[Column] Star Wars: The Old Republic: Earning a Galactic Reputation

BillMurphy · February 2013

We're breaking down the Galactic Reputation system coming to Star Wars: The Old Republic in Game Update 1.7: Return of the Gree in this week's SWTOR column.

Reputation is also Legacy wide, which means you won’t need to grind it out on multiple characters. This should help to reassure those who may have initially groaned at BioWare’s decision to add such a system to the game.

Read more of Michael Bitton's Star Wars: The Old Republic: Earning a Galactic Reputation.

jayfeeler69 · February 2013

It will likely be another cash shop ploy. Tired of grinding? Buy your faction rank in the cash shop!

mmoguy43 · February 2013

Is it just me (I could care less about titles) or is there no real point in having reputation? I must be missing something.

/shrug Maybe this can help make people feel they are getting more value out of being a subscriber.

RefMinor · February 2013

Originally posted by mmoguy43
Is it just me (I could care less about titles) or is there no real point in having reputation? I must be missing something.

/shrug Maybe this can help make people feel they are getting more value out of being a subscriber.

It is cheap to implement and it gives more cash shop options.

BadOrb · February 2013

Originally posted by RefMinor
Originally posted by mmoguy43
Is it just me (I could care less about titles) or is there no real point in having reputation? I must be missing something.

/shrug Maybe this can help make people feel they are getting more value out of being a subscriber.

It is cheap to implement and it gives more cash shop options.

There will be vendors for each type of rep , it looks like you can purchase items with in-game credits. Subs get a 50% rep boost automatically so need to sell subs boosts in the cash shop. There will be boosts obviously for F2P people , but they will probably also be sellable on the GTN. The trophies might be sellable on the GTN , so not much for the cash shop. Sorry guys.

Cheers,

BadOrb.

Yamota · February 2013

Originally posted by jayfeeler69
It will likely be another cash shop ploy. Tired of grinding? Buy your faction rank in the cash shop!

That is one of the many problems with MMOs with cash shop. Every content they add have some catch to it, where you need to spend money in the cash shop to get the benefits from. So instead of focusing on what adds to gameplay, they are focusing on how to make people use the cash shop.

Yamota · February 2013

[mod edit]

Karteli · February 2013

It likely will go into the cash shop in some form. I mean you can just flat out buy legacy perks outright already .. stuff that requires tons of grinding.

The system of reputation can be a value to an MMORPG's longevity, providing perks to those who invest time in a particular aspect of a game. I think it worked well in other games.

But .. since SWTOR is going around calling itself F2P, it doesn't work so nicely, since those who pay a sub get more for their time, with subscribers getting a 50% bonus to reputation gains, not even counting the rep boosts from the cash shop. Nay, SWTOR is still a freemium game, and a really bad freemium system to boot. Calling it F2P while giving perks to those who pay is known as .. tada!! P2W!

If a game wants to become F2P, they need to acknowledge that some people will actually play .. for free. The game needs to be on an even playing ground. The sub + cashshop should be used to buy cool vanity items, leveling boosts, mouth watering mounts / pets and such.

Throw endgame boosters in for paying customers and you have a really shitty cash shop / F2P-sub model, aka SWTOR.

Warlyx · February 2013

[mod edit]

catlana · February 2013

The legacy wide reputation is a huge step up for those of us that have multiple toons. I am not a fan of faction grinding, but I do dailies to get credits. All in all, the system adds rewards for stuff I am already doing. Now, to wait and see the specifics.

Swanea · February 2013

I do expect the rep adding items to be added to the shop, but since you can only get so much rep a week, it doesn't seem like it's a huge deal except for convience, so meh.

Karteli · February 2013

Originally posted by Swanea
I do expect the rep adding items to be added to the shop, but since you can only get so much rep a week, it doesn't seem like it's a huge deal except for convience, so meh.

How about a max 100% doubling rep allowance per week in the cashshop for a mere $10, or $5.

No evidence exists that this will be the case, but imposing artificial limits does also allow for those limits to be tweaked. And EA has a horrible track record.

On the philosophy of rep grinding, I think time limits are bad for gamers. I liked WoW's method because I could play the game to hell one week, then take a month off (still subscribed, just busy), and come back to it. As far as rep went, that is .. I still hated dailies.

Daily limits and weekly limits just seem to turn me off. I want to play how I want to play, when I want to play. SWTOR's limits are just building on other games crappy systems to keep players playing "EVERY DAY", or "EVERY WEEK". Make me want to play that often, why don't you?

[imagine if there was a limit to social or dark/light side points gained per week, how would you feel then? .. how would you feel if there was a weekly credit limit? Or the number of auctions per week .. etc .. blech .. let players play how they want, when they want]

Cursedsei · February 2013

The reputation system is the same thing we've seen from Bioware for SW:TOR since release. A shoddy, half-arsed attempt at padding out game time instead of providing any true content, while they continue to promise "big things" for the future releases.

A reputation system isn't needed. The fact that its account wide instead of character specific does little to make it amazing, only making it just a bit more bearable, though keep in mind that as far as I'm aware of, we have no clue how much it takes to go from one rank to the next. It doesn't mean jack squat if its account wide, if the amount to go fron Rank 1 to 2 and etc. is the equivalent of doing that rep with several toons. Which, I might add, is very much a possibility, and several games have done that before.

The cash shop just puts more of a chance into that.

