Star Wars: The Old Republic

[keg in kc]

Don't believe there's a dedicated thread, and since they're starting to release information now, I figure it's time for one.

[keg in kc]

Another hands-on article:

Star Wars: The Old Republic Hands-On - The Bounty Hunter

By Jane Douglas, GameSpot UKPosted May 13, 2010 7:10 am PT

We sample Star Wars: The Old Republic's bounty hunter class and the game's first announced playable alien race, the Rattataki.

In its latest demo of The Old Republic, developer BioWare showed off the bounty hunter playable class, adding another archetype of the Star Wars canon to the lineup for its massively multiplayer online role-playing game. The bounty hunter class is inspired, naturally, by fan favourite Boba Fett. "We want the game to feel as close to the movies as possible," says Daniel Erickson, lead writer. Accordingly, BioWare pays tribute to another "fan favourite," Dark Jedi Asajj Ventress, with the Rattataki: bald, pale-skinned humanoid creatures and the first playable alien race to be announced for the game.

Though BioWare is not talking about Rattataki race-specific attributes yet, the bounty hunter's special abilities--at lowly level six, at least--were laid out for us. The bounty hunter is The Old Republic's gadgeteer class; we played as a male Rattataki bounty hunter, packing the basic arsenal of bounty hunter toys. These included rapid shots, as well as missile blast and rail shots. We also had shocking electro darts and the obligatory flamethrower attack. At the other end of the toolbar sat "recharge and reload," a gradual health and mana restorative akin to eating or drinking in World of Warcraft. This was accompanied with an animation of the bounty hunter tuning up his or her jetpack and flamethrower.

We started out in the palace-cum-cantina home of Nem'ro the Hutt, who issued us a quest to eliminate his nemesis, the leader of a nearby Evocii village. Not only did he want us to bring back his head, but he also wanted us to thin out the ranks of Evocii guardians and scouts along the way--four of one and 10 of the other--in classic MMORPG fashion. Leaving Nem'ro's palace (home to a handful of chatty non-player characters and a Mos Eisley-style cantina band), we headed for the quest waypoints on our map, passing through the settlement of Jigunna. This was a hub with vendors and a medical bay, which formed part of the starting area for bounty hunters and imperial agents. It was sparsely populated as we played, though we're told the non-player population will be expanded for a more bustling hub area. As previously seen, environments and character models were attractive, though not excessively fancy, with strong colouring and an authentic Star Wars art style on their side.

On the far side of Jigunna was The Bog, a swampland, and the Evocii village, where we took on the inferior firepower of the Evocii defenders. In combat, the bounty hunter was mobile and aggressive--able to strafe and blast away. It's "not a cover class," in contrast to other classes, says Erickson. Here again BioWare underlined the nonstatic, not-so-automatic combat of its MMORPG. Besides a health bar, bounty hunter characters have a heat gauge that fills as the character uses its special abilities. This heat gauge, which fills quickly and drains relatively slowly, prevents spamming of the most powerful specials. The jetpack didn't come into play at this level, though it became accessible "sooner rather than later" in combat with flight-powered moves, such as, we're told, "death from above."

Upon reaching the village leader's hut, we were challenged to rethink our mission to kill and behead the leader in light of the Evocii's side of the story. This presented a "moral choice" between completing the quest as ordered and collecting the bounty or agreeing to take back another head (from one of the poor saps you already murdered on the way in). The dialogue options were arranged on a Mass Effect-style wheel. They weren't marked as "light side" or "dark side," a la "renegade" and "paragon," though there was a light and dark side meter on the character stats screen, which influences your choices. These choices are potentially more interesting for a bounty hunter--a basically amoral class--than for, say, a Sith warrior.

It is tough to gauge the real promise of an MMORPG--a game intended for an extended, persistent experience--from single quests and character class demos, but the signs for Star Wars: The Old Republic are still good. Keep an eye out for more from this game as its second quarter 2011 release window approaches.

[keg in kc]

And another, this one more bloggy:

Star Wars: The Old Republic reveal playable species with our hands on

Today, thegalacticstruggle.com managed to get some serious hands on time with Star Wars:The Old Republic and firstly, everyone will be pleased to know that the game is coming along very nicely indeed. After speaking with the guys at LucasArts and Bioware, it’s clear that this game needs to be right when it launches as the expectations from the community are very high. I don’t think any game has so much riding on it and this is probably down to the factors of combining Star Wars and Bioware.

We won’t go too much in to the quest we played today – we will leave that to the other media sites but with our hands on time, we were placed on Hutta as a level 6 Bounty Hunter, taking part in a new story on the planet but probably the most interesting thing was that we were playing as a Ratataki – yes folks – there WILL be playable species in Star Wars: The Old Republic. Players will be able to customise their characters as well. Jake Neri confirmed in our interview that it probably wont be as indepth as the customisation found in Star Wars Galaxies but there will be some variety for players.

