Sue Rostoni updated her schedule blog today, and most of 2011 is affected. A lot of the moves are only by a month or so, however, and perhaps the biggest news here is that Timothy Zahn’s Allegiance sequel finally has an official title: Hand of Judgment. It’s also moved up a month to July. The most pressing move is Paul S. Kemp’s The Old Republic: Deceived, which drops from December to March – to be closer to the release of the MMO. Joe Schreiber’s Red Harvest moved into the vacant late-December spot. Also drastically pushed back were Alex Irvine’s Nomi Sunrider novel (from May to December 2011) and Pablo Hidalgo’s Essential Reader’s Companion (to March 2012.) As for the rest, check clubjade’s book schedule.
Revenge of the Robot Chicken: Star Wars
Great news for fans of Star Wars parody: Robot Chicken’s third Star Wars episode will premiere December 12, with pretty-boy Zac Efron voicing Anakin. They’re trying something new this time: From the SW.com announcement: Adult Swim’s Robot Chicken returns to that galaxy far, far away for a brand-new Star Wars-themed special premiering December 12 at 11:30 p.m. (ET/PT). This third installment in the Robot Chicken: Star Wars trilogy follows the two previous specials, which resulted in multiple Emmy nominations and numerous Annie Awards for both specials, the writers, Ahmed Best for voice actor and Seth Green for directing. Robot Chicken: Star Wars Episode III, to be directed by Chris McKay, marries the satirical sensibilities of Green and Matthew Senreich’s (Stoopid Monkey Productions) Emmy-winning Robot Chicken with characters of the Star Wars universe. The specials and the Robot Chicken series, the highest-rated original program on Adult Swim, are created in conjunction…
TOROcast Exclusive with Deborah Shin and Rob Cowles
They guys over at TOROcast have put up an excellent interview with Deborah Shin, Marketing Manager for BioWare, and Rob Cowles, Marketing Manager for Lucas Arts. I wasn’t aware that this was interesting people until I found out they work closely with Darth Dahlberg on what, were and when new info is being released on Star Wars: The old republic. While at E3 2010 Brandon and I had the chance to sit down and talk with Deborah Shin, Marketing Manager for BioWare, and Rob Cowles, Marketing Manager for Lucas Arts. The first thought through your mind is most likely, “why in gods name would I want to watch an interview with the Marketing Managers for a video game?” Well, the answer to that question is this, Deb and Rob work closely with Sean Dahlberg in picking out what and when something will be released about TOR. The three of them…
May the schwartz be with you: Entire Star Wars “The Empire Strikes Back” in MS Paint [GIF]
Earlier this month, we posted Entire Star Wars “A New Hope” in MS Paint. After a hefty debate on DIGG, it came to our attention that the creator of this little jewel was a guy name foldsfive. Foldsfive, with the civil name David Court ultimately joined the discussion on DIGG and shared that there were more treasures to be found around on the internet. Sometimes I find myself amazed by the internet. How something I made an age ago can suddenly pick up interest again. It was something I made for fun (as an experiment to see whether I could do it, more than anything) for a site (www.b3ta.com) that wouldn’t post anything bigger than 250k. I did it all from memory, so the stuff about my incorrect lightsabre colours couldn’t interest me less. (and jesus wept, people accuse ME of not having a life for making it). At the end of the day doing that stuff donkeys…
SWTOR audiovisual REMIX
Tukor From the Akelarre Guild has put together a pretty awesome Star Wars: The old republic video. It’s basically all the official video footage mixed with last years decived trailer and this years hope trailer plus a new soundtrack. Great watch that I recommend you to check out:
Soccer Wars!
