RP-in-the-MMORPG
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Hyperspace Beacon: Rule of many
It feels a bit meta to respond to my own column, but my last article caused quite a stir. I would be vainglorious to believe that my point of view is the only one or that it is the best one. Given the 68 responses to my article in the comments section here and over 17 pages on the official Star Wars: The Old Republic forum -- at least half of which completely disagreed with me -- I would be ignorant to believe that there is room for only one approach to the subject. On top of that, Principal Lead Combat Designer Georg Zoeller offered a compelling argument that counters my stance in a completely unrelated thread. In this issue of the Hyperspace Beacon, I'm going to give voice to the opposition. I would hope that everyone who responded to the last article wants SWTOR to succeed as much as I do. (I realize that what I said previously could be construed as not wanting this game to be great, but that's untrue. I want the game to be the best it can be.) Many of the comments I received can be categorized together, so following the break, I will summarize the other positions. Let's see how SWTOR is keeping the MMO in the MMORPG.
Hyperspace Beacon: Rule of one
I hate doing this. I really do. But sometimes one little phrase stands out way too much. One tiny thing a developer says can create an oh-@#$% moment. "Your ship's cargo hold is, indeed, your bank." That small phrase uttered by Lead Combat Designer Damion Schubert on the official Star Wars: The Old Republic forum was one of the phrases that made me do a bit of a double take. The concept of SWTOR changed for me. I began to question -- again -- whether this is truly a multiplayer game. We know the developers at BioWare have stated that they hope to put the RP back into the MMORPG; however, are they taking out the MMO? We know now that your bank is on your ship. Although they can be utilized from just about anywhere, Crew Skills are centered around your ship. There will be PvP and Flashpoint queuing, which can be done from your ship. Your companions are on your ship. What isn't on your ship? Trainers? Leveling quests? Many developers have said you don't have to group for your leveling quests, implying that they can be completed solo from beginning to end. It appears to me that perhaps there is something that I am missing. What part of the game is going to require -- or at very least, encourage -- me to actually play with other people? Force leap through the cut and let's discuss this further.
