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[Senn Typhos]

I love the Star Wars universe. Always have, always will. Goes without saying.

The Old Republic is the next attempt at a decent SW MMO.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2VwxLQO2MQ&feature=related

Here's my problem; will the fact that its being made by Bioware, a company with a decent reputation for making good games, mitigate the almost unavoidable sense that this might end up being yet another WoW clone?

[lallara zhuul]

The sense of Doom that you are experiencing is not a sign of paranoia, if the game is crap.

[Senn Typhos]

You play more than one MMO, you start to become accustomed to the taste of broken promises and shattered expectations. -.-

Damn you, Warhammer Online, Conan Online, and Aion respectively!

<shakes his fists dramatically at a cloudy sky.>

[Myrhial Arkenath]

Bioware delivers good games, but this is their first MMO, so it shall remain to be seen. I seriously hope it will not fit into the line of disappointments you've listed there. Then again, it will be free to play with microtransactions, so it won't really be wasted money until you start investing in that.

Which is another point in itself, the way the microtransaction system will be implemented and how it impacts can make or break a good game. I refer to Runes of Magic where diamond trading through the AH (diamonds being the currency to spend on the store, bought by players for money and able to trade in the ah for gold) was taken out to prevent RMT, not to mention that certain balancing changes would mean that a lot of cash / gold went into item upgrades that would need to completely redone (the mana changes, for those in the loop). That sort of shit can really drive away your players no matter how good your game is.

[Lillith Blackheart]

Bioware delivers good games, but this is their first MMO, so it shall remain to be seen

Bioware makes good one-shot games that sit you on some tight rails.

I think TOR will probably be REALLY REALLY REALLY AWESOME... for a month.

Maybe two. Personally, I'm not fond of BioWare's games, so I'll probably pass.

[Casiella]

Myrhial, I believe that Bioware hasn't yet elaborated on their business model. The F2P+micro is just industry speculation. But if you've got a source, I'd love to see it!

But yes, this is much closer to "WoW in space" than "EVE with lightsabers". That's no indictment, because both sorts of design philosophies have their high points. I don't see this ever replacing EVE for me, because I don't think a game with that design can approach the sort of community EVE has. But I do see it totally kicking WoW to the curb for me.

[Senn Typhos]

I severely hope they steer clear of the microtransaction system and stick to the one that works.

Bioware has rarely failed me. I think this game will mostly depend on how players pick up on their flavor of gameplay. They've already shown their progress on a companion system, voiced game, customization, morality engine, and a cover system - that last one, by the way, makes snipers like me very pleased.

Not to mention, all their classes are based on the archetypes of the saga; the Inquisitor can become a model of Palpatine or Maul, depending on how you advance. That'll probably lead to a lot of carbon-copy attempts if there's ever an RP community, but I digress.

The real trouble is that it seems impossible to wrest the mantle of the most popular/casual MMO away from WOW. They came in during a power vacuum, and no one has contested them since. That being said, I'm cautiously optimistic that this will be my "home away from EVE" if its any good...

The way I described it to my mate the other day, EVE combat is, as we've all said before, akin to submarine warfare; two days of silence, 30 seconds of hell, and whether you win big or lose everything your heart is racing. It leads to a very unique brand of combat stress disorder.

Going back to a WOW-style game once in a while is my way of screaming for my mom. >>;

[Casiella]

That'll probably lead to a lot of carbon-copy attempts if there's ever an RP community, but I digress.

You mean like this one, among others?

Disclosure: I'm involved to a degree with the administration of that site, but not on a day-to-day basis.

[Senn Typhos]

That'll probably lead to a lot of carbon-copy attempts if there's ever an RP community, but I digress.

You mean like this one, among others?

Disclosure: I'm involved to a degree with the administration of that site, but not on a day-to-day basis.

Hey, if I DO end up joining, I'll be aiming at an imperial assassin Zabrak. But you can rest assured I'm going to run that ball as faaar from the Darth Maul-copy as possible.

Edit: Before anyone brings it up, I'm reusing the words "cautiously optimistic." If it ends up being microtransaction-based, I'm not even going to touch it.

[Casiella]

Even if it's got microtransactions, the devil will be in the details. I won't write it off immediately based on that.

[Saikoyu]

I'll third the I haven't heard anything about a payment schedule for TOR.  But one way or another I think I'll be picking this up.  Its KOTOR with multiplayer, and I think that is a pretty good idea, for what it is.  It's not an EvE killer for me, but I'm a Star Wars fan too, so I think it will be a good waste of time when I don't want to go be "I'm not a slaver" Amarrian girl.