Search Results for: Force Unleashed

SWTOR – The Comfort of Companions

Soeren Kamper

Can you imagine Luke Skywalker attempting to walk the path of a Jedi without the assistance of Obi-Wan, the Princess, or Han? It is these companions that not only opened doors for Luke in the Star Wars movies, but also the personalities that helped make an IP great. BioWare is attempting to recreate this magic with the companion system in Star Wars: The Old Republic. Will having a built in duo inhibit the group dynamic or will these unique sidekicks add another level of depth and immersion? Ten Ton Hammer, has an interesting editorial on  this: Yeah, you might be able to grab your companions butt without fearing an incoming sexual harassment lawsuit, but they have far more uses than a quick tickle and giggle. Companions will be specifically tailored to your class with their own complimentary skills and abilities. If you choose to play ranged damage class, a companion…

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Developer Dispatch: Designing the Light Side

Soeren Kamper 1 Comment

It’s a full Star Wars: The Old Republic Fan Friday this week and along with the usual updates with fan art and forum fun there is also a very cool Developer’s Corner that shares a bit about ship design. Anyone who has every wondered how concept art is created needs to check this one out. This week the Art Team is pleased to share a step-by-step demonstration of how a piece of concept art is created for The Old Republic. Senior Concept Artist, Ryan Dening, will give us a break-down of the process involved and some of the thinking that went into this particular concept. Even as cool as that update is, it still isn’t the star of this show! Also released today is a video Developer Dispatch that discusses how the team designed SWTOR for the Jedi. Learn more about the Jedi classes and what it takes to make…

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Know your lore: Exar Kun

Soeren Kamper

Exar Kun was a Human male Dark Lord of the Sith under the tutelage of Freedon Nadd. Kun displayed an unusual curiosity into forbidden teachings during his time as a Jedi Padawan, so much so that upon completion of his training, he abandoned his Master and set out in pursuit of the knowledge and power of the ancient Sith. His quest led him initially to the planet Onderon and then its jungle moon, Dxun, where he invaded the tomb of a long-deceased Dark Lord of the Sith named Freedon Nadd—and, in doing so, awakened his spirit. Seduced by Nadd with the promise of power through acceptance of the dark side of the Force, Kun allowed himself to become Nadd’s apprentice. As Kun rapidly progressed in the sorcerous ways of the Sith, Nadd directed him to Yavin 4, where Kun acquired even greater Sith powers. He then destroyed Nadd’s spirit, and…

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Timeline trailer 9: The Mandalorian Wars

Soeren Kamper

Star Wars: The old republic Timeline trailer 9: The Mandalorian Wars, has just been released.  Since the last timeline told us about Revan and Malak and the events of Knights of the Old Republic, we are now presented the bloody wars, which were responsible for KotOR events: the Mandalorian Wars. In this timeline Bioware basically made everything that happened in Kotor 2 Vapor-Ware and made their own story canon. So Exile didnt really do anything with Malachor V, it was all Revan. Carth Onasi Also get a mention in this timeline trailer though. The Mandalorian Wars included some of the bloodiest battles in the Republic’s history. Mandalore the Ultimate’s relentless campaign to goad the Jedi into open conflict cost the lives of millions. Though the entrance of a Jedi splinter faction into the war is perceived as the factor that turned the tide against the Mandalorians, the perseverance of Republic…

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Star Wars: The Old Republic – Fatal Alliance Review

Soeren Kamper

For those of you waiting for the dirt, you can finally find out what Sean Williams’s Fatal Alliance is like. Beware, spoilers follow! A smuggler, an agent and a Mandalorian walk into a bar. Wait a second, that’s not a joke; that’s a scene from Fatal Alliance! When all eight classes from Star Wars: The Old Republic find themselves in the same place, at the same time, faced with the same threat to the civilized galaxy, each class has a chance to let their class features shine. But is the story any good? Is it possible for a novel to do what it must to showcase all eight playable classes and still maintain that Star Wars vibe? I turned to leave. Darth Chratis had learned his lesson about me- he would not challenge me again. I saw a young woman, obviously another Sith, running past me with fire in her…

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Blur Studio to Create Cinematic Scenes in Star Wars: The old republic