During our time with the game, we discovered many neat things dotted around the map – some of which are still work in progress but we did get a chance to take a look in a Spaceport, noticed a few vendors and managed to see inside a Bazaar(auction house). How these elements will play out in the future, we just don’t know as they were not working. Also for the first time, we actually managed to play along side other players – which was alot of fun. I managed to jump in and rescue a couple of others who were pinned down by some of the vile gangsters you will find roaming around Hutta.

Badass Bounty Hunters on Hutta -

The cover system adds a new sense of depth to combat. Instead of the traditional ‘button bashing’ MMO combat, you now actually have to re-think how you will attack. Often, I found myself having to move behind the enemy who were using the crates/speeders/trees as cover, so I could get a clear shot at them and it made the whole experience very engaging.

It’s not Shakespeare but its a damn good story

Personally, one of the biggest surprises was the ’story’. Like some of you, I really didn’t give a rats ass about story as I just wanted to get in to the action and play the ’story’ out myself by actually playing the game. However, once I sat down and the NPC (non player controlled) characters I was interacting with started to speak to me, I suddenly found myself actually CARING about the story and the decisions that I made. This was fantastic! Why? Because from an early stage, you can determine whether you will be a player who actually cares and build up a reputation for being like that, or someone who is a cold hearted killer. By instigating threats for example, you can see how the NPC’s react and importantly, respond. Soon you discover that SWTOR doesnt just become a just game any more – it becomes an engrossing and throughly enjoyable experience. You actually do enjoy the interactions with your surroundings – a great achievement, if you ask me.

Most of the stuff we saw was still work in progress and some ideas might not make the final cut of the game. The developers are trying out lots of new ideas that are either ‘borrowed’ from other MMOs or something that they have created themselves. Amongst traditional Amour/Weapon vendors, we noticed ‘Speeder vendors’ but they werent actually selling Speeders. Instead they appeared to be some sort of taxi service that might put you on a hired speeder bike/transporter and guide you to your chosen Taxi stop. If you think of how the flight masters work in WoW, this is probably how Bioware see this working (IF it stays in the game).

We also saw some kind of personal shuttle device, that might be able to call a shuttle to your location and whisk you away to a different part of the planet, or a new planet altogether but it’s clear that transportation is being taken seriously but how the general mechanics behind how it will work, are yet to be revealed. Our time on Hutta was very enjoyable and as a Star Wars Galaxies vet, I found SWTOR to be very enjoyable and I am extremely excited about the future – bring on the beta!!

[Sweet Daddy Hate]

Between the two factions, there are no recycled NPCs. It's Knights of the Old Republic 3 to infinity. If you printed out the script and it rained, the Earth would be covered in papier mache. Is big game.

Sold.

[keg in kc]

Newly-announced planet...


...



Hoth!

Exclusive: Hoth is in Star Wars: The Old Republic

By Wesley Yin-Poole - 20/05/2010 - 9:04am GMT

VideoGamer.com can exclusively reveal brand new Star Wars: The Old Republic details and lovely-looking screens.

Star Wars: The Old Republic, due out exclusively for the PC in spring 2011, is an MMORPG set over 3000 years before the events of the films and 300 years after developer BioWare's Knights of the Old Republic series.

It's got eight classes, two rival factions (the Galactic Republic and Sith Empire), an unannounced number of humanoid playable races and single-player RPG style moral decision making.

Here we've got the first details on Hoth, one of the most remote and lifeless planets in the Star Wars galaxy.

Hoth, as keen Star Wars fans will know, was the setting of that cool bit in The Empire Strikes back when Luke Skywalker's squadron of Snow Speeders ran rings around Imperial AT-ATs.

In The Old Republic, Hoth has no allegiance, no government, is contested by players from both factions, has frozen desolate wasteland terrain and is littered with wreckage from a major battle of what's called the Great War.

According to Star Wars lore, Hoth was of no real interest to the Republic until it became the site of a devastating military defeat. At the height of the Great War, Republic and Imperial fleets clashed in the Hoth system in a decisive battle which saw the destruction of some of the most advanced and powerful starships in the galaxy.

In the aftermath of the battle, Hoth became a massive starship graveyard, littered with the wreckage of hundreds of warships from both sides, including several prototype ships the Republic had deployed in the hope of turning the tide of the war. As the war raged on, though, neither the Republic nor the Empire had the time and resources to mount a recovery operation.

