Avian Gamers Network

Last week at the Austin Game Conference, John Smedley, the president of SOE, mentioned in his keynote address that their upcoming DC comics MMO would be real-time combat. We bumped into him later that day and asked if what he said was true and he assured us it was. He also happened to mention SWG would be going real-time combat as well. He asked us not to print anything until SOE unveiled some of their upcoming changes today.

From our man in the field, schild:




Needless to say that left me wanting to know more, so I tried to follow-up with schild while he was busy playing an internal build of the overhaul.



Like us, I assume many of you have questions and we'll do our best to answer them in the coming days, weeks and months. For right now I have a reason to re-activate my SWG subscription and that's something that one week ago I thought I would never have a reason to do.

Join the amazement.

[EDIT] Information is continuing to roll in.

Greetings Star Wars Galaxies Players, Fans, and Other Denizens of the Galaxy:

My name is Julio Torres and I am the Producer on Star Wars Galaxies for LucasArts. We wanted you, the great members of the Galaxies community, to be the first to hear some exciting news about the current and future plans for Star Wars Galaxies!

Over the past year we have been working hard to respond to feedback we have gotten from players, fans, focus groups, and other research. This feedback has ultimately centered on one key area: the game does not feel like a heroic Star Wars experience. Currently, the early game has a steep learning curve and there is no clearly defined path of advancement or adventure. Many of our fans who bought the game did not see enough Star Wars style action early-on and ultimately left our world. It is our goal to change this and improve the experience for all players.

We are introducing a series of game enhancements to Star Wars Galaxies this month that include both significant enhancements to the live game as well as a completely redesigned experience for new players. The primary areas of focus include combat and profession and character development. The combat depicted in the Star Wars films, fiction, and canon that we have all come to know and love is fast-paced, action-packed, and visually intense. In order to stay true to the Star Wars fiction as well as to make the combat system more engaging, we have shifted the turn-based paradigm towards a much more engaging fast-action combat system where you control every move! After receiving feedback from members of the community, conducting extensive focus tests, and evaluating the combat systems of other games in the genre, we are confident this new fast-action combat truly delivers what players, fans, and gamers have come to expect from a Star Wars experience.

As mentioned earlier, combat is not the only area where we decided to focus our improvement efforts. We have also improved and brought more clarity to the profession and character development system.

Changing a live game is never easy. We realize that players do not like to have their experience altered. These enhancements will take some getting used to and for that reason we lined-up some incentives for the current players to enjoy as our thanks for your loyalty to our game.

We value our community and want you to stay with us. Our goal is to continuously improve the Star Wars experience, the one we all know and love from the films and fiction; action-packed, story-driven, Star Wars fun. With these features and enhancements we are setting the stage for incredible things to come for Galaxies with more announcements happening in the coming months.

I'd like to thank you all for your continued support of Star Wars Galaxies and for making it one of the premier gaming experiences online today.


May The Force Be With You,

Julio Torres, Producer - LucasArts

/agree

i may login again 6 months AFTER this "re-vamp" is live...


i have the all access pass which i've contemplated canceling as i don't login much to eq2 either....hmmmm

Considering their track record, you may actually be quite adventurous giving it a chance after just 6 months.

All current players will be given the chance to sample all the new professions before choosing one. Each veteran player (existing characters active in-game prior to the introduction of the enhancements) will receive a “re-spec” (change or revise a character’s basic skills and abilities) token with ten uses/charges to provide the opportunity to try any and all of the professions once before making your final choice. Currently, there is no time limit for when to use the “re-spec” tokens – players will use of them until all of the opportunities have been used. As an additional bonus, all current active characters will be able to begin advancing through new levels as we are adding 10 levels to the combat advancement system, level 80 – 90.

Jedi will be able to choose any of the nine iconic new professions, including the Jedi profession. Regardless of a veteran Jedi’s (existing active Jedi characters prior to the introduction of the game enhancements) re-spec choice the character will gain items and abilities that will represent the original accomplishments achieved by that character. These include specifically, the ability to take on the transparent Blue form of an ascended Jedi, a special Robe that is endowed with protective properties, and an exclusive new lightsaber with a unique color that deals more damage. All of these new items are being given to existing Jedi characters in recognition for their past achievements.

Yes, we are hoping to have this on Test Center in the next week.

