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Buy this game...or my thoughts after a long weekend in a galaxy far, far away (long)
holifeet
Member Posts: 532
PROLOGUE
I just got the chance to join in the big stress test for SWTOR and I wanted to post how I feel so the folks of MMORPG.com can further their judgement on whether to play. I'd say go for it if you like a story. I might seem quite negative in places, and indeed I start with my most negative thougts and my biggest concern; the UI. I wouldn't let the UI get to you though. I don't intend to. It's get-aroundable. I'd be more than happy with changes in that area though.
SWTOR really is an inspiration in story-telling though, and it's the first MMO where I ever truly felt a part of the world. Everquest is the next best for me, but even that behemoth pales in comparison to how SWTOR has made me feel about my character and the choices I have made concerning his path through the game.
I'm sitting here writing this and I am finding myself drawn to parts of the story I have witnessed. I can recall seeing the the look on my character's face and the words he spoke. He's like someone I met yesterday in a pub. Name a character or NPC that has made you feel that in another MMO.
Like I said, there are some spoilers for the Inquisitor story in here. They're only minor, but don't read if you don't want to know even the minor stuff that happens. I'll mark the main spoiler section for you.
As I re-read this I am noticing I have written things in ways that seem very negative, and you might well notice that and think 'why does he recommend this game so heavily'...because I really do? To be frank, even my biggest worries (only really that UI) are overshadowed by how immense a story-telling experience this game is. The other night when I logged out I was feeling very bad about the game thanks to the UI. I had even been in in-game chat chasting aspersions on it (though not as bad as some would have thought based on their responses). When I awoke the next morning and having thought long and hard on the subject, I realised the negatives are vastly overshadowed by the positives. It's true what they say; think on a clear head. Enjoy the story and don't worry about the paper it's printed on. I will continue to say what concerns me about the UI though.
THE UI
Let's get the bad out of the way, and let's be fair; the UI is awful. You can only move the chat box and then you can't move it anywhere it doesn't interfere with another unmovable window or your sight. I moved it down to the left of the hot bars early in the game, then I got a group and the chat box obscured half of it. I guess that in itself isn't dire, but I added the left and right hot bars and I'm sure they'll be covered by group members or quests. What good is that?
Then we come to the companion skills. As it is your companion is chucked down in the bottom left of the screen and being a big mouse user it's out of the way for me. I like my pet skills central so I moved his skill set to the middle bottom hot bar where I find I can not use any of the spare slots for my skills, or move his skills about. I only hope he gets more to utilise the bar.
In the end I actually moved him to the left bar, but I don't like it. I just needed the central bottom bar for myself. I'd like to think Bioware thought we could open his bar up and set parameters, then close it and use his small UI. I don't know if it works well enough for that though. Does the companion do things automatically, because I thought one or two skills were for me to select when I want him to activate them? It will take me a bit of time to get used to it...but suffice it to say it's not ideal. I'm a big fan of pet classes in MMOs and I know what is needed to help the user.
In this day and age a UI needs to be fully movable. Someone tried to tell me in chat that WoW had an unmovable UI at release. I said 'that was 7+ years ago'. I think that says it all. I'm sorry Bioware, but the UI is a detriment to your game. It needs work, even if it is very close to release. It won't stop me playing, but I need to be able to move more windows. I hope Bioware can respond. Even if a change comes after launch then it needs to be done.
COMPANION
On to the companion. I like the idea, I really do, but he's so damn strong when you first get him (I'm referring to the inquistor companion here). It feels like I'm walking around with a 'win' button. I hope that will change as I level, but the first 10 levels have been very easy and I'm filled with a small amount of dread when it comes to maintaining my interest. Part of the reason I hated Rift so was the ease of the game. I never felt challenged, and I want to feel at least a little challenged.
Actually my companion did die against one very tough boss at the end of my time on Korriban.
Then there is his, and other player's companion's, talking. It gets on my nerves when he starts reeling off the lines. And why do I need to hear what other companions are saying? To be wondering through a tomb and suddenly hear Vette proclaim she's gonna be mad if she dies is a little annoying, especially when I look around to see no one anywhere near. Is she a force user? Does she speak to my subconcious?
