We previously brought you a story about how lightsabers work but when it comes to filmmaking history, you probably have no idea how far the light saber has really evolved. It’s really interesting to look at the birth of the lightsaber and how it evolved into what we know it as today. In this article by Rianne Hill Soriana, we see an explanation of the lightsaber concept: “According to filmmaker George Lucas, “Star Wars” had influences from early pirate, adventure, and romantic films of the 1940s. With its basic premise centering on a romantic fantasy, it was inspired by the great romantic traditions in the mythology of “King Arthur” and the adventurous spirit of “Robin Hood.”” She goes on to describe the look of the lightsaber itself and how this look was pulled off in film technology, even many years ago, helping to create the legend that is Star Wars…
EA: 200 hours of play per SWTOR class
When it comes to SWTOR, many would-be players are asking about its playability. EA has helped clear up some of the confusion by revealing there will be 200 hours worth of gameplay for each of the six playable classes. This whopping amount of game play will come from the questing and storyline itself and will not include crafting, raiding or the “multiplayer” aspects of the game. They say it’s a “gigantic” game and if what they’re telling us is true, then it sure seems to be. We’re talking endless possibilities in terms of what to do in the game. With that much playability, SWTOR will be well worth its cost for the game and any subscription fees. Gamers of all types, particular MMOers, are looking for more from their games. Technology has come a long way and while snazzy graphics and interactivity are cool, many of us still…
The Old Republic Forums “Walkthrough” Episode 1: The Phantom Dumbass
The SWTOR Forums are a dangerous place, a murky place where men fear to tread (and rightly so) and trolls amble free through the threads. As with any online community, there’s a lot of drama to be had in there, and there are moments of genius hidden in amongst the more banal of conversations. Taking advantage of that mine of good material, Youtuber RussellW218 (or Russell Wilson, AKA Spikey on the forums) has added some simplistic animation (via XtraNormal) to one such conversation, to quite wonderful effect. So here we have it. A battle of wits, between an increasingly disgruntled, and ever-s0-slightly sarcastic Forum Moderator/BioWare representative, and his arch-nemesis – an infuriating n00b who sways between ludicrous questions and idiotic suggestions as to how the game could be all sorts of genius. Rather wonderfully, the n00b has literally no idea about the essential fundaments of RPG playing, criminally, and hilariously…
Petition Started to Make Star Wars Galaxies Free to Play
It has not been a surprise that many devoted Star Wars Galaxies fans are upset over the announcement that the game will be closing its doors in December. So many have decided to stop complaining and do something about it and have started a petition to make SWG free-to-play. The petition has almost 2200 signatures at the time of this write up so it’s clear that many gamers are serious about their SWG. The petition offers a solution to shutting down the game- making it free to play and supporting it through the sale of virtual goods. It also asks Sony to consolidate players into a fewer number of servers and allow character transfers to help reduce the costs of keeping the game running. It’s not a completely far-fetched idea as many other games have found success from switching to a free-to-play format. Lord of the Rings Online is a…
What Do Gamers Want from SWTOR?
