Notifications were zooming in to me from friends, family, Tweeters and more that they have all received notifications for SWTOR beta weekend THIS weekend. No one seemed to know what was going on. Was it real? Was it another mistake? Then SWTOR/BioWare posted this on their news page: When we started our Beta Testing Weekends, we told you that each weekend would include more testers than the last. We’re excited to announce that later this month we will be conducting our largest Beta Testing Weekend yet, specifically designed to help us stress test our servers in preparation for the launch of Star Wars™: The Old Republic™. How can you take part in this coming Beta Test Weekend? Well, for starters we are happy to announce that anyone who has signed up for our Game Testing Program prior to today, November 11th, will get invited! Invites will be sent in the…
More Beta video impressions
Yesterday MightyMonkeysGaming was host of so many cool beta videos that was so cool. But Yesterday All my troubles seemed so far away. Now it looks as though they’re here to stay…Or are they? Were MightyMonkeysGaming chickened out, Mobility-Gaming E-Sports takes over. So today I have the honor of sending over a new bunch of beta videos. Enjoy!
The Art and Making of Star Wars: The Old Republic
For the super SWTOR fans, there is a new book coming out that you’re going to want to add to your wishlist. The Art and Making of Star Wars: The Old Republic is set for publication for November 16, 2011. It’s set on Amazon at $26.40 with a retail price of $40 so buying early at the lower price might save you money. About the Author: Frank Parisi is an editor at Lucasfilm, Ltd. He was the co-author of The Art of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, editor of Star Wars Insider magazine, project editor of The Art and Making of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, and has contributed numerous articles to GamePro and ALARM magazines. Daniel Erickson is writing director for BioWare’s Austin, Texas studio. He began his gaming career as an intern with Next Generation magazine and is currently lead writer for Star Wars: The Old Republic. Book…
SWTOR Strategies Google+ Page
Are you on Google+? Looking for a new way to follow us and get your favorite SWTOR strategies, news and updates in one place? We know how important it is to get what you want where you want it and some people just aren’t into Twitter and Facebook. Now that Google+ is offering businesses pages (similar to fanpages on Facebook), we have created one as one more way to bring you great SWTOR and Star Wars related news and updates. So head on over to SWTOR Strategies on Google + and show us some love, share us and tell your friends.
Fan Site Summit 2: Roundup
We know how anxious you are to stop reading about this game and finally get to play. We’re with you on that one and as we grow closer to the SWTOR launch date, we’re trying to keep you occupied with any cool info and tidbits we can find on the game. This means updating you on the fansite summit and other good happenings, even if we’re not able to attend them all ourselves. Here’s some more great stuff from the Fan Site Summit (part 2). TORWars is especially chatty about the Fan Site Summit and have a lot to say about their experiences, including some great photos and some audios from the event. It’s their exclusive content so you’ll have to head over there to check it out. Be sure to tell us what you think! Photo Gallery: Deep Inside BioWare Austin – Part One Photo Gallery: Deep Inside BioWare…
Smuggler hands-on from MMOSite
The Smuggler class in Star Wars: The Old Republic is a classic piece of Star Wars lore but what we see in SWTOR is an interesting take on the Smuggler class story. It will be different from the archetype you’re used to and BioWare has some fun things in store. If you want to learn more about the Smuggler, short of being able to play it yourself in game testing, then check out the hands-on from a site that’s been able to play and share (within the NDA, of course). MMOSite.com has a great hands-on SWTOR review of their experience with the Smuggler. If you were trying to make up your mind about whether or not to play a Smuggler, check out this SWTOR preview: Here is a snippet: “Things start to get exciting by level 10 after the “tutorial” aspect of the game comes to an end and players…
Star Wars The Old Republic: Main Theme
With only 5 weeks to go, we can finally play you the main theme song from Star Wars: the old republic. I’m not totally sure if this is considered a leak or not, as it is so many places on the net right now. I also believe it has been used in some of BioWares own video documentaries. If you are really into the whole music thing as I am, I recoment you to check out the documentary “Music of Star Wars the old Republic. We have embedded it in the bottom of this post. Check it out!
