This week’s Star Wars: The Old Republic Friday Update is a new Choose Your Side trailer staring the Smuggler versus the Sith Warrior. In the new video, players get a look at some of the tactics and strategies each side can employ to give them the edge on their opponent. The video also features several developers involved in the making of the game commentating on their choice of victor.
Hit the jump for the video embed and official Dev Tracker post.
We're only moments away from game launch, and for some of us, early access is right around the corner. We’ve had some excellent updates so far, and this Friday is no different. The developers have given us a new video, featuring the character progression of the Sith Inquisitor. In addition, BioWare announced the launch of their new Community Blog, which will be "a place to communicate the latest game status updates, community-focused news and developer thoughts as efficiently as possible to our fans." There was also a long developer post about color matching. Finally, Launch events have been announced in Austin, New York City, Paris and London.
Courtney WoodsFeared across the galaxy for both their mastery of the Dark Side of the Force™ and their ability to manipulate those around them, even those within the Empire know to watch themselves when in the presence of a Sith Inquisitor. Some acolytes who complete the trials use their newfound powers to channel the Force into devastating mental and lightning attacks. Others command the Force to deceive their enemies both in conversation and on the battlefield.
For the video embed, hit the jump.
UPDATE: On a side-note, a few Intrepid SWTOR players found that the retail client includes the option for users to toggle in-game chat bubbles. Visit the link to find more information on it.
This week's Star Wars: The Old Republic Friday Update comes to us in two parts. First, the previously announced SWTOR-themed Razer peripherals are now available for pre-order. All of the products (mouse, keyboard, headset, and mousepad) will be released simultaneously with the game on December 20th. BioWare also published a Choose Your Side video featuring the Jedi Consular and Imperial Agent classes. The video provides players with an overview of each class's playstyle and the gist of each storyline. Read after the jump for the video embed and DevTracker posts.
This week's Star Wars: The Old Republic Friday Update gives us the Jedi Consular progression video. The video features a female Mirialan, and showcases skills and armor from both of the Consular's advanced classes. In this video, a Jedi Shadow clad in armored robes showcases an in-combat stealth ability, as well as what appears to be a damage absorption skill. The Jedi Sage features high-powered telekinetic attacks and a resurrection ability, while favoring more elaborate robes.
This week's Star Wars: The Old Republic Friday Update is a huge one highlighting the new Hammer Station Flashpoint and Art and Making of The Old Republic. Be sure to read our Fan Site Summit Impressions of Hammer Station for more information regarding the Flashpoint.
James Ohlen also revealed details regarding Star Wars: The Old Republic’s Legacy System. Upon completing the first chapter of their class story, players will be allowed to choose a surname that will carry over to all of their other characters across all servers. Beyond that, they will also begin to accumulate experience toward their legacy level, with all active characters contributing. However, details regarding what players receive upon reaching subsequent legacy levels has yet to be revealed.
BioWare dropped something of a bombshell on the TOR community: the Non-Disclosure portion of the Tester Agreement is no longer in effect. In short, those who have participated in testing can finally say to all those inquiring minds more than just “I’m in testing”. Dr. Greg Zeschuk took to the boards a short time ago to give us the news.
Greg Zeschuk
Folks,
As of now, the non disclosure portion of our Game Testing Agreement is officially lifted. While all players must still accept the Game Testing Agreement, from this point on testers may now freely talk about their experiences this past weekend in the game, as well as post screenshots and gameplay videos of their testing experiences. We encourage you to come join us on the official Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ Forums to share your experiences!
The Star Wars: The Old Republic community site will have a copy of this message on the forums and it will also appear in the Patcher. Players may not talk about nor reprint posts from our testing forums as they are still fully covered by the confidentiality portions of our Game Testing Agreement. And all players who want to participate in the upcoming Beta Test Weekends still have to accept all terms of the Game Testing Agreement. So, other than that, free feel to talk about and share your experiences in Star Wars: The Old Republic.
My thanks go out to everyone who has beta tested and continues to beta test the game. It has been with your help and feedback that Star Wars: The Old Republic is where it is today. We really appreciate your efforts.
May the Force be with you!
Greg Zeschuk
VP, Electronic Arts, BioWare Austin, General Manager
Full Dev Tracker posts and video embed after the jump.
Courtney Woods
How can you take part in this coming Beta Test Weekend? Well, for starters we are happy to announce that anyone who has signed up for our Game Testing Program prior to today, November 11th, will get invited! Invites will be sent in the coming weeks.
For people who haven't signed up for our Game Testing Program, you can also get into the Beta Stress Test Weekend through a series of promotions. Be sure to check out the following websites for your chance to grab a Beta Test Weekend Code.
Many of you have been wondering how long Early Game Access will last, and we are now happy to announce that depending on when you redeem your Pre-Order Code, you will gain Early Game Access up to five days before the official game launch date.
Early Game Access is staggered over five days to ensure a quality experience for players at launch. Staggering access aids server stability and a gradual increase in player population through the game. Early Game Access will be granted according to when your Pre-Order Code is redeemed at the Code Redemption Center. If you have not yet pre-ordered Star Wars: The Old Republic, there's still time! Visit our Pre-Order page for more information and watch the Collector's Edition Unboxing video for a peek inside this highly coveted edition of the game.
A common situation familiar to MMO players is the departure of a member halfway through a quest or instance (As a personal example: I once abandoned a group in the middle of an instance when my washing machine caught fire. These things happen!). This could potentially ruin the game experience for all involved parties, but with the ability to substitute a companion in this situation, an experienced group of players will often be able to mitigate the impact of this event and continue their adventure.
Courtney Woods
The Star Wars galaxy is massive and you will be able to visit numerous worlds during your travels in the The Old Republic. To give you an early taste of what the experience will be, weve added a new feature to the website, allowing you to explore the Galaxy Map for yourself. Youll get to see the five major sectors of the Known Galaxy, check out profiles of the planets, and even examine interactive models of the player Starships.
Access the new Galaxy Map page through the HoloNet!
The first thing that any potential tie-in to Star Wars and The Old Republic should do is answer a series of questions: What does this story contribute to mythology of The Old Republic? What does a reader get from this story that changes the way he or she experiences the game? Does it give the reader a new perspective on a character? Does it explain a mystery that isnt resolved in the game? Does it explore the setting and the timeline in new depth?
