Originally posted by Neloth

It made the difference for me, TOR is the only mmo I consider worth my time and I think many casual players like it, the space-bar crowd and hardcore folks should look for another game IMO.

You're correct. TOR is the most boring and casual game on the planet. The rub is, It's the only so called mmo that is using the SW IP, and it may be the last. So that leaves fans that want a more open and deeper SW mmorpg , kinda left out in the cold. If Bioware wanted to screw something up, in my book, they should have used their own ME IP.

I loved the story; that's not why I quit playing. What made me quit was the empty, dead-feeling world brought on by too many servers and a hub (main space station) where everyone could hang out and avoid interacting with the rest of the world.

Originally posted by ignore_me

Originally posted by Lawlmonster

I don't understand how people find this VO content so engaging. There have been a few individual missions, mainly class quests that have really grabbed my attention, but they are far and few between; usually the chapter endings are pretty kick ass. Though after playing a character near level cap (47), I simpy can't be bothered to listen to the side mission audio anymore. It bores the hell out of  me, especially since I'm seeing some if it a second, third, and even a fourth time now. It may as well be text, as far as I'm concerned, especially if it isn't class related.

 

Quite frankly, if Bioware had made the questing and missioning in TOR the same quality and pacing as one of their single player games, like KOTOR or Mass Effect, maybe it wouldn't feel like I'm still killing ten effing rats. Maybe if they had kept the original leveling system from the KOTOR games, where lightside and darkside alignment actually effected the amount of force required to power your abilities depending on which side they fell upon, rather than just unlock vendors; or allowed players the option to pick and choose skills or attributes that were available in KOTOR, such as passive stat increases, weapon and armor proficiencies, or specialized attacks like critical strike and frenzy; maybe at that point in time they'd have a game that, in combination with the voice overs, would actually be as innovated as they claim it to be. The truth is, however, that my space bar is worn thin, and the story itself isn't really enough to keep me playing an MMO long term.

Story ->  affects Light Side/Dark Side -> which affects nothing (the vendors wont really sell you anything more than boots, cubes, and speeders) except maybe loot usage.

Your notion of how this should have been used is soo much better.

What's absolutely ridiculous about this whole mess is that Bioware had a model to use for creating a KOTOR MMO that had already been previously successful in their single player RPG's. Systematically and mechanically, the options available in the original series for leveling and class building is far better than in their MMO, and it seems like a game far removed from the two which came before it. Why go with talent trees, forced equipment options, and forced leveling areas when they had created something far superior and unique, which would have been refreshing to see in the multiplayer space, that they already had a blueprint to recreate? It doesn't make any sense to me.

Originally posted by Lawlmonster

Originally posted by ignore_me

Originally posted by Lawlmonster

I don't understand how people find this VO content so engaging. There have been a few individual missions, mainly class quests that have really grabbed my attention, but they are far and few between; usually the chapter endings are pretty kick ass. Though after playing a character near level cap (47), I simpy can't be bothered to listen to the side mission audio anymore. It bores the hell out of  me, especially since I'm seeing some if it a second, third, and even a fourth time now. It may as well be text, as far as I'm concerned, especially if it isn't class related.

 

Quite frankly, if Bioware had made the questing and missioning in TOR the same quality and pacing as one of their single player games, like KOTOR or Mass Effect, maybe it wouldn't feel like I'm still killing ten effing rats. Maybe if they had kept the original leveling system from the KOTOR games, where lightside and darkside alignment actually effected the amount of force required to power your abilities depending on which side they fell upon, rather than just unlock vendors; or allowed players the option to pick and choose skills or attributes that were available in KOTOR, such as passive stat increases, weapon and armor proficiencies, or specialized attacks like critical strike and frenzy; maybe at that point in time they'd have a game that, in combination with the voice overs, would actually be as innovated as they claim it to be. The truth is, however, that my space bar is worn thin, and the story itself isn't really enough to keep me playing an MMO long term.

Story ->  affects Light Side/Dark Side -> which affects nothing (the vendors wont really sell you anything more than boots, cubes, and speeders) except maybe loot usage.

Your notion of how this should have been used is soo much better.

What's absolutely ridiculous about this whole mess is that Bioware had a model to use for creating a KOTOR MMO that had already been previously successful in their single player RPG's. Systematically and mechanically, the options available in the original series for leveling and class building is far better than in their MMO, and it seems like a game far removed from the two which came before it. Why go with talent trees, forced equipment options, and forced leveling areas when they had created something far superior and unique, which would have been refreshing to see in the multiplayer space, that they already had a blueprint to recreate? It doesn't make any sense to me.

Because it wouldn't have been enough like WOW for the mmo gamers. To me, it's just easy to see they built the game around KOTOR fans and had to make it similar even on a barebone scale to bring in the mmo players and be able to call it an mmorpg.

Originally posted by musicmann

Originally posted by Neloth

It made the difference for me, TOR is the only mmo I consider worth my time and I think many casual players like it, the space-bar crowd and hardcore folks should look for another game IMO.

You're correct. TOR is the most boring and casual game on the planet. The rub is, It's the only so called mmo that is using the SW IP, and it may be the last. So that leaves fans that want a more open and deeper SW mmorpg , kinda left out in the cold. If Bioware wanted to screw something up, in my book, they should have used their own ME IP.

