Star Wars: The Old Republic

 PC
User Score
6.0

Mixed or average reviews- based on 2879 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,378 out of 2879
  2. Mixed: 545 out of 2879
  3. Negative: 956 out of 2879
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  1. Xuanlong
    Dec 26, 2011
    0
    I can not express how disappointed I am with this game. Normally I like Bioware and their games, I will admit that I wasn't all that upset with DA 2. This however, is a completely different animal, and I wonder who is to blame for this momentous failure. So what is wrong with this game? For starters, its stiff. By that I mean it is no different that any other MMO on the market. When oneI can not express how disappointed I am with this game. Normally I like Bioware and their games, I will admit that I wasn't all that upset with DA 2. This however, is a completely different animal, and I wonder who is to blame for this momentous failure. So what is wrong with this game? For starters, its stiff. By that I mean it is no different that any other MMO on the market. When one mentions star wars, images of epic dynamic flowing duels between Jedi and Sith, images of smooth Han Solo-esq smugglers getting by with wit and charm while quietly taking their blaster out its holster to take out the check-point guards just in case they decide to take a closer look at his cargo, or of massive naval battles between inconceivably large fleets of ships. This game is sadly none of these. Now I understand that this is a MMO and as such it is limited, I can live with such limits. But the game limits its self in just being what every other MMO on the market is, Kill x many of y mob, or gather so many of these items, etc. Nothing that hasn't been done for the past 6+ years.
    Now Bioware did try to do something different with their almost iconic morality system, which would have been something new and engaging if your decisions meant anything.
    The UI is terrible, rigid and uninspired. The user can't move anything, is unaware of what mob is attacking what beyond what is attacking them, and the Pet UI (and yes that is all the companions really are) is beyond atrocious, I cannot count the number of times mine have dropped an AoE on a group of CCed mobs. Speaking of groups of mobs, pretty much everything attacks you groups and are either really weak and die within two attacks or really powerful and the player will barely make it out.
    Furthermore, the combat mechanics are stated earlier are stiff, the same old recycled hotbar stand still and spam your key combat.
    Healing is slow, and awkward, the lack of any sort of macros really brings this home. How hard is it to enable simple mouse over macros?
    Space combat plays like a Star Fox mini game, though not a bad thing if you enjoyed the Star Fox series.
    The crafting system has much that needs to be improved, The characters aren't even the once doing the crafting its the companions, which would be a plus for them as it does make them somewhat useful if it wasn't for the fact that it takes about a minute for each item that one wishes to craft.
    Character customization isn't even there, preset faces, to be mixed with preset bodies, hair, etc.
    Race choices are pretty much human and human with different skin color and choice of horns. Now there are those who say that its early in the game's life, or that I am a "hater" or "troll".
    This game has been in development for almost 4 years with a rumored cost over $135 million. I know Bioware can put out better product than this. I know they can have engaging dynamic combat look at "Jade Empire" they can have tactical combat, DA:origins proved this. It even had decent AI if one knew how to tell the machine what to do.
    In short this is not a next gen mmo, and will never be a next gen mmo. Bioware wasted a lot of time and money to make this, what they should have done instead is make KotOR 3 and gave it a mutiplayer, multistory option. Maybe something PSO like from way back on the Dreamcast, or even Diablo 2, with the different classes but add in the seperate stories that you could share with your friends if you so wished.
    That would have been a much better game. A single player game with 8 story lines that I could play with my friends online.    … Expand
  2. J45neoboy
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    Star Wars: The Old Republic has hit all the nice touches. They've taken what has worked and made it better. The questing system? Yeah, it worked, but now your choices matter and you have fully immersive voice overs with amazing animations. The combat? Yeah, tab-targetting works. But now we have dynamic combat with amazing skill and strategy to master. The graphics? Yeah, they're not likeStar Wars: The Old Republic has hit all the nice touches. They've taken what has worked and made it better. The questing system? Yeah, it worked, but now your choices matter and you have fully immersive voice overs with amazing animations. The combat? Yeah, tab-targetting works. But now we have dynamic combat with amazing skill and strategy to master. The graphics? Yeah, they're not like Aion's but they are absolutely amazing. Many are downrating this game for silly reasons, but it's not due to the instancing. The instancing is very little and may I add, YOU CAN ALLOW OTHER PEOPLE IN YOUR INSTANCES. YOU CAN SKIP THE MOVIES IF YOU WANT TO. Definitely a great game.… Expand
  3. Allya
    Dec 21, 2011
    10
    I posted the Top Ten Reasons That Star Wars: The Old Republic is My WoW Killer in a Cracked-style article that can be found here:

    http://awritersrecluse.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=s&action=display&thread=4097
  4. Khurg
    Dec 21, 2011
    10
    Excellent game ! engaging, good features, excellent immersion. Some good innovation here and elimination of grinding. Class stories are very well done. 10/10 in my book
  5. Tro
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    I've been patiently waiting for this game ever since I heard about it back in mid 2010. Prior to that I had sworn off MMORPGs after getting bored with the genre, however the combination of Star Wars and a massively open world to play in convinced me to keep an eye on developments. After having participated in the recent beta weekend events, I knew with 100% certainty that Star Wars: TheI've been patiently waiting for this game ever since I heard about it back in mid 2010. Prior to that I had sworn off MMORPGs after getting bored with the genre, however the combination of Star Wars and a massively open world to play in convinced me to keep an eye on developments. After having participated in the recent beta weekend events, I knew with 100% certainty that Star Wars: The Old Republic would be my new digital home for the foreseeable future. Once you get your ship and more powerful abilities early-to-mid level you really start to appreciate the sheer amount of hard work that has gone into this game; the scenery especially is outstanding, from the claustrophobic tunnels of Coruscant to the brash, neon skyline of Nar Shaddaa, and then to the dusty, sandy, scorched world of Tatooine, you are fully immersed in the Star Wars galaxy so deftly and lovingly crafted by BioWare. The gameplay is also excellent, and I've got so many abilities to play around with even though I'm level 33 (out of 50) that I've run out of hotkeys! Conclusion: I can heartily recommend this game to newcomers and veterans alike. There are hundreds, thousands of hours of game time to be had, for the price of a couple of rental dvds per month. This premium entertainment is excellent value for money.… Expand
  6. Phinix
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    The Troll is strong with this one... people appear to be rating 0-3 on the DAY OF RELEASE. Anyone who has played an MMO knows that it is impossible to glean insight to the game's worth in a single day. Even those (myself included) with early game access experience have not reached level cap and have not had nearly enough time to explore even a fraction of the whole experience. All of thatThe Troll is strong with this one... people appear to be rating 0-3 on the DAY OF RELEASE. Anyone who has played an MMO knows that it is impossible to glean insight to the game's worth in a single day. Even those (myself included) with early game access experience have not reached level cap and have not had nearly enough time to explore even a fraction of the whole experience. All of that said, I'm casting my vote just to even out the trolls. I'll come back and adjust my rating as I gain more experience with the title, but know this much; I am extremely satisfied thus far. My wife and I had a blast going through the starter zone together and I've been extremely amused solo'ing as I explore each of the classes. Graphics are superb, though you'll want to force AA on [Google it - it's not terribly difficult] and I like playing without shadows. The voice acting is top notch, and the music is wonderfully nostalgic. Gameplay, so far, is as to be expected from an MMO title; I have no outstanding remarks to make therein.… Expand
  7. Flaash
    Dec 20, 2011
    1
    Played stress test weekends, found out Bioware wants to charge people a monthly sub for a single player game, and a 2nd rate hash of one at that. I challenge anyone to not skip through all of the so called Story Dialogue after the first couple of hours, its pretty much a go-there, kill this boss or 10 of these thingies for the entire grind that it becomes. Did consider buying it for aPlayed stress test weekends, found out Bioware wants to charge people a monthly sub for a single player game, and a 2nd rate hash of one at that. I challenge anyone to not skip through all of the so called Story Dialogue after the first couple of hours, its pretty much a go-there, kill this boss or 10 of these thingies for the entire grind that it becomes. Did consider buying it for a month to see if the release version would have improved but Origin have actually suspended anyone from buying a digital download because there are massive queues on pretty much all servers. After reading the official forums the Customer Service stories are horrendous and the game is exactly as it was in beta. Give it a miss.… Expand
  8. johnnyph12
    Dec 23, 2011
    0
    someone is outsourcing their reviews .below is an excerpt from a paid review. from someone names Yassir. . look up this review yourselves, below is just a brief portion. This is really sad. Also, notice how Gamespot.com and IGN.com are still "reviewing" the game even though the beta has been out for some time. this type of practice indicates something foul as well. It is really hardsomeone is outsourcing their reviews .below is an excerpt from a paid review. from someone names Yassir. . look up this review yourselves, below is just a brief portion. This is really sad. Also, notice how Gamespot.com and IGN.com are still "reviewing" the game even though the beta has been out for some time. this type of practice indicates something foul as well. It is really hard to find an honest review. YassirX
    Dec 22, 2011
    10
    IÃ¢â    … Expand
  9. gamingsince86
    Dec 24, 2011
    8
    i'm not an mmo expert but i have play a variety of them since PSO to diablo FFXI WoW Rift even FFXIV. now i'm playing SWTOR... if your going into this game expecting it to be so different from anything else, your not going to enjoy it. that being said the standard has been set by multiple past mmo's that have become a must for an mmo to be both playable and fun! SWTOR is a very good game,i'm not an mmo expert but i have play a variety of them since PSO to diablo FFXI WoW Rift even FFXIV. now i'm playing SWTOR... if your going into this game expecting it to be so different from anything else, your not going to enjoy it. that being said the standard has been set by multiple past mmo's that have become a must for an mmo to be both playable and fun! SWTOR is a very good game, no it's not the revolutionary game that it was hyped up to be but it took all the right steps to either become or show the next guys how it's done. I think they focused mostly on the authentic feeling of you bind with and feeling your character becoming stronger within the world. the progression and story line are great in my eyes, the only grinding iv'e noticed was the crafting, wich is all done by your companion (you literally click a button and he does his own thing while you continue doing w/e you were doing) he comes back a couple minutes later with a complete product and ready to be sent again. Character creation isnt extremely deep, you can pick between about 4 body types, but! the facial features and skin features are enough to limit you from seeing a clone of yourself easily. i've hit lvl 19 and havn't seen an exact copy of myself yet. also your dark and light side changes your features a bit too. now alot of mmo players are complaining about the way the world is set up, IT IS NOT 100% OPEN WORLD but thats ok :) was diablo open world? how many people loved it and are going to get diablo III? exactly. its not exactly a rail system tho. you get a main hub/city for each planet then outside of that is a smaller yet generally open world with dungeons that route off of that. you can explore to fine datacons wich give you stat boosts you keep forever. i actually enjoy this set up cause it makes it easy to see what people are doing and actually makes it easy to find a group. now the graphics, i'll start with the downside, there are minimal graphic customization built in to the game, wich limits some players and causes performance issues with others. you do however have the choice of shader, texture, foliage density, character detail and bloom options, my only issue (mine only some have more) is that there were no options for anti aliasing but you can write your own line in the setting file wich is what i did and voila no jaggies :) i'm not gonna go into detail on the WoW SWTOR comparisons and gripes but if your just looking for something fresh, new and polished with lots of potential this is a good pick, if you want something completely different from WoW and Rift, dont hype this game you will be let down.

    PROS: dialog and story keeps your head in the game very colorful all classes feel look and performe differently with alot of over the top flare authentic star wars feel, looks and sounds epic space flight missions flashpoints and heroic missions are a blast crew skills (crafting and savaging) are convenient CONS: space flight is on rails (still fun tho) and i don't think there is space pvp limited open world (if thats what your lookin for) limited graphic setting options character creations isnt very deep im sure im missing alot here guys this being my 1st mmo review but i hope this atleast helps a few of you looking for a decent non bias rating seeing only wow praising and wow bashing. i still have yet to try pvp and probly a bunch of other things but from what ive done so far i myself love it.    … Expand
  10. GatorFan
    Dec 20, 2011
    9
    One phrase sums up SW:TOR, "It's the STORY.....(stupid)".

    The EQ -> WoW MMO legacy was based only loosely on story and mostly about gear progression. In those games I always felt the urge to rush to max level, skip quest text, follow the bread crumb trail that was obvious, and get to the next level, the next zone, the next gear upgrade. Blah, blah boring after 7 years of playing like    One phrase sums up SW:TOR, "It's the STORY.....(stupid)".

    The EQ -> WoW MMO legacy was based only loosely on story and mostly about gear progression. In those games I always felt the urge to rush to max level, skip quest text, follow the bread crumb trail that was obvious, and get to the next level, the next zone, the next gear upgrade. Blah, blah boring after 7 years of playing like that. WoW is an awesome game and there is enough room in my gaming interests to play BOTH without the universe exploding. But that gaming mode is old, old, old.

    Make no mistake, this is NOT WoW and is not trying to copy WoW. There are basic things that are in common such as talents and combat, but that's about as far as it goes. The immersion comes from paying attention to the quest voice dialog and really interacting with it. Your choices in the dialog matter and as a result I have found myself personally attached to my toon within the first 5 levels. My toons in other games are all about their gear at max level where leveling doesn't mean jack at the end. In this case, our choices all along the way are unique and give a unique feel to your toon.

    Mechanically, SW:TOR has a number of nice "quality of life" goodies. The Companion system for crafting is a fantastic concept. No more taking your own time to farm and craft grind over and over again, send your companion off to do that. AoE looting is a huge improvement to the questing experience. The light/dark options along the way leave you with a unique character at max level as well based on the choices along the way. Yes, you can be a dark Jedi or a light Sith. And what's even more interesting is the clear distinction between Empire and Republic with no blurring the lines and "capital city" mess of being "nice" to the other faction. The other guys are your sworn enemies and you want to kill them. Take that into PvP and you'll have a lot more fun!

    Yes, there are improvements that need to be made but what games doesn't need them? The UI needs customization (which they say is coming), the GTN (auction house equivalent) needs some better filtering ability. If those improvements don't come, then there is a problem. But to be sitting on launch day and have the major things RIGHT, and some details like the ones I mentioned not done yet just tells me they made good choices in building a game that is INTERESTING first. They are not fatal flaws unless you're a hyper-obsessive basement dweller.

