Alex Reviews...

Star Wars: The Old Republic Beta

I'm from a distant planet...you probably haven't heard of it....

So - The Old Republic Beta testing weekend is almost over - for me anyway - and I thought I'd give some of my thoughts...

Graphics

You have no idea how frustrated I was yesterday - after all the downloading, all the waiting to get into a server, all the character creation, and I was rewarded with what must have been the laggiest game I have ever played. It was awful, I couldn't do anything which meant a lot of death and a lot of running into walls. So, like any real gamer, I rage-quit and went and had a shower to refrain me from destroying my laptop. I was this close to buying an Alienware and justifying such a purchase with 'well, I already pre-ordered the game, it would be a waste to not be able to play it, right?'.

But then I brought the graphics options waaaaayyy down in the game preferences, and everything ran fine. A lot less detailed and impressive, but at least I could actually play the game. So, to note, if you want to play the game at its best, you better have a damn good machine as my little XPS M1530 didn't stand a chance. The graphics are very noticeably worsened with lower settings, but if you have a machine with low capabilities, at least it will play and you will get enjoyment out of it. As for me, I might just wait for the magic-fairy-godmother to send me one-and-a-half grand so I can get some good kit, but for now I can play with lower specs.

Character Creation

There is a Sith species in the game...who are red

So, now that my graphical woes have been shared, I can let you know why the game, despite its merciless needs, is awesome. Mindful of time, I didn't spend too long on character creation, but I was impressed with the options available. Coming from Skyrim, there isn't a lot of customisation, but anyone who didn't feel the need to adjust the size and angle of their character's ears will be satisfied. You start by picking a faction - Republic or Imperial, which pre-empts one of the amazingly detailed cinematic cutscenes as an introduction to your faction's role in the game. Then, you pick your class; Jedi Knight, Jedi Consular, Smuggler or Trooper for the Republic, while the Imperial faction allows Sith Warrior, Sith Inquisitor, Bounty Hunter and Imperial Operative. The specifications and attributes of each class are displayed at the top of the screen so that you can have a real informed decision about the character your making, and whether you feel it suits your play style. Then, you choose your species. Some species are class specific, for example the Cyborg species is restricted to Troopers and Smugglers in the Republic faction, while the Miraluka species is restricted to Jedi Knight and Consular. Each species has a 'social ability', for example; human species can 'rally' their allies, while cyborgs can 'scan targets'. It'll be interesting to see how this can effect both combat and dialogue - it would be cool for a cyborg to be able to tell if a character is lying by scanning them for stolen goods etc.

Then, class and species picked, you move on to the aesthetic customisation of your character. You have four main body types to choose from; small and slight, the 'average' setting, the body builder, and the big ol' tub of lard. That's right - fat Jedi are in The Old Republic to stay. To be fair, the muscular version looks just as ridiculous when in scenes next to 'normal' sized players. Then, you can change the hair (including an emo style! It's sad being a Sith), the eyes, the face shape, the beards, as well as the option to give your character a tattoo or a scar - one option looking like something akin to Frankenstein's monster, and another which might have been a tribute to Han Solo's (or Harrison Ford's) scar on his chin. All neat options, with alternative customisation available to the different species and classes (for example, a Twi'lek can chose the pattern on their lekku (brain-tail thingys)

And then that's it, you pick your name and hope that it's available, and then you're sent off to start your new life in The Old Republic. Before I was forced to lower the graphical capabilities, the detail on the character models did look great. A sort of cartoonish style, but not far from the styling of Dragon Age. The hair and scars look great, it's just a shame that if your system isn't up to scratch you won't be able to appreciate it all the time.

And we're off...

So my first run through was with the Trooper class, and like with all classes you are first greeted with the traditional Star Wars scrolling yellow prologue which gives you a little bit of a back story into who your character is and where he/she comes from. This is a really nice touch and adds that level of personalisation that attaches you to your character. Then, in typical Star Wars fashion, the camera pans out to, in my case, the ship that my trooper was in on his way to whatever battle he was to be a part of. When I played through as a Sith Warrior, I was sent down to a completely different planet to meet with my overseer, while playing as a Smuggler I was sent to the same planet as the Trooper, just under different circumstances. So it would seem  that you'll sometimes be paired with a similar class during the first few levels of play, so it might be a while before you meet with the other classes who are off doing their own thing on their planet. Once on the planet, you're immediately given a mission, and in the case of the Smuggler and the Trooper, that mission involves killing enemy troops and destroying enemy equipment. It's a nice idea, and having seen the opening moments from both camps, I think it does a good job of giving your character his/her own special reason for being on the planet and for doing whatever it is you chose to do. 

   

So I didn't really get far enough to play any of the actual 'flashpoints' that are available, but I did take on a few quests on my own which was met with satisfying dialogue options with pretty good voice acting. But, then I figured out how to ask other players running around me to join my group, and after many rejected attempts, my Smuggler character finally was joined by a burly Trooper (Gnubb I think...) who was surprisingly more than happy to follow me on my quests, as I too was happy to follow him on his. This led up to one of the main selling points of The Old Republic - multiplayer missions, and more specifically, multiplayer dialogue. In some cases, I could take the role of a spectator in the integral story quests that the Gnubb had to fulfil - this meant that I was able to see the cutscenes that the Gnubb was taking part in, and follow how his own personal story is setting out. I loved this, as it meant that I could tell what sort of character this stranger was, and how he was choosing to play the game. While my Smuggler was on board with the whole 'anti-hero' vibe, Gnubb was a straigh-laced soldier who followed orders and strove to help the helpless. Then, in some of the side-missions, we were given the option to approach dialogue together - with both characters interacting at the same time. For those of you who don't already know this, both players will be given the opportunity to respond to the character that they are talking to as a group, and based on a rolled score, both will be given the chance to have their character respond to the quest-giver in the way that they have chosen. If you decide that you want to be a smart-ass to the NPC, then you chose that option, and if Gnubb wanted to be more forgiving, he would chose his option. Then the scores would be calculated, and the higher number would create the character response - sometimes with devastating effects. This is an interesting one, as it really allows each person to have their own say in the story, while still playing in a group - the action and events aren't dictated by one person, and it is entirely possible to change the way the mission plays out just by making a choice that differs from your fellow player, or players. It'll be particularly amusing when you are faced with having a character's life in your hands, and decide that actually - your Jedi Knight is toying with the darkside, and you have the character killed, while the Trooper that you've been playing with can only watch in horror. 

And then...

...my game crashed - again probably because my little ol' laptop can't keep up. But I did actually have a lot of fun fulfilling quests and watching a story line develop. I've never played a MMORPG before, so I don't really know how well this holds up to competition, but coming from a background of RPG's that focus on storytelling, I really enjoyed being able to chose how to enjoy the game despite it being a multiplayer experience, and I look forward to the full release next month. I've had a taste of Smuggler, Trooper and Sith Warrior, and if possible I will try some of the other classes before the beta finishes, but at the same time, I don't want to ruin it. It's obviously possible to have multiple characters, but I'll want to focus on one character at first before I go back and develop another. 

If anyone else tried the beta and is somehow by amazing coincidence on this blog, let me know how you found it. Also, if anyone want to give me money for that Alienware.....if only!

May the Force be with you