Search Results for: DICE

Hands-on Preview: Star Wars: The Old Republic

Lisa Clark

In this article, Leo Stiles of Joe.ie tell us about his hands-on preview of SWTOR. Now that more and more players are getting access to the game, we are hearing a lot of different reviews and previews but it never hurts to get another opinion on the game. From the moment Leo chose his class as a Bounty Hunter, he got treated to a wonderful cut scene displaying some graphics he can only describe as “remarkable”. If the cartoon style graphics have you on the fence then you should really see them in action as everything flows perfectly together. According to Leo, the questing is so well done you won’t feel like your simply “gathering” materials or “counting kills” because they are minor parts to the larger story. Fulfilling the quests in the game are so in depth to the story line that they are entertaining and not a level…

Read More

Bioware: No Lifetime Subscription Option For Star Wars: The Old Republic

Soeren Kamper

Now that we finally have a release date for SWTOR, many gamers are planning their playtime and devotion to the game. Some so much so that they are ready to pledge themselves to a lifetime subscription to the game or at least wondering if there will be an option to do so if they end up loving the game as much as they are predicting they will. I enjoy following Stephen Reid, SWTOR’s Senior Community Manager on Twitter because he is always a wealth of information in a hilarious package. His snarky responses when people try to get snippy with him can be pretty funny, too. Ultimately it’s a great source to get your quick-hit SWTOR questions answered and you can learn a lot from the answers he gives to others as well. On the topic of lifetime subscription options for SWTOR, Reid clarified that they do not have any…

Read More

Ultimate Starship Guide

Soeren Kamper

Are you wanting to know more about starships? You’re not alone but now you can find a great rundown of everything you need to know about starships in SWTOR in the Ultimate Starship Guide video from TGN. In this video, Ned goes through all the features of Starships in the old republic in this Ultimate guide! He starts from the beginning with an explanation on how and when your hero gets a starship. He then goes into the purposes of your starship complete with screenshots from the game showing you exactly what the voiceover is talking about. Look at it like an inside tour of various starships you can see in the game. Next, he tells us how the starships are key for travel in the game (duh) but also tells us about hangars and where to find them as well as the basics of how you travel. Then he…

Read More

James Ohlen: Companions, Release Date Talk

Soeren Kamper

James Ohlen says large component of SWTOR still un-announced and he explains to Newsarama why this is the case. With all the hype and anticipation that’s been building for this game since it was first revealed, BioWare wants to make sure it lives up to its expectations. The director says “it would be terrible if something went wrong just as the game was getting going,” especially after BioWare has put so much work into TOR for several years. They want to ensure the launch goes smoothly without any major issues. Ohlen also states that any catastrophe such as the games servers going down would be upsetting and disappointing for everyone from the players to the team developing the game, which has worked diligently to get things ready for the big release day. He also said there is more to The Old Republic than what gamers know about so there will…

Read More

No SWTOR for the Aussies- Maybe Someday but Not at Launch

Soeren Kamper

We previously wrote about how (and potentially why) there was no pre-order available for SWTOR to Australia, or anyone outside of the US and Europe. While many were searching for answers and speculating on the reasoning behind this, Darth Hater set out to get us some answers at San Diego Comic Con this weekend. They posed the question to Stephen Reid as follows: Darth Hater: We know that publishers have a variety of problems when trying to launch a game overseas that range from regional politics, ratings boards, server infrastructure, localization, distribution, and more. Why did you choose not to launch in certain regions? Stephen Reid: The answer is “none of the above.” We didn’t make that decision because of ratings board issues, localization or whatever else. What it ultimately comes down to is simple, but it is kind of a difficult concept to grasp: it is about quality of…

Read More

SWTOR Companions List

Editor

Here is the full companions List for Star Wars: The old republic. Each class will be able to get a total of 5 companions through out the game. Each companion will be able to do different types of damage or play different roles in a group. Each companion will also give different bonuses to your crew skills in swtor. Pro Tip 1: If you enter your Quest Log, go to Codex then ‘Person of Note’, you can see what your companion likes/dislikes. This way you know what to say on dialogs to get +affection. Pro Tip 2: Companions use crafting materials that are in your cargo hold, you don’t have to carry crafting materials on you. Pro Tip 3: If you hit N for crew skills, you can click the individual crew skill next to each companion. For the longest time I was picking the general “slicing” button at the…

Read More

The Guild Sphere: Section Umbra

Soeren Kamper

It’s Thursday which means time to have a chat with a new Guild. This time we had the pleasure to speak to a fellow Scandinavian about his role playing guild Section Umbra. Enjoy! Where did your guilds name come from? Our name is the core of our guild to be honest. We are a sub element of the Republic Intelligence, a special Section. And to name a special section which primary will gather intelligence and the likes, shadow usually have something to do with it. So, Section Umbra it became. Umbra is defined as many things, but a very short description would be “The darkest part of shadow.” Can you give me a quick 2-3 sentance description of your guild? Section Umbra is an guild based on the Galactic Republic Intelligence, our HQ will be found at Coruscant. The section was created for recruiting special units to serve the republic and their missions are various, though…