    The term "WoW killer" is so overused and misapplied it's laughable. BW didn't set out to make this a killer of anything but to make a game with their unique way of story telling that happens to be one of the most relateable and immersive story lines of the modern movie generation, Star Wars. To enjoy that means setting aside most of the mind set trained from the WoW's of the MMO genre and being open to a new experience. One that I personally find to be the best and most refreshing since I started playing MMOs 8 years ago.    … Expand
  11. Goosebump
    Dec 23, 2011
    7
    *** Pros (in no specific order other than as they come to me): Fantastic voice acting throughout. Decent graphics. Star Wars! Nice twist on professions by letting your companion(s) grind em while you get on with other stuff. Decent stories and class chains. Good travel options (only let down by the ridiculously long fleet recall cd). Various levels of mob difficulty for their*** Pros (in no specific order other than as they come to me): Fantastic voice acting throughout. Decent graphics. Star Wars! Nice twist on professions by letting your companion(s) grind em while you get on with other stuff. Decent stories and class chains. Good travel options (only let down by the ridiculously long fleet recall cd). Various levels of mob difficulty for their respective level. Bioware, Lucasarts are two greats in the industry. Reasonable UI options but can get very cluttered with frames overlapping side action bars and the likes. Your own space ship is cool and some space fights are great fun. Two options to take on how you want to res when you die - this is really good. Everyone can resurrect people out of combat. Nice chat choice roll system when in a group on quests. Dark and Light side is another bit of fun to focus on when levelling. *** Cons: PvP - just don't bother. Dire combat mechanics for melee - WoW is light years ahead in terms of combat fun for a melee class in this regard. Ranged combat seems ok and doesnt feel anywhere as awkward or clunky as melee combat. The deposit scaling with buyout price and auction time is insanely high and totally discourages people posting things on the auction house - especially while levelling where credits are tight. The taint of EA is in the back of players minds that have been stung by their awful support and/or dollar-grabbing previously - I truely wish Bioware would cut all ties with these guys. *** Summary: From my six years of WoW, this is not a WoW killer imho for those interested in it as a potential challenger. It's something that can be played alongside WoW purely for the whole Star Wars thing goin on but I have my doubts about the longevity of the game unless Bioware can keep it interesting - we'll just have to wait and see. The frustrating combat mechanics, bad deposit system on the auction house and after thought PvP are enough to make me cancel my sub when my 30 days are up however. This is not a bash at the game by the way - it's an honest opinion - there's alot to love in the game too as you can see in the pros above and maybe the cons are things that you can live with - if so, great - have a blast! 7/10… Expand
  12. civildude892
    Dec 21, 2011
    10
    Absolutely phenomenal MMO. I've played launches for pretty much every major subscription MMO since 2004 and this has by far been the best. Game-play and story are amazing and the game is pretty much bug free and the servers are running flawlessly.
  13. spankusmaximus
    Dec 26, 2011
    0
    I was really hoping that this game would live up to the hype but alas it has fallen far short, which is not to say that mmo's do not have a rough birth - i beta tested and then played WoW from vanilla to cata and the first 2 years were the most outrageous including server instability, 3 hr bg waits and 1-2 hr queues just to log, only to have the server crash. But it's been 7 years sinceI was really hoping that this game would live up to the hype but alas it has fallen far short, which is not to say that mmo's do not have a rough birth - i beta tested and then played WoW from vanilla to cata and the first 2 years were the most outrageous including server instability, 3 hr bg waits and 1-2 hr queues just to log, only to have the server crash. But it's been 7 years since WoW hit and anyone paying attention, as Blizzard had obviously been doing to everquest in creating WoW, could make a quick cheat sheet of things to work on that would make an outstanding mmo. Let's begin there. 1. Use the star wars universe. Great idea. I do not know a single person that wouldn't enjoy running around as a han-type, luke-type or vader-type running quests and bgs, killing things w/ a blaster or a lightsaber. not to mention using the star wars universe as a backdrop must have been a relief for bioware knowing that there is no way possible to **** up the star wars anymore than lucas has already.

    2. Take all logical controls and make them exceedingly clunky. I don't know what bioware was thinking but controlling your character is like trying to drive and do your taxes. Super fubar.

    3. Make certain that only nvidia hardware works correctly w/ the game. I built a friend a rig, using my old whs parts, which included a 3 year old nvidia 220, 3 gigs of ram and a duo core and swtor runs like glass on his machine. While i have a ~6 mo old core i7 w/ 8 gigs of ram and a 6880 and certain parts of the game look like a slide show. I still get ~120 fps in WoW on high settings. So chalk that up to a "rough birth" but it would be nice for bioware to at least acknowledge these issues and let people who are paying $ to play their game, that they are working on resolving the fps issues. So far, no dice.

    Thus far, this mmo has gotten 1 out of 3 things right - the backdrop and quest lines. following that it has utterly screwed the pooch. People will tell you that all the cut scenes are voice acted and blah blah blah - you don't play an mmo so that you can get a single player game out of it., so the fact that the cut scenes are voice acted by the second coming of Alec Guinness makes not a lick of difference. Avoid this mmo at all costs, or at least until they release the first few patches. I have no doubt that George Lucas had his hand in this, as this game is nothing more than the return of jar jar.    … Expand
  14. Tent27
    Dec 20, 2011
    4
    I can't stop shaking my head in disbelief. Am I supposed to be impressed with a 300 million dollar game that looks, plays and feels like a game from 2004? So glad I played it on my friends computer and didn't get it myself. Textures in Knights of the Old Republic look better. Don't believe me, put them side by side and compare. The new bioware destroys everything it touches, and Star WarsI can't stop shaking my head in disbelief. Am I supposed to be impressed with a 300 million dollar game that looks, plays and feels like a game from 2004? So glad I played it on my friends computer and didn't get it myself. Textures in Knights of the Old Republic look better. Don't believe me, put them side by side and compare. The new bioware destroys everything it touches, and Star Wars is it's next victim.… Expand
  15. Ravager
    Dec 20, 2011
    5
    I want you to imagine World of Warcraft back in 2004.

    Now replace the Warcraft universe with the Star Wars universe and add in a lot of voice acting.

    Thats all The Old Republic is.

    If you enjoy MMOs, I'm not going to deny that you will enjoy The Old Republic. If you are looking for something a little different, you wont find it.
  16. HateApe
    Dec 20, 2011
    1
    You know how they always tell you that the endgame is the best part in any MMO? Well, that doesn't hold true for SWTOR. The best part is the leveling experience when you're still engaged in your own quest. Once that is over and you have nothing to look forward to but grinding the same flashpoints and battlegrounds over and over things quickly grow stale.

    Wasted potential sums it up. While    You know how they always tell you that the endgame is the best part in any MMO? Well, that doesn't hold true for SWTOR. The best part is the leveling experience when you're still engaged in your own quest. Once that is over and you have nothing to look forward to but grinding the same flashpoints and battlegrounds over and over things quickly grow stale.

    Wasted potential sums it up. While the game has exciting mechanics like the personal quests and the companion system both of these are gradually phased out in favor of an uninspired and derivative metagame which leaves you longing for its much more polished rivals. Stay away. At least until it has enough content to justify a purchase.    … Expand
  17. jumajin
    Dec 20, 2011
    9
    Very fun, fast paced game. Great questing, fantastic voice-acting, plenty to do in a game that promised a true Star Wars MMO experience and delivers. Not without minor problems (like any launch month MMO), but most polished game to come along since World of Warcraft in 2004. SWTOR is most definitely worth the box price and subscription investment. Very much recommended.
  18. sams
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    If you've ever liked world of warcraft, or if you've ever liked a bioware game like mass effect, you will really enjoy star wars the old republic. You can't go wrong buying this game. At worst, you can play this game to max level a couple times and uninstall. At best you'll play it for many many hours.

    If you are looking for a sand box mmo, keep looking (if you want an AAA sand box    If you've ever liked world of warcraft, or if you've ever liked a bioware game like mass effect, you will really enjoy star wars the old republic. You can't go wrong buying this game. At worst, you can play this game to max level a couple times and uninstall. At best you'll play it for many many hours.

    If you are looking for a sand box mmo, keep looking (if you want an AAA sand box mmo, sorry, they don't exist).    … Expand
  19. Foxxey86
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    Its really too early to post a score at such an early stage for an MMO, give it a couple of months of your time then come back and give a review, to review an MMO in less than 24hrs or on its beta performance is just insane. If you asked any normal gamer to sit down and play 24hrs of WoW or rift or any other MMO for that matter im pretty sure that the review would turn out negative.
  20. CashewsOfChaos
    Dec 20, 2011
    5
    You got your Single Player RPG in my MMORPG! Unfortunately these two great genres don't necessarily taste good together. I'll admit I'm biased because I have a lot of good memories of the late Star Wars Galaxies. Before the infamous"New Game Enhancements" SWG was a very bold MMO and in my opinion was far superior than the competition including WOW. When SWG was at its peak guilds wereYou got your Single Player RPG in my MMORPG! Unfortunately these two great genres don't necessarily taste good together. I'll admit I'm biased because I have a lot of good memories of the late Star Wars Galaxies. Before the infamous"New Game Enhancements" SWG was a very bold MMO and in my opinion was far superior than the competition including WOW. When SWG was at its peak guilds were building their own cities, there was a complex economy, and the game tried its best to give guild politics some civility in the form of elections. Star Wars Galaxies delivered in its name, it allowed players to influence the world(s) around them. Now we have Star Wars: The Old Republic, a game that focuses in delivering a Single Player Experience, but unfortunately the MMO is sadly neglected. The game is functional, I can see why many people will enjoy it. But it lacks ambition. The "Single Player" stories for each class are good with great Voice Acting, the actual goals for each quest are not too memorable but that's a trapping that every MMO has suffered so it's forgivable. But the end game, it's what you've experienced in so many MMORPGs and its just by the numbers. There's not much I can really say about it other than that you've played it in many MMOs. I imagine that Bioware will be adding a lot to the end game in coming months but with the way many MMOs (including EA's Warhammer Online) just crap out after they launch I'll be cautiously optimistic. At this stage I wouldn't recommend buying The Old Republic. Bioware needs to get out of their comfort zone, people don't play MMOs to watch stories. They play MMOs so they can create their own stories.… Expand
  21. dial
    Dec 20, 2011
    1
    Very boring and uncreative. Combat is basically the exact same you'll find in any other themepark. You get a lot of skills at a low level(this is a good thing), and many of them are quite flashy. The downside however is that the combat is slow and sluggish compared to most themepark games. Graphics are subpar, yet stylistic in order to function on more systems. However, the game isVery boring and uncreative. Combat is basically the exact same you'll find in any other themepark. You get a lot of skills at a low level(this is a good thing), and many of them are quite flashy. The downside however is that the combat is slow and sluggish compared to most themepark games. Graphics are subpar, yet stylistic in order to function on more systems. However, the game is surprisingly unoptimized, which seems counter intuitive to that design decision in the first place.

    The biggest selling point to the game would seem to be the story and voice overs. At first I was attracted to the novelty of it. but it gets old very very fast. Most of the story twist are extremely predictable (as of all bioware stories of late), and you will found yourself space baring through the cutscenes fairly quickly. While the main storyline vo's were cool, I found myself wondering at times : 1) Why was my hero, that goes through so many epic story plots, doing so many mundane task. 2) Despite openly betraying the sith every chance I got, disrespecting my superiors every chance I got, I continued to become a more prominent sith even though everyone knew what I'm doing...it was completely stupid and immersion breaking. 3)Does EVERY side quest need cutscenes? This may sound cool to an outsider, but trust me it's horrible. Having to sit through cutscenes for people to tell you to travel ten feet to collect scraps off the ground...it's annoying. And finally. The world is utterly static. A combination of minimal ambient noise, huge open spacing with nothing in it, the lack of animation present in the world, and all the npc's standing still and silent. Every planet I went to besides one (and I went to most of them) looked liek a nuclear winter just hit. Still, lifeless, static, and boring. Crafting is automated, so this game isn't for crafters. The system was made for people who don't want to craft but want the benefits. It's essentially a automated lootbox. Rewarding the "crafters" for micromanaging timers. Pvp is what it is. The combat becomes loose and glidey against other players, similar to rif'ts pvp, so i your looking for something competitive, this is most likely not the game. Overall, very uninspired. The game takes no risk, amazes briefly, then became glaringly shallow. I have serious doubts about the longevity of the game, and most of my guildies are already bored to tears with it (starting in the headstart).    … Expand
  22. Sgtcrispy
    Dec 20, 2011
    3
    Had high hopes for this game, but today they were dashed. One of my biggest issues with the game is the morality system. It has the same issues I thought Mass Effect series had. There's no gray area, you're either a raging sociopath or a heroic god who can do no wrong. It's not even a morality system, it's a point grind. For example. In the game there is a quest where you haveHad high hopes for this game, but today they were dashed. One of my biggest issues with the game is the morality system. It has the same issues I thought Mass Effect series had. There's no gray area, you're either a raging sociopath or a heroic god who can do no wrong. It's not even a morality system, it's a point grind. For example. In the game there is a quest where you have to find medical supplies that were taken from the military. You find the culprit, who actually took the supplies to help refugees at the refugee camp. It turns out however, that somebody took the supplies from her. She will tell you where the person that took the supplies went if you take the supplies back to her. At this point I had two choices if I wanted to get the supplies back to the military. Lie to her. Or put a gun to a nearby kid's head and hold him hostage. I chose to lie. Upon getting the supplies back to the military officer I was rewarded with fifty dark side points. Wait, what? Both sides are gray, and there's no real right or wrong answer I think. People are hurt and injured and both factions need the supplies. So, why do you get awarded with the obvious bad or good points? Especially since you need a certain amount of these points for gear. The entire system turns it from a morality game to a currency game. Why should someone be punished for being neutral or in the gray morality like most actual people are? Instead, you're forced to be a one dimension piece of wood. There are other issues I had with the game that generally just left me bored but that was one of the main ones I had. Overall this game isn't completely awful, but it's just so bland and dull I can't find it enjoyable. Hopefully BioWare will fix the numerous problems this game has. I find that unlikely however, as any legitimate complains are buried under pages of BioWare fans crying that they're just a WoW fanboy or console trash and this game is too difficult or deep for them.… Expand
  23. Vihazur
    Dec 20, 2011
    1
    The story is a nice touch, but it doesn't make up for the rest of the game being so subpar. The combat especially - most of the game is combat, but it's just really dull. The environments have great backdrops, but stark lifeless play areas. Sound effects and music are minimal, customization is a joke, players and their companions look like clones - but I could live with things likeThe story is a nice touch, but it doesn't make up for the rest of the game being so subpar. The combat especially - most of the game is combat, but it's just really dull. The environments have great backdrops, but stark lifeless play areas. Sound effects and music are minimal, customization is a joke, players and their companions look like clones - but I could live with things like that, if the combat were more fun, at least.… Expand
  24. crackedlogic
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    I can only base a review on my own experience, to all those having issues I can understand the low scores and frustration but I haven't had any issues, quite the opposite.

