Friday 5 November 2010

Warzone Video

Warzones, crafting and (voting for) a new name for the Jedi Wizard. That's what BioWare has for us today.

This week was EA's annual winter showcase in London, during which they revealed details on warzones in The Old Republic as well as details on crafting. With the warzones BioWare released a new video showing some PvP; here is the official news:
Officially a neutral world, Alderaan has become the focus of Republic and Imperial political maneuvering. Even as conflict between Alderaan’s noble houses threatens to turn into civil war, Republic and Imperial forces engage in a secret battle that could decide the planet’s fate. High in the mountains, both sides fight for control of Alderaan’s massive planetary defense cannon—a weapon powerful enough to devastate an enemy’s fleet and ensure domination over the planet’s skies.

The battle on Alderaan is our first detailed look at organized team Player vs Player (PvP) in The Old Republic™. To secure the planetary defense cannon, players must deplete the enemy transport ship’s shields, driving their forces to retreat or be annihilated. Players must work together to control the defense system’s artillery units if they are to protect their fleet and emerge victorious.

We’ll be offering more insight into how Warzones work in the near future, but for now, we hope this video will give you a good sense of the Warzone experience in Star Wars™: The Old Republic™! Also, be sure to check the screenshot section to see how this battle is heating up.

I can't say that it interests me much, but that's because I don't find PvP to be interesting in the least. And while I find the video near sleep-inducing, I get that it's mostly the use of abilities and reacting to an ever changing situation that makes PvP exciting (and the video looks rather staged to me).

But if you want to know more about the warzones, as well as know what BioWare revealed about crafting, then Darth Hater has those details for you. Here's an excerpt from the latter:
The developers also presented an overview of The Old Republic's crafting system. BioWare announced they will use a Crew Skill crafting system, very similar to the one we speculated on in a recent podcast. Using their ship as a base of operations, players will be able to send their companions on crafting tasks, and particular companions excelling at specific duties.


This Crew Skill system will be divided into three majors groups: Gathering, Crafting, and Missions. We were given two examples for each major group: Gathering will be comprised of jobs like Bio Analysis and Slicing, Crafting includes Artificer and Bio Chem, and lastly Missions will involve activities such as Diplomacy and Treasure Hunting.
Next to all that BioWare is showing that it's listening to the community. After the massive outcry over the "Jedi Wizard" advanced class name they've now selected three names (plus "Jedi Wizard") for the community to vote on, saying that the winning choice will be the final name ingame. And to help people decide they're giving use a breakdown of the general Jedi Wizard skill branches:
Earlier this year, we announced the Advanced Classes System which allows you to customize your character according to your play style. We also revealed the advanced classes for the Jedi Consular: Jedi Shadow and the Jedi Wizard. Since then, we’ve been working on a new name for the ‘Jedi Wizard’ Advanced Class and have come up with three new possibilities.

Now we want to open it up to you, the fans. There's been some great feedback on class names in the past, so we're offering you the chance to help us make the final decision!

The chart below presents a high-level overview for the Jedi Consular’s advanced classes:

  • Telekenetics: Ranged Damage using Force attacks, such as ‘Telekenetic Blast’ which does high damage in an ‘area-of-effect’
  • Balance: Overall survivability and utility, with abilities that enhance both melee and Force attacks
  • Seer: Healing and buffs using the Force, with abilities like Serenity to boost Force regeneration and reduce damage taken
There are four names to choose from: Jedi Sage, Jedi Seer, and Jedi Adept – along with the option to keep it Jedi Wizard. This poll will determine the final title that appears in game. We’ll be tallying the results from the English, French, and German communities to determine the winner. Voting ends at 5:00PM CST on Thursday, December 2nd so vote now!

We look forward to hearing from you!

- The Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ team
As of this posting "Jedi Sage" has more than half the votes in all three (language) polls, so it's looking very likely that that'll be the winner. Personally I just voted the most popular option in an "anything but 'Wizard'" vote, but I'm quite happy with Jedi Sage.

Finally, on a different note, Eurogamer has an interview up with Doctors Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk from BioWare. They talk about a number of things, including Dragon Age 2 and that EA Louse business from a while back. But regarding Star Wars: The Old Republic what's interesting is that they're asked about a release date and oddly no longer seem to want to commit to a spring 2011 release date:
Eurogamer: When will Star Wars: The Old Republic be out?

Ray Muzyka: Next year.

Eurogamer: Can you at least say whether it'll be the first half or the second half of the year?

Ray Muzyka: No. We're just saying 2011.
That is quite different from what they've been saying in the past where they've always stated "spring 2011". Signs of the release having slipped perhaps?

Anyway, go and vote to make sure to crush the "Jedi Wizard" name as completely as possible. And happy Guy Fawkes day.


[link] to warzones and crafting article at Darth Hater.
[link] to interview with Ray and Greg at Eurogamer.

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