Read More

SOE Shoots Down Star Wars Galaxies Petitions

Soeren Kamper

If you were a Star Wars Galaxies fan signing the petitions to keep SWG and make it free-to-play, Sony Online Entertainment has offered an official reply to your demands:   “Regarding the Star Wars Galaxies petitions, we first want to thank everyone for taking the time to organize such an effort. As always, we appreciate your feedback, and I can assure you with 100% confidence that your feelings have been heard. No one is more disappointed than we are to cancel Star Wars Galaxies; however, we are confident that this was the only decision possible. This was not an easy decision to make; Sony Online Entertainment and Lucas Arts spent months deliberating, and in the end we had to make the hard choice. We are extremely proud of the ground we broke with the launch of SWG, its growth and evolution since launch, and most especially, the community. We would…

Read More

Top 10 reasons to play SWTOR

Soeren Kamper

Domslife did a YouTube Movie showing the Top Ten reasons I want to play Star Wars: The Old Republic. Not that many of you need convincing off course, But it is a well made video that was worth sharing. I thought I’ve seen every video, every little thing put out for this game but there were some things in the background I don’t recall seeing, namely the Darth Malgus scene actually in-game. Great video and some good info tucked in behind the reasons. Related Posts Changes to the Cartel Market — Tuesday November 28 2017Changes to the Cartel Market — Monday July 23 2018Rise of the Hutt Cartel Preparation and GuideStar Wars Galaxy of Heroes: Road Ahead: July 2021 Friday Update: MapsI Find Your Lack of Zoom Lollies DisturbingWarwick Davis Confirmed for ‘Star Wars: Episode VIII’The Old Republic #1 “Threat of Peace” printed edition on sale this week

Read More

E3 SWTOR Previews/Impressions

Soeren Kamper

As E3 continues and more hands-on demos and reports go around, we find out more and more about the game we are all so eager to play for ourselves. Here are three very different impressions from the E3 hands-on experience worth checking out: PC Gamer Tim Edwards from PC Gamer jumps in with his own first impressions of the game. I love the PC Gamer guys. I have them on my Steam account and play on their servers when they have fun events. I was curious what they would have to say about SW:TOR. This preview begins: “The E3 presentation for Star Wars: The Old Republic is about two things: showing raids for the first time, and pulling together all the disparate threads from a PR campaign that’s lasted nearly three years.” Thank you PC Gamer, tell us more! They go on to give us info about raids in TOR…

Read More

Gear swapping in mid-combat? – No Says Georg Zoeller

Soeren Kamper

While many MMOs have gear-swapping or weapon-swapping in combat, Georg Zoeller says that SWTOR will not.   This has some fans unhappy but Zoeller explains the reasoning behind it: “Switching weapons to maximize stats is not the kind of gameplay we want to encourage. It’s tedious and not fun for the overwhelming majority of players, and since some players would feel compelled to engage in the behavior if it offered a benefit, regardless how tedious and unfun it was, we just disallow it, period.”   Some are worried about what would happen if say, you were caught in combat without a weapon. Zoeller answers this as well: “It’s pretty much impossible to not have a weapon equipped. You’d have to work for that. Sure, you can unequip a weapon and not equip a new one, but there’s no compelling reason to do so .. even less outside in the wilderness…

Read More

Know Your Lore: Tott Doneeta

Soeren Kamper

Tott Doneeta, also known as Tottdon’eeta, was a Twi’lek Jedi Knight who was an apprentice to Master Arca Jeth, together with his Jedi brothers Ulic and Cay Qel-Droma, on Arkania. He assisted in ending the crisis on Iziz and fought in the Great Sith War. He was a competent pilot, and learned to fly one of the Beast Rider’s war beasts. Doneeta was present at both the Jedi Convocation on Exis Station and the Convocation at Mount Meru. Tott Doneeta was also present when his Jedi brother Ulic fell to the Dark Side, and the subsequent action of Nomi Sunrider’s robbing Ulic of the Force. Later, he saved Vima Sunrider by grappling onto her escape pod as it drifted towards a star, due to his delayed arrival at the latter Convocation. Later in life, he attempted to help Cathar Jedi Sylvar free herself from her anger; however, he realized he…

Read More

Entire Star Wars “Return of the Jedi” in MS Paint [GIF]

