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Massively's guide to SWTOR's launch and beyond
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, we first heard mention of a new Star Wars MMO set in the popular Knights of the Old Republic era. Star Wars: The Old Republic, BioWare named it, and we've waited patiently impatiently through months years of hope and hype, fanboys and haters, and at least eight million articles about the fourth pillar of story. This week, The Old Republic is the new hotness, and the Massively staffers are right there with you, champing at the bit to get in the head start already! But what if you're not an expert on Star Wars lore or TOR's gameplay? What if you don't know the first thing about purple lightsabers, astromechs, and the Kessel Run? What if you can't decide which class to play? When do you get a starship? Can you really romance your companions? How do flashpoints work? And why are there no bathrooms on Coruscant?! Relax, young Padawan. Put your blast-shield down and let Massively be your guide... literally. We've rounded up a massive collection of helpful introductory guides for each of the eight classes, along with overviews of gameplay mechanics like companions, starships, flashpoints, warzones, and crafting. We've also curated the most illuminating lore essays from our regular SWTOR column, Hyperspace Beacon, in addition to our extensive hands-on previews from the last few years. Take your first step into a larger world...
SWTOR lifts NDA and reveals Legacy system, new flashpoint, art book
Do you hear that? That's the sound of a million voices who were silenced suddenly freed to share their experiences with Star Wars: The Old Republic. That's because BioWare has officially lifted the non-disclosure agreement (NDA) allowing testers to talk about the game. BioWare VP Greg Zeschuk posted the announcement just minutes ago on the forums: As of now, the non-disclosure portion of our Game Testing Agreement is officially lifted. While all players must still accept the Game Testing Agreement, from this point on testers may now freely talk about their experiences this past weekend in the game, as well as post screenshots and gameplay videos of their testing experiences. We encourage you to come join us on the official Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ Forums to share your experiences! The Star Wars: The Old Republic community site will have a copy of this message on the forums and it will also appear in the Patcher. Players may not talk about nor reprint posts from our testing forums as they are still fully covered by the confidentiality portions of our Game Testing Agreement. And all players who want to participate in the upcoming Beta Test Weekends still have to accept all terms of the Game Testing Agreement. So, other than that, free feel to talk about and share your experiences in Star Wars: The Old Republic. If all that wasn't exciting enough, the dev team also released articles covering the flashpoint Bringing Down the Hammer, the book, The Art and Making of The Old Republic, and the Legacy system, which allows for a family last name shared across characters.
SWTOR walks us through the Flashpoint 'Esseles'
BioWare and LucasArts have said since the first announcement of Star Wars: The Old Republic that choices will matter. No one witnessed that more than visitors to the BioWare booth at San Diego Comic-Con. These fans had to choose between saving the engineering crew or saving the bridge crew in the Flashpoint called The Esseles. In this fast-paced instance, you and your party are trapped aboard the Republic cruiser called the Esseles. Like Darth Vader asking for the ambassador on board the Corellian Corvette at the beginning of A New Hope, the commander of an Imperial Star Destroyer in this Flashpoint is also seeking a Republic ambassador. The difference here is the Imperial forces haven't boarded yet. It is your job to hold them off. After the break, catch the full 13-and-a-half-minute walkthrough narrated by Director of Production Dallas Dickinson, sans epic beard unfortunately.
Hyperspace Beacon: Nuna bites
If you happened to be in San Diego this weekend then you may have noticed a large gathering of geekery known as Comic-Con. Usually, this mecca of nerdom focuses on comic book related publications. Although Star Wars: The Old Republic isn't exactly comic book gold, Dark Horse comics rose through the ranks of pulp royalty because of its vast library of Star Wars-related publications. It only seems right that TOR presents itself to this audience. Besides the panel in Comic-Con proper, BioWare developers hosted three separate question and answer sessions focusing on Star Wars: The Old Republic. As with most Q&As, the majority of questions asked have been answered already in the past. If you were hanging out in Darth Hater's Ventrilo server like I was during the live broadcasts, then you heard a lot of "We knew that already." That being said, there were some pieces of juicy meat tossed to the crowd that we had not heard before. I will call them nuna bites, and you can find your slice after the break.
The Perfect Ten: Predictions for The Old Republic
I'm going to share with you a deep secret about the Massively staff: Pretty much all of us hate Larry. Oh, as a person he's likable enough, and he showers regularly, so no complaints there. He even saved the President's dog once and earned the Merit of Patriotic Pooches. Women swoon at his feet, and men occasionally throw their billfolds at him just so that he can afford to live the luxurious lifestyle that he obviously deserves. No, we hate him for a different reason entirely. You see, Larry gets the privilege and honor of being the Star Wars: The Old Republic reporter in these here parts, which has earned him no end of envy from the rest of us. Whenever we're all talking about TOR, Shawn will come in the room and tell all of us to cut it out -- except Larry. "Larry, it's your job to talk about The Old Republic. Keep on truckin', pal! You're the best!" And then Larry sticks his tongue out at us and makes pretend lightsaber noises for an hour or so while we grit our teeth. But then I remembered: I have a top ten column! In which I can talk about anything! And if that subject so happened to be TOR, then for one glorious week I could actually talk about BioWare's upcoming MMO without fear of reprisal from upper management! So today is all about my predictions for The Old Republic. Nine of them will come true; one will not. Have fun guessing which one!
