Just a few days ago, our English-speaking colleague Phil Owen from “Kotaku” wrote a very nice article about Star Wars: The Old Republic that I personally couldn’t agree with more.
Unfortunately, the original text also contains some massive spoilers, which is why I will certainly refrain from mentioning them – those interested in the original text can find it as always in our sources.
What SWTOR Tried to Be
At BioWare, they were trying to satisfy a lot of fans at the same time, and the recent past (WildStar) still shows us that this often goes seriously wrong. On one hand, they wanted to create a gigantic game, a living galaxy, a home for all those who love the “Star Wars” universe so much.
Size and scope should simply correspond to an MMO that is unparalleled. On the other hand, there was of course the expectation that BioWare’s acclaimed storytelling must also be present in this game, and that despite the “MMO” in the name, one shouldn’t have to forgo a tight narrative and especially much “RPG”.
What SWTOR Ultimately Became
You can say what you want, but SWTOR ultimately fulfilled some promises: There were 8 different stories, which were told very well and excitingly at times, and there were also the necessary MMO elements like a very extensive world, plenty of quests, instances, raids, and more. The problem, however, was that actually, no one wanted both.
Some players wanted a lot of story and “to experience the world”; others wanted a solid MMO with balanced PvP, interesting new mechanics, and all that the competition offered. When you ask people why they play Star Wars: The Old Republic , you rarely hear that they wanted the story and MMO aspects at the same time – usually, one hinders the other.
New Content: The Forum Leads the Way
Since the launch, quite a bit has happened, and as is usual in this industry (with few exceptions), the original team has been reduced, the existing budget has shrunk, and generally, one has to make do with fewer resources. In the further development of the game, the voices in the forum became more prominent, and they delivered content that was desired there.
One of the best examples is probably the free expansion “Galactic Starfighter“, which was able to convey the right feeling of space battles within SWTOR for the first time.
[pullquote]We talked about this game as if it were KOTOR 3 to 10… and I believe we couldn’t keep that promise[/pullquote]
The recently released “Shadow of Revan” also falls into this category, as it addresses a story arc that especially veterans of the KOTOR games have longed for. For the conclusion, there’s a very nice quote from Jeff Hickman, the lead producer of the game: “We talked about this game as if it were KOTOR 3 to 10… and I believe we couldn’t keep that promise.”
At least insight is the first step toward improvement – and much has already improved in the gameplay, even though class-specific stories have now disappeared. Thanks to certain bonus actions, such as the 12x XP boost during the class quest line, fans of the story could fully experience it – while leaving the “boring rest” aside.