    I am loving this game, I am almost a level 30 Jedi guardian and can't believe how good the story is, I can confidently say this is the first MMO where I haven't skipped the text to just get to objective, it makes you    I can only base a review on my own experience, to all those having issues I can understand the low scores and frustration but I haven't had any issues, quite the opposite.

    I am loving this game, I am almost a level 30 Jedi guardian and can't believe how good the story is, I can confidently say this is the first MMO where I haven't skipped the text to just get to objective, it makes you care about the characters, story and goal's and that's something this genre has been lacking. The gameplay's not going to set the world on fire but there's nothing wrong with it, it works. MMO's are constantly evolving and I'm sure the balancing and general issue's will be worked out quick enough but my Jedi Guardian is fun to control, I never find myself just hitting something with a lightsaber until its dead, (After the first few starter worlds) It get's challenging and I find myself having to use cooldown's, shields and the force to defeat enemies.

    Crafting in this game is a strong selling point, it's got a lottery feeling about it, there's the chance of getting a "Rare" that you can actually use and make's crafting like spinning a roulette wheel.

    All in all ill be subscribing and hope enough other people do to keep this game going.    … Expand
  25. redfish53
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    There is an obvious attempt by someone (usually just follow the money) to cripple SWTOR out of the gate. I've played the game (about 40 hours so far) and I've barely scratched the surface of the content. If you liked Knights of the Old Republic you will like this game, a lot.
  26. Lazerius
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    Fantastic Game! A must Purchase! Worth every cent! The Graphics are fantastic for what they're trying to do with them, which is appeal to a wider audience of people including those with lesser machines. The storylines are amazing, and the quality is fantastic. My only complaint is horrible customer service, but that's expected with a new game like this, with the millions of peopleFantastic Game! A must Purchase! Worth every cent! The Graphics are fantastic for what they're trying to do with them, which is appeal to a wider audience of people including those with lesser machines. The storylines are amazing, and the quality is fantastic. My only complaint is horrible customer service, but that's expected with a new game like this, with the millions of people playing at launch!… Expand
  27. Luniara
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    Beautiful game that caters to both casual and hardcore players. There is minimal lag for even the crappiest PC due to the class zones being instanced for story-line purposes. There's no running off to kill 20 cats and bringing it back with little to no story. For the game's start, I think it's doing wonderfully. You will either hate or like or and those that seem to hate it are World ofBeautiful game that caters to both casual and hardcore players. There is minimal lag for even the crappiest PC due to the class zones being instanced for story-line purposes. There's no running off to kill 20 cats and bringing it back with little to no story. For the game's start, I think it's doing wonderfully. You will either hate or like or and those that seem to hate it are World of Warcraft fans where NOTHING ever changes aside from additions to the class and races and a few meager pieces of crap. You want repetition? Go play WoW. This game has barely put it's foot in the door and no one has even given it the time of day before they start trashing it.

    I am sticking it out and plan on seeing what Bioware does with this game. It's very submursive and that's what I was looking for in an MMO.    … Expand
  28. madeux
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    Please be aware that 99% of the reviews so far are from jaded haters who have not even played the game. This game is EXACTLY what BioWare has been promising all along. Whether you like it or not, at least they were honest and up front with it.

    I've felt immersed into the story and the world from the very beginning. Unlike every MMO I've played in the last 5 years (and I've played them    Please be aware that 99% of the reviews so far are from jaded haters who have not even played the game. This game is EXACTLY what BioWare has been promising all along. Whether you like it or not, at least they were honest and up front with it.

    I've felt immersed into the story and the world from the very beginning. Unlike every MMO I've played in the last 5 years (and I've played them all), I don't feel like I'm being pressured to level up quickly. I'm enjoying the story and taking in everything the game has to offer.

    It in NO WAY feels like a lobby based game and is 100% an MMORPG. If you see someone say otherwise, you can know with absolute certainty that they are nothing but a troll.    … Expand
  29. Vervayne
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    Fully voiced quests, class quests spanning 50 levels, group quests, open world PvP, battleground PvP, space games, missions, flashpoints..there is a ton of content in this game. Other exciting features are social points, legacy levels, and the flashpoints are a new take on dungeons that make them so much more engaging than dungeons in prior MMOs. It really is a top notch MMO.
  30. Rintor
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    I've played many MMOs: WoW, DDO, LOTRO, Star Trek, Champions Online, EVE, etc. I spent several years playing WoW. This, by far, is one of the best MMOs I have played. It's is incredibly immersive. The story-lines pull you in and keep you wanting more. The combat is smooth, active and enjoyable. This is the Star Wars RPG I have always wanted. Like any good MMO developer, Bioware has triedI've played many MMOs: WoW, DDO, LOTRO, Star Trek, Champions Online, EVE, etc. I spent several years playing WoW. This, by far, is one of the best MMOs I have played. It's is incredibly immersive. The story-lines pull you in and keep you wanting more. The combat is smooth, active and enjoyable. This is the Star Wars RPG I have always wanted. Like any good MMO developer, Bioware has tried to implement some of the best features and elements of any MMO. The comparisons to WoW are only surface deep. Anyone claiming it is "WoW with lightsabers" has not spent any significant time with either product.… Expand
  31. Fappachino
    Dec 20, 2011
    4
    I really feel betrayed by Bioware.When they announced this game a few years ago i was over the moon knowing that my favorite things were being combined, Star wars and MMOs.Knowing it was Bioware i had great hope for this game ever since i played KOTOR which still-is one of my favorite Rpgs to this very day.Fast forward to now and what i got was:
    >Repetitive quest
    >Hours of Grinding >Lack    I really feel betrayed by Bioware.When they announced this game a few years ago i was over the moon knowing that my favorite things were being combined, Star wars and MMOs.Knowing it was Bioware i had great hope for this game ever since i played KOTOR which still-is one of my favorite Rpgs to this very day.Fast forward to now and what i got was:
    >Repetitive quest
    >Hours of Grinding
    >Lack of immersion

    I could go on.They claimed it was something 'new' but it was just vanilla WoW.They claimed they went all out on voice acting which is mostly true but the fact that it's only used to tell you to go kill 10 x and report back kills the whole feel. Ok game if you're just looking to play it for a month but i really can't see myself or anyone of my friends playing this more than a month.    … Expand
  32. Superstring
    Dec 20, 2011
    7
    The game is average. The only new thing that makes it stand out is VO, which is quite controversial. Everything else is good old WoW with lightsabers.
  33. RuthlessKorrupt
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    One of the best MMO's to date, Bioware has put a lot of work passion into this title, and it shows. With fully voiced over NPC's and quest lines that takes a page from Mass Effect. With exciting PVP end combat and unique story-lines for each class. The true WoW killer has arrived!
  34. casshern09
    Dec 22, 2011
    8
    Superb game. Dont pay attention to the morons who give games zero. If you are a fan of Star Wars, you like MMO's and love story driven games. Stop sitting here and go buy it.
  35. Mhyth
    Dec 20, 2011
    3
    Having followed the development since 2008 and participating in beta since mid 2011, Bioware's xmas season offering is a lump of coal considering the diamond it could and should have been. The voice acting and good storylines throughout the game do not compensate for the overly simplistic and unchallenging gameplay, repeditive environments, and utter lack of innovation or even depth inHaving followed the development since 2008 and participating in beta since mid 2011, Bioware's xmas season offering is a lump of coal considering the diamond it could and should have been. The voice acting and good storylines throughout the game do not compensate for the overly simplistic and unchallenging gameplay, repeditive environments, and utter lack of innovation or even depth in character development, itemization, crafting, PvP, or any aspect of MMORPG gameplay. If you're a big Star Wars fan you'll recieve far more entertainment value spending the same amount of money on more books and materials than just going through the motions in this unspectacular MMORPG.… Expand
  36. Dikkus
    Dec 20, 2011
    1
    Why people even trust Bioware anymore is beyond me. For this game, they promised a "amazing" MMO experience and that it would change the way we thought about MMOs. However it is--quite literally--a reskinned World Of Warcraft in the Star Wars universe, it is so cut and paste that it is almost pathetic. Not to mention the thousands (not kidding with that number) of glitches that exist, andWhy people even trust Bioware anymore is beyond me. For this game, they promised a "amazing" MMO experience and that it would change the way we thought about MMOs. However it is--quite literally--a reskinned World Of Warcraft in the Star Wars universe, it is so cut and paste that it is almost pathetic. Not to mention the thousands (not kidding with that number) of glitches that exist, and the terrible animation working, childish writing, and awful performance that people are experiencing... This is not what KOTOR 1 or 2 was, the fact that game even associates itself with the KOTOR title is insulting. Oh, and by the way; You kill Darth Revan for his pants. That's right, I'm not even kidding! You kill the single most important character in the KOTOR games for his pants. Good job Bioware.… Expand
  37. Jimbob2k666
    Dec 22, 2011
    8
    I was a stalwart fan of SW: Galaxies before it's "redesign" half way through it's existence. I was an out and out crafter for a couple of years, and I've been searching for a similar crafting system ever since. Yet no MMO since has used the dynamic resource system that made SW:G so unique. Howevver, being a big fan of the SW franchise since I went to see the original film when I wasI was a stalwart fan of SW: Galaxies before it's "redesign" half way through it's existence. I was an out and out crafter for a couple of years, and I've been searching for a similar crafting system ever since. Yet no MMO since has used the dynamic resource system that made SW:G so unique. Howevver, being a big fan of the SW franchise since I went to see the original film when I was just 10 years old, I had followed SWTOR since it's announcement, but purposely didn't apply for beta, knowing that since SW:G, I have participated in almost a dozen MMO betas which then end up disappointing me at release...............Damn Metacritic for not allowing paragraphs............................Anyway, onto the new game. So far I have tinkered around with Bounty Hunter (Merc) and Sith Warrior (Marauder). Both of the opening planets and areas for the classes are well fleshed out and keep your interest. I can see how some fans of traditional MMO gamers will get frustrated with the fact that Bioware have taken the time to have full cut scenes with literally every mission giving NPC, and I can envisage hundreds of people constantly clicking there space bars to progress the conversation just to get to the end. For me, I'm in between. I like the cut scenes, but they can become overbearing at times, especially if you get to a new NPC zone and speak to two or three NPC's in a row just to find that it's taken nearly 15 minutes jus to get the missions in your journal......................... The missions themselves are pretty generic fodder, with the sporadic inclusion of class missions that at least provide you with your own instance to work through............... The flashpoints (group instances) so far are well done, and the dialogues with NPCs include a new mechanism for MMO's with each member picking their own responses, and "rolling" to use it in the story, resulting in bonus social points (another new mechanism) if you win the roll. These social points can then be used to buy things at various vendors....................................... Onto crafting. I can see how some players might find the crafting system a little daunting at first, but it becomes simple as you get throught it, if somewhat expensive to progress if you try to do it in the starter zones where not many resource spots exist resulting in you sending off your NPC companion to take part in virtual missions that result in them gathering resources for you. Reverse engineering various crafted, looted and purchased items will provide you with some return on the cost of doing so, and also will provide you with random schematics to boot........................................There is a lot more I could go into, but it would take too long. Overall I am rating the game at 8/10. I was hoping for a bit more, but the game has only just been released so that score could well go up (or down) with Bioware's support. I am still fearful of how the game will progress but that is due to the EA branding, which I don't have a lot of faith in as they have a history of grabbing money now and not giving a s**t later (allegedly). Time will tell, and for now, I'll give them that time.… Expand
  38. Dajon
    Dec 21, 2011
    9
    - Graphics: Ok. not great, but OK. Some zones really are gorgeous, others, not that much.
    - Character customization: Below average... We want more!
    - Story line, questing: Amazing. This is truly where the game shines. I have NEVER been so immersed, and it really IS hard to disconnect every night, because I really want to see more of the story. Besides, cut scenes and dialogues for EVERY    - Graphics: Ok. not great, but OK. Some zones really are gorgeous, others, not that much.
    - Character customization: Below average... We want more!
    - Story line, questing: Amazing. This is truly where the game shines. I have NEVER been so immersed, and it really IS hard to disconnect every night, because I really want to see more of the story. Besides, cut scenes and dialogues for EVERY quests is just great. The choices you have to make "a la" mass effect / kotor my not change the outcome of the dialogue (except for the dark/like choices) but it just feels much more like a "real" conversation. Dialogues in groups are awesome imo. BUT, if you're not the type of player who likes to listen to an NPC, you might not like it, because it's everywhere. So, as I read below, you will feel like "loosing" some time. Well it's a matter of opinion. I don't feel that way because I LOVE it. But I can understand that some ppl won't. Moreover, it has a feel of epic, right from the start. First time I feel that way in an MMO. "What? Seriously? Come on, where are my ten wolves to kill?"
    - Combat PvE: Feels more dynamic than wow (I play a tanking Sith assassin ), even if it is similar: GCD, CDs, ultimate skill every 20/30 minutes... they are all here. But the simple fact that there is no auto attack makes it more dynamic. You have to click on something for your toon to do something. As a sith assassin, there are A LOT of different skills you have to use at the right time, and some fights can be pretty intense (provided you're not 10 lvl over the quest). The fact that there are a lot of packs of mobs gives you a feel of epicness: You're not struggling with a strong mob. You're struggling with a bunch of medium mobs, which feels better.
    - Combat PvP: As a tank, I like the "taunt" feature, which makes your target do 30% less damage to everyone except you. Other than that, as for the "battlegrounds", nothing really new (it's nicely done though). The fact that the player's level isn't important in battlegrounds is nice.
    - Space combat: Nice rail shooting mini games, with a real star wars feel. Nice thing to do every once in a while. But space combat could be improved I think. I would love group and pvp fights, not in "rail" mode, in addition to what's already there. The fact that you can customize your ship with equipment, like your character or companion is a plus.
    - Group stuff: Nice. Bonus when grouped, social points earned which gives you access to specific stuff (mostly cosmetic, but not only)
    - Navigation: The map is really great, and clear. Even when grouped. Objectives are easy to find (that may be a downside for some of you ;)). - Auction house aka Galactic market: Could be improved. The UI does its job, but it's rough, and a few additions could be usefull. - UI: While good, it should be less "rigid". Checking for procs and CDs is a bit painfull as it draws your attention out of the action, for example. - Client and bugs: quite stable. Some players reported a few crashes in some specific zones that (should) have been fixed with the last patch. I'm level 30 and didn't see any game breaking bug (once, I had to restart a quest I could not validate, that's all)

    Overall, while being a little disappointed at first with the graphics/customization, the more I play, the more I feel attracted to it. A lot of nice ideas make a lot of little improvements, which make the game better than others imo. The fully voiced over quests are THE improvement (if you are into that, obviously). There is room for a LOT of great stuff (space combat!!) to come. Re-rolling is eased since the class story line are really nicely done. If you're in to star wars, ans liked kotor/ME games and stories (i.e. you actually enjoy listening to them) then it's your game. If you're more into rushing max level and then grind some stuff for your toon, it might not be the best option for you. For me? I have a BLAST and I'm enjoying every minute of it :)    … Expand
  39. Mackeh
    Dec 22, 2011
    3
    I have been playing MMO's for 9 years and love world PvP, Exploration and immersion, so if you are interested in these aspects of SWTOR then read on.