Damn straight! This is so true. This IP was a tremendous responsibility, especially after there was a historical precedent for what happens when you fuck it up.

Great story, absolute junk of a game for an MMORPG.

So what is the point? Wasted millions of dollars!

Want a good MMO you RICH companies? Hire 15+ years MMORPG veteran gamers. (Like me)

Give me millions I can write you a story.

STory was exiciting, till I saw every Trooper run around with the same companions and it turned out I wasn't the only commander of Havoc Squad. To make things even worse my girl even kissed a million other troopers! Yeah the story was pretty good in killing the roleplay element.

Other then the stories being uninteresting when compared to real SPRPGs  like BGs and Kotor.  (At least the rep ones, sorry just can't stand bioware's evil to be evil style evilness.)   The stories fail because they are in NO way writen to be part of a co-op game or even a multiplayer game or even a MMO that SWTOR pretends to be.    In every one the republican stories you at the ONLY hero in the whole galaxy destinded to be god's gift to the republic.   Not even in the side quests is there any notion of desining quests in a way that explains why your the 4th person to so it this hour.  

The stories are also terrible because choice is totaly pointless, the stories are on such a linear path that if your given the choice to kill x or let him go it doesn't matter, because either you never see them again or they do nothing till you meet them again and are forced to kill them. 

The last reason they suck is that the game doesn't even pretend that your in charge, there is ALWAYS someone other then your character telling you where to go next and what to do next.   When I was in beta I never got the feeling that my chracter was ever really in charge of his story as there was never a moment where he just stopped and talked with his pets or the NPCs about he was going to next it was just yes sir. 

Ideally the voiceovers should only be for the class and main planet line quests.  Everything else can skip the dialog.

The story in tor tor is boring was fun at first after a while poking your eyes seems like a good option. If you play you can see numbers of people playing falling everywhere in game no cues less people on each planet etc when i started had to cue for 45 mins.

Didn't care much for the stories either.  I felt they were pretty bland overall, and I tried every class.  They all kind of blend together after a while, basically some bad dudes have gotten a hold a secret weapon or there is some vicious gang to take care of.  I could not get invested in the stories in the least; I felt no emotional attachment to my character because I was just so bored. 

I enjoyed the DA and KOTOR stories a million times more.  DA and KOTOR were the type of games that I immediately replayed them, just to experience the story in a different way.  I couldn't stomach SWTOR past level 30.  The stories/plots in SWTOR would have been laughed at in a single player RPG.

Originally posted by ScorpionOne

Originally posted by RefMinor
Considering VO made SWTOR the most expensive CORPG in the history of the world by a factor of two and all indications are that the numbers are tanking at an unhealthy rate, I think you will need to get your storyline fix from SPRPGs going forward. SWTOR was a step back for the MMORPG genre.

Don't take this the wrong way, Ref.  But do you have proof of these "tanking numbers"?  I'm not a fanboy but everytime I see people say something about falling subscription numbers, I get suspicious.

SWTOR took a step in the right direction, but to me it seems like it just isn't enough of a step.  It needs to go a bit further.  How, I'm not sure.  I'm not a developer so don't ask me for specifics.  But it just feels like something else is missing.

I'd say what's missing was freedom.  After the second or third planet, the repetition set in.  Go to planet. Start main story arc, along the way, handle side quests, flashpoints, etc.  It was way too linear.  I honestly didnt play far enough to get to the more open planets like Alderaan or Tatooine, but not convinced it would change my opinion much.  

What I would have like to have seen was open space exploration, as well as more involved crafting.  Also have to say I felt the planets were lifeless.  Look at the canteen.  It should have been brimming with real players, and acted as a social hub.  But here it was reduced to a prop with the ability to play music.  I feel it was a lost opportunity.

Beyond the story of Star Wars, what most of us fans what is the freedom.  But I guess that was what Star Wars Galaxies was about pre-NGE.  Unfortunately I missed out on that experience and left wanting more from SWTOR

Also awaiting Guild Wars 2 as well as a little unknown F2P title Lime Odyssey.

Love the Class story and the main story line for each planet, but drop the VO for the side and random quests. save you some money to put more into the broken parts of SWTOR

Story is not the fourth pillar. There is no fourth pillar. What is this pillar business anyway, more jargon, maybe i'll just turn on cnn and listen to pundits talk more rhetoric BS.

fourth pillar hahaha gtfo

EVERYONE is tired of playing with the old quest boxes. That doesn't mean this game succeeds with boring cutscenes about killing ten rats.

I must be weird or something.  I like SWTOR and I like the VO.  It's not a game changer or anything, but it is a step forward for MMOs in my opinion.  It beats the hell out of reading a few paragraphs at every quest giver, and it gives the NPCs a little personality.  

Lego Star Wars had a better story.  I am shocked at yet another fluff piece on TOR from MMORPG.com.

"Hint: BioWare, my body is ready for a Mass Effect (or Dragon Age!) MMO."

Stop that ;< I'd rather they work on returning those universes to their former glory first.

Didn't particularly like what I saw of the story playing a Trooper in beta (trite, cliched, illogical). It was no Baldur's Gate 2, that's for sure.

And on top of that, I think single-player story and MMORPG gameplay mix like oil and water. Just not a very good idea at all.