Star Wars:TOR, EA's most expensive game ever

[JoshGuru7]

If you want more information about The Old Republic you can watch some of their trailers here: http://www.swtor.com/media/trailers

I recommend the three Video Documentaries for specifics on how the features you associate with other Bioware games are going to be applied to a MMO.

 

[s44]

Bio has said many times that they *will* have "classic MMO" stuff like endgame content, raids, PVP, etc. and are dedicating real resources to that.

It's just that the *first* thing they want people to know is what will make TOR different, and that's the story/character stuff the company is known for. KOTOR meets Mass Effect (yes, the wheel returns) -- basically, you'll get to star in a bunch of extra-long Star Wars movies. I can hear the money piling up already.

 

[KaOTiK]

Did you ever play KOTOR? Many people consider it to have one of the better storylines of any Bioware game. The Star Wars IP is just the background and Bioware has the freedom to take their stories in whichever direction they want due to setting them several thousand years before the films.

Yes I have, and because of that it is the the whole reason I gave this MMO any attention besides knowing it came from Bioware cause I knew they can make it not feel overly Star Wars ish if that makes sense? Took me a little bit in KOTOR but after a bit I forgot (mostly) that it was SW overall, I'm hoping for the same here as I am an MMO junkie.

 

[GaryJohnson]

That does not mean that hundreds or thousands of players play together.

Yes, that is exactly what it means. The M stands for massive. Massive means a large number of people in the same game environment. By your logic, TF2 is an MMO.

 

[Beev]

For everyone complaining, the game isn't EA, it's Bioware. Just because EA "owns" Bioware it doesn't automatically become an EA game. It's just like how Blizzard games are NOT Activision games.

 

[SunnyD]

Given that EA has spent maybe a collective $13.79 on every franchise rehash it has put out in the last 5 years, pretty sure they have enough dime laying around to bankroll a new franchise to milk.

 

[Magusigne]

That thinking didn't work for SW:G ...

It DID succeed for a few years..It was pretty ahead of its time..It's just that when the almighty WoW came on the scene...and Sony got retarded...well..we all know what happened.

I still have not found a better game for non-com's in the form of resource extraction..having your own store with factory and overall crafting experience.

 

[frozentundra123456]

MMO so it's automatically a no-go for me.

Glad someone feels the way I do about MMOs. I loved KOTOR 1, and KOTOR 2 was also good but unpolished. However, I refuse to play MMOs because I want to play when I want (alone), without having to find a party, etc. and to have a final endgame that resolves the plot.

Very disappointed in Bioware (especially) and EA (not so much, what would you expect from them) that they turned the franchise into an MMO. I just dont see how an MMO can have the plot line and resolution that a good single player RPG has. To me, an RPG has a storyline and a resolution (the game actually ends), not just a neverending series of quests.

I was really hoping for a KOTOR 3 to resolve the plot of the first 2 games, especially after the rushed ending of KOTOR 2, but I am so disappointed in Bioware for selling out to EA that I dont really care anymore.

 

[s44]

However, I refuse to play MMOs because I want to play when I want (alone), without having to find a party, etc. and to have a final endgame that resolves the plot.

You also refuse to read about TOR, it seems.

 

[Via]

WoW cost 100,000,000 to develop?!?!?!?!?

Holy shit.

 

[shortylickens]

WoW cost 100,000,000 to develop?!?!?!?!?

Holy shit.

Yeah but they knew they would make it all back in the first year and after that its easy money. Just do updates once in a while, most of which were for balance and to keep people interested. Keep up your infrastructure and thats about it.

 

[Via]

Actually, now that I've thought about it, it makes more sense.

I'm sure many of the programmers, artists, and engineers Blizzard hired to work on WoW command six figures in annual salary.

Even the top marketing people are probably up there.

 

[Mem]

That thinking didn't work for SW:G ...

That's because SWG was great PreCu ,after that they made severe changes for the worst,most SWG players including myself hated the way the game went after PreCu,I can honestly say I had the best time of my life in SWG PreCU and believe me I have played virtually all the big MMORPGs ie WoW,Vanguard,Everguest,Warhammer,DarknLight,DDO,LOTRO etc..


Old Republic will draw a big fan base including all those ex-SWG players at its initial release, but they have to keep the quality and interest there for the players or it will end up like SWG...I would still be playing SWG if it was still PreCu style with new content , I know a lot of ex-SWG players that also felt the same way.

Sure you can argue some people hate MMORPGs or Star Wars but you can't please everybody,WoW is still doing great and I know quite a few that hate or don't like WoW ,end of the day they have to keep the fan base interested in their MMORPG,if they can do that that it will be a success.

 

[frozentundra123456]

You also refuse to read about TOR, it seems.

Your response makes no sense and does not address anything I said in my post. I have read about the game and watched many trailers.

I know they said it has the content of however many single player games. I dont care how much content it has. Despite what the developers say, I cannot believe that an MMO will have the story line and plot resolution of a single player game. There will obviously be single player content, but that is not the same as a single player game.

Are you telling me that I can play the game alone, whenever and for however long I want, and in 30 or 40 or however many hours "beat" the game without ever joining a party?? I dont think so. How would they keep raking in the money month after month?

I do not mean to offend those who like MMOs. If you like meeting up with people and playing together, that is fine with me. I just prefer to play alone and at my own convenience, and to play a game that has a definite ending. I think I have as much right to that style of play as those who like MMOs.

 

[cronos]

There are many many reasons to dislike MMO (monthly fee is one of the most significant, imo), but the lack of single player content, story line, and plot resolution is not one of them. Especially with SW:TOR, where the excellence of the story line is probably one of its strongest, most anticipated feature.

My suggestion is to not shrug it off *just* because MMO. If you love the franchise, read up about it some more and follow its development until it's released. You may like it.