Soeren Kamper

A long, long time ago in a galaxy quite close to here- it was this column actually- we brought you the first two original Star Wars instalments redone in GIF form on MS Paint by a genius with a lot of time and the kind of dedication that inspired the building of the Death Star. Check out A new hope here and Empire strikes back here Part of those links was a promise that the third and final instalment would follow soon, and here (albeit almost a year later) is the fruit of that promise: The creator- FoldsFive (otherwise known as part-time pixel-masher David Court) offered the following response on Digg when the A New Hope GIF found its way back into the collective Geek consciousness that calls itself the Internet: Sometimes I find myself amazed by the internet. How something I made an age ago can suddenly pick up…

Read More

LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars Boss Screenies Revealed

Soeren Kamper

A few weeks ago, we showed a video trailer for LEGO Star Wars III. This time we get the chance to look at some screenshots of boss battles for this upcoming game. The Game is developed by Traveller’s Tales and published by LucasArts and TT Games, and will be the following gaming platforms: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PSP, Nintendo DS, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo 3DS (as a launch title for the new gaming device), and PC. LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars is scheduled to launch on March 22, 2011 Key Features: New Story – For the first time, players will experience their favourite storiesfrom Star Wars: The Clone Wars, retold in the amazing LEGO world that fans know and love.  Massive Ground Battles – Brand new to the LEGO Star Wars experience, players will take control of battalions of clone troopers against the relentless droid army – building bases, deploying vehicles and calling in…

Read More

The BioWare Method

Soeren Kamper

At Last weeks DICE Summit, the BioWare Co-Founders Greg Zeschuk and Ray Muzyka gave a presentation to attendees entitled “The BioWare Method.” In this the doctors explained how it has been a long road to get to where BioWare is today, and share some of the knowledge they have learned through out the years in business. The most important lesson in releasing a successful game is recruiting and maintaining a strong team, and BioWare’s co-founders, Dr. Greg Zeschuk and Dr. Ray Muzyka, explain how it’s done. They alsoencourage long-term and forward thinking, always play games to continue learning, and maintain a positive team culture. One of the biggest components of keeping together a strong team is communication and honesty. Dr. Zeschuk and Dr. Muzyka admitted that Mass Effect 1 DLC didn’t go quite as well as expected, so going forward the Dragon Age and Mass Effect teams worked together to…

Read More

BioWare founders on why corporate humility matters

Soeren Kamper

A few month ago we posted the story of BioWare. Now doing the DICE Summit in Las Vegas this week, the Founders of BioWare; Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk was honored in the gaming’s Hall of Fame for their contributions to the game industry over the past two decades. Venturebeat had a chance to sit down and speak about what the guys believe is the key behind BioWare’s massive success and to talk about their up comming games including Star Wars: The Old Republic. According to the doctors, their key to success comes from the corporate humility that is one of the foundations in their company philosophy. Muzyka and Zeschuk have a lot of old-fashioned values. They run their company as a meritocracy. They keep their promises. They communicate with a clear measure. They focus on quality. They are persistent in the face of adversity. In the interview below they…

Read More

Greg Zeschuk: World of Warcraft established the MMO standards

Soeren Kamper

Co founder of  BioWare Greg Zeschuk did a public Speaking at the DICE summit in Las Vegas yesterday. Here he confessed that World of warcraft has set the standards for any MMORPG. and that the developer’s own offering, Star Wars: The Old Republic, looks to it for “standards”. Furhtermore he doesn’t see SWTOR as a WoW-killer. The players will decide if SWTOR will become a succes: “It is a touchstone,” Zeschuk said of WoW, according to GamesIndustry. “It has established standards, it’s established how you play an MMO: “It is a touchstone,” Zeschuk told the audience. “It has established standards, it’s established how you play an MMO. Every MMO that comes out, I play and look at it. And if they break any of the WoW rules, in my book that’s pretty dumb. If you have established standards, WoW established them.” Zeschuk also admitted that it will be an “interesting challenge” to compete with…

Read More

Fan Friday

Soeren Kamper

As always, the Fan Friday segment contains New Fan Stuff by the Geeks to the Geeks. The most noteworthy portion is the announcement that Star Wars: The Old Republic will be present at PAX East this year. The convention will be held from March 11-13 in Boston, Massachusetts. Other then that you can find tons ofother cool stuff: New Smilies and avatars pics for www.swtor.com. Dont miss the New Studio Insider this month for an in-depth look at the design of the Agent starship and more Community Q&A answers. If you have some talents you wish to share then visit the community forums. Greighson from the SWTOR forum community created Sith-themed propaganda. Another member named Crypticgrrl detailed close-up portraits. They look really awesome. There are Some really nice Fan Fic work. The story’s called Final Ex a member named Kharnis. If I finish any of my Star Wars stories then…