QUESTS AND PROGRESSION
Those niggles aside, which aren't extensive but sadly might seem as if I feel they are (probably because I mentioned them first...but if you keep reading you'll see the good outweighs the bad), I am very much enjoying the game. I'm a big hater of quests and quest grinding but I find the progression in SWTOR somewhat relaxing. I haven't felt like I'm doing quests for the sake of it, in fact I feel like I'm a big part of the universe. I feel I have a place in the Star Wars history. I'm almost expecting to glance at the Wookiepaedia (Star Wars wiki online) and see my name in lights.
I'm a bit worried about when it comes to killing my Master though...she's a bit of a hotty. And I think she likes me (I suspect she does that to all new apprentices...she's a tease). If I do ever kill her, of course. I don't know how that progresses but I am eager to find out. Very eager. The beta is over now and I don't know how I'm going to last till what will probably be later than 15th December when I get in. I want more dark lord of the Sith. I want more death and mayhem, more scandal and intrigue and more blood, lightening and death. I'd said death, hadn't I? It's central to being a dark lord. It's also quite satisfying. Especially with lightening.
[SPOILERS]This is the section that contains story spoilers for Inquisitor[SPOILERS]
CHARACTER IMMERSION
The voice acting and the choice of answers seems inexhaustible and there's been but a very few occaisons where I've been at a loss for what to say to make me feel true to my impressions of my character; the evil scheming son of a...[insert word left to your imagination]. I feel as if I can more often than not be the person I want to be, and I grin with glee when he says something brilliant. That said, I do want to feel like my choices are hard to come to, and when asked whether I would poison or feed the creature I really ummed and ahhed over what to do with the poor wretch (see they're ambiguous spoilers). I felt the light side trying to draw me over, even if I was a little confused with why each choice meant light or dark...but I could understand the reasons. When it had come to whether to betray the young apprentice who wanted the brain I even felt a dread sense of guilt that I had done so. When she sent me a mail to say how she would repay my kindness (sarcasm, folks...sarcasm) I exhibited a giddy sense of power. A power that I could so change the life of a mere mortal. The fact that there was an after thought, and she came to me to tell me how I had ruined her life shows the power of a story and the brilliance of Bioware in that field. In no other game would I hear any more of that. It would have been cast to the recesses and forgotten.
Thank you for trully making me feel I am my character, Bioware. This MMO deserves to be played for that fact alone.
[SPOILERS] end [SPOILERS]
GETTING IN TO THE GAME/IMMERSION
I like the comings and goings of the universe too, and by that I mean the hustle and bustle and the things to do. The merchants are nicely placed, the cantina seems busy and the space station felt like a hive of business and betrayal. If I could change one thing then I'd have more people to talk to and more noise of chatter. It did sometimes feel like people were as placed as objects. It did feel much like a living universe though and I could imagine people going about their important tasks or relaxing in free time.
I notice many people are saying that the universe is static, but that's where I find using your imagination to be important. They could have overdone it so easily and you would have spent till your detah bed talking to officers in the space port cantina.
Besides, the little story telling moments make up for any hint of a static universe. When you walk in to a room expecting to talk to your Master, only to be stopped in your tracks by some guy wanting to tell you how he might kill you one day, then you really feel like the world is revolving. Getting the chance to tell him, in no particular terms, to shove it was immense fun.
GROUPING
I haven't done much grouping; just a few heroic 2 missions on Korriban and Dromund Kaas and the first Imperial flashpoint. I enjoyed them though. I was a little hindered finding a group for my first taste of grouping because general chat didn't seem to be working on my instance, but I delved in to the social tab and found people lfg. We were soon together and running to the tomb. I would like there to be a better lfg tool, even if my thoughts on this subject were pretty much ridiculed elsewhere. I don't feel it is derogatory to the game but aids in the getting together of people. I was told there was an old fashioned way to make groups, and I am all for that. I played EQ in the day and I have fond memories of 'having to talk to people' to make groups. A LFG tool doesn't change that though; you just get both, and many newcomers to the genre would be better aided by a specific tool instead of having to delve in to options. I do understand a tool is in development though, so I'll leave it at that.