Psychopyro80 wrote:

Hello all. As most of you know, I have been in Austin the last day and a half. We have been testing out new changes to Star Wars Galaxies. While most people will be afraid and uneasy about the changes, I want to let you know about what is going on, and how things are going.

First, let me start by saying that combat has become more fun and is a better change for the game. No longer will it be all about mashing specials and the best weapon. This is a new system and is not a rehash of the old or current system. With that im mind, please keep an open mind.

Now coming will be a drastic change in skills. There will be 9 classes as follows:

Smuggler, Bounty Hunter, Commando, Medic, Force Sensitive, Officer (think SL), Tradesman, Entertainer, Spy. Poli and Pilot will remain unchanged.

Most experience can no be either quest based or grinding. With skills will come abilities as well as rewards. Crafters will have 4 sub crafters. I will not get into the large scale of the changes. As there are others that are also having things to say about it.

Basic points, entertainers and crafters will no longer draw agro unless they pick a fight. There are drastic changes to the way that specials work. I will be writing up basic 0.1 guides when I get back home tonight. Those will be in more detail.

As for TC itself, please hear me before you go nuts on this.

TC will be put in stasis for a week or two to start out. These are drastic changes that need to be worked and tested from level 1. After that, TC will be brought up to test mid to high level as well as /respec. The detalis on this will be each person gets 10 respecs on which the 10th will be permanant. You cannot change your skills anymore, what you start is, is what you are. No surrendering and re-grinding.

AND ALSO THERE WILL BE NO BLUE FROGS SO DON'T EVEN THINK OF ASKING!!!!!!!!!!!

I know TC does not want another mothball. I did all I could, but the fact remains that we need low newbie testing. I did manage to get you all notice. Please use it to the fullest.

I will leave the rest of the details to other people who were here as well.

Over 50 new quests and missions.
Join Obi-Wan Kenobi in his quest for redemption.
Discover and defeat the legendary Separatist Droid army.
Discover the mysteries of the Old Republic as you uncover ancient weaponry and technology.
Visit locations from Episode III: Revenge of the Sith™ including the site where Anakin Skywalker had his final battle with Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Visit the ruins of the ancient Jedi Order and defeat new enemies of the force.
Battle dozens of new Creatures such as the Xandank, Tulrus, and Blistmok.
Uncover hundreds of new loot items including weapons like the Mustafarian Disruptor and the SFOR Republic Carbine which utilizes Old Republic technology.
Explore an all-new adventure planet featuring brand new environmental and graphical technology such as unique heat shimmer and lava effects.
Earn the new YT-2400, a multi-passenger ship fashioned after that of Dash Rendar.

Two new playable races, including the magical Blood Elves
New starting zones in Quel'Thalas and beyond
The entire new continent of Outland, reachable through the Dark Portal
Many new high-level dungeons to explore in Azeroth, Outland, and elsewhere
New flying mounts in Outland
Many new and dangerous monsters, including epic world bosses
Hundreds of new quests
Hundreds of new items
A new profession: Jewelcrafting
Socketed items
And much, much more...

What a way of admitting the last 2 years was a total waste....

fail·ure
n.

1. The condition or fact of not achieving the desired end or ends: the failure of an experiment.
2. One that fails: a failure at one's career.
3. The condition or fact of being insufficient or falling short: a crop failure.
4. A cessation of proper functioning or performance: a power failure.
5. Nonperformance of what is requested or expected; omission: failure to report a change of address.
6. The act or fact of failing to pass a course, test, or assignment.
7. A decline in strength or effectiveness.
8. The act or fact of becoming bankrupt or insolvent.

HAHA gotta be kidding me right ? This game alone itself has been like 10 games already wtf are they doing ?

4. A cessation of proper functioning or performance: a power failure.

5. Nonperformance of what is requested or expected; omission: failure to report a change of address.

Some screenshots from the new tutorial
http://www.unc.edu/~rtcherry/SWG/

Currently downloading and will try it out soon.

Do you guys remember several months back when rumor had it that LA was going to take over SWG and possibly phase SoE out? I am not sure if that was the accurate summary of the rumor, but none the less do you remember this rumor?

When I was looking at the screenshots Obo posted, I noticed that a few had what looked to be professions windows up. These windows looked very different from what I remember of SWG. Also I noticed the art around the chat boxes looked different.

With such new and different looking art and window layout, do you think these changes are a result of the LA rumor coming true? Such changes as the rumor would take a long time to begin showing up. Also I would imagine that the new team would have to design their improvements and demo them to the powers that be before getting the green light to take over.