Read More

The Old Republic vs. Knights of the Old Republic 3

Soeren Kamper

The first Knights of the Old Republic game in 2003 was, as a few people may already know, the first thing that really got me into Star Wars; to this day I still remember the amazed feeling of awe I had when I first set foot on Taris and looked at the beautiful city landscape, the shining sun in the game adding to the mood of the setting. The feeling was really cinched when I reached the ultimate twist in the game; that you are in fact Darth Revan, the apparently dead Sith Lord who was betrayed by his (or her) Apprentice, Darth Malak. There’s never been anything that’s really been able to replicate the epicness of this game – even the sequel, penned by game company Obsidian, wasn’t quite as good. I’m one of the few people who thought that The Sith Lords was actually a great game; sure,…

Read More

How Stuff Works: The Star Wars galaxy

Soeren Kamper

Among fans, the Galaxy is referred to as the Star Wars Galaxy or the Galaxy far, far away, or the GFFA for short. The Galaxy was said to contain a “type 3” civilization (in the Kardashev scale — whereas Earth is home to a “type 0.7” civilization). This scale takes into account the level of integration and civilization between peoples (albeit this integration also involves different species, rather than just racial variations of only one sentient species, as it is on a sole planet), which in essence form one single “galactic civilization”, given the political unification (despite the few separatisms) and the integration of the worlds in spite of the considerable distances (with effective means of transportation).Nothing connects the Galaxy with ours (Milky Way). However if we are to consider the crossover between Star Wars and E.T., we can infer the following: the Brodo Asogi leader, Senator Grebleips sent an expedition…

Read More

EA: Old Republic will have ten-year lifespan

Soeren Kamper

Speaking at the UBS Annual Media and Communications Conference in New York, EA CFO Eric Brown confirmed that SWTOR will use the monthly subscription business model. He also predicted a ten-year lifespan for the game: “Our assumptions for break-even and profitability are not seven-digit subscribers. We think we can run and operate a very successful and profitable MMO at different levels… The key thing here is to really perfect the product. We’re shooting for an extremely high quality game experience. We view this as a ten-year opportunity.” It was also mentioned that SWTOR “…will generate revenue through monthly subscriptions” With such a highly anticipated title on their hands, it is very surprising to hear EA more or less undercut their projections. Obviously not wanting to fail under the feet of the World of Warcraft juggernaut, the publisher thought it better to keep their sales projections reasonable and instead hope the…

Read More

First review of Star Wars: The Old Republic: Deceived

Soeren Kamper

The first reviews of Paul S. Kemp’s upcomming book Star Wars: The Old Republic: Deceived is starting to show up on Amazon. It’s interesting that so many people already read the book considering the considering the release have been moved to March 22, 2011. One have to wonder if it has be planted or it is a real honest review. Anyways. Anyways. Here it is: First of all, let me say that my biggest peeve with Star Wars novels is that too many authors seem content to fill their books with ridiculous plot devices, endless battle scenes, and shallow characters. I’ve had enough of superweapons – after all, we all know the good guys defeat them. Unfortunately, I thought Sean Williams’ Star Wars: The Old Republic: Fatal Alliance, the first in the Old Republic series, exemplifies these problems. As such, I admit I approached Star Wars: The Old Republic: Deceived with…

Read More

Massively’s 2010 Player’s Choice Awards – VOTE SWTOR!

Soeren Kamper

A few days ago we asked you to vote for Star Wars: The old Republic in the annual Reader’s Choice award over at MMORPG:com. Today Massively have posted the list of nominees for their Player’s Choice Awards as well, and not surprisingly our all time favourite upcoming mmorpg SWTOR is nominated. As we approach the end of 2010 (yes, already), we look back at not only an interesting year for MMOs, but also an amazing decade for such a young genre. We’ve had our highs and lows since last year’s awards, including the now-hilarious choice of APB as Most Anticipated for 2010 by the Massively staff. This year we have a new survey format, new categories and new nominees. We also have a new title, changing it from Reader’s Choice to Player’s Choice, to reflect the fact that you don’t necessarily need to be a Massively reader to vote. This…

Read More

Friday Update: Closer Look at Crew Skills

Soeren Kamper

Game Systems Designer Patrick Malott talks about the Crew Skill system and reveals another crafting skill (though the systems page hasn’t been updated yet): Armstech. Here’s the blog: Introduction I’m Patrick Malott. I’ve worked as a Game Systems Designer on various titles over the years, but what we’re working on here at BioWare Austin is my dream project: Star Wars™: The Old Republic™. In my current role, designing and building out the Crew Skills system is one of the biggest projects I’m involved in. As a passionate multiplayer online gamer myself, I know that crafting is a critical part of the experience for many of you, and I’m dedicated to making sure you enjoy the way it works in The Old Republic. In this blog, I want to shed some light on the design decisions we’re making with Crew Skills… and I might just drop a few new specifics on the Armstech crafting…

Read More