    Firstly I am a huge SW fan and so TOR was something I have been looking forward to playing for a long time indeed. I have played it to level 26 and the first two days were amazing, I was loving the combat and the space ships and space    I have been playing MMO's for 9 years and love world PvP, Exploration and immersion, so if you are interested in these aspects of SWTOR then read on.

    Firstly I am a huge SW fan and so TOR was something I have been looking forward to playing for a long time indeed. I have played it to level 26 and the first two days were amazing, I was loving the combat and the space ships and space station. The controls are a little clunky but those things can be ironed out so no problem.

    The zones in SWTOR are actually planets, you have to fly your own ship to the planets when you move from zone to zone and I personally love this immersion. The problems start when you get out your spaceship and realise that each planet is a series of instanced boxes, you literally can not jump on your speeder and ride around the entire zone, it's dreadful. I was on tatooine and pointed my speeder south and tried to explore, I hit an invisible barrier after 500 yds WTF???

    So with the shocking zones comes the shocking world PvP, there is none basically, I have not seen a single Empire player on any of the three contested planets I have been questing. And on that bombshell I will end this review, there is no point discussing the other aspects of the game because without huge populated worlds to explore and world PvP this game imo does not qualify to be called an MMO. It's certainly not massive that's for sure.    … Expand
  40. slidingscale
    Dec 23, 2011
    1
    I had high hopes for this. The years of teasing our interest with slickly worded tit bits of information that fired our imaginations with possibilites of great interactive battles where we contested the fortunes of the galaxy against passionate players from the opposite factions and guilds. Scenes of foreign fields strewn with the bodies of dead after clashes that pitted at least 20 or 30I had high hopes for this. The years of teasing our interest with slickly worded tit bits of information that fired our imaginations with possibilites of great interactive battles where we contested the fortunes of the galaxy against passionate players from the opposite factions and guilds. Scenes of foreign fields strewn with the bodies of dead after clashes that pitted at least 20 or 30 per side against each other in swift duelling contest of acrobatic wonder, passed vividly before the cine screen of my mind. It all seemed to be headed in that direction when the first cinematic trailer came out and I found myself raising my hand to join up and defeat the terrible scourge that was blighting the galaxy and no doubt my soon to be friends as well. With evangelistic zeal I followed the forums to glean information about the war and how I could play my part. Previous developments in the gaming industry encouraged my wild imaginings as graphics improved and the numbers post fixing the directx label continued skyward. What wonders would be performed by a new galactic combat game that could draw on such a wealth of lore, innovation and creativity? Surely the sky was now not the limit any longer? I came back to the muddy actuality of terra firma, head aching in shock and awe as the reality of what was on offer sank in to my brain and gradually destroyed my hopes for a wonderful year of living the dream.… Expand
  41. nigsylbd
    Dec 20, 2011
    3
    Average so very very average had such high hopes linear and disappointing. 2011 game with 2008 graphics and a 2003 interface. Cant believe I spent £45 pounds at retail free to play in under 2 years you heard it here first
  42. Happytrails
    Dec 20, 2011
    2
    Am level 32 and this game leaves a lot to be desired. TOR has easily the shallowest character creation i've ever seen for a supposed 'AAA' title. The Star Wars universe is so rich and diverse that i just cant understand Bioware's reasoning for the lack of race choices and sliders. I put it down to pure laziness on their behalf. I have seen better choice in F2P mmo's from years ago (PerfectAm level 32 and this game leaves a lot to be desired. TOR has easily the shallowest character creation i've ever seen for a supposed 'AAA' title. The Star Wars universe is so rich and diverse that i just cant understand Bioware's reasoning for the lack of race choices and sliders. I put it down to pure laziness on their behalf. I have seen better choice in F2P mmo's from years ago (Perfect World anyone?). To make things worse the graphics are a complete joke for a 2011 title, textures are quite simply horrendous. The gameplay is stock standard WoW imitation crap, it brings nothing new to the MMO genre. I would have given Bioware points if they had at least tried to do something a bit different, but i guess they just couldn't be bothered. The worlds are linear and discourage any sort of exploration, whats worse is that even on full servers you will hardly run into another player, this is because BW decided to have multiple channels for each zone. I have no idea who came up with design for an MMO but they should have been fired for even putting it forward. This totally ruins the sense of community and feeling of being in a large, highly populated world. This is not an MMO. Its a single player RPG with a bit of co-op thrown in now and then that lets you chat people on other channels. If that floats your boat then good for you, but imo this is a complete let down and a does a great dis-service to the Star Wars universe.… Expand
  43. GigaHz
    Dec 20, 2011
    6
    I pre-ordered my game and have been playing it through Early Access. I have been trying to give the game a fair chance, but in all honesty, I feel as if the game is a massive disappointment.

    I'm not sure where to start. The game isn't terrible, it just isn't great. There's something about the gameplay and overarching design philosophy that feels very dated and I don't know why I wasted so    I pre-ordered my game and have been playing it through Early Access. I have been trying to give the game a fair chance, but in all honesty, I feel as if the game is a massive disappointment.

    I'm not sure where to start. The game isn't terrible, it just isn't great. There's something about the gameplay and overarching design philosophy that feels very dated and I don't know why I wasted so much time trying to convince myself that it's acceptable. I'm not so much referring to the mechanics that were ripped from WoW or other MMOs, it just feels as if the team that worked on this game lacked any sort of passion to separate this game from its competition.

    Yes, the game has the standard Bioware cutscenes and they do give a sense of importance to certain quests, but that's basically the only unique thing this game has going for it. And really, there is only so far you can take something like that without it turning into a gimmick. Having fully voiced cutscenes for the majority of quests is a great idea... in theory. After a while, it starts to become a bit ridiculous. I don't care how you act out an unimportant fetch quest, a fetch quest is a fetch quest. You don't need to pretend that I'm looking for buried treasure or Al Capone's vault, I won't suddenly convince myself that your quest offer is less redundant than it already is.

    I also really tried to connect with my character (Smuggler/Gunslinger) to immerse myself in the plot. Despite the character playing out as a glorified Han Solo simulator (which I mean in the best possible way), I must have heard 'I can do it blindfolded!' 3 times in the starting world alone. If they're going to pride themselves on having fully-voiced cutscenes, they could at least be clever about how they recycle dialogue lines.

    As some have said before, the worlds are incredibly linear. As old and criticized as WoW is, at least there is a sense of free-roaming and unique set pieces to differentiate each zone from the next. SWTOR's world design takes uninspired to new heights. It doesn't matter what zone you're in, there is a universal sense of monotony and sterility to everything. It's like the game was designed for corridor fetishists. If you're in an indoor or outdoor zone, everything feels (and is) closed in or restrictive. I can't even think of a single prop or locale in these locations that have stuck out on my mind. If Bioware or EA were seriously looking to keep people playing their game for years instead of months, they should have put more emphasis on the design and aesthetics of these locations. Right now, the only positive description I can think of for these zones is that they are functional, and that doesn't mean much.

    Oddly enough, the Combat system is what I enjoy most for this game. It's not unique either, but at the very least it's fun. I've ran into a few issues with the Smuggler/Gunslinger class. These are not so much glitches as they are poor design choices. For instance, if I'm doing a Heroic instance with others as a Gunslinger, there are times when I am forced to go into cover to activate the abilities that I need. There are also times when I would like to keep my distance on the target and use my portable/holographic cover instead of rolling behind an object. In unfavourable circumstances, I will sometimes automatically roll to a place I don't want to be instead of just deploying my cover. If they were to add in an option to turn off this roll, that would solve my problem, but for now, it's a sloppy mechanic. It's a little ironic that when you're starting out as a Smuggler and you don't have portable cover, it's cumbersome to roll behind an object to mitigate damage taken.

    Everything else feels out of place or tacked-on. PvP doesn't play as good as it could have, Space Combat is just an on-rails shooter with plenty of repeating segments, and while they are pretty useful, the game almost forces you to utilize your companion. Why is it that I have to delegate crafting to my companion instead of crafting items myself? Is working with my hands beneath me? Do Star Wars players have God Complexes? I don't get it. However, I am a fan of sending my companion on side-missions. Only because then I don't have to put up with his spineless, good-for-nothing personality.

    I'm going to go out on a limb and say that The Old Republic is nothing more than a shameless cash grab. Maybe plenty of people who do their research on this game were aware of this already, but I was genuinely optimistic and unaware. Now I know why there were so many CG cutscenes to promote the game instead of actual content.    … Expand
  44. DayumShame
    Dec 20, 2011
    3
    This game is a disappointment in every way. What Bioware has done here is do their best to copy what made WoW good at release and then compete with a massively improved WoW in present day. Yes, they could patch up the game over the course of at least 2 years by which point they could have the content of WoW, by then maybe WoW will have lost all it's players once they realize it's justThis game is a disappointment in every way. What Bioware has done here is do their best to copy what made WoW good at release and then compete with a massively improved WoW in present day. Yes, they could patch up the game over the course of at least 2 years by which point they could have the content of WoW, by then maybe WoW will have lost all it's players once they realize it's just Pandas and even easier content designed for babies. But by then TOR will have cost too much and to be honest, i'm not paying $15 a month for 2 years on the idea that the game may get good at some point. The VO is well done and well delivered, I just wish they were saying something interesting. It makes the game feel new, until you realize you're still killing X of Y. It doesn't innovate, it adds nothing to the genre, and there are much better F2P options out there whose only real downside is a cash shop, forgivable in light of TOR's mistakes. PvP doesn't feel engaging at all, it feels like i'm just standing there waiting for the other guys health bar to hit 0 first. Huttball tries to be different but comes off feeling like a slightly modified WSG. Endgame content is too easy and there isn't enough of it. Fun to see the first time but not something I want to go through over and over. Class stories are fun the first time, but it really shoots itself in the foot with this, re-rolling the same class is a complete buzzkill and really gives me a sense of "Seen this already", (Because you have, and barely different dialogue options don't change that feeling.) at least with WoW you can visit zones with different aesthetic styles and details. TOR has inexcusable graphics for a game from 2011, go look at TERA, GW2, hell, even WoW is updating it's textures occasionally. I don't mean to come across as a WoW fanboy. To be honest, WoW hasn't been fun for me since Ulduar and my subscription has been dead since then. But even just playing for free on the PTR, which is unfinished content at that, I still see more variety than in TOR. Even the "different" races are just reskinned humans with maybe a tentacle or horns. That's far too lazy Bioware, at least Companions are interesting, but not $15 a month interesting. Overall this game lacks any of the feelings of love and care put into it that I felt when I stepped out of the Valley of Trials for the first time, Vanilla WoW was fresh and new, but now that it's become old a stagnant I was hoping to jump ship to TOR. Unfortunately what was fresh and new all those years ago is now boring and repetitive. I'm sorry Bioware, but Blizzard got there first, and they used up all the shine. Between WoW and TOR, i've lost all faith in the future of MMO's, maybe GW2 will change that, but I doubt it. If you still love MMO's then maybe TOR is for you, but I would not recommend it as a first option, there are many more F2P one's that will do a good job of getting you into the genre before you waste your money on this. Oh, and Bioware? This isn't KOTOR 3 let alone 3-10. KOTOR actually felt like a journey, this feels like a chore.… Expand
  45. ColdestForever
    Dec 20, 2011
    5
    My SWTOR experience has been limited to a few months of beta testing; My last experience with TOR had been in the beta weekends spanning from September to October. Although SWTOR does offer something new to the MMORPG genre it hardly offers any innovation. SWTOR essentially utilizes the same old stale MMORPG formula that we've all grown to love and loath. The cutscenes did not add much toMy SWTOR experience has been limited to a few months of beta testing; My last experience with TOR had been in the beta weekends spanning from September to October. Although SWTOR does offer something new to the MMORPG genre it hardly offers any innovation. SWTOR essentially utilizes the same old stale MMORPG formula that we've all grown to love and loath. The cutscenes did not add much to immersion and seemed like a novelty at best. As SWTOR hardly offers anything new to genre, aside from another Star Wars title to replace SWG, I've decided to opt-out and hope for something better in the future.… Expand
  46. Xasf
    Dec 20, 2011
    9
    TL,DR version: If you are an MMO (especially WoW) veteran looking for something entirely else, move along. If you are here to enjoy a very solid Star Wars MMO with a refreshing take on NPC and mission interactions, come on in!
    *************************
    SW:TOR is all about expectations. This is an observation I made during my time in the beta and early-access communities and I'd like to    TL,DR version: If you are an MMO (especially WoW) veteran looking for something entirely else, move along. If you are here to enjoy a very solid Star Wars MMO with a refreshing take on NPC and mission interactions, come on in!
    *************************
    SW:TOR is all about expectations.

    This is an observation I made during my time in the beta and early-access communities and I'd like to elaborate on that rather than futilely give a final verdict to an online game that has been officially live for less than 24 hours right away.

    There is a group of players (I won't call them "minority" just yet, but they are certainly more vocal then they ought to be) who came to SW:TOR expecting groundbreaking new features, cutting edge technological feats and never-before-seen, game-changing innovation.
    They were counting on SW:TOR to make right all the failings and shortcoming they perceive in other MMOs (especially WoW) and if not that, then at least vastly improve upon already existing features. The absurdly negative reviews you see on this site, as well as other sources, will for the most part be their doing.
    I've been following SW:TOR since 2008 and I never got that " *everything* will be brand-new" vibe from all the announcements, news and ads I've seen / read during this time, so frankly I'm at a loss where all these baseless expectations are coming from. However, it's undeniable that a considerable group was thinking otherwise so I'm sure they must have their reasons. So honest warning: If you expect this game to greatly deviate from the trodden path, to have such features and gameplay that you, as a MMO veteran, will be astonished with something new at every turn, then SW:TOR is sure to disappoint you, and if you can't alter those expectations to match reality you'd be better off to stay away.