Welcome back to ”The Guild”! This week I’ll be paying attention to some ideas, well one idea mainly, brought to my attention by Danny Jarzebowski, a reader who contacted me. (Okay I admit it, what you are about to read is something I completely stole from DJ!) Now I know that when you read about the idea, it might seem a bit, well, insane at first, but actually it might be doable and that with success. This is basically what I talked with DJ about. (remarks in () are by the oppressor Peter) “Hey I got an intresting idea! I’d love to play soccer in SWToR, you know like battlegrounds and stuff like that but you get skills like Sprint or Pass and play with your character in game!” “I think a lot of people would enjoy that, I sure would!” At first I thought- Dude, we’re still playing the…
Daniel Erickson: “Star Wars: The old Republic is your dream game”
ComputerAndVideoGames.com posted an interview with lead designer and story writer Daniel Erickson. In it Daniel claims that Star Wars: The Old Republic is “the dream game” for BioWare fans and for MMO fans: “”If you are a hardcore, traditional Bioware fan – a Mass Effect or especially Dragon [Age] fan – this is the dream game. It is an RPG forever. It is an RPG that at the speed and pace that I play RPGs as a gamer, five or ten hours a week, I could never finish this game,” Erickson says. He doesn’t stop there though. “If the idea of story and context really turns you off, if what you want is [just the] complete Disneyland experience, where you run on the rides and repeat the stuff, this probably isn’t your favorite MMO,”. Check out the original post at CVG. And if you’re lucky enough to be attending the…
Consequences for leaking Information about Star Wars: The old republic
Sean Dahlberg explained to us on the community forum, what should be done, if you encounter any leaked information about Star Wars: The Old Republic. either on the official forum or any other website. He continues to point out the consequences for revealing information that has not yet been released officially by Bioware. These consequences range from a simple request to delete your post to being suspended from any Star Wars: The Old Republic ‘service’ indefintely. Below, we have listed Sean Dahlberg’s official responses. Consequences “”Being able to have the community help us test The Old Republic is very important and valuable to the development process. The Game Testing Program allows community members to give us quality feedback so we can make adjustments and have a highly effective service and entertaining experience when we do launch. Since we have some time until the game is complete, some of the information testers have…
May the schwartz be with you: Yoda records for TomTom GPS
“You’re gonna kill people if you give directions like that,” the frustrated sound engineer tries to tell Yoda as the Jedi master continues to grammatically invert directions in this latest adpromoting TomTom’s new Star Wars-themed voice series. Frankly, we’re almost excited enough to go buy a TomTom GPS unit JUST to get this voice pack.
The official first testing phase for SWTOR begins
The long awaited testing phase of Star Wars: The Old Republic has officially begun. The announcement was made today in the game’s Friday release and testers that have been selected will gain access to the new Star Wars universe. From LucasArts: “Game Testing for Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ is underway! Those selected to test will gain access to the game and be able to provide valuable feedback to help tune particular areas of gameplay and begin the process of balancing and tweaking content. Game Testing is an on-going process being rolled out in several phases. These phases began with smaller, more focused tests with community members from North America, and later will expand to other territories. Users selected for the test program will be notified via email with more information on accessing the Game Testing Portal. Those not chosen yet may be selected in the next wave! For those…
Corellian Run Potcast #1
The girls over at Corellian Run Radio had their first podcast up yesterday. It’s a pretty interesting listen that I recommender you all to check out. Our first podcast is done and submitted for your perusal! It’s been a long haul from the first glorious days of let’s-do-a-show innocence to the in-the-trenches reality of forgetting to push the button when you record. It was great fun putting it together – we hope you enjoy it too. Check it out here
The Old Republic #1 “Threat of Peace” printed edition on sale this week
This week marks the release of the printed edition of Star Wars: The Old Republic #1 “Threat of Peace.” This series was originally printed online at the official Star Wars: The Old Republic website last year. Writer Rob Chestney and artist Alex Sanchez help set the stage for the new MMO video game world set 3,650 years before A New Hope. Look for two distinct covers on this issue. Benjamin Carré has the jaunty Jedi version, while Attik Studios produces a Sith styled one. This is the first of three issues.