With the countdown to SWTOR going strong, we find ourselves discussing why we are interested in the game and what we really want from this Star Wars MMO. While most everyone loves the idea of playing a Jedi, the answers go deeper when you really ask about. Some gamers are just long time fans of the Star Wars franchise and these are the devoted groups you find willing to check out any SW theme game that comes along. Then there are those who love MMOs and are tired of the many fail MMORPGs that keep finding their way onto the market. Some of us are just looking for a great MMO that isn’t World of Warcraft. Then there are some who want to be able to fly an spacecraft. Are you excited for the space combat? Or not interested in that at all? Some like the…
Bantam and Del Rey STAR WARS novels Come to eBook Format
Today the library of Bantam and Del Rey STAR WARS novels will be available in all eBook formats at Random House. Beginning today, just as it was previously announced, you can get the entire catalog of Random House’s Star Wars novels on digital format. This is a great opportunity to enjoy all of your favorite books on your e-reader or even on your computer. Amazon’s downloads work on the company’s Kindle reader, as well as on any smartphone or tablet with a Kindle app. Barnes & Noble digital purchases are compatible with B&N’s Nook device. In celebration of the news, Del Rey’s Star Wars Books Facebook page has a fun trailer that’s really worth the view:
Species of Starwars: Bothan
Bothans is humanoid species identified by their short builds and fur-covered faces, Bothans are widely known as proficient and intrepid spies. However, members of the species have also become fearless leaders, relentless warriors, courageous pilots, and brilliant scientists. As a species, Bothans have been mastering the art of information-gathering for many years. The resulting Bothan spynet is among the largest and most renowned intelligence organizations, with operatives stationed throughout the galaxy. In fact, spying has become the Bothans primary industry. Since the outbreak of the Galactic Civil War, the Bothan spynet has primarily benefited the Rebel Alliance, although both the Empire and the criminal underworld occasionally make use of Bothan spies as well. Due largely to their reputation as spies, Bothans are often regarded as power hungry, manipulative, cunning and paranoid. But Bothans are also well-organized, keenly intelligent, and very loyal. They live orderly lives, place great emphasis on family…
Greenpeace: VW Are The Dark Side
In response to one of the greatest advertising campaigns ever to hit TV by VW, Greenpeace have put out their own Star Wars themed ad, suggesting that the German car manufacturer are affiliated to the Dark Side even more than the little Darth Vader advert originally suggested. Aping the original ad, in which a diminutive Darth adorably struggles to use the force, Greenpeace have introduced a whole raft of Rebellion characters, who confront Darth (who the ad positions as VW’s spokesman of sorts). It’s all terribly clever, though it somewhat devalues the Dark Side by suggesting the grand plan was to destroy Earth via a cunningly conceived opposition to CO2 emission cuts. Terrifying. Anyway, the video is great (hence the rise of some 60,000 views in a single day!!!): They’ve also released a follow-up – titles Episode II surprisingly – which is altogether more light-hearted, and features a frankly creepy…
Mike “Gabe” Krahulik from Penny Arcade Talks about SWTOR
What does Penny Arcade think about SW:TOR? Now you can find out because Mike Krahulik, known as Gabe on PA, has had access to the friends and family beta of SWTOR and now we has permission to share his impressions with us via the Penny Arcade Blog. Gabe starts off, “Honestly they had no idea what I was going to say which must have been a little scary considering this is PA, but lucky for them I actually really like their game.” That’s good news for TOR fans as well. Gabe tells us he thinks TOR will live up to its expectations. We know the PA guys can be pretty critical so this is a positive for BioWare/TOR. He compares the questing in TOR to other MMOs: “Turning the quests into an interactive experience makes me care a lot more about them. A quest is still a chance to get…
The Guild Sphere: The Dragoon Brotherhood
First of all I would like to apologize you haven’t seen a “Guild Sphere” column the last month. But hopefully we will be back at full strength through out the summer. Feel free to contact us if you want your guild featured on our website. Where did your guilds name come from? When we first founded it was initially named The Hidden Dragoons, taking two of the founders, another, and myself, as the two names that made up our guild name. Later though when we changed it to The Dragoon Brotherhood, we took the meaning of the light cavalry unit used in the 17th and 18th centuries. Can you give me a quick 2-3 sentance description of your guild? The Dragoons are a very unique guild that values the person and not the character. For many years we have played most major MMOs on the market, and strive for excellence…