    HOWEVER, SW:TOR is a great game in its own right. Quite similar to what Blizzard did when they were making the most successful MMO ever, Bioware takes the established Star Wars name, blends it with tried-and-true best practices copied from numerous other games, does some fine-tuning improvements where necessary, and then adds their original flavor on top of that. And what a flavor it is, in my 10+ years of MMO gaming, I never though that there could such engrossing storytelling and character interaction in a online game.
    If you want your game to be different not in combat mechanics or talent trees or class system etc. but in the way of how you become a part of an epic world along with other players, SW:TOR more than delivers: It excels above all others. (Sure, sandbox games such as EVE Online -of which I'm an avid fan- can challenge that, but "making up your own story" isn't quite the same as taking part in the tales of a master storyteller).

    So if you came to SW:TOR hoping to find quests with moral choices and multiple outcomes (that contrary to some uninformed accusations have greater effect on your character than purely cosmetic), to feel personally involved in completing the next mission or killing the next big bad, to take your own starship to the far reaches of a wonderfully "Star Warsy" galaxy, to interact with and influence NPCs almost as much as you can with human players, and if you want to do all of these based on rock-solid MMO mechanics instead of wild experimental ideas that might just fail and ruin all of the above, then look no more, welcome home.    … Expand
  47. fakthisgametoo
    Dec 24, 2011
    0
    I wont even bring up SWG, The game is so boring why bother. What i will bring up, is how masterfully spun the salesteam did with this giant boring drone of a game. Promises of cooperative play and space battles, or rather, the same 3 foot deep instance with people who will group as a last resort. Space mission = rail. Ride the roller coaster, shoot things in your X Y plane. No steering,I wont even bring up SWG, The game is so boring why bother. What i will bring up, is how masterfully spun the salesteam did with this giant boring drone of a game. Promises of cooperative play and space battles, or rather, the same 3 foot deep instance with people who will group as a last resort. Space mission = rail. Ride the roller coaster, shoot things in your X Y plane. No steering, no control, nothing. Otherwise a carbonite copy of wow from skills to abilities. Mediocre. Mediocre. And more Mediocre. Any person with a rating higher then 5, is just a star wars fanboi.… Expand
  48. Serpentu
    Dec 24, 2011
    6
    Good job on screwing up the launch by making it unavailable for half the globe.
    You've essentially diminished the interest of many, many players who would've otherwise gladly given you their money -despite- it being an EA published title.
  49. Mixersan
    Dec 26, 2011
    1
    This game's an absolute failure in every aspect. It looks like it was developed 5-10 years ago in terms of graphics. The character models and animations are awkward looking, the landscapes are VERY bland and the particle effects, particularly blaster bolts and lightsabers, look like they're drawn in crayon. As far as gameplay is concerned, it's no better. It's almost a complete cloneThis game's an absolute failure in every aspect. It looks like it was developed 5-10 years ago in terms of graphics. The character models and animations are awkward looking, the landscapes are VERY bland and the particle effects, particularly blaster bolts and lightsabers, look like they're drawn in crayon. As far as gameplay is concerned, it's no better. It's almost a complete clone of every other MMO out there, which isn't a terrible thing in and of itself, but the class skills and abilities are uninteresting and you don't actually feel like you're doing much when you're fighting. The funniest part about it, however, is that there ISN'T AN AUTOATTACK. As a trooper, I actually had to press a button EVERY TIME i wanted my guy to shoot at something.....wtf?

    Finally, and probably the worst part of the game, are the features which BioWare touted as their differentiating advantages over the competitors. First, you get "companions", which were apparently supposed to be NPC's who join you for your storyline and talk to you, grow with you etc as you progress. I was THINKING it would be a lot like KoToR or Mass Effect or something, but it really wasn't. They might as well just be 'pets' for all that they add to the game. They're nothing like 'companions' in any other good RPG I've played, and they're definetly a lot like a 'pet' from WoW or any other game. I suppose that they talk to you now and then, which is different, but the dialogue is so ho-hum and the stories that Bioware has thrown together for each of the character classes are freaking lame. Bioware, as far as I'm concerned, hasn't written a decent story since ME1. After the pathetic stories they put together for DA:O, ME2 and DA2, I'd assumed that maybe the good writers from KoToR and ME1 were working on ToR. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like it. I'd avoid this game. Patches won't fix it. It's an ugly, boring, uninspired effort and adds absolutely nothing new or interesting to the genre.    … Expand
  50. crazydangerous
    Dec 20, 2011
    0
    Boring Queuing simulator that should never have been made, where is KOTOR 3 bioware? Huh where the **** is it? gamecube graphics; FF14 UI; and about as much fun as have a spear up the ass. I know these results are going to be skewed by people suffering from denial that bioware could ever make a bad game but this is just as bad as DA2. Buy anything else for a better gaming experience
  51. Thorn14
    Dec 20, 2011
    4
    My experience in this game has been a level 40 something imperial agent and just a myriad of other lower level everything

    Okay, first thing we see in the game and this is a major bleh for me. The Character Creation. It is absolutely dreadful. Obviously its not on the level of suckiness that you see in your average F 2 P Korean Grindfest, but not by alot, especially if you've played any    My experience in this game has been a level 40 something imperial agent and just a myriad of other lower level everything

    Okay, first thing we see in the game and this is a major bleh for me. The Character Creation. It is absolutely dreadful. Obviously its not on the level of suckiness that you see in your average F 2 P Korean Grindfest, but not by alot, especially if you've played any Bioware game in the past. There are only 4 body types for men, and they are each varying degrees of awful to meh. Theres Shape 1, which is Justin Beiber (and what is used for "kids") Shape 2 which is your average Bruce Lee build, theres Shape 3 which is Big Mc Large Huge and Shape 4 which is Lord Lard Ass. Shape 4 is absolutely awful, and for Sith Warriors, is the shape of your Master, which, if you look at his Wiki, is not how he should look at all. It makes no sense.The races are...well...everything is just "Human but" Obviously this was done for cutscenes and voices (No wookie would talk like your character) but there are still races like Togruta or Nautolan that would be fine but are not in. Chiss are pretty sweet however. There is no long hair, at best you have hair that goes down to your chin. I guess this is because it would be too graphics intensive? Complexions and Scars aren't so bad, shame you can't stack them. And yes, no sliders still, you choose predetermined faces. For a game where you spend alot of time looking at your character in cutscenes, the amount of corner cutting in CC is disappointing. It should have been one of the top five priorities. The number of unique models in this game, NPC wise is also staggeringly low.

    The graphics were no doubt simplified to accommodate as many systems as possible, like World of Warcraft, I understand that. But if that is the case, why does the game, for me and so many others run like absolute crap?

    It took me about 10 minutes AT LEAST to go from start up to getting my character in play. All my options are on low too. Yet I can play Skyrim and The Witcher 2 on Medium no problem. I understand its an MMO but this is just inexcusable Okay, gameplay. Know World of Warcraft? Good news! You already know how to play 85% of the game! Played KOTOR only? Bad news! Theres nothing from KOTOR in this! Its your standard MMO affair. Tanks, Heals, DPS, Burst Damage, DOT, Taunts, Rotations, ETC. If you're used to MM Os then you're in luck. It does that pretty well, although tanking as my Jedi Guardian has been a fittingly in character practice in patience. You dont get your first taunt until 15, and it has a long cool down. Your robot companion tanks better than you. The gameplay is the same tired WoW gameplay, and the game suffers big time for it.

    The missions are the biggest flaw in this game. Every quest is a variation of "Go here, kill stuff along the way for bonus maybe, kill boss or interact with object" or "Collect 5 blah blah blah" with varying degrees of logic in their drops,.

    All the flavor in the world, which does help a little, doesn't change the fact that is every quest. But maybe that is nit picking. Your choices in quests rarely matter as well.

    Story is this game's real saving grace, and why it goes from "Mediocre MMO" to "has potential." Imperial Agent's story was a freaking blast. But after you finish all the storylines, if you even do that, what next? Endgame in this game is pretty much non existant. one mediocre raid...

    And yes, Bioware continues the proud tradition of Dark Side = Stupid Evil Jerk Ass . I was hoping DS Jedi Knight would mean "Emotional and prideful" but nope, just "AHAHA LOOK HOW EVIL I AM FOR NO REASON"

    One issue isevery faction goes through the same planet order. Your Bounty Hunter and Sith Warrior's planets after the first one will be the exact same, as will the quests, save for your personal quests. This will make replay value for someone like me who can't stand doing the same thing again very difficult. Also this makes the whole "KOTOR 3-11" claim bull crap. Class storylines are only 20% of the game. Everyone shares about 80%

    And one of the best features I would list was removed.. Your armor could be matched to the color of whatever your chest piece was, avoiding clown armor. They removed that... All in all ,the story of this game is pretty decent, and had me hooked for the first 2 weeks. Sadly, the gameplay made it where it was a chore. I was FORCING MYSELF THROUGH GAMEPLAY for the story. Thats unacceptable for an MMO, where gameplay should always be important.

    Maybe this game will improve in the future, but for now, this game is just another WoW clone, in space, with kinda cool cut scenes, and with less content. Cant search the AH, no dual speccing and respecing is EXPENSIVE. There are just so many features you should expect missing. It attempts to be like WoW, without the things that made WoW popular. It just has neat storylines. But that is all it brings to the table.    … Expand
  52. uvdodger
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    The game's story is very immersive and can be solo'd. It does encourage you to team up with friends in order to earn social points and complete flash points. The queue times are a little long right now and yet I'll continue to wait in line to play my character. Bioware did a great job of making you feel as if you own the story. Recommended for anyone who feels that story is important!
  53. canudig
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    This is one of the most well-crafted MMOs of all time. Never once did I feel as if I was grinding. The story is compelling and makes you want to work toward completing missions in order to see what the next step will be. Great job, Bioware. I look forward to seeing what the future brings to SW:TOR.
  54. TracerTong
    Dec 20, 2011
    1
    Why WoW style combat!?! Why not something that would involve it being more star wars-ish like GUNZ combat. The combat where you block bullets with a sword, bounce off walls, and butterfly. We had that type of star wars game a while back called jedi knight 2 and it was amazing, but this no this is crap.
  55. SonofQuatto
    Dec 21, 2011
    2
    I am sorely disappointed with this 'cough' MMO. The years they spent of developing and they bring out this????? Character creation is laughable. Graphics are sub par for a 2012 game. The world is stagnant and lifeless, mobs just stand grouped in 3's doing nothing. I have no feeling of a Star Wars universe. Quests are a chore. Inventory items unappealing like in LOTRO. Combat is simplyI am sorely disappointed with this 'cough' MMO. The years they spent of developing and they bring out this????? Character creation is laughable. Graphics are sub par for a 2012 game. The world is stagnant and lifeless, mobs just stand grouped in 3's doing nothing. I have no feeling of a Star Wars universe. Quests are a chore. Inventory items unappealing like in LOTRO. Combat is simply button bashing, doesn't flow at all. Kids will love it granted but most people with an ounce of intelligence will see it for what it is. bland and rubbish.

    I gave up on the story as the gameplay is that bad. Plus i'll simply go to the movies to see a film. SWTOR does a bad job of even telling a story, glossy CGI doesn't make a good film. Remember the turd Transformers?????    … Expand
  56. Poximo
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    Let me start with syaing i was pretty exited about his game, but i knew Lucasarts had burn me in the past so I went in to the game with relatively low expactaions... and they blew me away!

    That this is the worlds most expensive game to date shows, the voice acting is some of the best in the industry and surely the most biggest voice acting project to date! Grapichs are exellent for an    Let me start with syaing i was pretty exited about his game, but i knew Lucasarts had burn me in the past so I went in to the game with relatively low expactaions... and they blew me away!

    That this is the worlds most expensive game to date shows, the voice acting is some of the best in the industry and surely the most biggest voice acting project to date!

    Grapichs are exellent for an mmo while they don't compare to most other triple A singleplayer games, it is the best looking mmo out there. Tere are some visual bugs out there but nothing gamebreaking or annoying!

    Gameplay is standard launch mmo, not as polished as most current mmos out there are at this moment but I would assume that this will be fixed and balanced out within months! The game also has space combat which is very akin to Star Fox or Lylat wars in europe which in it self could very well be a self contained game!



    The story writing is on par with other games Bioware has put out with eight self contained stories for each starting class. Obviously I have been unable to complete all of them in time of writing and this is something i look forward into doing!

    This isn't going to break "any other mmo" out there right now but in a month when the kinks have all been worked out this will be the contender!

    Even though parts of this review has reflected negatively on the game this are miniscule problems that I wanted to bring to light the take very little away from the experience of discovering the world of Star Wars and this is a game I will willingly be sinking alot of time into!

    I recommend getting this game as fast as you can since it will most likely be in very high demand.    … Expand
  57. Starnes
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    So far I cannot say a bad thing about this game... after having played tried most every MMORPG there is out there since the time of Ultima Online I can say with a great deal of certainty that this is the new top MMORPG in the market.

