Veterans Impression of SWTOR

I started playing Star Wars: The Old Republic back in December of  2010, and continued for regular periods over a few closed testing phases throughout the following year, leading up to launch. I got in on the second day of Head Start and I have maintained an active subscription (minus a week or two where something came up ) since then. I have two top-tier PvP geared level 50's and several mid level characters. I have played both Imperial and Republic.

When I first started playing, I noticed that a lot of people had already hit 50 within a week or two of launch. This surprised me, as many people were already complaining about the lack of end game content. At that point, they had a legitimate reason to complain, as there weren't a whole lot of raids to choose from and there also weren't a great many 50's either. On the flip side, they also don't have anyone to blame but themselves. Part of this game's shine is the aspect of story. It's much more entertaining than World of WArcraft or any other mainstream MMO out there. It's fluid, interactive and down right fun (like when my smuggler said her callsign would be Crackerjack). When you rush through to hit level 50, because you think "the game starts at fifty", you're missing the game itself. If you ddon't like it, then I think you need to re-examine what you expect from this game.

Combat in SWTOR is different than most MMO's in that is does not have an auto-attack feature. Furthermore the resolve system adds depth to the stun and mez scenario and while you can still be rooted, many classes get advantages (like the Pyro spec'd Merc, who vents heat whenever he's stunned, rooted or mez'd). Combat is fluid, and intuitive, and after a few levels you'll start to wear your class like a glove. In SWTOR, players need to understand their class, as some spec's are cheesed specs while others take a great deal of control, knowledge and experience to play. Most people complain about certain spec's, however many of them have their own advantages. The Advanced Class System is an excellent addition to the game that also gives a choice after your initial class selection.

Player versus Player content in this game is a mixed bag. On the one hand, spontaneous open world fights are rare, but when they do occur (and I mean groups of several geared 50's having at it on illum or Tatooine) the fights are often vicious, quick and all to cruel in leaving the combatants begging for more carnage. Where you can mete out justice on behalf of the Empire or the Repbulic, is the Warzone System. Players queue up for Warzones either solo, in a group or as a part of a Ranked Group, where pre-set teams battle it out for stature on the global warzone stage for prestige and honor. I found that PvP in the game was fluid, balanced (after 1.2 hotfixes, given). Most clasess had their advantages and disadvantages and many people at the top levels of gameplay knew their classes very well. This lead to balanced fights, despite the numerical superiority of the Sith overr the Republic on most servers.

Players earn commendations, and can complete daily quests for tokens and commendations which can be traded in for specialized PvP gear specific to your class. Where things get a little more interesting, is that you can purchase non combat items (like speeders) for commendations as well, and you rank up in Valor (similar to honor in WoW) and gain titles as you break through the ranks for your faction, slaying heaps and gobs of enemyy players.

Raiding in this game, with the expansion to include a couple new raids, is fun and engaging. One of the raids (that came out with the Rakghoul content patch) is challenging and well tuned. Most people in a geared, competent group can complete a raid in SWTOr in under an hour on normal mode and within two or three on hard mode depending on how good the group is. Generally, raiding is the same as most other MMOs and there isn't a whole lot aside from the story that is innovative about it. But the concept itself is fun and engaging, so it's still good to see it included. I myself have downed EV, KP and all of the major world bosses prior to Patch 1.3. Each instance was a blast, and was made more enjoyable from story.

In short, there are still issues with the game, and many people have their own beefs. I'll list some of my own personal pro's and con's here:

Pro's

It's Star Wars!

Fun, engaging storyline on all levels.

Combat and PvP is fast, fluid and fun.

Raids aren't too difficult to complete but are tuned enough to provide a challenge for those looking for it.

Con's

Server populations can sometimes be a drag if you're on a low population server.

A lack of RvR or similar open world PvP mechanic is sorely missing; OW pvp is rare.

Warzones can be a grind at times.

Space is fun as a diversion, but it's often neglected.

Overall Score:  7.5/10