of the Hutt Cartel will be available for download beginning…
Scheduled Maintenance – 3/26 – 1.7.3
Just a friendly reminder that BioWare will be taking down the servers on March 26 to preform maintenance and apply game update 1.7.3 . Hopefully this patch update will bring us the “Ready Check” function we mentioned back in the beginning of the month. We will of course post the path notes as the become available. Until then, check out the official announcement below: On March 26th, all game servers will be unavailable as we perform scheduled maintenance. Patch 1.7.3 will be implemented during this downtime. Details are as follows: Date: Tuesday, March 26th, 2013 Time: 3AM PDT (10AM GMT) – 7AM PDT (2PM GMT) Duration: 4 hours Thank you for your patience as we maintain service for Star Wars™: The Old Republic™.
Will Blizzard Bring MMOs to Console?
Since before SWTOR first came out, there has been talk about bringing it to the consoles. But that is all it was… talk. What began as a mixup turned into rumors that were debunked by BioWare. While some players scoff at the idea of SWTOR on console, there are some who really want to see it happen one day. The idea of bringing MMOs of consoles is not a new one but it’s not one that any developer has been ready to tackle. That is, until now. World of Warcraft lead systems designer Greg Street would be keen to bring the company’s MMO experience to next-generation consoles, says VG 24/7. They go on to say: “I would personally be very excited to see that, it would be a huge challenge to take something like World Of Warcraft with its massive hard drive footprint and its reliance on mouse and keyboard,”…
1.7.2b Patch Notes
All the servers are coming back online and BioWare released the patch notes. BioWare removed the Bolster trick people were using to power level characters doing the double XP weekend. Patch Notes 1.7.2b General Bolster has been temporarily removed on The Western Ice Shelf of Ilum so that lower level players can no longer use the area to level up more quickly than intended.