    Absolutely fantastic!
  58. manova
    Dec 20, 2011
    1
    I was a strong supporter of this game until i played it, i want to apologize to all the people i called a troll, and a hater. YOU WERE RIGHT i'm so sorry if i had only listened i would have saved myself $150 this is not an mmo, it's a single player game with a reoccurring fee. Advice: Wait for F2P it's going to be the only hope for this game. Fun at first and fades fast, way to many voiceI was a strong supporter of this game until i played it, i want to apologize to all the people i called a troll, and a hater. YOU WERE RIGHT i'm so sorry if i had only listened i would have saved myself $150 this is not an mmo, it's a single player game with a reoccurring fee. Advice: Wait for F2P it's going to be the only hope for this game. Fun at first and fades fast, way to many voice overs, like Age of Conan it's great at first but you're so glad when it's over at level 20, here it never ends. The first time i ever felt like shooting my PC to put it out of its misery.… Expand
  59. Kaptain
    Dec 20, 2011
    9
    This is a masterpiece of a Star Wars experience set in the MMO genre. Bioware has done so many things right with this title as an epic saga that you forget your playing an online game. Action, adventure, group content, multi-player conversations, epic large group world bosses, gear progression, gear customization, etc etc etc. It is what you expect an MMO to be with some seriously niceThis is a masterpiece of a Star Wars experience set in the MMO genre. Bioware has done so many things right with this title as an epic saga that you forget your playing an online game. Action, adventure, group content, multi-player conversations, epic large group world bosses, gear progression, gear customization, etc etc etc. It is what you expect an MMO to be with some seriously nice surprises. Though I do not dispute the fact that this game is not for everyone (because its an MMO and play as such), I also know trolls will be trolls, and some of the reviews for this game were only created to instill doubt and conflict. I'll lay it out honestly. SWTOR doesn't do a whole lot to push the genre forward with this game, however, what Bioware did, they did beautifully and a fully voiced experience should become the new standard for AAA MMO titles. If you are a fan of MMO's, you'll feel right at home. If you're a fan of epic star wars adventures with interactive cinematic storytelling, you'll be in heaven. This is a well produced, well developed MMORPG with all the trimmings.With the amount of interest in this game, the impossible was accomplished. Bioware managed to launch this behemoth with no downtime, no server lag with the occasional queue for some of the highest populated servers. Smoothest MMO launch this fella has ever experienced. Their do-diligence really paid off here for the customer, and I appreciate that Bioware found success where 99% of MMO launches have failed. This game is worth every penny right out of the box, and I can not wait to see what's coming by way of future content patches. Hold on to your seats, this is going to be one long and epic ride.… Expand
  60. mickeysood
    Feb 6, 2020
    8
    Best Star Wars MMO? yes. This is what i have been waiting for. The best part of this game is its storyline and cut scene.
  61. Dangerous_L
    Dec 21, 2011
    4
    This game is hardly an MMO. It feels more like a single player experience that you could bring friends along with. I didn't find the grouping mechanics to be all that good, linearity is ridiculous, PvP is a mess, FORGET about exploration (especially levels 1-25)... People are comparing TOR to WoW. I'll tell you this much, I literally went back to WoW after playing this game. I'm actuallyThis game is hardly an MMO. It feels more like a single player experience that you could bring friends along with. I didn't find the grouping mechanics to be all that good, linearity is ridiculous, PvP is a mess, FORGET about exploration (especially levels 1-25)... People are comparing TOR to WoW. I'll tell you this much, I literally went back to WoW after playing this game. I'm actually telling you that WoW has better group mechanics, less linearity, and much better PvP. Not to mention overall atmosphere. SWTOR lacks any atmosphere, I didn't click on any of the worlds I played. Anyone who says this game has more polish needs to get their eyes checked. SWTOR may be worth checking out, like, 6-8 months from now when they work out the kinks. However, it is NOT worth $60+sub. If you're looking for WoW-type gameplay, go play WoW. It's established, cheaper, and works better. God knows I wish they would have just made this a single-player game.… Expand
  62. Shadowakito
    Dec 21, 2011
    10
    Without exception, the old republic is the most impressive MMO i have ever played. With an intense story line unique to each class containing both the feel of the star wars universe and the experience which makes each Bioware game a masterpiece, TOR takes you to places no other MMO could ever hope to take you. Breaking away from the bland, unexciting and monotonus grind fest experienceWithout exception, the old republic is the most impressive MMO i have ever played. With an intense story line unique to each class containing both the feel of the star wars universe and the experience which makes each Bioware game a masterpiece, TOR takes you to places no other MMO could ever hope to take you. Breaking away from the bland, unexciting and monotonus grind fest experience games like world of warcraft replicate over and over again, the old republic actually has depth, story line, and a sound track which really just adds to the appreciation one SHOULD feel when playing an MMO. With very little issues during launch, and 5 x the amount of early subscribers at launch date than WoW, the old republic is well on its way to becoming one of the best MMO's you will ever play. This is truely an MMO as it should be, crew interactions with your partner characters give the game personality which many who have played KOTOR will be familiar with, exciting space battles and a vast map of planets to explore give this game an intense open world feel. Don't listen to the world of warcraft nay sayers, if you're a fan of star wars or even if you're just looking for a decent MMO for a change, pick this game up and you won't regret it.… Expand
  63. aretezea
    Dec 23, 2011
    2
    sorry EA but this is a disappointment. Why the hell did you not copy SWG? This Game is a future-WOW. Same movements, same landscape... I wait so long for this Game...
  64. 80y4n
    Dec 23, 2011
    2
    Well I must admit i had very high expectations for this game, but so far it is a major letdown. I just feel dissapointed as the final product is far away from what has been advertised, as the general feel of the game is been there, done that. Perhaps I enjoyed too much of wow as i played it for first 2 years, and wasnt willing to try any of the games that came after it, all advertised asWell I must admit i had very high expectations for this game, but so far it is a major letdown. I just feel dissapointed as the final product is far away from what has been advertised, as the general feel of the game is been there, done that. Perhaps I enjoyed too much of wow as i played it for first 2 years, and wasnt willing to try any of the games that came after it, all advertised as potential wow killers, but bringing nothing new to the table, spelling their fast demise. I expected bioware will be a company to finally rearrange the niche so deeply carved by blizzard, and to revolutionise the concept that only works for wow on a global scale. Comparison with wow is unavoidable, as two game are so alike, you will feel like wow was reskinned, and that comes from someone who was away from wow for some time now. I truely feel that the art direction looks outdated and animation is nothing special, world is disjointed and instanced, quests are hit and miss, mostly miss, and combat system is seen numerous times, so i predict fast decline in player population when players figure out that there is nothing new on the table… Expand
  65. Toastysoul
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    Great game. Fully Voice acted, detailed story, and very large universe. I have read many complaints that it's not MMO enough... Maybe it's just not the MMO for YOU. Single play content is awesome, but that's not all there is. I have no problem grouping, playing any content single or in a group. If you go into it with a negative attitude because you aren't "raiding" after 20 minutes ofGreat game. Fully Voice acted, detailed story, and very large universe. I have read many complaints that it's not MMO enough... Maybe it's just not the MMO for YOU. Single play content is awesome, but that's not all there is. I have no problem grouping, playing any content single or in a group. If you go into it with a negative attitude because you aren't "raiding" after 20 minutes of play, that's you're fault. It's the anti-grind MMO. If you like the raid gear grind, good for you, just don't complain because this MMO does it differently, go play WOW nobody will miss you here.… Expand
  66. Thaltom
    Dec 20, 2011
    9
    Star Wars: The Old Republic's biggest features are it's class stories, companion, and alignment systems. A special runner-up prize will go to it's crew skills, but I'll get to that later. Bioware's claim to fame as always been it's writing and story. Characters and stories really seem to flow together and I frequently found myself doing quests because I wanted to keep the Imperials at bay,Star Wars: The Old Republic's biggest features are it's class stories, companion, and alignment systems. A special runner-up prize will go to it's crew skills, but I'll get to that later. Bioware's claim to fame as always been it's writing and story. Characters and stories really seem to flow together and I frequently found myself doing quests because I wanted to keep the Imperials at bay, NOT to get to level 20; as a veteran MMO player this astounded me. Your companions are much more than pets. Though they do help in combat, they are also mini-chapters of the story themselves with priorities and personalities. Of course you cannot have a Star Wars game without the mention of the Light and Dark sides of the Force. Your character will travel down these paths frequently becoming either a bastion of good or an unholy terror on the universe. Whatever gripes I have with this game are very minor. In fact, my biggest concern has been the UI customization and that it being implemented in the next content patch.… Expand
  67. Altairzq
    Dec 20, 2011
    3
    This game is half single player and half mmo but doesn't seem the MMO part will be enough to keep it intereseting in the long run. Since i'm mostly interesetd in the MMO part and not the story I give it a 3.
  68. VeryAverage
    Dec 20, 2011
    0
    Being a huge fan of the KOTOR games, I was pretty excited when I heard that Bioware would be making another foray into the Star Wars Universe. I looked forward to the innovation that they could bring to the increasingly stale genre and hopefully renew my interest for MMORPGs. As the beta grew closer, I of course bought into all the hype, the promises and the CGI trailers that IBeing a huge fan of the KOTOR games, I was pretty excited when I heard that Bioware would be making another foray into the Star Wars Universe. I looked forward to the innovation that they could bring to the increasingly stale genre and hopefully renew my interest for MMORPGs. As the beta grew closer, I of course bought into all the hype, the promises and the CGI trailers that I desperately hoped were gameplay.

    Instead of getting a true successor to KOTOR 2 in MMO form, I got World of Warcraft : Star Wars Edition. Needless to say, I was incredibly disappointed when I learned it was going to be standard fare in terms of MMO combat (hotkeys, stand there and watch your cooldown bar) but I had at least hoped that I was going to get some good quality controls. But when I got my early access build, I was incredibly disgusted to see that not only were the controls boring and uninspired, they were simply bad. Everything felt underwater and clunky and once I was in combat, it simply felt unresponsive. I had no real connection to the buttons I was pressing and the things my hero was doing on screen.

    However, the real story here is well, the story. A story driven, fully voice acted MMO, the first of it's kind. Heck, it's Bioware even, people who brought us such excellent work's like Baldur's Gate and KOTOR, so the writing can't be bad, right? Right guys? Well, I was wrong. This writing was much more along the lines of the recent abomination Dragon Age 2. Every line with the opposite gender was dripping with flirtation, every line that was supposed to be delivered seriously had a comical air to it. Everytime they were close to bringing me into the universe, I was ripped right back out into ours as some horribly delivered cheesy line was spoken. Most of the time I ended up just skipping right through the dialogue as it wasn't nearly good enough to warrant my interest. Voice acting is all great, but really, it's just an expensive way to sugarcoat the fact that you want me to kill 10 enemies and collect 5 of their body parts just like I've been doing for years.

    Visually speaking, this game is unimpressive for a game coming out in Q4 2011. From what we've seen with recent MMOs and ones yet to be released, this game is three to four years behind in graphical technology. I won't mention all the visual glitches that I was getting, because it's still a very early build, however, I will mention the overall very poor quality. The shadows looked something out of the Playstation 2 era and were so distracting, that I actually had to turn them off. Texture wise, while they clearly payed attention to things such as characters, weapons and armor, they also clearly went right over most of the environment and let most of it be incredibly poorly done for such a high budget game. It terms of the art style, it actually reminds me of a game called Free Realms, a free MMO. This may sound like an insult, however, it is not. Free Realms has a wonderful, cartoon style that is both technologically undemanding, yet pleasant to look at. Sadly, I have to say that SWTOR actually looks worse, whilst being in the same art style. The animations in various battle scenes had me in tears at points, mostly because of how pitifully bad they were. Now if you like Star Wars and/or Bioware, there is nothing I can say that will stop you from playing this game. You will probably enjoy it because of your brand loyalty and there is frankly nothing I can do about it. But please, if you are looking in on this game as an outsider, I highly recommend you do not play this game.    … Expand
  69. iplaygamesalot
    Dec 20, 2011
    1
    I had high hopes for this game. Both as an avid gamer and as a fan of the Star Wars universe and I am saddened at just how bad it is. For a game with such a high budget and years of development, SWTOR doesn't tread too far from MMO's of the past. The combat is mediocre at best and the animations are rigid, my characters movement and actions seemed almost foreign. I played a Trooper becauseI had high hopes for this game. Both as an avid gamer and as a fan of the Star Wars universe and I am saddened at just how bad it is. For a game with such a high budget and years of development, SWTOR doesn't tread too far from MMO's of the past. The combat is mediocre at best and the animations are rigid, my characters movement and actions seemed almost foreign. I played a Trooper because I wanted to be an everyman, a man who fights with very mortal abilities against overwhelming forces and against sinister cyberninjas (sith/jedi). The voice overs, which was one of the main selling points, its rather half assed and later on in the game just becomes glorified quest text that just takes 10 times longer to go through. Like in DA:2, the writing is nothing to, well, write home about. As a Trooper most of my responses where "i live to serve the republic" or "just doing my duty". There was an alarming lack of variety in weapons as well, as a Commando i was restricted to assault cannons or gimp my dps. The quest areas are boring and there is no sense of exploration or world pvp. I feel no motivation to go out and look for adventure and quests where mostly "go here and kill X for Y" with the bonus objective being "kill more of X". I am saddened to say that this bears alarming resemblance World Of Warcraft, only SWTOR is a step in the wrong direction. I can see this game competing with 2nd tier MMORPG's but it is a far cry from the tier 1 giant that is WoW. Which is a shame, because Bioware has been toting to usurp the throne (as all MMORPG's these days seem to do) and falls disgustingly short. To sum up, SWTOR is nothing new, it is a carbon copy of WoW with rigid animations, poor VO, no world PVP, no endgame, and no sense of adventure.… Expand
  70. EWOK
    Dec 20, 2011
    0
    Bioware should stick to single player games, which this is, but with massive problems that come with an MMO. Day One, and it is obvious BW is not ready to play with the Big boys
  71. goopie
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    I found this to be one of the most enjoyable games I've played in a long time. Each class has an engaging storyline that draws you in. It ties the strengths that Bioware is known for to well established MMO concepts. The execution is good, but not perfect. Is this a WoW killer? No. Is this able to stand the test of time as a great game? From what I've seen so far, yes.

    I have mostly    I found this to be one of the most enjoyable games I've played in a long time. Each class has an engaging storyline that draws you in. It ties the strengths that Bioware is known for to well established MMO concepts. The execution is good, but not perfect. Is this a WoW killer? No. Is this able to stand the test of time as a great game? From what I've seen so far, yes.

    I have mostly concentrated on PvE and Flashpoints (Instance group actions). I have found both to be a lot of fun and they don't feel grind'y, which is my largest complaint with WoW.

    Regarding balance issues that some people seem to complain about, well, the game JUST got released. There are always some tweaks that need to be made. Give it a short while to test the waters.

    I love the Voice Acting. It makes this engaging instead of reading the same text over and over again. Is it perfect, no. Is it more engaging than a game like WoW. Yes.

    Everyone has their favourite MMO and everyone wants this to be better. Give it a bit of time to evolve. These things tend to be organic based on how people play it and what they enjoy most. Feedback is the best way to improve this game. For now, I'm enjoying this game for what it is. In a year, my opinion might change.    … Expand
  72. Darkstlkr
    Dec 21, 2011
    10
    If you go in to this expecting it to be like galaxies you will be highly disappointed. This game has more star wars feel to it than galaxies ever had I love this game.
  73. Quickfire
    Dec 20, 2011
    4
    What can I say about this MMO.
    The positives would be the limited physics in the game, reasonably well written storyline, conversation wheel system (unique), fantastic environment modeling and choreographed combat moves.
    The negatives would be lack of multiplayer support features, closed areas, lack of sandboxy content for casual players, poor NPC models and textures, poor space combat    What can I say about this MMO.
    The positives would be the limited physics in the game, reasonably well written storyline, conversation wheel system (unique), fantastic environment modeling and choreographed combat moves.

