Star Wars: The Old Republic (U.S Import version)

You love star wars- you love having a choice in what happens-
Then this game is for you.

Not being a person into RPG games, thought I would give this a go since we were all brought up on Star Wars – it was the best thing I ever did was purchasing this game. It's great and the graphics are amazing. So addicted although it kills time quicker than anything else I have played. Playing on the US server has caused no issues whatsoever so getting the import version was worth than having to wait for the AUS/NZ release in March. Highly recommended.

Im loving the story mmo

The pvp does need some work but pve wise its great

SWTOR SWTOR SWTOR

For the Republic or for the Empire – :S

Hmm, I believe its a question that worth days, weeks or even months of discussing and to speculate about. Why- Because its SW. Duh – >.>

Ever since Star Wars trilogy hit the cinemas and then your (and mine) DVD's, it never really (for me) settled down right behind my brain and remained as a forgotten memory.
The concept of ‘The Force’ and ‘Lightsaber’ was a true ingenuity and invention. So much of an influence that there are even ‘Jedi Religion’ >.> … And now – As a game – MMO – Hmmm … It just got more interesting :D

So what is it like – Is it ‘good’ – Is it ‘better’ than *** (censored) – What's so different –

Too many questions and being honest, my best short answer to all those would actually be: ‘Try it for yourself pal!’ But then again, a certain review and breakdown could help right …– … RIGHT -----

So here it is:

SWTOR, as you can see from the cover and also by it's respectful name, its a MMO version of Star Wars lore. Up until now, there has really been scarce amount of SW games that people noted on their christmas or bday list. For too long has this pain prolonged and now the wait is over. Yahoo!

The game orientates like the infamous WoW. Most basic features to some certain aspects are somewhat closely the same, BUT (don't sigh) many features are different and somewhat better.

Gameplay: Compelling story and quest telling is what best sells in this game. Bioware is surely one of the best producers/ company to set a game in the right RPG direction. And always wondered how their mechanics of running a game would fill a role/spot in a MMO world, and SWTOR is just the right one to show everyone how brilliantly it works.

Mass effect and Dragon age series, if you loved them then you surely will not miss out a single drop of excitement in SWTOR. The dialogue, questing and Player to NPC interaction are exact resemblance to them, somewhat a ‘copy and paste’. “What about the star wars RPG from the past-” Well that too ! Every where you have a quest and importance you have full character (non-cheesy) voice acting making the MMORG less bland but more fully alive. As if there's actually a MEANING to questing rather than for ‘grind grind grind I say D: !!’. Unlike … cough cough WoW … D: … Would I get sued for this-

Plot: It carries on from the SW RPG single player series just that its many , I mean, maaaaaaany years later. Story differs according to the class you play and thus it also changes what your alignment (Dark or Light) will be. Interesting.

Graphics: For a MMO – Hmm I would say 7 ~ 8ish out of 10. Not the best, because there ARE nice graphics wielding MMO's out there (MMO pro's would be nodding) but I have to say the graphics are clean, carefully designed and simply ‘nice’. From textures, to dynamic shadowing to particle effects, its all well done. You must take into the fact that not all people's computer rig's are at high end, thus MMO games target their spec to mid range so that many people can play both high and down from that set point. Don't expect a Crysis graphics with Batman physics. If so, then stop reading and press the ‘X’ button on your internet browser top right corner. However do expect a little hindrance with Shadows. Laptop users should make note that shadow can cause a bit of FPS loss (well it did even with my 555m 3GB :( …)

Sound: Haha, sound. There isn't much to say. It is brilliant ~ 10/10 for this feature in my opinion. If you read the news article about someone from EA quitting and throwing a tantrum about how EA spent millions of cash into Voice acting and Sound, well once you start the game you'll go “ohhhhhhhh thaaaat's why :o ~” because it is just brilliant. Soundtrack, ambiance, footsteps (especially), voice echoing, light-saber clashes, less annoying “Oh I got hurt!” groans from characters and most of all R2D2's unforget­table “beep bop~!” Yup they're all in the game :) just that its not R2D2 :( .............­....... Its superb and rings brilliantly under your headphones speaker, creating a better feel of the envrionemnt where your character trudges across to save the galaxy. Right Epic Themed songs hits in at the right moment with while questing. Gives you nice goosebumps making you think Gasp “I'm a Jedi now :O …” Epic song playing It's just great :D !!

Now! … The downnnnnsides, guess you WoW lovers are staring at this part ready to laugh, well shame on you :D

Firstly: Servers. There ARE no current servers for oceanic players. Therefore we all have united to use the server called ‘The Harbinger’. It is our current dummy server where Oceanic players have signed a little “un-see-able” pact so that we can meet similar ping players and enjoy much as we can. Yes pings are higher than 160ms in most case, sometimes reaches up to 300 if unlucky or when too crowded, and it is annoying when trying to play. HOWEVER !!!!! I have a great news IF you're going to play now. Coz, I skyrocketted into the roof when I read this article:

Http://toroz.com­.au/2012/02/its-official-swtor-launches-in-australianz-on-xxx/

That's right~! If you play and have a character made we will get free transfer into the Oceanic server ! Just that not to sure if its only 1 or more :/ … But who cares :D its free! Might of make heaaaps of character now, test out what you like most and transfer one you prefer best ! By this point not only would you have your best character in Oceanic Server but also you would have fair knowledge of all classes :) not too bad don't you think –

Secondly: Transition time and learning curve. I have to admit, SWTOR has its own way of creating complexity. Not too identical too other infamous MMO's out there and by so its dymnaic and have different taste while playing. But then again, it WILL take time getting used to. Such as having companions, crew skills, ships and weapon modifying items/ vendors. All are not well explained before you start your adventure. So need to ‘research’ or ask another member if you know someone well enough.

Lastly: Is the PVP balanced- Well, I can't say on behalf of all players out there. And I too believe it would be biased conclusion if I say ‘YES’. Many things apply if you consider things such as, players experience, items and game mechanics. This is something that EA is trying to balance and I think they are working on it fairly well. Patches are common right now, and therefore a lot of changes occur every so often. But sometimes, I wonder why level 10 player is allowed to enter ‘Warzone’ (same as Battleground) fighting off level 40 and higher. Yes, I'm not joking, this is true. The only thing that is there to balance is that you earn a temporary ‘upgrade’ so that all your stats and skills are equivalent to of a level 50 (I think! >.<). Otherwise- Yes, you will get pretty well hammered.

So … If still not convinced but have that eager to play, then press that “Add trolley” button now! :D

I shall see you in SWTOR Padawan.

May the ‘Force’ be with you … (I actually find this quote cheesy >_>) …