Goofy grrl is At it Again with Another Video
This time she says “TOR will suck” and she’s opting not to play. I know that some of you may be completely broken-hearted at this news but I assure you, there will be plenty of similar lonely souls looking to grace the game of SWTOR. If you don’t remember GoofyGrrl, here’s a reminder from her Goodbye SWG video. So now she’s back with a brand new video telling us how she doesn’t want to play TOR and why. She says her desire to not play SWTOR has nothing to do with the game “killing” her beloved Star Wars Galaxies but that she has her own totally unrelated, legitimate reasons for why she is not interested in SWTOR. She’s been really busy lately and she invites us to “like if we agree and if we don’t, that’s fine” because we have our opinion and she has hers (even if hers sounds…
EU Beta Invites Are Sent
Have you been meticulously refreshing your email inbox today hoping for a beta invite for SWTOR? If you haven’t gotten one yet and you already checked your spam folder, then unfortunately, you probably didn’t get in right now. Great news for European players though! European game invites have been sent out in a batch for a selection of players to start testing SWTOR. North American players got another batch of weekend test emails but for some lucky Europeans, it’s more than a weekend test and an actual game testing invite. Access to the general beta test means you get to see what the game is all about before it is released to the general public in December. Game testing characters do not carry over into the live game and there is no guarantee on how long you will get to test but it’s sure exciting news if you did get…
Smuggler Walkthru Video
Awall from TGN has put together a Smuggler Edition in his “Ultimate Walkthru Series””. In the video he cover all of the confirmed facts about the smuggler class in 25+ minutes. This includes all of the pics, videos, gameplay, story, abilities, companion, starship, scoundrel, gunslinger, trailers, etc. Personally I think this is one of his best episode yet. So check it out below:
The Guild Sphere: Lost Tribe of Sith
It’s Thursday and time for a new guild interview. This time the Sith PVP guild, Lost Tribe of Sith, Took the the time to answer our question. The guild is in the EST Timezone and is still accepting members. Check it out below. Where did your guilds name come from? Actually, it is from a piece of official Star Wars lore. I was reading about the Lost Tribe of Sith that crashed on a planet in wild space and decided to rebuild a new civilization. So I found it interesting, and the perfect way to Role Play what we wanted to do. We wanted a new system of rules and ranks, but wanted it to fit into TOR Lore without making it seem like we made our own tribe from nothing in a day. So we are using the time before launch to make our lore and explain how our tribe connects with…
World of Warcraft Loses 2 Million Subscribers in a Year
If you are interested in getting into the game, Here is a world of warcraft digital download price comparison tool. Another great resource is WoW-Strategy.com that helps you find WoW guides that can show you how to level 3x faster and make more gold. Gamasutra Reports WoW subscriptions are down and despite plans to turn things around and a new upcoming expansion, is it too late for Blizzard? Sure, there will always be WoW fans but part of the appeal is starting to wear out for a lot of people. Add to this the buzz and excitement for SWTOR and you can see where the SWTOR vs. WoW wars came from. Gamasutra says: “As of September 30, the game stood at 10.3 million players, Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime revealed Tuesday in a Gamasutra-attended conference call. This is down nearly a million from the 11.1 million reported three months prior, and significantly less than a…
Facebook Image of the Week #37
With only 5 week to go before lunch, BioWare have updated there facebook page with a new screenshot. This time we get to ses some PVE action on Belsavis: Republic forces do battle against an ancient battle droid guarding a powerful evil buried deep inside a lost Belsavis prison.
Weekend Beta Testing #3 Invites Going Out
Allison Berryman, Senior Community Coordinator, explains on the official SWTOR forums that invitations are being sent for a weekend test this weekend! That is super exciting news for anyone who’s still been waiting for their chance to get into a game testing weekend to try out the beta. Her post explains: Sent Nov. 8: Beta Testing Weekend #3 Invites Who was invited: Testers from North America What was sent: Beta Weekend #3 Invites Server locations: US East Coast Invite status: We are currently in the process of sending these invites, and will continue throughout this evening and into tomorrow. So have you checked your email? Refreshed it a few times? Checked and rechecked the spam folder? There might still be a chance for you to get into a beta weekend. If you don’t, then just head back on over here for more updates, news and SWTOR strategy, previews and reviews….
Darthhater Brings Us Fan Site Summit 2 Info
While we wish we were at the most recent Fan Site Summit to get a hands-on experience, we were unfortunately not invited. So instead, we’re scouring the websites of those fansites who were invited to help bring you some of the latest and greatest content out there. The guys over at Darth Hater have been great about sharing their experiences and this Fan Site Summit is no different. They have two great write-ups right now to help you learn more about SWTOR and really get you jazzed up (as if you were not already) about playing the game. These are exclusives from their experience at the Fan Site Summit so you have to head over to their site to see the full thing but here’s a recap of why it’s worth your time: Fan Site Summit 2: Voidstar & Ilum PVP Demo Want to learn more about PvP in SWTOR?…
Beta Gameplay With Commentary
Tino from MightyMonkeysGaming have uploaded quite a few beta videos, from the current SWTOR Beta build. There is nothing new about Beta leaks floating around Youtube, but Tino has done something extra with his as he is doing a commentary on all of the,, letting us know what is going on. I don’t know how long these movies will stay on Youtube, as the EA law department is extremely hyperactive these days (Which is pretty stupid as we are only 5 weeks from launch). Anyways. Enjoy them as long as they last.
