At this year’s ComicCon, fans of Bio-Ware’s latest venture into the Star Wars Universe were treated to an amazing panel full of teasers and intrigue for what is sure to be the most anticipated MMO this year. Being a huge fan of Bio-Ware and its first gift to Star Wars fans, Knights of the Old Republic, this was one panel I was sure to get in line to see.
Sitting on the panel was Game Director and Lead Designer, James Ohlen, Executive Producer Richard Vogel, Community Manager Stephen Reid and it was moderated by Dallas Dickinson, Direct of Production at Bio-Ware Austin.
I was excited to see Bioware’s focus on bringing the full Star Wars experience to the player. The first thing you see when you begin the game is the famous Star Wars flying text outlining the backstory for your character and every single character class will have their own intro and story line.
For those of you that don’t know TOR (The Old Republic) takes place about 3000 years before the rise of Darth Vader and about 300 years after KOTOR (Knights of the Old Republic). Through development BioWare has released a number of cinematic trailers for the game in reverse order to “Mess with us.” These cinematics explain what has happened since the end of KOTOR. The Return trailer depicts the Sith returning to claim their home world of Korriban. This trailer also introduces us to Darth Malgus , who is sure to be one of the main NPCs in the game. The next trailer, Hope, shows the Republic starting the turn the tide of war on the planet Alderaan. Deceived, the last in the series of trailers , though originally released first, shows the Sith led by Malgus attacking Coruscant and forcing a treaty which grants them territory for their Empire. I found it interesting that Darth Malgus was in every trailer, but hey, people like Sith.
The Old Republic has 8 classes for you to choose from, each with its own individual story that is several hundred hours long. That means if you play as a Jedi and then decide to roll a bounty hunter, you will not see a single duplicate quest. This announcement received very loud applause at the panel, from me as well. In addition to the individual class quests there is also the overarching story between the Empire and Republic and this is where you will be playing with all the other players in the game.
In true BioWare fashion, the story that unfolds before your eyes will not be set in stone. Throughout your adventures you will make many choices that will shape your story’s outcome. To streamline these decisions, BioWare’s signature dialogue wheel is back, giving you those tough good, evil, and morally grey options that will truly make your character your own. Simply choosing whether you are a Jedi or Sith does not make you instantly good or bad. For example, it is possible to play a Jedi that kills more people than a Sith.
TOR is also the first ever fully voiced MMO with hundreds of thousands for lines of dialog and over 900 voice actors. Some of the voice actors showcased at the panel were David Hayter (Solid Snake and Big Boss, Metal Gear Solid), Lacey Chabert (Meg Griffin), Kari Wahlgren (Sonia, Ninja Gaiden), Catherine Taber (Mission, KOTOR), and Holly Fields.
When the panel was over the BioWare rep gave everyone a pre-order for the game and finally stated that their target release date is Holiday 2011.
With pre-order in hand, release date in mind and armed with new knowledge of this game I am more excited then ever finally get my hands on it.