Soeren Kamper

Alessandro Baldasseroni, character modeler and texture/shader artist for Blur Studio, revealed some interesting information regarding Star Wars: The Old Republic, during an interview with EUCast. While Baldasseroni could not confirm if the previous cinematic trailers would be included in the game, he did say “but for sure we are going to do more like, in game cinematics of this kind, with this kind of style for the game itself.” Scenes in The Old Republic that are similar to the cinematic trailers are definitely something to look forward to. Baldasseroni worked on designs for characters like Darth Malgus, the Sith Lord that appears in both trailers. Baldasseroni also hinted at more trailers or other work by Blur Studios for TOR, but could not go into further detail. The entire interview will be released in Monday’s episode of EUCast. Related Posts TOR TV: SWTOR Horror.Star Wars: Battlefront – Release Date Already Pushed Back?Jaro Tapal: The Steadfast Guardian…

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Clone Wars Adventures E3 2010 Coverage

Soeren Kamper

You may have forgotten about the recent announcement of Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures due to the frenzy of TFU II and TOR coverage coming out of E3 2010. I know I have, so  let’s bring it back to the forefront for a bit as VGChartz provides a preview of the game with screenshots. Here is a snip: The demo starts off in a waiting room area. Here you can wander around, hang out with your friends, and interact with iconic Star Wars characters, and change your personal avatar in the Clone Wars world. One of the most fun features in this section were the droids. Like pets in other MMO-style games, Clone Wars Adventures allows you to have droids follow you around and you can do fun custom things with them. The developer chose C-3PO and made him walk like he was high-stepping. Then he chose an astro droid…

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Know your Lore: Vandar Tokare

Soeren Kamper

Vandar Tokare was a male Jedi Master who was the head of the Jedi Enclave on Dantooine during the Mandalorian Wars and Jedi Civil War, holding a seat on both the Jedi High Council and the Council of the Jedi academy during this time span. He was friends with fellow Council member Vrook Lamar, usually having the last word in their frequent disagreements, most notably on the choice to train Revan once again in the ways of the Jedi after his fall to the dark side of the Force. One of the attendees of the Conclave on Katarr, Tokare was killed during an attack from the Sith Lord Darth Nihilus in which the entire Miraluka colony and many of the survivors of the First Jedi Purge were lost. Biography Tokare took Derrica Praji and another person as Jedi Padawans and trained them on Ossus. In 4,225 BBY Tokare and his…

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How Much Money Will Converting the Star Wars Films to 3D Make?

Soeren Kamper 4 Comments

div class=”separator” style=”clear: both; text-align: center;”></div Apparently, LucasFilm has decided to covert the Star Wars Trilogies into 3D. This is not exactly a surprise, as Hollywood is an a rush to make every movie 3D. But how big of a money maker will it be for the franchise? The cost to convert a traditional 2-D movie into 3D can range between $50,000 and $100,000 per minute. If you split the difference, and say the cost would be $75,000 per minute, then the total price tag to convert all six films would be around $59 million. In 1997, George Lucas released the special editions of Episode IV, V and VI into theatres. Star Wars opened in January and sold $138 million worth of tickets. The Empire Strikes Back opened a month later, but only had $67.6 million in tickets sales. Finally, Return of the Jedi. Now, if you assume that the…

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Know your Lore: Calo Nord

Soeren Kamper

Calo Nord, a Human male, was an infamous bounty hunter who lived during the Jedi Civil War, a galaxy-spanning conflict initiated by the Sith Lords Darth Revan and Darth Malak. Nord was sold into slavery by his mother and father at a young age. On his sixteenth birthday, he killed his slave masters and tracked down his parents, murdering them as well. A bounty was placed on Nord, but he eliminated every mercenary that pursued him. Once the attempts on his life ended, Nord murdered those who had placed the bounty and became a bounty hunter by trade, taking assignments from any party that paid. Nord occasionally worked for the Exchange criminal syndicate boss Davik Kang but had been also contracted by the Galactic Republic for operations in the Core. During the final year of the Jedi Civil War, Nord was on the planet Taris for business with Kang while…

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Secret Mists of Voss

Soeren Kamper

Today BioWare unveils another planet for Star Wars: The Old Republic, and I think that it’s probably the most intriguing planet to date: Voss. If you’ve never heard that name then it’s because it’s a wholly new planet . Here’s the official news: We’re thrilled to announce not only the next planet to be featured in Star Wars: The Old Republic™ but also a planet never-before-seen in the Star Wars™ mythos: Voss. An alien species resides on the mysterious world of Voss and is said to have an incredible aptitude for the Force. These Voss Mystics – rumored to be enigmatic healers as well as seers – struggle to protect their utopian society from annihilation. Discover the secrets of Voss as you are forced time and again to choose between maintaining the appearance of neutrality so important to your leaders or striking against your enemies while you have the chance….