My small group ended with a trip to the quest giver and what I thought was a joy to behold; my first group conversation. I would have liked to have seen some process of discussion and arguing about what to do, but perhaps that is to come in flashpoints. I was looking forward to delving in to that...
...So I did. The next day I started things off with a bang and dived in to the first Imperial flashpoint. I won't spoil the story for people, so suffice it to say I found it a blast. I'll do it again to see what happens different each time too. What do I mean by that, you may ask? Well I mean the difference the group conversations caused. I love sitting back and making my choices to then see what everyone else says and who gets to speak. When my Inquisitor popped up only to say the most hateful and maddening things I felt a sense of achievement. I felt that I was important in this game. I really did. I wasn't just a lackey running through quests and getting levels. I was in this world and I could shape its outcome. This is just a start though. I'm realistic enough to admit that changing the whole world would be a huge undertaking for Bioware, but they have managed to make you feel important.
I'll finish my thoughts on grouping by saying that I did think the flashpoint was a little too easy and could certainly be made harder without impacting on too many people. If people can't handle a little harder than that then they won't get far in the game. Even the final boss was finished off with little effort, and that was me as healer with my one paltry heal of the time.
It was fun though, and it was the first mission of however many. For that reason I'm not overly concerned.
And you know what? I'll add one more thought now that I am proof reading this. I loved the fact that the conversations slowed the group down a bit. In the games of the past 7 or 8 years everything dungeony and groupy has been so hectic. SWTOR slowed it down and made it more social. Instead of no chat and moving swiftly through mob after mob till your fingers hurt, we got on to the subject of why my pants were so tight. Conversation! It appeases me enough to hold back the lightening a bit.
CHOICES AND MORE ON IMMERSION (I LIKE FEELING IMMERSED)
There seems to be a lot that you can do when not adventuring, even though I haven't delved in to it all. I ran around the crew skills trainers and there is a wealth of those and the different kiosks were nicely presented. I hope the galactic stations become a meeting point for people in the way that Everquest's cities did back in the day. There needs to be a place where everyone goes and therefore a place that comes alive with the comings and goings of the universe.
Okay I'm not feeling overly qualified to jump in to this, because in the 4 days I played I didn't take a crew skill or get my ship. It's just my surface impressions that are good, and I really am looking forward to exploring a bit more when I get the final game.
MY CLASS : INQUISITOR/SORCEROR
The stuff in italics here is my thoughts at the end of day 4, and my corrections to some stuff I wrote at the weekend (in normal text). I decided to include it both.
I'll finish with my class; the Inquisitor. I have some plus points and some negatives but overall I'm happy with it. To start with I found the range of skills to be a bit short, and I mean where I need to be to hit someone, not how many types of skills. I started my journey in combat expecting to fire lightening from afar only to realise I almost needed to be at close combat range to do so. I know it can change with sorceror abilities but a little more range would have been nice. I wanted to run in with lightening flaring and finish off poor wretches with a lightsaber swipe. I suppose I have to be content to wait till I'm a fully fledged sorceror and I can understand the reasons, but it wasn't a good impression to start with.
By the end of the 4 days I was happily content with my range and the early skills of the 10-20 range had complemented my character nicely. I was fullfilling the role I wanted.
The range of skills was nice. I felt very much in control when it came to dealing with my foes and could incapacitate the mob whilst dealing with one poor soul. This became even more hassle-free when I discovered the option to automatically switch to the nearest enemy. I was killing like a true Sith. I really liked the fact that I could pummel my victims with blasts of the force and move in to finish them with a few lightsaber volleys, if not from afar. One skill I would have liked to have seen was some sort of defensive lightsaber wielding though, the sort that would have seen Obi Wan deflecting laser fire with his saber whilst destroyer droids fired upon him fruitlessly (sorry, I'm Sith...Darth Maul deflecting laser fire...even if he was a douchebag who couldn't beat a padawan!). The inquisitor had no real defences early in the game. I'm looking forward to exploring the sorceror and hopefully it will fill in some of my gaps.
