I'm really enjoying this game. I'll say that from the start. This is the first MMo in eons that I have enjoyed quests in. I came in concerned that it'd be too questy but realised they're not really quests like in the past. I love all the little missions because there's a story to each and I've been determined to see it all...every last piece. I also love the flashpoints and the space combat.

But...and this is sadly a big but...

...I'm levelling too fast. I want to enjoy everything the game has to offer but I'm then too high for the planets I am doing and it's will-zapping. I don't want to be level 21 and having to finish level 15-20 content, not to mention the fact that I'll be 25 by the time I finish Balmorra and get to the 20-25 content of Nar Shadaa. As for Tatooine, well unless I ignore Nar Shadaa then I'll be 30 by then, so that's another planet done above level.

I'm loathe to call it easy mode, because that calls in the people who will justs ay I'm whining the game is too easy. That's not my point so don't start trolling that. The game is okay with regards to difficulty but because it levels too fast then people are seeing content at too high a level.

Maybe I could ignore all extras such as Flashpoints and space combat, but where's the fun in that? Why add them if that's the case? I haven't even done a warzone yet but I understand the experience is huge...so I feel like I can't. In all honesty the 10k experience I got from each space combat mission (first time out) boggled my mind. Why give so much?

I assume I'm supposed to do Balmorra and Nar Shadaa because my master has given me quests for both planets. Am I supposed to be able to do one fiully and grab the main quest from the other? Do I need to to do the main quest on each planet? I'm under the impression that I get a main quest necessary item from each planet so have to go there. I guess I just rush through the main quest on Nar Shadaa but that feels horrid in my mind. What's the point of this great content if I'm skipping it?

I'll be honest and say I'm worried for the game if people continue levelling like this. People are reaching 50 so fast. I know that it's normal for a whole swathe of people to power to 50 at the release of any game, but the experience in this one is far too huge. Many are saying the wish of Bioware is that everyone experience all 8 story archs, but I'm startiung to think a lot of people can do that in a few months. Where's the future of the game then? In 6 months everyone could have done everything.

I'm old-school and I'm fully aware of that. The new trend is to level so fast your arse leaves burn marks as it gets dragged along behind you. This is even faster than WoW and that got so much stick for being too fast to level.

Bioware need to either slow down experience, and massively in some cases, or give the people that want to slow down an EQ2-esque experience off toggle. I'd be happy with a toggle.

The game has way too much content for the amount of XP you're awarded. Perhaps something like a general nerf to all XP awards would be in order. Even if you don't do flashpoints, PvP and space missions and only do the solo and world group missions you'll typically be a few levels above your opponents.

Why is XP important? I hardly notice when I level up in this game. In fact, I do even care when I level up. The levelling is not the main attracting in this game, it happens so suddenly  that at one point I noticed that I have 5 levels worth of skills to buy because I simply had forgotten. This game, like Skyrim and Mass Effect etc., has the levelling down as  a very natural occurance that you do really even notice unlike in some other MMOs, like in Aion and Lineage 2 where you could think nothing else. I think Bioware has nailed it down. The feeling of progression comes through your class story and a lot less from levels, as those you achieve anyway by doing your story.

I also know few people who have chosen only to do class stories and get levels from PvP. It seems also viable. So you are not forced to go through all the quests in every planet with all your characters.

Originally posted by Axxar

The game has way too much content for the amount of XP you're awarded. Perhaps something like a general nerf to all XP awards would be in order. Even if you don't do flashpoints, PvP and space missions and only do the solo and world group missions you'll typically be a few levels above your opponents.

Sadly I don't think Bioware will risk the wrath of the masses and turn down experience. There's a few people asking for slow experience on the official forums, but the outcry should it be done will be like Coruscant's sun going nova.

It needs doing, but a simple toggle would aid those wishing to slow down and keep the masses happily stroking their level 50 egos.

I'd rather have the experience slowdown, of course, but I know the consequences and I know the mindset of an MMO developer.

Originally posted by thexrated

Why is XP important? I hardly notice when I level up in this game. In fact, I do even care when I level up. The levelling is not the main attracting in this game, it happens so suddenly  that at one point I noticed that I have 5 levels worth of skills to buy because I simply had forgotten. This game, like Skyrim and Mass Effect etc., has the levelling down as  a very natural occurance that you do really even notice unlike in some other MMOs, like in Aion and Lineage 2 where you could think nothing else. I think Bioware has nailed it down. The feeling of progression comes through your class story and a lot less from levels, as those you achieve anyway by doing your story.

I also know few people who have chosen only to do class stories and get levels from PvP. It seems also viable. So you are not forced to go through all the quests in every planet with all your characters.

I know what you are saying, and I agree to some extent. I do feel like my progression comes from the story, but the story for me isn't just the main quests. It's the other little quests that all go together to make one big story for me. It all rounds me as a person, everything from whether I blow up a shield generator to whether I betray a hopeful apprentice or kill some guy's wife.