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Know your lore: Darth Nihilus

Soeren Kamper

Darth Nihilus is one of the most enigmatic and terrifying figures in the Star Wars universe. Known as the Lord of Hunger, Nihilus is a Sith Lord whose very existence is tied to an insatiable hunger for the Force, making him a formidable and tragic character. His story, from his origins to his role in the Old Republic and beyond, is a dark tale of power, corruption, and the consequences of unrestrained ambition. In this article, we’ll explore the life and legacy of Darth Nihilus, delving into his history, his influence on the Star Wars universe, and his enduring appeal. Chapter 1: The Origins of Darth Nihilus A Survivor in the Wreckage of War Darth Nihilus’s story begins not in the halls of power, but in the ashes of a devastating conflict. Picture this: you’re on the planet Malachor V, where the echoes of the Mandalorian Wars have left the…

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An Inside Look at Star Wars: The Old Republic

Soeren Kamper

GameSpy has a preview article up for Star Wars: The Old Republic. This looks to be from the November press event where they unveiled the Jedi Consular and the Sith Inquisitor (and the Imperial Agent IIRC). Here’s an excerpt: Before delving into the gameplay demo proper, BioWare unveiled the final list of classes. The approach that the developers are taking with class design eschews the traditional roles you’ve seen in most MMOs, where a balanced party is comprised of an aggro-generating tank, damage-dealers, and a healer. Instead, the intent is to allow players to live out their Star Wars fantasies, presenting familiar but flexible character archetypes. The eight playable classes are as follows, with noteworthy inspirations from the Star Wars universe. It’s a fairly brief article without anything new that I’ve noticed. In fact, some of their points are questionable (such as their list of iconic characters with each class;…

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December 3rd Information Extravaganza

Soeren Kamper 1 Comment

And as I predicted there’s a lot more articles from the press event that BioWare held in November. But instead of quoting each one of them here I’ll just refer to Sean’s post: As some of you already know, we had two press events last month; one in Europe and one in the United States. Today, articles from various websites (and magazines) are being released based on information collected at these two events. We will keep a list of the articles and update this post as new ones arise. G4 Quote: Star Wars: The Old Republic Hands-On Preview BioWare has just released Dragon Age: Origins… Mass Effect 2 is on the horizon… but there’s a third game in development at the RPG mega-studio and it is none other than Star Wars: The Old Republic, the company’s foray into the MMORPG genre. X-Play’s Matt Keil recently got to check out the…

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SW:TOR in Total PC Gaming UK Magazine

Soeren Kamper

I went to buy my Christmas cards today and as I walked past the magazine rack in the store I noticed that one magazine had “Exclusive Star Wars the Old Republic” in big, bold letters on the cover, on top of an image of a Jedi that I hadn’t seen before. Picking up the magazine (which turned out to be “Total PC Gaming”) found that it had a five-page preview (not counting the title page). And since it includes the last two classes it’s definitely new. So I bought the magazine. The magazine comes with a DVD containing screenshots and videos of the game (some 45minutes worth), but it’s nothing you haven’t already seen. All the screenshots can be found on the official website as well (a number of them fairly old in fact). The videos consist of the cinematic trailer from E3, the gameplay walkthrough from CamesCom and the…

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Threat of Peace, Issue #19

Soeren Kamper

The nineteenth issue of Threat of Peace™ marks the start of the third chapter in the story, beginning with the Bounty Hunter Braden returning from his visit to Coruscant. Reporting in, Braden gets further orders from Nok Drayen, and an insightful question. Meanwhile, Lieutenant Tavus meets Jedi Knight Fortris Gall in the ruins of the Jedi Enclave on Dantooine. The truth about the recent attacks begins to unfold. Fans of the series will be pleased to know that the Star Wars: The Old Republic: Threat of Peace webcomic will be published as a graphic novel by Dark Horse Comics in Spring of 2010. The book will comprise all issues of Threat of Peace as well as all new, previously unreleased content. Additional materials will include all-new cover art and previously unseen sketches from the comic as well as concept art from the Star Wars: The Old Republic video game. Liner…

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Sign Up to Test Star Wars: The Old Republic

Soeren Kamper

Sign up for your chance to become a tester for Star Wars: The Old Republic. Star Wars: The Old Republic is now taking applications for beta. This game has been high on the radar of many gamers and now you can start signing up for betato help bring the universe of The Old Republic to life. We are excited to announce that we are now collecting information for those interested in applying for the opportunity to test Star Wars™: The Old Republic™. Our goal is to get feedback to help us make the best game that we can. We will be selecting testers from the Star Wars: The Old Republic community based on various requirements such as systems specifications, age, and region. Because the testing program requires feedback from within the community, you must have an active Star Wars: The Old Republic (“TOR”) community account to participate (no banned accounts)….

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