PAX East 2011: Hands-on with SWTOR's Taral V
Star Wars: The Old Republic was an obvious hit at PAX East. Fans stood in line for hours just to get a chance to touch one of the most anticipated games of this year and to catch a glimpse of Taral V, the first publicly shown Flashpoint. The excitement to be one of the first to get hands on SWTOR group content was palpable. Our contributing editors Larry Everett and Eliot Lefebvre scored that opportunity to play the game last Saturday. Read on as our intrepid reporters showcase their experiences in the Star Wars universe. Draw your blaster and ignite your lightsaber as we head to a galaxy far, far away... Larry Everett: There are many things that can distract you from actually playing Star Wars: The Old Republic. Who wouldn't be distracted by the incredible layered scenery? I'd think the spot-on animations would make you want to attack more, although it is possible that you could attack the wrong target. Perhaps it was the vivid facial expressions that would cause someone to not make a dialogue choice. These have to be the reasons behind the fact that the Jedi Knight on our team completely failed to do his job in one of the most incredibly polished games and easy-to-slide-into games I have have ever played.
Hyperspace Beacon: Sithing up for PAX East
If you haven't been paying attention, then you wouldn't know that Star Wars: The Old Republic is going to make a huge appearance at PAX East this year. However, unlike past appearances, this presentation is all about giving the fans a first-hand experience with the game. The SWTOR community team has promised Flashpoints, Jedi classes, and origin worlds that the fans can see, hear, touch, and feel. For a fan who has been following the game since before October of 2008, this is far more exciting than any on-stage performance. With all of the hoopla, it may be difficult to know every single thing that is going on. And as your guide through the vastness of hyperspace, I should give you a guideline so you do not miss a vital piece of the event. Follow me after the cut for a breakdown of the planned events and some suggestions for things to do while attending PAX.
SWTOR says BAM! is the word for today's update
Big news exploded from the Star Wars: The Old Republic camp today. We knew BioWare was going to be at PAX East this year, but we knew nothing of the team's specific plans. In today's updates, the SWTOR devs not only revealed more about the Bounty Hunter profession as we predicted from yesterday's IGN video reveal but also told us that visitors to their PAX booth would be the first of the general public to play the Taral V flashpoint. The Bounty Hunter page has been overhauled to reflect the advanced classes of Powertech and Mercenary. On the starships page, catch the detailed specs of the Kuat Drive Yards D5-Mantis Patrol Craft -- or the D5-Mantis, for those who think KDYD5MPC is a silly acronym. Mako, the Nar Shaddaa slicer, was officially revealed as a companion for the Bounty Hunter. Also, don't forget the Rattataki species on the inhabitants page. SWTOR fans who were waiting on endgame reveals will hopefully be going to PAX East this year. You will be able to play a Trooper, Smuggler, Jedi Knight, or Jedi Consular in the Republic Taral V flashpoint, with Lead Designer James Ohlen and Lead Writer Daniel Erickson in the booth to answer all your questions. While you're at booth 912, don't forget to ask for your invitation to the Community Meet and Greet, which starts directly after the booth closes Saturday night -- the event's at the Westin Boston Waterfront hotel right next to the convention center. %Gallery-118438%
SWTOR dev builds mini-movies in Flashpoints
We all know BioWare is acclaimed for the presentation of its games. Single-player games like Knights of the Old Republic, Mass Effect, and DragonAge have a way of capturing a player and immersing him in the world. How many of you have ever wondered what it would be like to invite your friends along for a ride on a BioWare game, too? This could be the key reason BioWare decided to make Flashpoints in Star Wars: The Old Republic. Jesse Sky is a world designer at BioWare Austin. In the most resent developers blog for SWTOR, he details what it takes to build a Flashpoint. He explains that it's not all about getting to the next boss fight: "Fighting through legions of enemies is part of what makes the cooperative gameplay feel heroic, but we find it helps if your enemies do more than just stand around waiting to be attacked." According to Sky, many players have run dungeons that have them wondering why they are there, with no sense of purpose. "We want you to feel like you are the heroes in a Star Wars action sequence, but we also want to give you opportunities to roleplay with your friends." Sky indicates again that SWTOR's emphasis is not only making a great game but also making a great story. Be sure to read the whole developers blog on the official Star Wars: The Old Republic website.
[Updated] SWTOR unveils the Taral V flashpoint
We've been told about Star Wars: The Old Republic flashpoints for over a year now, since the Developer Walkthrough, but no one outside of BioWare has seen, touched, or really known anything about them -- until today. Gamespot was lucky enough to land the first glimpse into one of the Republic flashpoints: Taral V. This 90-minute story arc within SWTOR was summed up in a subsequent interview with Jesse Sky, World Designer for SWTOR. A powerful Jedi is being held prisoner inside a nebula, and only one specific computer can navigate the maelstrom. Sky highlights the flashpoint like so: "Your mission is to infiltrate the hidden Imperial fortress on Taral V and recover this computer. Success will mean that the Republic fleet can launch an assault on the prison where you can, perhaps, rescue the Jedi prisoner." For more on the interview with Jesse Sky, you can run over to Gamespot or follow after the break right here on Massively for the full Taral V video. [Update: The official SWTOR website has added a new section for Flashpoints including four other instances besides Taral V. We also updated the video so it does not have the three minutes of nothing at the end.]