Upon learning of the wealth of technology abandoned on Hoth, an ambitious pirate confederation started their own salvage operation. They brought an army of droids and mercenaries and began looting all useful remnants from the wreckage in an effort to piece together their own battle cruisers and create a pirate armada.

In the wake of the Treaty of Coruscant, however, both the Republic and Empire have returned to reclaim what's left of their war machines, and Hoth has become a point of considerable contention. Despite the peace and the planet's remote location, skirmishes have broken out, and now both superpowers have become entrenched - committed to fighting for Hoth until the cold, bitter end.

So there you have it. Hoth is in Star Wars: The Old Republic and you'll be able to go there. Now that you've read our words, check out the four exclusive screens and four exclusive pieces of artwork of the famous ice planet. Then, when you're done with that Star Wars loveliness, head over to our hot off the press hands-on preview from EA's spring showcase event.

[Sweet Daddy Hate]

Where is the Wampa?

[keg in kc]

I was hoping for some new Hoth stuff today, but no dice. Their official announcement was the same screens as yesterday. Although there is a vidlet that looks pretty cool.

[Sweet Daddy Hate]

Originally Posted by keg in kc

I was hoping for some new Hoth stuff today, but no dice. Their official announcement was the same screens as yesterday. Although there is a vidlet that looks pretty cool.

I like the online comic-book over there.

[keg in kc]

Yeah, the new one is really good so far. Much better than the first one.

[keg in kc]

I think it just hit me how huge this game is going to be (dimensionally-speaking). They're a year away from release and they've already announced 13 planets.

(Tython, Korriban, Hutta, Ord Mantell, Coruscant, Balmorra, Alderaan, Tatooine, Dromund Kaas, Taris, Belsavis, Voss and now Hoth)

[Sweet Daddy Hate]

Originally Posted by keg in kc

I think it just hit me how huge this game is going to be (dimensionally-speaking). They're a year away from release and they've already announced 13 planets.

(Tython, Korriban, Hutta, Ord Mantell, Coruscant, Balmorra, Alderaan, Tatooine, Dromund Kaas, Taris, Belsavis, Voss and now Hoth)

It's Knights of the Old Republic 3 to infinity.

[Bowser]

Originally Posted by keg in kc

I think it just hit me how huge this game is going to be (dimensionally-speaking). They're a year away from release and they've already announced 13 planets.

(Tython, Korriban, Hutta, Ord Mantell, Coruscant, Balmorra, Alderaan, Tatooine, Dromund Kaas, Taris, Belsavis, Voss and now Hoth)

What, are they in competition with Halo 2, Episode 3 to see who can drag the release date out longer?

[Branden Albert's Huge Balls]

Originally Posted by keg in kc

I think it just hit me how huge this game is going to be (dimensionally-speaking). They're a year away from release and they've already announced 13 planets.

(Tython, Korriban, Hutta, Ord Mantell, Coruscant, Balmorra, Alderaan, Tatooine, Dromund Kaas, Taris, Belsavis, Voss and now Hoth)

Which doesn't really mean much to be honest.

There are well over 50 planets in STO. Most of them have one tiny area where you can beam down.

Now if they pull off SWG-style environments over 13 planets, I'll be impressed. Exploring in that game was FUN.

[Branden Albert's Huge Balls]

Originally Posted by keg in kc

Newly-announced planet...


...



Hoth!

Holy shit. Well, I know where $14.99 of mine is heading per month starting in a year.

[keg in kc]

Originally Posted by GoChiefs

Which doesn't really mean much to be honest.

There are well over 50 planets in STO. Most of them have one tiny area where you can beam down.

Now if they pull off SWG-style environments over 13 planets, I'll be impressed. Exploring in that game was FUN.

I don't think there's been official word on planet scale, but there was a mention in a Coruscant developer dispatch many moons ago that you can see for "miles and miles" on the surface of the planet. Being Coruscant, it's many levels deep, as well. So my guess is that the planets are quite large...

I believe there's already more planets in TOR than there were in Galaxies (although my brain's fuzzy, that was so many years ago...). One thing I do remember from Galaxies was a lot of empty, unused space. I don't think you're going to get much of that in TOR, because they're said to be designing every inch of every planet by hand, in typical BioWare fashion.

Just thinking logically, if you're going to have 8 classes with 200 hours each of class-specific story content, and (according to them) none of the content is going to be used across classes, you're going to need a lot of space in which to work.

As far as the STO comparison goes, this game's the polar opposite of that one in that they haven't even announced (or rumored) space combat yet. Everything to this point is taking place on the ground.

[Branden Albert's Huge Balls]

I could honestly live WITHOUT space combat. I think adding it to SWG made it needlessly complicated, and they should have focused more on making what was already there BETTER.