Unknown · February 2013

[mod edit]

Karteli · February 2013

[mod edit]

ironhelix · February 2013

[mod edit]

bulldog1963 · February 2013

[mod edit]

nate1980 · February 2013

As a subscriber, I don't think I will like this update. NPC factions in the pre-WoW days were usually neutral to you and their relationship changed with you depending on what sort of things you killed. Didn't have anything to do with doing dailies. Depending on your reputation with those NPC factions you could be KoS, or allowed to pass to farm in greater areas and access additional content.

Nowadays, all faction grinding means is earning reputation by doing dailies so you can get tangible rewards. Not a system I like really.

NC-John · February 2013

It may not be a system people will like, but it can be a lead in to guild perks system possibly. you have to design the core system before you can expand it into more complex ones. I think giving the fans a way to earn rewards/perks right now is better then simply doing all that for nothing. which at the end of the day for TOR fans is a good thing. was going to use a car analogie but man they get used allot.

rsreston · February 2013

How about SW:ToR earning some F2Players by removing our XP cap?

MurlockDance · February 2013

Seeing as it seems to be a way to intice people into grouping up more often and doing heroics (and hopefully being more sociable), this might not be such a bad addition to the game.

Edit - I guess I will wait and see.

Aeonblades · February 2013

[mod edit] I will say a reputation system is NOT what this game needed, and is just more filler content that people will only do because they feel like they have to.

I will also say they did make a step in the right direction making it account wide though.

Aeonblades · February 2013

[mod edit]

This, which is why we should stay on topic about them trying to save a sinking ship. If they had fixed bugs, improved PvP tremendously, and optimized the engine, then they should worry about a time sink system.

residentx · February 2013

Originally posted by Cursedsei
The reputation system is the same thing we've seen from Bioware for SW:TOR since release. A shoddy, half-arsed attempt at padding out game time instead of providing any true content, while they continue to promise "big things" for the future releases.

A reputation system isn't needed. The fact that its account wide instead of character specific does little to make it amazing, only making it just a bit more bearable, though keep in mind that as far as I'm aware of, we have no clue how much it takes to go from one rank to the next. It doesn't mean jack squat if its account wide, if the amount to go fron Rank 1 to 2 and etc. is the equivalent of doing that rep with several toons. Which, I might add, is very much a possibility, and several games have done that before.

The cash shop just puts more of a chance into that.

I have to agree with this comment. I thought this game was about "game-play." SWTOR already requires too much bandwidth so now you get to spend your time online making useless choices. They are making this game too complex. Why does every game want to do everything but make content?

BadOrb · February 2013

Originally posted by Karteli
Originally posted by Swanea
I do expect the rep adding items to be added to the shop, but since you can only get so much rep a week, it doesn't seem like it's a huge deal except for convience, so meh.

How about a max 100% doubling rep allowance per week in the cashshop for a mere $10, or $5.

No evidence exists that this will be the case, but imposing artificial limits does also allow for those limits to be tweaked. And EA has a horrible track record.

On the philosophy of rep grinding, I think time limits are bad for gamers. I liked WoW's method because I could play the game to hell one week, then take a month off (still subscribed, just busy), and come back to it. As far as rep went, that is .. I still hated dailies.

Daily limits and weekly limits just seem to turn me off. I want to play how I want to play, when I want to play. SWTOR's limits are just building on other games crappy systems to keep players playing "EVERY DAY", or "EVERY WEEK". Make me want to play that often, why don't you?

[imagine if there was a limit to social or dark/light side points gained per week, how would you feel then? .. how would you feel if there was a weekly credit limit? Or the number of auctions per week .. etc .. blech .. let players play how they want, when they want]

You do realise that you can store up the trophies and then use them the week after ? Well it seems like you don't from your comments. So grind for a full week , max out all 4 of the reputation grinds , then carry on and use the additional trophies the week after and so on.

Cheers,

BadOrb.

Karteli · February 2013

Originally posted by BadOrb
Originally posted by Karteli
Originally posted by Swanea
I do expect the rep adding items to be added to the shop, but since you can only get so much rep a week, it doesn't seem like it's a huge deal except for convience, so meh.

How about a max 100% doubling rep allowance per week in the cashshop for a mere $10, or $5.

No evidence exists that this will be the case, but imposing artificial limits does also allow for those limits to be tweaked. And EA has a horrible track record.

On the philosophy of rep grinding, I think time limits are bad for gamers. I liked WoW's method because I could play the game to hell one week, then take a month off (still subscribed, just busy), and come back to it. As far as rep went, that is .. I still hated dailies.

Daily limits and weekly limits just seem to turn me off. I want to play how I want to play, when I want to play. SWTOR's limits are just building on other games crappy systems to keep players playing "EVERY DAY", or "EVERY WEEK". Make me want to play that often, why don't you?

[imagine if there was a limit to social or dark/light side points gained per week, how would you feel then? .. how would you feel if there was a weekly credit limit? Or the number of auctions per week .. etc .. blech .. let players play how they want, when they want]

You do realise that you can store up the trophies and then use them the week after ? Well it seems like you don't from your comments. So grind for a full week , max out all 4 of the reputation grinds , then carry on and use the additional trophies the week after and so on.

Cheers,

BadOrb.

An undesireable workaround. Perks are still on a delay. Your method would work, but it doesn't excite me

It's also an immersion breaker. If you do tremendous activities for an organization, you have to wait .. slowly .. patiently .. before they allow you to get more recognition / turn in trophies, etc. Very unrealistic.

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[Column] Star Wars: The Old Republic: Earning a Galactic Reputation

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[Column] Star Wars: The Old Republic: Earning a Galactic Reputation

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