Goodbye, SWG…
Fresh from bringing you the news that LucasArts and Sony Online Entertainment have decided to pull the plug on Star Wars Galaxies (and rightly so in my opinion), we can now follow up with this slightly unhinged response to the news from Youtube user GoofyGrrl. GoofyGrrl, a long-time player and fan of the MMO game, is clearly upset at the news, having dedicated six years of her life to playing, and obviously felt compelled to air her grievances to the world. So, with her webcam switched on, and her skimpiest vest-top sought out, she had what psychotherapists might call a full-on breakdown. Way to go. And even better she blames the death of Galaxies on the appearance of the clearly vastly superior SWTOR for this Doomsday announcement – entirely missing the point that the new game would have rendered its predecessor redundant anyway. Two points spring up at this point:…
SkyMarshall Arts SWTOR Song and Video
Star Wars Norge: The Old Republic Fansite tipped us off to a great SWTOR song made by a group called “SkyMarshall Arts””. They created a music video to go with it and it’s a fun listen/watch for any SWTOR fan. I can totally see myself listening to this while playing the game. The first part is action-packed and exciting, with a slower rendition at the end. The video fits perfectly with the movie and it’s all very enjoyable. “This is a tribute to the upcoming MMORPG “Star Wars: The Old Republic” by Bioware, EA and LucasArts – as well as Star Wars in general. It is a compilation of the most popular themes from Star Wars wrapped in a sugary eurodance-ish coating. It was made entirely from scratch using Cubase, FLstudio and Audition.” Credits: Remix: SkyMarshall Arts (Eirik Blodøks Hafskjold) Video: Star Wars Norge (www.starwarsnorge.com) Original Score: John Williams (composer)…
The Lost Suns Comic Review
I was super excited to get my hands on my own copy of Star Wars: The Old Republic- The Lost Sons comic and just as excited to meet Alexander Freed himself. On the ride back home, I was already reading my comic. I can see why they said the comic would be of interest to anyone planning to play TOR as well. This is the first of a five-issue comic book series about Theron Shan and it contains a lot of lore and background for the game. As Freed said on the official TOR forums, “”I like to describe The Lost Suns as our ‘ninth story’ — every class in The Old Republic tells its own Star Wars epic, and Theron’s tale intersects with the other eight and pushes the greater game story forward, just as they do.“ Right from the first page of beautiful artwork, the comic sets up…
BioWare to Have Public TOR Demo at Comic Con
As if you needed one more reason to check out Comic Con in San Diego this year, BioWare has announced they will be setting up a TOR demo. David Bass, Senior Community Coordinator announced on the official TOR forums that they will be making an appearance at Comic Con. However, the best news is that you don’t even have to have a Comic Con badge to have a chance at trying the game. “Yesterday, BioWare made an announcement that we have a space at the Hilton Gaslamp hotel across the street from Comic-Con where fans can get their hands on Mass Effect 3 and the newest Dragon Age II DLC. Well, surprisingly enough, The Old Republic is planning on being there as well! Anyone (yes, even you!) can come to the Hilton and wait in line to play any of the BioWare games. Those of you who have Comic-Con badges,…
End of an era: Star Wars: Galaxies shutting down later this year
Later this year – December 15th, to be precise – will see the end of Star Wars Galaxies, the MMORPG first released by LucasArts and Sony Online Entertainment back in 2003, and the more recent Trading Card Game (2008). So that’s the main “on-brand” competition for SWTOR gone then…. The official announcement – from the game’s official site – read as follows: We write to you today to inform you that on December 15, 2011, Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) and LucasArts will end all services (MMO and Trading Card Game) for Star Wars Galaxies (SWG). The shutdown of SWG is a very difficult decision, but SOE and LucasArts have mutually agreed that the end of 2011 is the appropriate time to end the game. We are extremely grateful to all of the SWG fans. We have had the rare opportunity to host one of the most dedicated and passionate online…
Previews Alderaan Group Mission
This week BioWare’s Director of Production Dallas Dickinson returns with an E3 2011 preview video of a mission to save the planet Alderaan in Star Wars: The Old Republic. The video is short but it makes its time count by serving up a look at one of the group missions that players can engage in on the Alderaan. And while there are no electrocuted Jawas in this one (that never gets old), there are plenty of blasters and lightsabers.