I'm personally holding back any expectation of this game until beta reports come out (or if I can get in the beta )

 

[JoshGuru7]

Are you telling me that I can play the game alone

They have said it will be solo friendly, and you will be able to solo with companion characters as in KOTOR 1 and 2.

whenever and for however long I want

You'll need an internet connection and they might occasionally take the servers down for updates, but pretty much yeah.

and in 30 or 40 or however many hours "beat" the game without ever joining a party?? I dont think so.

I have a hard time believing that your problem here is that The Old Republic will have too much content for you. When Bioware said that it will have more voiced lines of dialogue then all of their previous games combined, most people took that to be a good thing. There will be definite endings for each of their storylines, they will just add new story lines in their content updates.

I am so disappointed in Bioware for selling out to EA that I dont really care anymore... I think I have as much right to that style of play as those who like MMOs.

Do you realize how overdramatic and whiny this sounds? Bioware has released some excellent singleplayer games recently and their decision to take The Old Republic persistent is about adding elements that lots of us are very interested in. They haven't vandalized your house or anything have they?

 

[s44]

Are you telling me that I can play the game alone, whenever and for however long I want, and in 30 or 40 or however many hours "beat" the game without ever joining a party??

Yes. Exactly that.

Daniel Erickson: At the same time, if you are a big BioWare fan, and you love the single-player RPGs, this really is the RPG forever. You can play through this game, your actual story mode to the end, all of your characters, single-player. You can play solo all the way through if you want.

Then you can stop, and you can reload, and you can play another BioWare game, all the way through solo, totally different content.

The MMO Gamer: You just uttered a very interesting phrase I don’t hear often when talking to MMO developers: “The end.”

Of course, that is the one thing all BioWare games have in common: They come to an end.

In The Old Republic, when you’ve reached the maximum level, will there be that point where the story that’s been building up since level 1 reaches a climax, and you finally get to face down Big Bad Guy X who’s been antagonizing you the entire time?

And then, after you kill him, the credits roll with a message saying “Stay tuned for the expansion, kids!”?

Daniel Erickson: The Star Wars movies were based on the old serials. So, you had a story told that would have a cliffhanger, then you’d have the resolution to that, and then you’d have a whole new cliffhanger at the end of the next episode.

Daniel Erickson: So, yes. In our initial release, we’re going to have Star Wars, Empire, and Return of the Jedi, in a way. We’re going to have our first movie trilogy, and then we’ll add on extra movies.

Since Star Wars is already built to support that kind of storytelling, I think it’s going to work out really well.

It’s extremely important to have the satisfaction of completing things. A BioWare story has never been a hamster wheel. We want you, even within there, long before you get to the end level to have completed whole storylines, to have put that to bed, to know what’s going on.

Just read the whole interview.

As for their revenue model, either you'll decide to investigate the multiplayer endgame grind or try the seven other classes, each with their own cast of characters (companions, even romance options) and stories.

 

[guyver01]

Yes, that is exactly what it means. The M stands for massive. Massive means a large number of people in the same game environment. By your logic, TF2 is an MMO.

Massive means that a large number of people are SUPPORTED by the environment.

Look at World of Warcraft.... their environment supports millions of simultaneous users.

Can you solo it?
Yes. a good portion of it.

Just because SW:TOR only shows screenshots and gameplay video of a party... doesn't mean their environment can't support hundreds of thousands of users.

Does every screenshot you see of WoW show thousands of people at the same time? No.

 

[Mem]

I'll say TOR team has the added advantage of knowing where SWG went wrong over the years so they should be smart enough to make sure same mistake does not happen to TOR,only time will tell.

 

[frozentundra123456]

ok, fine. I give up, you all wore me down.

I will wait and see what the game is like, but I am still not convinced that you can play through and finish a complete story line using only your character and computer generated characters as in a single player RPG. We will see if this is true despite what Bioware says.

Initially, there was a lot of disappointment in other forums (gamespot for instance) that Bioware had turned the franchise into an MMO. I guess their incessant marketing of the game has convinced people that it will be all things to everyone. We will see.

 

[JoshGuru7]

Initially, there was a lot of disappointment in other forums (gamespot for instance) that Bioware had turned the franchise into an MMO.

Perhaps, but there is also a lot of anticipation around this exact title specifically because Bioware is adding the multiplayer features to it that you would expect from an MMO.

I guess their incessant marketing of the game has convinced people...

Bioware has actually been extremely tight lipped about this product. Implying that the widespread interest must be from people who have fallen prey to Bioware's marketing is completely silly.

 

[lothar]

MMO so it's automatically a no-go for me.

This.

 

[frozentundra123456]

Perhaps, but there is also a lot of anticipation around this exact title specifically because Bioware is adding the multiplayer features to it that you would expect from an MMO.


Bioware has actually been extremely tight lipped about this product. Implying that the widespread interest must be from people who have fallen prey to Bioware's marketing is completely silly.

I counted 22 videos about the game on gamespot. I would not consider that "tight lipped".

 

[JoshGuru7]

I counted 22 videos about the game on gamespot. I would not consider that "tight lipped".

Then you really haven't been following this game, but I see that doesn't stop you from forming opinions about it.

 

[frozentundra123456]

Then you really haven't been following this game, but I see that doesn't stop you from forming opinions about it.

I dont know what you expect me to do to "follow the game". "Following the game" somehow seems to equate to agreeing with your opinion of what the game will be like.

I have been following the game whether you will accept the truth or not. Do you want me to visit the bioware studios or read a book or something about it?

Do you work for Bioware or EA or something?? Why are you so insistant that the game will be wonderful? It is obvious that we will not agree on this topic, so why dont we both just wait till the game comes out.