Star Wars The Old Republic Roll Call

[Solmyr]

Both the agent and the smuggler had fun storylines.

Trouble is I hated that cover mechanic!

I have to admit feeling an itch to get back into this game, likely just because Ep7 is coming up.

I played an Operative (melee rogue/healer type), so didn't have to bother with cover at all.

[celedhring]

Started playing the new content tonight. So far, I'm loving it.

[crazy canuck]

I am reinstalling the game now 

[celedhring]

I am reinstalling the game now 

Use my referral link!  http://www.swtor.com/r/T8tlVD *wink* *wink* *nudge* *nudge*

It supposedly gives you 7 days of free sub, although I suppose it won't qualify you to access the new content unless you do a proper sub.

[celedhring]

The new content is pretty much a reboot. They fast forward 5 years and the entire landscape of the galaxy is changed. It's still centered about a few familiar faces in TOR, and now you can also recruit some companions from other classes, so it helps if you have played through the original storylines.

I have only played 3 of the 9 chapters (they say the 9 chapters amount to about 10 hours of story gameplay), and so far it's a much more cinematic and story-centered experience. Production values are superior to those of regular TOR too. Voice acting is top notch, better models and textures (actually they should update player character models since they look bad next to the new NPCs), better cutscenes, much more immersive... my only complain is that so far the new content is on rails, but I'm told it opens up later.

Also, unlike the prior content, there's only one storyline for all classes and factions, which I guess is the price to pay for the high polish and the aggressive release schedule.

Their plan is to release a new chapter every month of the new storyline. Given that with the new streamlined leveling I can play with alts to see their storylines without boring grinds, while I wait for new content releases, I can see myself lasting a good while in the game.

[crazy canuck]

What are the advantages of paying the subscription for a returning player?

[celedhring]

What are the advantages of paying the subscription for a returning player?

If you suscribe, you unlock every expansion until that date. Great thing is, that you keep access even if you cancel your subscription later.

Besides that, nothing too substantial I'd say unless you want to go hardcore on the game. As a returning former suscriber you already have the reduced CDs on the teleport items which is the biggest quality of life improvement,  imho.

I'd suscribe for just a month to get all the expansions if you enjoy the current state of the game, it's a great deal.

[crazy canuck]

Thanks for the tip.  I will do that - and use your referral link

It would actually be completely bona fide in this case.  Without you posting in this thread I would not have even considered coming back. 

[Barrister]

I am reinstalling the game now 

Use my referral link!  http://www.swtor.com/r/T8tlVD *wink* *wink* *nudge* *nudge*

It supposedly gives you 7 days of free sub, although I suppose it won't qualify you to access the new content unless you do a proper sub.

Done. 

Trying to decide if I should re-roll, or try to get back into one of my existing toons...

[Solmyr]

People can use my referral link too if they want: http://www.swtor.com/r/J3Lc2S

[Barrister]

Re-installed.  Damn that was a big download.

And I've played SWTOR as recently as 6-9 months ago.  Then they had definitely upped the levelling rate.  But with the most recent expansion it's insane!  It is designed so that you will ONLY do your class quests.  It's almost aggravating to my completionist tendencies, but if I can get over that maybe I'll be able to see the end of a class quest or two.

When I've been gone a long time I tend to start a new toon, so I rolled up a trooper on The Harbinger. 

[celedhring]

With the new level-sync system if you're a completionist you can still do every quest. The mission rewards are now scaled to your level and every planet has a virtual level cap - you're downleveled to it whenever you adventure on that planet.

I'm happy that I can level toons with just class quests, since I can then focus on just the story.

[Solmyr]

Yeah, that and the removal of companion gear were probably the best things about this expansion. Makes leveling so much less of a grind since you can skip random fetch/kill quests. And let's face it, once you've collected twenty droid asses on one character, you don't need to do it again on ten others.

[celedhring]

Finished the released chapters of the new story this weekend. Top notch writing and animations/voicing. I really can't wait for the next releases and I'm genuinely intrigued with where they are taking this. On that regard, Bioware has earned my money.

At the end of the last chapter the story opens up (until then it's pretty much on rails), and you get the familiar Bioware game trope: "get allies and supplies to fight the big bad". You get loads of missions to recruit new allies to the cause, and those allies end up in a significantly expanded companion stable. Some of those missions are done in 5 minutes, some are quite grindy. I guess this is the "give players something to do while they wait for content releases".

A major "but" is the fact that Bioware have skimped on voiceover money for this part. Your character isn't voiced during those companion missions, only the NPCs. It feels quite jarring, although they have dressed it up as a "return to Kotor style dialogue" (doing away with the dialogue wheel and giving you the full text of the answers). They claim this will allow them for quicker releases of this kind of content (they can create a new mission and just hire the guy doing the NPC voice, instead of the 16 actors doing the different PC voices), but it's still meh.

[Syt]

I've gone back to my Sith Juggernaut (my original char and the only one whose class story I finished), Darth Vultris. I finally made it through Ilum and the two adjoining flashpoints (culminating in The False Emperor). That was fun.

I really enjoyed the Sith Warrior story - I played as a ruthless Sith, but one who puts the needs of the Empire and loyalty to the Emperor first which worked very well in the context. I especially liked that the last chapter becomes personal (instead of having to save the galaxy/Empire) and the end was very satisfying. And the Ilum quests seemed like a natural continuation (after all, you're the Emperor's Wrath at that point).