The problem here is something that you did seem to be suggesting, and that is that you can easily outlevel all those little extras. You can do the main quest and warzones and remain in the right level range. I could probably do the main quest and the side quests and remain in the level range, but add in a warzone, space missions and a flashpoint and, hey presto, I'm 3-4 levels above the content.

Whilst story is important to me, completing that story in what is almost easy-mode is disappointing.

I want to experience what the game has to offer.

Every MMO should atleast have an experience toggle, and preferably a mentoring system to.

Never got why other MMO developers could not see this. They are all copies of eachother but this part they let be.

I am not sure, if this is true for every class, but at least for me there was a noticiable difference in difficulty when landing on Alderaan. The heroics caused many wipes for the groups. Even some quests mobs marked as strong were quite difficult. I have died a lot more in Alderaan than I did in any other plants prior to it. Perhaps it is just this one planet...or the difficulty goes up once you progress further. Like it did when you left the first two planets.

Honestly, I would hope they would slow the leveling down. Its strong point is its story focus and the whole leveling experience. If you let that be drained away so quickly, you suddenly boil the game down into a generic MMO. It doesn't make much sense to me why they feel the need to make it quick to get through the levels rather then helping to emphasize the story in which seperates it from the other games out there.

Good thing every class has a different story eh?

Been there. I skipped Balmorra, only did the main story line quests and its all good now, in Nar Shaddaa atm.

You get alot of xp from PvP and Flashpoints! Stop doing some for abit so you can get a balanced level.

Im not rushing because im loving the story too much but it makes me happy to know that when i make an alt i will level in speed and i will be able to ignore most of the side quests that i made with my main.

Originally posted by Lord.Bachus

Every MMO should atleast have an experience toggle, and preferably a mentoring system to.

 

Never got why other MMO developers could not see this. They are all copies of eachother but this part they let be.

Considering that some of the original swtor devs love what CoH did, you would have expected a sidekicking/mentoring system.

Having more content than you need to level is a good thing.

It actually evens out quite a bit around tatooine - the 25 - 30 range.  Even if you still well outlevel that content.. you'll arrive on belsavis likely around the exact level you are supposed to... and .. if you keep up with PvP and flashpoints.. you might be lucky to be a little above in level.... you'll need it,  the content gets pretty tough in the later levels.

You will run into a TON of quests... and if you do them all, you might be a little over leveled.. but honestly  you're better off for it.. you shouldn't be just barely reaching 50 at the end of your class story,  you should be there already, enjoying the content.  

You'll see plenty of the same content (with small twists depending on class and gender.. and if you decide to group or not) when you reroll to other toons... if you never plan on rerolling,  nothings stopping you from just going back and experiencing that content.

Silly posters....

Serioiusly?

Would you rather have to grind mobs for a couple days after you've quested a planet so you can get to approipate level for the next?

This is actually good.  Skip content, or a whole planet, do it later on an alt for a whole new experience.

You have basically touched on the major issue with this game.  You out level everything far too fast.  I don't know what Bioware was thinking, but they are going to have empty servers in the summer because of this.  The crafting is far too simplistic too.  There is not enough to keep people interesting for long because of the fast leveling scheme.

You would have thought that Bioware would have seen this mistake repeated in prior MMO's and not done this.  They instead made the game like one of their single player rpg's.  What a sad mistake.

All I can say is enjoy the game for as long as you can and move on.

I don't see the problem, more content than you can do at your level is a bad thing how? Most games release and people complain there isn't enough content...

It is a bit of a catch 22 situation for Bioware slow the leveling pace and force players to do all the content plus Pvp and Flashpoints before moving on or as they have chosen provide more content than is needed but the journey guys like you and me will just do it all and be too high for the next zone and that content becomes trivial. I'm finding this on Dromund Kass I had to leave a few quests on Korriban because I felt as you have that I was too high for the starter content on Dromund Kass and I was anyway as I did Black Talon so I hit DK at level 11.5  with the starter mobs being level 10. I now have loads of quests in my log and really if I do them all I'll be way ahead of the curve without doing other FP and PvP. I personally would like the leveling speed slowed as it would be sad if people do all the story quests within 6 months and move on and thats looking like the case at the moment but if the higher level are right and 25-50 is much slower then this problem isn't really there.  

Rift had this problem but the difference in the two games is that SW has much more content and you have replayability which is what Bioware probably wanted so maybe you have to ignore certain quests and do them on an alt but that really seems like a strange way to set things up to me.

You're talking about the leveling pace at low levels though. I'll hit 40 tonight with 97 hours /played on my main, no doubt it'll probably take half that again to go from 40 to 50. That's hardly too quick in my eyes.

Originally posted by MattNe

Silly posters....

 

Serioiusly?

 

Would you rather have to grind mobs for a couple days after you've quested a planet so you can get to approipate level for the next?

Maybe not days but some tens of minutes at least. Quests should never give you enough exp to level up. Why? Because the game becomes a quest grinder in which mobs have no meaning. If quests gives you exp, money and gear, why even bother to do crafting or kill mobs.

So, would I rather grind mobs for a couple days? Maybe not, but for some hours I would, and would be happy to do so.