Secure Your Account and Grab a Security Authentication Key
This news just in from the official SWTOR site: it’s time to secure your account. You may have gotten an email about changing your password sometime in the past 24 hours. They also put out this news article explaining the reason for the emails. In addition, BioWare is offering a Security Authentication Key that comes with the Collector’s Edition but will be available other ways as well. The news story explains: “The Collector’s Edition is still available in limited quantities at select retailers. Watch for more information on other ways to obtain The Old Republic Security Key soon!” From the picture Stephen Reid tweeted of the CE package, it looks just like the Blizzard authenticator but with a SWTOR graphic. Anyway, it’s still a pretty nifty device. I have one for WoW and with the popularity of SWTOR, it seems a pretty good idea to grab one for that extra…
Stephen Reid tweeted a pic of SWTOR CE Box
Are you wondering what the Collector’s Edition of SWTOR is going to look like? Have you pre-ordered already or asked Santa to pretty-please bring you a copy for an early Christmas this year? If you’re anxious or curious to see what it’s going to look like, you are in luck. Stephen Reid tweeted a pic of the SWTOR Collector’s Edition box as a fun little teaser for us all to see and drool over. One thing that strikes me right away is how solid this is, which is great for the high price you’re going to pay for it. My office contains a large collection of video game collector’s editions from both myself and my husband. As avid video gamers, we have built a bit of a collection over the years and this box is going to look great added to our shelf. The pic from Reid doesn’t show us…
SWTOR Graphics Comparison 2009 vs 2011
Here is an interesting clip. It showes the graphic of SWTOR as it was showcased back in 2009, and the same flashpoint looks today. It’s great to see the game is improving. Check out the video below:
The Guild Sphere: Scions of Rage
It’s Monday and time for a new guild feature. This week Scions of Rage is in the hot chair. Scions of Rage is a PVE orientated Sith guild. Check it out! Where did your guilds name come from? Originally I wanted to name it “Scions of Mandalore” but Mandalore was a reserved word and so I couldn’t use it. After that didn’t work I was thinking about what sort of Scion would exist in the Star Wars universe and I went with the token selection: Rage, as it is featured prominently as a Sith emotion. It’s the opposite of inner peace which is what the Jedi strive after. So in that sense the implication is that the members of my guild are focus their hatred and anger as a fuel for combat. Can you give me a quick 2-3 sentence description of your guild? Currently we’re a group of friends…
A Storm is Coming Says Drew Karpyshyn
A storm is coming, as Drew Karpyshyn says on his website- a storm of publicity for his new book. We’ve told you about the Revan novel before but now that we are closer to the release date for the book, the news is really booming. In addition to the synopsis and other excerpts we’ve brought you over the weeks, you can now also find Chapter 3 of the novel. This just might be one of the last sneak peeks we get since the book is releasing very soon! Barnes and Noble now has the book available for preorder if you already know that you want to make it yours. Their overview reads: There’s something out there: a juggernaut of evil bearing down to crush the Republic— unless one lone Jedi, shunned and reviled, can stop it. Revan: hero, traitor, conqueror, villain, savior. A Jedi who left Coruscant to defeat Mandalorians—and…
James Ohlen Twitter Status
There could be more big changes coming to SWTOR as we near the release date in December. We know that the staff is working very hard to get the game in tip-top shape and ready to go for launch. This is why it’s fun to hear posts like this one from James Ohlen about the game. James Ohlen says via Twitter: “Writers finished a major milestone for post release content. We’re going to keep half of the voice actors in Hollywood employed for years.” What do you think it means? BioWare is touting the voice acting as one of the most important parts of their new MMORG and one of the biggest things that sets it apart from other similar games. Ohlen is the Game Director of SW:TOR. He’s also Lead Designer of Baldur’s Gate 1 and 2 (I loved those games), NWN (my husband played this one a lot),…
Entire Chapter 3 of Revan Novel Released
Another chapter of Star Wars’ ancient history is about to be revealed. Drew Karpyshyn’s novel Star Wars: The Old Republic — Revan, due Nov. 15, is the long-awaited follow-up to the 2003 videogame Knights of the Old Republic. We’ve been bringing you updates on this novel as we find them, including excerpts, a novel synopsis and more. Here is a snippet: Star Wars: The Old Republic — Revan picks up two years after Malak’s defeat, when the redeemed Revan is still trying to pick up the pieces of his old life and figure out what exactly made him turn to the Dark Side. All fans have known about Revan’s post-KOTOR life is that he took off for the Unknown Regions on the hunt for a dark threat to the Republic… and was never heard from again. Now his fate is about to be revealed, and EW’s…
Friday Update: Imperial Agent Progression Video
It’s progression video time as the folks from Bioware give us a glimpse into the progression of an Imperial Agent. In this video we are being shown both the differences in equipment and abilities players can expect as they level up as one of the subtle hands of the Sith Empire’s will. As players grow in power, they can either take the route of the stealthy and aggressive Operative or the resourceful ranged Sniper. As you progress in Star Wars™: The Old Republic™, your character will gain experience, growing more powerful and discovering new skills while also acquiring more advanced gear. Through cunning, stealth, and ruthless tactics, the Imperial Agent has no shortage of ways to complete his objectives. Even so, as the complexity and importance of his missions increase, the Agent will have to acquire new skills and equipment to help him combat the ever-growing threat to the Empire….