Firstly apologies if the terms I use aren't quite right, I'm still a LotRO player at heart, so am trying to adjust to the new terms of SWTOR! :D

I think to me, one thing that stings is this...

If I buy Cartel coins (which I intend to do now, it's just a case of researching what to buy carefully).  I have two characters to outfit.

Buying two of any of the important boosts (eg: crafting skills, inventory/bank, quick bars, artefact license) costs less than purchasing it account-wide.

So by now I know what two classes I want to play.  I created them, that uses up my two character slots on Red Eclipse.

I have a feeling, having played the other classes to just beyond level 10 before deleting them, that I will stick to the two I have chosen.

So why should I pay the price of 3 or more of the above bonuses, to make them account wide, when I can buy just two for less cartel coins?

Is it really worth it?

" it’s those free-to-play and Preferred players that are feeling a bit shortchanged right now."

This sentence right here is enlightening. That the author could believe that someone who is playing for free could be, "shortchanged," is ludicrous.

If they are playing for free, or getting exactly what they pay for by purchasing specific elements in the cash shop via micro-transactions, then they are not being shortchanged. 

If the author wants to argue that effectively leveraging the FtP model for maximum player engagement/retention and revenue gain in this game would entail changes he should do that instead of engaging in entitlement based complaints.

Originally posted by Cypruska
The worst part is the race choice. Human or Zabrak... is it me or am I the only one around here that HATES THE HUMAN RACE... and the zabrak is the same damn thing with horns in it... How come I have to pay to get the other races? RACISTS!!!

I look at it this way...

Either you limit the available classes (eg  you can choose Alliance OR Sith, not both.  Or you can only choose Jedi Knight and Trooper, nothing more)...

Or you limit the races available, as they have done.

I know which I would prefer, and that is to have unlimited classes, but limited races.

Remember, LotRO had unlimited races (only 4 to start with!), but limited classes (you had to buy Runekeeper, or Warden, unless you brought the x-pack).  I think that decision has to be carefully balanced but I understand the choice in SW: TOR because there are far fewer classes than races.

Remember, LotRO had unlimited races (only 4 to start with!), but limited classes (you had to buy Runekeeper, or Warden, unless you brought the x-pack).  I think that decision has to be carefully balanced but I understand the choice in SW: TOR because there are far fewer classes than races.

I'm elaborating on this, as I thought of something more...

In LotRO, the RACES you chose detemined the starting area.  So Dwarf/Elf/Human/Hobbit had their own starting areas, it wasn't by class.

In SW: TOR, your CLASS determines your starting planet, so again the choice to limit races, but allow unlimted class choice makes perfect sense.

IMHO, there is nothing wrong with the subscription model.  Wife and I had 9 accounts in SWG for many years (all at 14.99 p/mo), so I have no problem what-so-ever with paying to play something I enjoy.

What I do have a problem with is, paying for a sub-par game.  If I actualy want the "raid gear grind", quest happy lead by a leash down a narrow hallway, PVP gear grind, hotbar bloat (47 specials that only work when this and that happens 1st), in a themepark MMO, I'll go play WoW with it's 8 years of post-launch content.  TOR will NEVER be able to compete with a game, content wise, that's been out for 8 years with all those expansions/content additions.  So, in that model, it's always going to end up as 2nd, at the best it can look foward to.  I don't play WoW as that just isn't the game and gameplay style for me.

SW:TOR = great ideas, done hap-hazardly by the NGE developers that had an idea to make a MMO with WoW content and a Star Wars skin, and copying something that already exists in a much more quantity and quality context.  The part that amazes me is;

They say 40% of their "touted" 1.8 mil that left the game stated they might play F2P so they set off to please that 40%.  What about the other 60% (the larger number anyway)?  Did they leave due to the fact that TOR gameplay just didn't please?  And instead of "fixing" the game to be the more enjoyable experience, they recycle everything BioWare NGE devs can get their grimey-little-meat-grabbers onto to part out and charge for in their "store".  (UI, hotbars, etc) 

What a way to run a "train-wreck".