    The negatives would be lack of multiplayer support features, closed areas, lack of sandboxy content for casual players, poor NPC models and textures, poor space combat (no multiplayer), clunky combat flow and animations, lack of appearance/weapon/race/class choices and a poorly implemented UI and communication system.

    This game lacks many features considered standard for modern MMOs. It might be best to wait a few months for game improvements before purchasing this product, as you are really funding an extended beta after launch.

    A poor quality release with major potential down the road.    … Expand
  74. BibimBOP
    Dec 20, 2011
    0
    What a huge letdown. For the amount of money and hype this game got they delivered very little that you can't get from a free to play game.

    It's decent if you just really like star wars or bioware but i'm very disappointed.
  75. Disgust
    Dec 20, 2011
    5
    I had high hopes for TOR... I was an avid fan... until I got to play it. The only word worth describing it with is Mediocrity. Nothing new gameplay wise... copy pasted gameplay from World of Warcraft... terrible PvP balance...the absolutely most stagnant world ever created for an MMO and horrible repeatable combat.
    So much money spent on development just to copy what we've already played    I had high hopes for TOR... I was an avid fan... until I got to play it. The only word worth describing it with is Mediocrity. Nothing new gameplay wise... copy pasted gameplay from World of Warcraft... terrible PvP balance...the absolutely most stagnant world ever created for an MMO and horrible repeatable combat.
    So much money spent on development just to copy what we've already played hundreds of times.
    By supporting this product you support the cloning of gameplay. Buy it if you enjoy WoW style MMOs but don't complain when there's no other titles that could provide you with alternate gameplay.

    and No... the voice over does not make up for all it's flaws. It's nice in the beggining but gets tiring very very fast...you have a nice conversation with an NPC only to get the typical "go kill 10 x" quests...    … Expand
  76. Arianolese
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    Star Wars: The Old Republicâ
  77. Aosonie
    Dec 20, 2011
    3
    I didn't give this game a poor score because I thought that it was a bad game. I gave it a poor score as I it was uninspired, unimaginative and most importantly unfinished. Firstly, they use the exact same user interface as World of Warcraft down to every detail. But sure, everybody does that, I mean WoW wasn't even the first to use it's UI right? Except Bioware have taken it further andI didn't give this game a poor score because I thought that it was a bad game. I gave it a poor score as I it was uninspired, unimaginative and most importantly unfinished. Firstly, they use the exact same user interface as World of Warcraft down to every detail. But sure, everybody does that, I mean WoW wasn't even the first to use it's UI right? Except Bioware have taken it further and also copied over WoWs class system and talent system as well as most of their classes being very close copies of classes in WoW. The one selling point of this game that makes it different is the fact that it has dialogue for every mission instead of a box of text which typically isn't read. Whilst this is potentially a fantastic idea it has not been implemented particularly well as I feel that the writing is poor in most cases and the poor animations of characters in the cut scenes is very off putting but despite it's flaws I still think it is a solid addition. However, a dialogue system is not something that will make an MMO (a game who's success is dependent on long term players) successful. As everything else about the game is so familiar to WoW it is likely that a lot of their players will be attracted to the game. However, although the groundwork for a WoWlike game has been set fairly well there is a huge lack of content for players to partake in once they have reached level 50 (the maximum level). Now, for some players this may not be a problem as the story is enough of a drive to level other classes to go through their story, much like a single player game. However, when there are players on role playing servers reaching level 50 before the game has even been officially released and outside of leveling there is very little content you have to ask yourself: how much longer are people going to be playing this game before they run out of things to do and move on?

    By no means would I say that this is a bad game but it is not a finished game and whether you like it or not first impressions mean everything with MMOs. If players burn out on the game within the first month and are left with nothing else to do it isn't likely that they will be subscribing for a second month and if there are enough players who run out of things to do before enough new content can be added then this game is just going to sit on the bench with it's buddies Warhammer Online, Aion and Age of Conan. For now I've decided against buying this game but maybe in a years time if they still have a reasonable playerbase and have had enough time to add content I will consider buying it.    … Expand
  78. shinjuo
    Dec 20, 2011
    9
    The way people rate games now days is very upsetting. Most people are complaining that this is a wow clone and blah blah blah. Wow is the biggest MMO out there, so of course people are going to mimic it. I like wow and I like this game more. The reason I like this game more is the story elements and voice overs. It is much more engrossing to me. To complain that it is just like wow isThe way people rate games now days is very upsetting. Most people are complaining that this is a wow clone and blah blah blah. Wow is the biggest MMO out there, so of course people are going to mimic it. I like wow and I like this game more. The reason I like this game more is the story elements and voice overs. It is much more engrossing to me. To complain that it is just like wow is ridiculous. I watched many previews of this game before I got to play and I knew it was going to be like wow. If you rate this game for how well they made an MMO then it is a fantastic game. They put a lot of time into the voice overs and the stories of the characters are good. You just have to remember before you buy it that it is an MMO, so if wow was not your cup of tea then dont buy this. If you liked wow and are looking for an alternative this game is perfect… Expand
  79. theJexster
    Dec 22, 2011
    3
    After anticipating for 3 plus years this game was a complete disappointment. In beta, and on into launch this game has continued to underperform. Shallow unimmersive, limited, under underwhelming. I love Star Wars, and I love MMORPGs, and I wanted to love this, but the second I saw the pathetic attempt at character creation I knew this game was a shell of what it should be. From then onAfter anticipating for 3 plus years this game was a complete disappointment. In beta, and on into launch this game has continued to underperform. Shallow unimmersive, limited, under underwhelming. I love Star Wars, and I love MMORPGs, and I wanted to love this, but the second I saw the pathetic attempt at character creation I knew this game was a shell of what it should be. From then on it was one let down after another as the game began to unveil itself. Planets felt dead, small, and tiny. Ships were big, but lifeless and completely stagnant. The classes had all been done better somewhere else (either in other real MMOs or in the Star Wars single player games). The story (which was said to be the most developed feature) was not the 8 unique experiences we were expecting. It is 8 starting stories that merge into the same overall story once you begin to level past 15. The PVP feels like any Xbox FPS, not a massive War. The animations were underwhelming. The space hubs make the planets pointless. It feels more like a game where you log in, pick your instance, load it, clear it and re-peat. It does not feel like a MMORPG.… Expand
  80. crazytant
    Dec 20, 2011
    2
    Boring, generic and ugly are 3 words that come to mind playing this game. The developers seem to have literally copy and pasted whatever WoW has done. Even minor things such the graphics remind you of Azeroth, the combat doesn't bring anything new to the table and although the PVE fights seem rather quick the seasoned MMO player has done the same things for years.

    The writing is very    Boring, generic and ugly are 3 words that come to mind playing this game. The developers seem to have literally copy and pasted whatever WoW has done. Even minor things such the graphics remind you of Azeroth, the combat doesn't bring anything new to the table and although the PVE fights seem rather quick the seasoned MMO player has done the same things for years.

    The writing is very Biowarey in that sometimes it's acceptable but sometimes it's just goddamn awful. Space Combat is so poor it's funny until you realise you just payed £40 for a Star Fox mini game. The developers of TOR must not of cared, they didn't want to do anything good with the game and decided from the get go they would make something medicore in hope that the Star Wars name will keep them afloat.    … Expand
  81. rhaegan
    Dec 20, 2011
    1
    It was a hard punch in the stomach when Bioware announced that they would not make a Kotor 3, but instead go for a MMO. I was devastated at first, but the more I thought about, the more I liked the idea, because I love Star Wars. I thought that they would change the way that MMO's are these days, TOR is developed b Bioware, so come on. The game didn't change anything. It's WoW in spaceIt was a hard punch in the stomach when Bioware announced that they would not make a Kotor 3, but instead go for a MMO. I was devastated at first, but the more I thought about, the more I liked the idea, because I love Star Wars. I thought that they would change the way that MMO's are these days, TOR is developed b Bioware, so come on. The game didn't change anything. It's WoW in space with a stupid UI and dialogues that doesn't fit in this genre. Even the gods must be crying. Let's hope that at least GW 2 can save the MMO genre.… Expand
  82. bushels
    Dec 20, 2011
    2
    The game was fun for a week or two. Then I realized I was doing the same quests ad infinitum. Around the level 30 range (in the beta), the veil covering the constant and incessant grind lifted. Suddenly, I was aware that there were only 2-3 quests I was repeating over and over. I became completely burnt out and stopped playing for a time.

    Bored, I loaded up the beta again a few weeks    The game was fun for a week or two. Then I realized I was doing the same quests ad infinitum. Around the level 30 range (in the beta), the veil covering the constant and incessant grind lifted. Suddenly, I was aware that there were only 2-3 quests I was repeating over and over. I became completely burnt out and stopped playing for a time.

    Bored, I loaded up the beta again a few weeks later. This time I picked a Jedi Consular again, but a Sage instead of a Shadow. Furthermore, I wanted to see how different the story could be if you followed the polar opposite alignment within the same class story. So I went light side, instead of dark as I had previously. However, the story did not change at all. I was so disappointed with Bioware after seeing these cutscenes from the second alignment. Light side cutscenes went "Hey good job! You saved the day and no one died! You are a hero!" Dark side cutscenes went more like "Hey good job! But you did kill that one guy and that was not cool I guess. You are a hero!" After another ~25 levels of this nonsense I was forced to uninstall in disappointment.

    Another large problem was the lack of story persistence. Being that this is an MMO, Bioware has to cater to every single Obi-Wannabe. This means you will -never- see the fruits of your actions outside of instanced cutscenes. No planets being destroyed, no open world people being killed, no nothin'. This absolutely killed immersion for me, as I imagine it did for many others.

    In conclusion, I would not recommend this MMO to anyone. It is an absolutely standard (possibly below average) Theme-park MMO with the Star Wars license and a "deep immersive story" taped onto it. Save your money for now.    … Expand
  83. reb0014
    Dec 20, 2011
    0
    Let me begin by saying i have loved knights of the old republic since xbox and had high hopes, however ever since pre ordering the game 3 days ago this has given me nothing but trouble. after 60 gigs worth of 3 reinstalls of the digitally d/led game and its extensive 10 gig patch (3 days before it was released mind u). despite all this every time i attempted to click "play" my screen wouldLet me begin by saying i have loved knights of the old republic since xbox and had high hopes, however ever since pre ordering the game 3 days ago this has given me nothing but trouble. after 60 gigs worth of 3 reinstalls of the digitally d/led game and its extensive 10 gig patch (3 days before it was released mind u). despite all this every time i attempted to click "play" my screen would go blank and flicker a few times then go to desktop like nothing happened. now u might think my comp is at fault, well i can play bf3 on ultra settings getting 60 fps, so i seriously doubt this puny game would even slow it down. so i attempt to contact support, only to be hung up on and told that they would email me. so i wait for a few hours and decide that i would call again and not hang up until it was fixed. 3 hours later i am yelling expletives at the indian support staff and demanding they find out whats wrong and fix it immediately. so to do this i apparently needed to send them my launch info... well after 2 days of waiting after sending this i give up and give bioware the big middle finger and demand my money back. i feel bad for u suckers who have to play it before figure out it sucks, although if u notice the people have spoken, a 5.2 rating in metacritic does not bode well for a AAA grade game that was suppost to revolutionize the industry. Keep your overpriced monthly fee gouging POS, youll find me slaying dragons on skyrim or on bf3.… Expand
  84. PurplePlains
    Dec 20, 2011
    0
    The final nail in the Bioware coffin, after the massive let down that was Dragon Age 2 I thought Bioware would get their act together and regain some dignity to their name. Sadly, it seems that SWTOR is not the game to do this, furthermore, I'm afraid this game will actually make Bioware disband as a developing studio. The game is a WOW clone, with even worse visuals, cut and pasteThe final nail in the Bioware coffin, after the massive let down that was Dragon Age 2 I thought Bioware would get their act together and regain some dignity to their name. Sadly, it seems that SWTOR is not the game to do this, furthermore, I'm afraid this game will actually make Bioware disband as a developing studio. The game is a WOW clone, with even worse visuals, cut and paste classes, the most boring grindfest gameplay you will ever experience. If you want an MMO with substance hold onto your wizard hats fro guild wars 2. Hopefully the writers and developers at Bioware will be banished to a galaxy far, far away.......… Expand
  85. Armafanatic
    Dec 20, 2011
    2
    I would have to give this game at least a 7 or 8, if it was released in 2007. But this is nothing more than regurgitated same old same old. Sorry but after 33 levels and good money thrown down the drain, I just have to rate it a 2 at best. Maybe we need to start punishing these copy and paste mmo's for their greed, as they see online gamers as a milking cow. And these Star wars fanatics,I would have to give this game at least a 7 or 8, if it was released in 2007. But this is nothing more than regurgitated same old same old. Sorry but after 33 levels and good money thrown down the drain, I just have to rate it a 2 at best. Maybe we need to start punishing these copy and paste mmo's for their greed, as they see online gamers as a milking cow. And these Star wars fanatics, well they are a whole other story. Best said by someone else who said it best:
    Seriously, I can't stress this enough. Have you been to the official forums? Have you seen the 36 thousand pages of locked threads that ended in epic flame wars because someone pointed out that Boba Fett was an overrated character? These are not rational, intelligent, reasonable people - they are borderline mental patients who were given a gaming outlet so that they'd stop trying to gouge the midichlorians out of their day nurse with plastic Jell-O spoons.

    This is who is on here rating this game a 10. I'll stick with a solid 2    … Expand
  86. mmomaniac
    Dec 20, 2011
    0
    A really disappointing game. They pushed the boundaries on nothing and in fact the game lacks features other MMOs had a decade ago. The only thing they added to the mmo genre is a whole lot of voice over. Since I am not a story person, this game falls flat on its face right off the bat. Terrible character customization, terrible ui, small worlds that don't feel they can be explored freely,A really disappointing game. They pushed the boundaries on nothing and in fact the game lacks features other MMOs had a decade ago. The only thing they added to the mmo genre is a whole lot of voice over. Since I am not a story person, this game falls flat on its face right off the bat. Terrible character customization, terrible ui, small worlds that don't feel they can be explored freely, awful pvp, no end game, lacking guild features, the art style leaves a lot to be desired, worlds feel lifeless and generic and the list goes on. I honestly can't believe this is supposed to be a next gen mmo. It has no merit to make that kind of statement. You can see by the diparity in reviews here that this game is obviously not what people had hoped for. On one side you have people screaming how awesome it is, but they can't tell you any reason why aside from the vo. Then the other side actually lists what they don't like. It seems this game will have its hardcore player base like most mmos tend to get. This game will not be the next big thing. I give it 3 months before people get tired of story and move onto something that actually focuses on fun gameplay.… Expand
  87. Cavkov
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    This game is amazing! The best MMO out there, period. If you love star wars you will love this game. I've had so much fun with the story, companions, pvp, personal ship, spacebattles and so on...