Rob Chestney Signing in Austin, TX
theforce.net is reporting that Rob Chestney will be signing in Austin, TX. this Thursday at 5-7 pm Rob Chestney is an employee of Bioware and one of the game developers of the upcoming Star Wars: The Old Republic massively multiplayer online game. He also is the writer of the Star Wars: The Old Republic – Threat of Peace webcomic, which will tie into the videogame. He also wrote The Old Republic: Smuggler’s Vanguard, a short story published exclusively on StarWars.com which tells a story about an adventure of the Mirialan smuggler, Hylo Visz. Star Wars: The Old Republic Rob Chestney Signing Thursday 5 – 7pm Austin Books & Comics is thrilled to be joined by writer Rob Chestney for the debut of Star Wars: The Old Republic #1! This new series sets the stage for the hotly-anticipated massive multiplayer online game, and publisher Dark Horse went to the game’s developer…
BioWare Has Plan For Star Wars End Game
BioWare has told IncGamers that gamers who are worried about the ‘elder’ game – once you’ve completed levelling up your character – in Star Wars: The Old Republic, shouldn’t be worried. Speaking to IGTV, Ohlen said that a game of Star Wars: The Old Republic’s scope “has so many features” that it’s hard to talk about them all. He confirmed the team were aware of the frustrations gamers feel when they level up to the max and complete all the quests, and said that SWTOR will not be like other MMOs out there. “I know some people are worried, for example, about the elder game [and are asking] ”what happens in the elder game, what happens when you get to the highest level?’ We do have a plan for that and we will be revealing it the future.” Ohlen says that because the team are all MMO gamers, their concerns…
Star Wars: The Old Republic wins the Best Role Playing Game from the Game Critics Awards – Best of E3
In other news. Sean Dahlberg informs the SW:TOR community that Star Wars: The Old Republic won the Best RPG category on the Game Critics Awards: Best of E3 list: Quote: Game Critics Awards – Best of E3 2010 The 31 voting publications for the Game Critics Awards: Best of E3 are proud to announce the following winners for 2010: And if you look down to Best Role Playing Game you will see Star Wars: The Old Republic! This is definitely an honor and a privilege for us to be on the list and to win the award for Best Role Playing Game is amazing! You can view the full list of winners at: http://www.gamecriticsawards.com/winners.html Congratulations to BioWare and LucasArts for a shiny new award to put up on the shelves
May the schwartz be with you: Bikini Cinema
Beautiful women in bikinis reading dialog from Star Wars may end up being a fantasy-come-true for quite a few of you. But where’s the video for us fangirls? May I suggest cute British rocker boys reciting dialog from The Empire Strikes Back, please?
How Stuff works: Bounty hunters
Bounty hunters were mercenaries for hire who tracked down and captured or killed anyone with a price on their head, although they were also known for doing nearly anything for the right price including the protection of clients. The best bounty hunters were very well armed and had very effective weapons, making them even more dangerous. There were, however, plenty of incompetent specimens throughout the galaxy, lacking any real skill but wishing to get rich quickly or simply seeking adventure. Bounty hunters usually worked alone, although they sometimes did form partnerships. Partnering with a bounty hunter could be very dangerous business, though, as they typically valued their personal gain—and survival—above that of their companions. Despite their fierce independence, their reputation as “Jedi-killers” made them valuable tools of the Galactic Empire. There were strong rivalries between bounty hunters and smugglers, most obviously seen between Boba Fett and Han Solo, respectively. Organization…
The guild – New column
Hi. This is Peter writing to you. I’ll be overseeing and writing a new weekly column here om swtorstrategies.com called “The Guild” where YOU can share your thoughts on the coming Star Wars: The old republic. Do you know something about the game we don’t? Do you have any special plans or thoughts about the guild system, the combat system or even the payment system? Send me an email, and I might contact you for further information and bring an exclusive interview with you here on this column! No thoughts are too small or too big to be important on this column! Now – a little about myself. My name is Peter (As I already mentioned) and I’ve played mmorpgs since DAoC, and before that, I did a few years of mud’ing. I went on to play SW:G where I led a really large flora empire with a friend of…
Playable Species of SW:TOR – Chiss
