Star Wars: The Old Republic: 17 Hours with the Bounty Hunter
Back in March, I got to play The Old Republic as the Bounty Hunter and Imperial Agent classes, for around 17 hours total. I played mostly as the Bounty Hunter, and these were my impressions. Josh spent more time with the Imperial Agent, and his preview is here. This preview previously appeared in issue 226 of PC Gamer in the UK.
Imagine a version of the Star Wars universe where you can become almost any kind of character, explore dozens of worlds, even acquire your own spaceship and recruit a crew. Now try not to imagine Star Wars: Galaxies – the first awkward take on that vision, which drove itself into the ground trying to attract new players with endless unsuccessful redesigns.
The Old Republic won’t have that problem: it’s a BioWare game, and BioWare already have an audience. Mass Effect is becoming this generation’s Star Wars. Everyone already knows they love its story-driven structure, the way it builds a cast of interesting companion characters, and the freedom it offers to play an asshole or a saint.
The Old Republic has all of that, and it actually is Star Wars – albeit 3,500 years before the films.
Star Wars: The Old Republic: 17 hours with the Agent
It takes many types of force to impose and sustain a galaxy-wide empire. The Sith control with supernatural authority and an iron fist, and Bounty Hunters fill the ranks of their mercenary armies that wage war. But another branch of the Empire lives in the shadows, silently removing threats and toppling rulers to manipulate circumstances in the Empire’s favor. At the front of this wraith-like army is the Agent, an Imperial Intelligence operative backed by the funds and resources of Star Wars’ ultimate Big Brother organization as they travel the world to assassinate, infiltrate and manipulate on behalf of the Empire.
E3 2011: Star Wars: The Old Republic impressions
The E3 presentation for Star Wars: The Old Republic is about two things: showing raids for the first time, and pulling together all the disparate threads from a PR campaign that’s lasted nearly three years.
First important fact: raids look good. In the trailer, which will inevitable find its way online shortly, the sight of dozens of lightsabers charging up a hill was stirred the hairs on the back of your neck. Particularly when they’re greeted with the Star Wars equivalent of Hamburger Hill: two giant turrets lobbing laser blobs at the incoming attackers.