My biggest concern of the class is where I fit in to the game though. Am I healer or a damage dealer, and what are people going to expect me to be doing? I have one heal at my current level 11, but my hope was to go all out damage and not really be a healer, but will groups be expecting me to heal because I have them? Will there be enough inquisitors that choose to concentrate on healing to provide options for groups. Currently sorceror is one of eight on the Empire side, and if half can be damage doers then that leaves 1 of 16 to be healers. Will there be enough? Do I have the right to forego healing in preference of dealing pain to all who cross my path?
I'm just a little concerned that healers are hard to come by in any MMO, and because I have heals will I be expected to fill that role? Will I even be able to if I take the damage path I want to? Will that exclude me from grouping opportunities?
Okay, I wrote the last two paragraphs a few days ago. I have since realised that I'm not the only Imperial healer and I won't have to feel like I'm going to be ignored. I also got a new heal after 11 that drastically upped my potential. I'll feel happy going all out attack and not having to worry about folks needing me to heal. If they really do need me to do so then I can feel competent doing so...or at least competent enough to try.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I'll be getting the game because I need an MMO in my life...but not only for that reason. Some of my thoughts feel overly negative to me but really I'm not overly negative about the game (must be me...or some other Sith apprentice attempting to overthrow me and take his place at Lord Zash's side). For sure I have my doubts but they mostly stem from a UI I think is awful and which doesn't compliment a truly inspiring story-driven MMO. I'll be buying the game to delve in to my life as an inquisitor of the Empire and to see where I end up. I'll get around the UI because I feel I must/can, but problems need to be stated.
I realise it is late in the day, and I'm sure all my thoughts can not be possibly put in to the game at this late stage, nor would I expect them to be so. In fact many of them are facts I can get around. I can even get around the UI, but I would put it down as the number 1 concern of mine regarding SWTOR. It's really not a UI to compiment an MMO (Lord Zash said stop going on about the UI...she had a say in it).
Difficulty is a buzzword of mine, and I do like to be challenged by an MMO. So far that hasn't happened in abundance. There were a few encounters towards the end of my first 10 levels that caused me some hassle but they were mostly centered around the slightly tougher mobs in groups. They took a bit of practice and I died a couple of times. Once I encountered Khem Val I found things got exponentially easier though and I hope that changes. I want to make use of all that the game offers, but I don't want to feel it is making my game less fun. The chatter from companions alone is enough to make me bite my lip, but if the game becomes a farce of easiness because of them then that will slowly wear me down. Despite that fact, after 10 it did get a bit tougher in places. The first fight I jumped in to on Drumund Kaas nearly wiped my arse.
I'm only level 13 or 14 (as of the end of beta), so I'll wait to really draw any solid conclusions regarding difficulty. That will come later. As the story is so good I'm not as concerned as I would be if the game had been a dull and uninspiring quest grinder like Rift.
When it comes to performance then I must say I had next to no hiccups in that regard. The frame rate was more than fine, but I made a female smuggler alt and she ran a bit funny with a weapon. Lag I barely encountered...just one fight deep in a tomb that decided to coincide with one horrendous lag spike. Just the one though.
Overall I am really quite impressed and I want to be playing the game. I will find it hard to wait till release from now. The story is amazing and will keep me playing. I can't wait to further develop my characters and see how the universe of SWTOR progresses. No other game has done a story like this in an MMO and SWTOR will breathe a much needed new life into the genre.
If you buy one game this Christmas then buy SWTOR because you won't be disappointed unless you are very hard to please. This is the best MMO on the market, or will be by Christmas 2011. It does things that no other MMO has done and it makes me feel like no other MMO has made me feel. It looks questy on the outside, but really it's not. If anything it is one long, story-driven quest. It's like one huge epic epic quest from EQ. Every quest I did made me feel like I was doing something necessary, instead of the usual emotion I gain that every quest feels like another mob...there to level rather than be enjoyed (yes I'm looking at you Rift).
