Star Wars: The Old Republic Reviews

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Written by BuckGB on January 3rd, 2012

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With such an insanely resource-intensive production, can BioWare flesh out a compelling endgame fast enough? And would that even help? Under the surface and behind all that talk, The Old Republic is just that, old: a deeply traditional framework for an online game that is in dire need of a refresh and is currently struggling to sustain WOW. It's well placed for success right now, but it might not be long before The Old Republic finds itself just as vulnerable as its inspiration to a hungry breed of more innovative games.

BioWare has done what many thought might be impossible, and delivered the world's second ever triple-A MMO. That is a mighty achievement and a huge relief. But it may yet turn out to be too little - or rather, too much - too late.

One of the things I always regretted when it came to World of Warcraft was that I jumped into the game several years after its release and never had a chance to be a part of it from the beginning. With SWTOR I like being involved with things from the beginning and look forward to watching the game grow and change over the years, as I can see myself sticking with the game and it being my main MMORPG of choice (at least for the time being unless something else should come along). Despite that praise, I can't mark the game's score up and ignore some of the issues and glaring problems the game has. Star Wars: The Old Republic doesn't evolve the MMORPG (though I'd argue it does offer up some evolutionary elements), but it does make some steps towards refining the genre.

All in all, I would highly recommend this game. It is a very beautiful, cinematic, and overall fun experience that no MMO to date has given me. The fact Bioware made it fully voiced and gave you the option to play it alone or with friends is probably one of the best things that they could have done. While I do not have the exact numbers, I have heard this has sold at least 2 million copies, which is amazing for an MMO launch. I am glad Bioware has continued to prove they know how to make a great game and I am looking forward to endgame and future expansions.

I still might not be what you'd call (an MMO guy,) but I am having a heck of a lot of fun with The Old Republic and plan on keeping my account active for quite some time. I'm in love with the personal storytelling that the game delivers with a fully voice-acted cast, I think most of the group dynamics work extremely well together, and I really feel a connection to my characters. These huge positives outweigh the few problems that I have with the game that hold it back from being an automatic recommend for anyone. A lot of people believed that The Old Republic would re-define the MMO genre as we know it. While it doesn't completely succeed at this, it has changed the playing field in certain respects and will in my opinion, at least in a few areas, be one of the staples that new MMOs are compared to. The life of any MMO is completely dependent on how active its community stays, but if BioWare can keep supporting their game with the incredible amount of attention to detail and love that clearly went into the original release, I sense that the force will be strong with this one for some time to come.

While SWTOR has many strong points, there are a few concerns about the game as well. Most notably is the amount of glitches that are still prevalent in the game. While most are not game breaking, it is extremely annoying having to reload the interface because combat stats are not properly updating or because the map itself does not update. Also, sometimes the gathering nodes do not disappear when someone uses them, so it is possible to find a node that is unusable. There is the added consequence of companion characters. Because you can get companions that can fill a variety of roles it appears that most people prefer to solo for the majority of time, and only come together for heroics and flashpoints, so there may be some difficulty in finding people to quest with at times. These are all problems that can be fixed, and hopefully it happens soon. However, as it stands now, SWTOR is a welcome addition to the online community and I look forward to seeing what else Bioware brings to the table.

I think that Bioware has done a great job over all. I will admit I was a little disappointed with their character generator, but I also understand the immense strain it could cause on any system to try and render the infinite possibilities of every player utilizing the more complete level of customization that Bioware allows in their single-player games. Star Wars the Old Republic is already a very graphically intensive game, to the point many cannot even play the game without purchasing a new system. Most people don't want to buy a system to play a game, but I don't see that stopping hardcore Star Wars fans at all. Heck, it may even help kick the economy into gear.

May the force be with Bioware; the positive points to this game sure seem to be.

Ultimately, it's an MMO worth playing. If you're new to the MMO genre, a fan of Star Wars, or just someone who likes massively multiplayer madness, this one is for you. There are some nasty bugs that can sometimes pull away from gameplay, but nothing (these days) ever comes out without needing a few patches. I won't say it's better than World of Warcraft, as I don't want to wake up with a dead Furblong head on my covers, but it's definitely good competition.

If you're the kind of player who's casually interested in MMOs, Star Wars: The Old Republic might be the right entry point for you. It's easy to pick up, offers a familiar setting, and doesn't rely on dense mechanics or teamwork to play. MMO veterans will still really enjoy themselves, but it might not make the best addictive substitute. Regardless, the game is a success and if you've ever swung a broomstick around your bedroom, making buzzing noises with your mouth, you owe it to yourself to give it a try.

If Bioware and Electronic Arts would have gone with a micro-trans free to play model and charged for expansions, I wouldn't have cancelled my account this morning. There decision to go subscription based seems a little short-sighted in today's market, and smacks of over confidence in the power of the Star Wars IP. Finally, games of this nature are never truly finished (and no I will not be calling The Old Republic and MMO from this point forward). There is no final retail product, no perfect version of the game. The best way to describe the situation is fluid and ever changing. While I didn't find The Old Republic enjoyable enough to subscribe after my free 30 days, I'm sure there is a metric shit ton of players who do. That also doesn't mean that the game will not improve over time and someday be enjoyable enough to earn my subscription.

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