    There is not much negative about this game.. I can't wait for future updates and expansion :)

    May the force be with you!
  88. redsuns
    Dec 21, 2011
    0
    Amazing great game. Anyone who think otherwise are just ignorant. They call every series of Call of Duty, Battlefield, Halo and watever the game of the year even though it is always better graphics and new storyline and holding a gun shooting at enemies. But a mmo that uses standard genre mechanics get slammed to the ground. Fools.
  89. verian9ne
    Dec 21, 2011
    1
    A World of Warcraft clone put into existence on the sole hope that it could rival Blizzard's game by virtually ripping off ninety percent of it. Bioware unashamedly lacks innovation or originality in developing this MMO. A disappointment.
  90. Hadrijan
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    Excellent game in my opinion, tops WoW hands down and i am comparing the two because i have played Blizzard's game for quite some time and liked it.
    Bioware has done an amazing job with the Star Wars IP and i think the Star Wars fans will be pleased.
  91. Keieueuue
    Dec 20, 2011
    0
    I have to give this game a 0, since many Bioware astroturfers are giving it a 10 (because they thought that people giving it a 3 or 4 wouldn't fly with EA). It is absolutely not innovative, except maybe for chores like crafting being helped by companions, but then again, why keep this system? Why not design factory-like mini crafting games? Seems all the mini-game Bioware could muster wasI have to give this game a 0, since many Bioware astroturfers are giving it a 10 (because they thought that people giving it a 3 or 4 wouldn't fly with EA). It is absolutely not innovative, except maybe for chores like crafting being helped by companions, but then again, why keep this system? Why not design factory-like mini crafting games? Seems all the mini-game Bioware could muster was this ridiculous shooter-on-rail spaceship sequences. Everything else is just WoW copy and paste, which definitely is a problem, given many years have passed since WoW was released.
    You're going to pay a monthly fee to play a mostly solo game (as is exemplified by the companion system), with online interaction for unimaginative raids, and heavily instanced cities. The multiplayer aspect of TOR is a joke, everywhere feels empty of players.
    There are tons of dialogues, all voice-overed, which asks the question: did Bioware blew 80 million dollar into an animated novel? And the dialogues are abysmal. It's your regular mix of lol, random, and faux grimdark, which you've seen in the Dragon Age series. It's absolutely repulsive, and shows how much Bioware despises the people who play their games.
    Everything is an insult to intelligence. Dialogues, design, which is completely cartoony without being enjoyable, and combat sytem, which is mash 1 to 4. I can understand how Bioware devs hate themselves -just look at how they look and how they speak-, but they could at least pretend they respect their customers.
    Let's not even go into the storyline aspect, the retconning everywhere and disregard for Star Wars lore. Episodes 1-3 have accustomed us to the unending rape of this IP, but TOR takes the cake, when set in the KOTOR storyline.
    I feel personally insulted when playing this game. Don't do as I did, and don't give your money to Bioware. It will only encourage the video game industry to spend ludicrous budgets on stuff that does not promote good gameplay. We customers have to send a clear message that we want to play engrossing, immersive videogames, not animated novels (with writing worse than slash or fanfic) whose gameplay is copypasted on games released years ago.    … Expand
  92. Virin
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    I don't normally take the time to vote but lets be serious here. This extremely small number of users does not represent the hundreds of thousands playing. Odds are the ones enjoying the game are not going to take the time to come here and vote for the game unless of course they, like me, saw somebody suggesting the game was poor based upon 200 people's opinions.

    Well here's mine: This    I don't normally take the time to vote but lets be serious here. This extremely small number of users does not represent the hundreds of thousands playing. Odds are the ones enjoying the game are not going to take the time to come here and vote for the game unless of course they, like me, saw somebody suggesting the game was poor based upon 200 people's opinions.

    Well here's mine:

    This game is amazing.

    K thx.    … Expand
  93. faine3
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    SWToR is an absolutely phenomenal MMORPG and does exactly what BioWare set out to do: add the pillar of story to MMO gaming. The voice acting is fantastic (even better given the scale that it's been done on), the story is interesting and engaging, the game aesthetic is great (if you're looking for a realistic graphical style you will be disappointed, but if you're an experienced MMO-erSWToR is an absolutely phenomenal MMORPG and does exactly what BioWare set out to do: add the pillar of story to MMO gaming. The voice acting is fantastic (even better given the scale that it's been done on), the story is interesting and engaging, the game aesthetic is great (if you're looking for a realistic graphical style you will be disappointed, but if you're an experienced MMO-er you'll understand the issues that realism brings to the table), combat is significantly more fast-paced than any MMO in the past (and is incredibly fun), I could go on. It is obvious BioWare took several notes from Blizzard on this one, but I think to have ignored WoW completely would have been a fatal mistake. It's okay to admit one game did something right and to try and improve on it, which is exactly what BioWare has done with this. Although on the surface many things may seem like a WoW clone, the similarities don't tend to extend beyond them both being in the same genre (MMORPG). TLDR: I highly recommend this game for anyone who is still interested in the genre of MMORPG, as the game is absolutely fantastic on just about every level; however, if you're looking for something completely different (or if you don't like BioWare games), you should pass this up.… Expand
  94. ComicBookGuy
    Dec 20, 2011
    0
    Worst Video-game Ever.

    Bioware/EA has proven that appealing to a fanatic minority and bullying reviewers with threats of black balling future games. This game is NOT a 10, giving it a 4 is a bit of stretch. It is a boring, repetitive copy of World of Warcraft that expects you to PAY for the experience. SWTOR has come out at the very end of the current MMO genre with all the graphics,    Worst Video-game Ever.

    Bioware/EA has proven that appealing to a fanatic minority and bullying reviewers with threats of black balling future games. This game is NOT a 10, giving it a 4 is a bit of stretch. It is a boring, repetitive copy of World of Warcraft that expects you to PAY for the experience. SWTOR has come out at the very end of the current MMO genre with all the graphics, style, and attitude of a child born in 1997.    … Expand
  95. Tridus
    Dec 22, 2011
    8
    Some of these complaints are just silly. I swear people buy a game without doing any kind of research on it. They didn't promise some revolutionary new gameplay. They pretty much promised WoW, only with Star Wars and a better plot. They delivered that. If you're disappointed because you made up wild expectations and then didn't get them, that's your problem and not the fault of the game.Some of these complaints are just silly. I swear people buy a game without doing any kind of research on it. They didn't promise some revolutionary new gameplay. They pretty much promised WoW, only with Star Wars and a better plot. They delivered that. If you're disappointed because you made up wild expectations and then didn't get them, that's your problem and not the fault of the game. I'm docking some points for the UI being clumbsy, but the game itself is quite fun and the story is great (particularly compared to the disaster that is Cataclysm).… Expand
  96. RomyA
    Dec 20, 2011
    2
    What a disappointment this game is. As many others have noted, this game is totally linear, way too instanced, and sorely lacking in the feel of an open world, which is so important (to me, at least) in an MMO. The folks at Bioware are great storytellers (Mass Effect rocked) but it just does not translate well into an MMO setting, because it places so many restrictions on the game. ForWhat a disappointment this game is. As many others have noted, this game is totally linear, way too instanced, and sorely lacking in the feel of an open world, which is so important (to me, at least) in an MMO. The folks at Bioware are great storytellers (Mass Effect rocked) but it just does not translate well into an MMO setting, because it places so many restrictions on the game. For example, Wookies are a favorite race in Star Wars. You should be able to play a Wookie, amirite? Apparently not - I guess the folks at Blizzard were worried that Wookie players who chose to engage in romantic interludes with their NPC companions (no, I am not making that up - it was stupid in Mass Effect, too) would invite comparisons to bestiality or something. Dumb, just plain dumb.

    Nothing about the gameplay feels new. The cinematics are pretty, but after awhile, clicking through dialog menus gets tedious. And seriously, no open space combat? Sorry, but an arcade-style combat-on-rails mini-game just does not cut it in a in a Star Wars game.

    I guess it's back to LotRO until Guild Wars 2 comes out. Please don't let that one be as big a disappointment!    … Expand
  97. sliqcore
    Dec 21, 2011
    10
    I haven't seen end-game yet but from what I have played I'm in love. I have plenty of experience in MMO's as a Disabled Vet I have spent the better part of everyday of the last ten years in one universe or another online. You find any revolutionary gameplay but you also don't see cheap and broken gimmicks unproven in the world of MMO's which can be fun but as with Rift and Warhammer theyI haven't seen end-game yet but from what I have played I'm in love. I have plenty of experience in MMO's as a Disabled Vet I have spent the better part of everyday of the last ten years in one universe or another online. You find any revolutionary gameplay but you also don't see cheap and broken gimmicks unproven in the world of MMO's which can be fun but as with Rift and Warhammer they tend to fall on their face before long. TOR is the first of a huge list of MMO's in which I am looking forward to not just playing every class on both factions but every mastery of every class of both factions. If you enjoy MMO's but are tired of clicking through quest details and randomly running off looking for the highlighted or bullet portions of the objective with no motivation or information what so ever about the reason for your task than TOR will wake you up. Interesting stories unfold with each character that evolve through your leveling with a Mass Effect style dialogue system and excellent narrative performed with spectacular voice acting. Within each faction you still have the option to be "bad" or "good" with dark/light side points that offer unique rewards and character options through your story. Not only is there a story but there is a Universe. Each area dominated leads you off to a new planet and you travel in your own starship with your own entourage who level with you and who's gear customization identical to your own which you can buy, craft or earn through mission rewards. They actually handle all of your crafting and gathering skills should you want to forgo the plethora of nodes you pass on your travels. There are space battles that are a ton of fun and reminiscent of Black Prophecy on rails with rewards in XP for your character and ship upgrades as your ship, like your own gear and that of your followers is just as varied. A Universe opens up right in front of you begging to be explored and each planet offers new landscapes and enemies with large base complexes and hidden artifacts that add attributes to your characters. Along the way or from a central space station all the basics are found; bank, crafting instructors, skill trainers, vendors, quest stations and PvP mission stations. There are also instanced mission areas for groups of 4 all over the place that are heavily scripted stories where everyone participates in the conversations. They are miniature movies played with friends that offer high quality rewards, what else on earth could I possibly ask for now? Nothing, for my appetite is sated at least for a few years to come. There are problems and areas that could use improvement for a jumping off point this MMO has more to offer on day one than many that have been in play for years. Think of what could come from this template which already has so much to offer and you truly begin to see what an awesome MMO we have with TOR. Naysayers beware, the future only holds more for TOR.… Expand
  98. Sula
    Dec 21, 2011
    4
    Polished game BUT very limited gameplay, WoW-like clone with VO slapped over and more instancing.
    End-game is about running instances over and over and not much aside of that.
    Insane amount of money spent on Voice Over and cutscenes shows with this game lacking in other departments. Though if you like a game to concentrate on nothing else than on grinding instances and battlegrounds once    Polished game BUT very limited gameplay, WoW-like clone with VO slapped over and more instancing.
    End-game is about running instances over and over and not much aside of that.
    Insane amount of money spent on Voice Over and cutscenes shows with this game lacking in other departments.

    Though if you like a game to concentrate on nothing else than on grinding instances and battlegrounds once you finish questing, then you'll find good game here.

    If you want more diverse experience and more mmorpg, social and "world-like" feeling avoid it.    … Expand
  99. attredies
    Dec 20, 2011
    9
    SWTOR is a very fun MMO, and I truly love bioware's take on it. I am not a fanboy, I have my gripes about it, but all in all, it is extremely well polished for a launch MMO. as a beta tester for many MMOs including WoW, Warhammer, STO, LOTOR, DCUO, and more I can say that it's launch was very smooth. The game is fun and engaging, with the distinctive bioware feel. conversations let youSWTOR is a very fun MMO, and I truly love bioware's take on it. I am not a fanboy, I have my gripes about it, but all in all, it is extremely well polished for a launch MMO. as a beta tester for many MMOs including WoW, Warhammer, STO, LOTOR, DCUO, and more I can say that it's launch was very smooth. The game is fun and engaging, with the distinctive bioware feel. conversations let you customize your character to light or dark, the combat is fun, if a bit drab, but depending on your class that changes. Clothing and gear looks great, once you leave the origin worlds and your starter gear behind you begin to look the epic warrior you are. does this game have some flaws, yes. Do I think this game is worth it? definitely. I had the standard edition preordered, but after playing the beta for a couple months I upgraded to the CE and I'm very happy with it.… Expand
  100. SigneGT
    Dec 20, 2011
    10
    I was excited for this game and BOY was I right to be. It has the right Star Wars feel, the music, it has the Bioware voice-acting and a story that just drags you in. There is no bad review in the world i would agree with, i love it to bits!
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Awards & Rankings

19
#19 Best PC Game of 2011
8
#8 Most Discussed PC Game of 2011
9
#9 Most Shared PC Game of 2011

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
85

Generally favorable reviews - based on 73 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 68 out of 73
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 73
  3. Negative: 0 out of 73
  1. RPGamer
    Apr 23, 2012
    80
    LucasArts generally exercised greater quality control of Star Wars games than most licensed properties receive, though that didn't necessarily translate into titles that were actually good. I've played a few other Star Wars games in the past, and while the SNES platformers were pretty good, this one is even better. Knights of the Old Republic may just be the best game in the franchise, and succeeds at being a top-tier RPG even if one has no interest in Star Wars. BioWare did the license proud.
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  2. GameCritics
    Mar 31, 2012
    70
    I wound up bailing out on Star Wars: The Old Republic well before hitting the level cap, but not before digging into it more so than any other MMO I've played. Even if it is an unhappy marriage between two wildly different game types, the fact that it kept me hooked for so long at least counts for something.
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  3. NZGamer
    Mar 5, 2012
    83
    A good game. It pays excellent homage to the film series (even though it's set before the movies), and is a really solid MMO.
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