I've listed doubts and displeasures, yes, but I can actually ignore all of those because the story telling that Bioware has delivered is so immense.
Buy it! Enjoy it! You won't regret it (and Lord Zash told me to tell you you'd make her angry if you don't...she'll send me to fry you with my tight pants).
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Comments
You said no one posted here in one of your other posts so I am here to show some appreciation for your insightfulness and hard work.
I totally agree with you about the UI. It is outdated and anything that detracts from the game that doesnt have to do with whats going on in the game is a immediate fix. I find it hard to believe no one vioced these concerns prior to beta, hopefully they will fix.
The immersion in this game is stellar. Rarely to I feel like I am in this world or that one, living out the life of this character. SWTOR did it for me in spades.
As for the companion, I also played this class and thought my companion was a walking death machine which made me feel like I was cheating. Then I dismissed him and tried to do it all myself. That did not go according to plan and immediately decided while possibly overpowered. My companion was a definate need for my class and build.
I like the game but I am not reading that.
I feel the same way about cutscenes as I do about long posts. TLDR
I think I'll opt out of this game.
All of my posts are either intelligent, thought provoking, funny, satirical, sarcastic or intentionally disrespectful. Take your pick.
I get banned in the forums for games I love, so lets see if I do better in the forums for games I hate.
I enjoy the serenity of not caring what your opinion is.
I don't hate much, but I hate Apple© with a passion. If Steve Jobs was alive, I would punch him in the face.
I am a very experienced MMO player. I played TOR all weekend with many people I know or are from my large guild. We all had a blast. Is the game flawless, no, but it is a load of fun. I will absolutely be buying it still and recommend it highly.
I summed up my entire thoughts in a few sentances. Tha being said.
WALL OF TEXT MAXIMUM CRIT ...BAM...9000000 points damage.
Thank you sgt. I appeciate it because I spent a lot of time on that post. It's nice that someone took the time to read it rather than just quote tldr and wall of text.
On the subject of the companion, there is no way I was beating that final boss mob on Korriban by myself, that I agree with. It's nice to be able to go in to fights and send your companion off to concentrate on one mob whilst you whirlwind another and take out the final one. It's a nice mechanic and is satisifying when it comes off, but it always comes off. Maybe mobs should have a chance to resist or break whirlwind...and they could certainly be tougher.
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Yes I could have said that I liked the game in a few lines, but I decided to elaborate. It was actually a post I wrote as feedback for the TOR forums and I decided I might just post another version over here. I've seen a few reviews of the game and I think a number of them is good for people wanting to know.
Believe me I know about the wall of text, that is why I added the headings to break it up. I also went over it a number of times looking at spacing and paragraphs, but whatever I do on this forum it comes out looking like a giant great wall on a marine assault course of death. I thik it's the white text on a black background that causes a lot of problems.
I'm assuming people avoid looking at reviews for games in magazines or on gaming websites, or perhaps they just scan the pictures and read the score to make up their mind.
I could hire Bioware to do a voiceover...
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Man I can't sit and read Stephen King novels in a forum. Either you like it, or don't. Nuff said.
The short version for the average mmorpg.com forum member:
Prologue
I just got the chance to join in the big stress test for SWTOR and I wanted to post how I feel so the folks of MMORPG.com can further their judgement on whether to play.
Final Thoughts
I'll be getting the game because I need an MMO in my life...but not only for that reason. The UI needs work, grouping is fun and the story is great.
Buy it! Enjoy it! You won't regret it!
Signed, Holifeet; master of scaling forum marine walls...
Argggh my eyes...they hurt...it's too long.
Seriously, though. I could have posted just that but it doesn't really say anything about how the game plays, what's good and what's bad and what really amazed me and drew me in. I guess I'm from an age when people wrote stuff.
Enjoy the game, people. I will. It'll kick Darth Maul's red, scaley butt in to one of those power generators quicker than you can say "I love you Padme"!
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