Seems from the art and the fundamental changes that new talent and new vision have gotten their hands on SWG. Factor in the short testing schedule and the comments that these changes have been developing in the background for over a year. I wonder if this is LA taking a stronger role.

Woo hoo! another laptopper like me! Wow that sounded wierd just now...

"Its a trap!"

NotOR2

(looks up to make sure hell -ie Chicago- has not frozen over)

Woo hoo! another laptopper like me! Wow that sounded wierd just now...

- Heh, Americans can't spell

BTW what does UI mean? Never got that one before.

Woo hoo! another laptopper like me! Wow that sounded wierd just now...

But...of course the Tutorial is bugged! I cannot get out. There is a work around posted but I logged out before seeing it and now the server is full and I cannot get back in.

I was a Star Wars Galaxies beta-tester. I loved the game back then. When they announced the launch date though, every single beta tester cried foul. It was a great game, or so we thought - our judgement was partially blindsided by the fact that we didn't have to pay for the game at that point. But we all knew there was no way in hell that it was ready to cross that threshold.

Your Morale and confidence in Sony Online Entertainment is reduced by 50%.

It became abundantly obvious in the next few months that numbers were sole desire of the 'powers that be' behind the game. I didn't play more than 3 months. This was largely attributed to not only the poor gameplay and bland-as-shit world at the time, but to their utter lack of commitment to their customers. So your guildmate has been stuck in your Guild Hall basement for a week, and no GM has bothered to answer the ticket? So your house was deleted with all your posessions because you went on vacation; even though maintenance was paid for... so what?

Your Morale and confidence in Sony Online Entertainment is reduced 75% more, and your subscription is cancelled without regret.

This update proves their lust for success at the cost of quality even more. They take away everything players have worked for for the last two years. They do this right after a new expansion is released. We've been boned another $50, and had we known about this one week prior, we may not have bought it. This update may well improve the gameplay and the 'fun' associated with combat. But does it improve the game? All of the sudden, players are bereft of a great deal of social mechanisms and again, what they've worked toward for months.

However, this improvement to gameplay is even more telling about SOE. It says that they too have been watching the ads on TV about how Star Wars Battlegrounds II is the "sequel to the best-selling Star Wars game ever" - which doesn't tell us of the game's poor gameplay and lack of anything that might make a decent piece of entertainment, but I digress - SOE is interested in numbers. Big ones. So they recreate their own trophy MMO to be more streamlined. To have the action found in Battlegrounds, and the simplicity that makes World of Warcraft attractive to a very broad audience of gamers (that let Blizzard reach out of the finite audience of MMORPG gamers).

To avoid making this post 5 pages longer, I'll forego any comment on the horrible implications this update has on the Star Wars canon. I have one word for people who don't understand this: "Jedi". Anyone remember back before SWG was released how vehemently the developers cried to the heavens that the SW continuity must be upheld? F***ing laughable. Those devs are real comedians.


I play World of Warcraft myself. It's the only MMO that I've ever hit the max level in. That tells me that the gameplay is quite good, or at least well-balanced, considering the type of player I am. But it's still very simplistic, where the intellectual and interesting social interactions (which is what once was at the heart of the "MMO" concept) are user-created. This was also the case in SWG - most of the content and fun to be had in beta and post-launch was created by the paying customer. The difference I see between the two is the richness of the world, and perhaps the lore. I've never been a great fan of Star Wars lore. The original trilogy of course is, as they say, "where it's at", but everything that Lucas has given his license to since - the "expanded universe" of spin-offs and literature published by fans that are not George Lucas - it's all destroyed the Star Wars universe, or at least made it rather uninhabitable for someone accustomed to the qualities that make Middle-earth the least bit favorable. If you follow me.

Warcraft's lore though is tiring as well. It's 'high' fantasy. The lore could easily pass as a campaign setting for Dungeons & Dragons. When the LOTRO devs are asked what makes their game unique, and they reply by saying "Middle-earth" - they're right. Even if they don't provide a wealth of tools for RPers to use, which would be unfortunate, it's written into the fabric of the canon... that alone greatly lends itself to intellectual and interesting social interaction within the world. Turbine would have to royally screw themselves in the ear and do a job worthy of Sony Online Entertainment to take that out of the game, I think.