The Chiss were a tall, blue-skinned Near-Human civilization from the Unknown Regions, best known as the people to which Grand Admiral Thrawn belonged. Due to the remote position of their home territory in the Chiss Ascendancy they remained largely an enigma to the rest of the galaxy, and contact with outsiders was limited even in the days of the Galactic Alliance. Overview The Chiss were marked out from the majority of mainstream galactic civilization by their height, pure blue skin, gleaming black hair, and glowing red eyes. Physically striking and instantly recognizable, and armed with a typically cool and disciplined manner, the mystique of the Chiss was further increased by the remote location of their territory in the Unknown Regions beyond the Outer Rim. However, this remoteness also meant that they were largely disconnected from the galaxy-spanning nexus of hyperspace travel and subspace communications that bound together the Old Republic,…
Star Wars: The Old Republic at Celebration V and Comic-Con
A few days ago, we asked Sean Dahlberg if Bioware will show up at Celebration V convention next month in Orlando. This was confirmed, but he couldn’t share any more details about what there plans at the convent was: Sean Dahlberg said: Actually, we will be there! We’re not quite ready to share what exactly TOR will be doing at Star Wars Celebration V but we will soon. Star Wars Celebration V takes place Aug. 12-15, 2010 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida. You can find ticket and event information at the official Star Wars Celebration Website. Yesterday Sean posted an official announcement that Star Wars: The Old Republic will have a presence at this month’s Comic-Con International in San Diego! Comic-Con International is coming to San Diego, California! Meet up with The Old Republic team at the panel entitled Beyond Solo: Crafting the Multiplayer Story in Star Wars™: The…
Star Wars: The old Republic – E3 Multiplayer Demo
This week’s Friday update brings us a Multiplayer Demo from E3. This demo is an edited versino of the Video G4 hosted a few weeks ago. In this first-glimpse video Dallas Dickinson, the Director of Production, examines the core roles for SWTOR group missions. Dickinson explains the possible functions each class can have: the Trooper can be a tank, the Jedi Knight as an off-tank, the Jedi Consular works primary healing, with the Smuggler covers the DPS and alternate healing. Commander Narlock readies his troops for an Imperial assault. As he does, all four Republic classes; a Jedi Consular, Jedi Knight, Smuggler, and Trooper join together to assist in fighting off the attack. Watch as each player does his or her part to take on the enemies, and beat the Imperial Troopers and Imperial Breach Droids. Is it just me, or is anyone else concerned about the “class = role”…
No Star Wars: The old republic for consoles
Daniel Erickson, lead designer and story writer on Star Wars: The Old Republic, told CVG in an interview today, that no one at Bioware is working on a console version of the game. “We all know the drawbacks of PC. We all scream at our boxes and try to make stuff work. But at the same time, the interface is made for games,” he said. “The mouse/keyboard interface allows so much less restriction [than console]. “”There was not a question when we started Old Republic – or any of our games, for that matter – [what the lead format would be]. There’s a reason the lead SKU for Dragon age was PC as well. When we’re developing an RPG, it’s a natural place to be.” Source: CVG Update: There have been many questions about Mac support. Sean Dahlberg Tweeted a response about this yesterday: @swtorstrategies Currently we are only working for Windows…
BioWare, LucasArts Choose Monolith Monitoring For Star Wars: The old republic
Yesterday Gamasutra reported that BioWare and LucasArts will be utilizing Monolith Software for their IT management of Star Wars: The Old Republic BioWare chose Monolith’s solution for its ability to manage the real-time monitoring of thousands of devices at several data centers in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa “We are building a large game that will be supported by an expansive, complicated IT environment,” says BioWare’s director of infrastructure and services Ruben Cortez. “When you have this complex of an environment for a business reliant on continuous connectivity, you need a monitoring solution that can manage that in real time.” He continues, “We needed a solution that would not require a large footprint so we can identify and respond at Internet speed. Monolith won us over for its robust feature set, real time dashboards, reduced total cost of ownership and commitment to us as customers.”
May the schwartz be with you: Entire Star Wars “A New Hope” in MS Paint [GIF]
Extremely Epic MS Paint GIF of Star Wars a New Hope. Not as good as ASCII Star Wars Though. You can watch the ASCII Star Wars it in your terminal by typing telnet towel.blinkenlights.nl