Producer Rick McCallum Hints At Star Wars TV Series Details
More news on upcoming Star Wars TV projects, as producer and long-term George Lucas collaborator Rick McCallum has given up some details to Czech Position about the long-awaited and hotly-anticipated live-action TV series. First up McCallum said that the show is likely to be shot at least in part in the Czech Republic, following on from “The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles” TV series, which was also partly shot in Prague and the upcoming Red Tails, which was mostly shot in the Czech Republic with a local crew. He then got into some more exciting territory, giving a little more info on the expected ETA for the project: The TV series is on hold, but that has nothing to do with the Czech Republic; it has to do with [the episodes being] so ambitious. We have 50 hours of third-draft scripts, but the problem we have is there is a lot…
BioWare brings Mass Effect 3 and Dragon Age II DLC to San Diego Comic Con
On BioWare Social, Chris Priestly announces that Mass Effect 3 and Dragon Age II DLC will come to San Diego Comic Con. “BioWare is once again returning to the San Diego Comic Con and this year, we are bringing Mass Effect 3 and a never before seen, Dragon Age II DLC with us. Comic Con begins Thursday July 21 and runs through Sunday July 24 and we will have all sorts of awesome BioWare coolness at our base in the Hilton Gaslamp hotel. This will be the first opportunity for fans to play Mass Effect 3 as well as the next Dragon Age II DLC. In addition, we will be hosting the first annual BioWare Costume Contest on Friday, July 22 for the best BioWare inspired costumes. We’ll be giving away awesome convention swag, opportunities to meet members of the BioWare staff, and we’ll have a special designated area…
Moral Issues in SWTOR and more Tidbits from the Forums
The Star Wars: The Old Republic official forums were abuzz yesterday with talk about dark/light side morals and choices, rumors of a release date and more. Damion Schubert stepped in to add more insight to the topic as well. Zoeller talked about questing and how it will operate within SWTOR and explaining that there will be some repeatable quests/content within the game but that the game won’t rely on it completely. Zoeller also discussed where we will be able to fly within the game: “Once you have your ship, every planet in the galaxy can be flown to. Of course, flying to a level 40 planet at level 12 might not be the greatest idea, but still, you can do that.” Then Stephen Reid also talks about morals and light side/dark side choices: “The Light Side / Dark Side symbols only appear when using a mouse to hover…
20 min Jedi Knight Class walk through
FTWBroadcasting has just posted a 20 min Jedi Knight Class walk through video, containing all confirmed and speculative information from all over the web: Jedi Knight Class Story Companion, Armor Weapons Abilities Advanced Classes Star ship and More. The video contains all the latest footage, wallpapers, promotion videos, and website coverage edited into the video. Enjoy!
Facebook Image of The Week #17
It’s the next best day of the week. The day were BioWare spoils us with a new screenshot of the game. This image was published on their Facebook page earliere today. Jawas, notorious tinkerers and collectors of discarded desert junk, carefully inspect an astromech droid at one of Anchorhead’s many trading posts.
Retail dates SWTOR for September?
Could Star Wars: The Old Republic be coming out in September after all? According to ShopTo, an online UK retailer, it might be. After a recent update to the site, it now lists upcoming EA MMO title Star Wars: The Old Republic with a release date of September 9th in the UK. What does this mean? MCV wrote about the topic today, describing the update on ShopTo that added this release date for the game. Back in January, MCV also wrote about the fact that EA executives were planning for a September release of the game. Disgruntled fans had a lot to say about this delayed release date that later seemed to be pushed ever farther into 2011. After recent events and E3 news, most fans would be delighted to hear about a September release since a release any time before the end of the year was starting…
Species of Starwars: Rodian
The Rodian are a bipedal race with tapir-like faces and multifaceted eyes, native to the planet Rodia, which is located in the Tyrius system. The skin of a Rodian is green in color, and there is very little physical variation within the species. Thus, non-Rodians often cannot tell two Rodians apart. The Rodian race has ears that swivel in their sockets, allowing them to hear in several directions. There is a ridge of spikes which crests their skulls, and their long, flexible fingers are tipped with suction cups. They are a race of hunters by nature, and bounty hunting seems to hold a place of high esteem. As a race, they evolved as hunters, surviving their planet’s tropical environment and establishing a series of war games which lasted for thousands of years. When an Old Republic scout team landed on the planet, the Rodians were there to meet them, armed…
Lego Star Wars Coming to TV In September
Odd but exciting news has just come to my attention (after it was announced at the recent Licensing International Expo 2011). According to ComingSoon.net LEGO Star Wars is set to land on screens this Autumn (likely late September) as a TV special. The site discovered the upcoming project thanks to the poster below, and announce that it will be based on the video game series, which is itself based on the TV show. Don’t think about that too much, it gets a little confusing. ComingSoon also ran with an official update on the upcoming Star Wars cartoon series: Today, George Lucas is hard at work on a second animated series that will complement ‘The Clone Wars’, taking ‘Star Wars’ in a completely new and fun direction. What with the release of the Star Wars blu-ray collection, and the 3D cinematic re-releases that I personally will only watch begrudgingly, it’s an…