Howdy, Stranger!
It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Quick Links
[Column] Star Wars: The Old Republic: SWTOR 2.1: Color & Collection Chaos
BillMurphy
Former Managing EditorMember LegendaryPosts: 4,565
There's been a good deal of controversy surrounding the launch of Star Wars: The Old Republic's Game Update 2.1: Customization. We break down some of what we're hearing and offer our own take in this week's SWTOR column.
Let’s start with the existing pre-patch controversy (yup!) though. Players have been concerned about the basic idea that the update would be focused almost exclusively on Cartel Market content. With updates coming to the game every six to eight weeks, I honestly wouldn’t fault anyone for being upset that an entire game update was dedicated to features that mostly required players to open up their wallets. Fortunately, BioWare has explained that another Game Update is scheduled for release shortly after the launch of 2.1, and this update will be focused more on content or other systems unrelated to the Cartel Market.
Read more of Michael Bitton's Star Wars: The Old Republic: 2.1: Color & Collection Chaos.
Try to be excellent to everyone you meet. You never know what someone else has seen or endured.
Comments
SWTOR needs to stop trying to see how far they can push their greed. Ever since FTP was released, they have notoriously pushed out Cartell Market items at the highest expense to the player base. After the players literally riot on their forums, EA/Bioware backs off slightly so the customers feel like they won and EA still gets their chunk of change.
SWTOR is and was the worst mmorpg I have ever played. Especially considering "Massively Multiplayer", the game engine could not cope with what free games can (I.E 32 Players on a FPS map. EA stuffed the biscuit on this one and served us a baked potato with our cup of tea. After firing the majority of staff, they are just trying to make as much money possible back before shutting this disgrace down.
With Free Rift coming and if they deliver what Trion say with access to everything. SWTOR will be left there like the dumb monkey, with its banana in hand and a gorp look on its face.
I'm sorry to say that Trion is not delivering access to "everything" as you elude to. They have many of the same restrictions that you'll find here. How do you think they will ever differentiate between their subs and f2p players?
They say they aren't going to curve the exp gain which is awesome, and it's one difference between the two, but they are actually already charging for Storm Legion souls, so that's really no different than charging for a new race in SWTOR. Quoted right from the interview, "The primary restrictions to new users are limited bag slots, wardrobe slots, and role slots - things that are convenience."
So I hate to disappoint, but you're going to be let down if you feel like you're going to be getting a cash shop experience that is wildly different from SWTOR, or any other cash shop for that matter. It's there to make money. Period.
Crazkanuk
----------------
Azarelos - 90 Hunter - Emerald
Durnzig - 90 Paladin - Emerald
Demonicron - 90 Death Knight - Emerald Dream - US
Tankinpain - 90 Monk - Azjol-Nerub - US
Brindell - 90 Warrior - Emerald Dream - US
----------------
That really wasn't the main point of my post. Though I will reply regarding the rift part, I don't play rift currently and I am not sure I will when it goes F2P. From my experience of both games Rift would be the better option since it is entering a similar market position. I am playing GW2 and that is what I will stick to for a couple of months while I figure the game out. I am generally tired of raiding games, if I wanted to play a raiding game I would play WoW first, Rift Second.
Sure, if that's the issue then sold! SWTOR still does something similar in that when you drop $5 you get "Preferred" status which would be similar to Patron status I think. Also, that never goes away. You are still gimped to some degree, though. I wouldn't anticipate anything different from Rift though, and I really hope that they follow through with that Patron idea. If so then I'll be on it.
Crazkanuk
----------------
Azarelos - 90 Hunter - Emerald
Durnzig - 90 Paladin - Emerald
Demonicron - 90 Death Knight - Emerald Dream - US
Tankinpain - 90 Monk - Azjol-Nerub - US
Brindell - 90 Warrior - Emerald Dream - US
----------------
I have to agree with this being overly complicated and does have a hint of either inflexibility or maybe even desperation.. Why only introduce half a dye system... It was like when SoE introduced a housing system i DCUO that was bound to a single character because "it would take to much time to make it work on a account level"
Now i could have killed for a spot as a fly on the wall in these planning meetings... To hear who call the shots and what ideas was shut down.
This have been a good conversation
Ahnog
Hokey religions are no replacement for a good blaster at your side.
Aye lots of issues with the game not running after the patch, or the patch failing. I kept getting the error on patching asset 116 and the most Bioware offered any of us was, delete stuff and keep trying. End up having to install a third party program (swtor unleashed) in order to get the game to patch correctly. I understand bugs in game, but at this point in gaming history a functional patcher (especially for such an established company) should be a given.
and its the 2nd time that this happened
but this time is worst. last time they fix it in 12-16 hours, now is almost 2 days without a fix
I am okay with most of the additions brought in by 2.1.
The ones I'm seriously annoyed by are the "graphics latency" & the stupidly long time it now takes me to log in, 10-30 minutes waiting on the load screen.
Writing in Teal makes your opinion so much more important.
My reply in Red makes my opinion equally important, but slightly different & kinda angry about your opinion... Because if SWTOR is the worst game ever then why doe users rate it at a 7.3? Must just be all the bads that don't know different right?
Calming down... my opinion of your opinion is less aggressive but still makes people read my opinion and treat it even more weight cuz I can use the color button.... Pink is still kinda red but less red so that makes it less aggro... So... I dont see how this game is a disgrace... yes, not all everyone wanted & hyped it up to be... but VERY far from a disgrace, like not even in the same ballpark.
Oh gawd, I mixed my colors. that must make my opinion very important. Yellow is an important color.
More importantly than yellow is my opinion of the game... so I must use GREEN! it contrasts so nicely with this dark gray background, it must be the most important color to use when expressing my opinions that everyone will read my post and take it as law... or at the least bait trolls into flaming me for being obnoxious... yes! that will make my opinion have that much more weight.
Damn! what happened? I my very important opinion was to be green but somehow i got stuck on reverse orange? well I guess I will have to make due... anyway... SWTOR was a bit of a letdown at launch, but with this Customization update I feel SWTOR is where it should have been at launch. I agree with michael, the implementation of dye is really dumb & an obvious attempt at getting even more cash out of everyone.
My OPINION of the game is EA pushed them to release it pre-panda's (like that was going to rule the MMO industry... GC is a tool, a douche-y broken tool) and the game was simply not ready to compete. Which of course bit them in the behind. But, we're talking about EA here, so it should be no real surprise. Unfortunately the consequence ended up being EA's wacky FTP & the cartel market... which is a little too "Double Dippy" for my tastes... but then i just want to pay a sub & get access to all content without the push to SPEND EVEN MORE!
And just because I have a pet peeve about people putting up flame walls in color to draw attention to their opinions I will conclude this with my other pet peeve about comments which is the inappropriate use of "LOL". Like this:
Play the game now before saying something is "Worst mmorpg" LOL!
Patch 2.1.0a was deployed today to fix Windows XP users login issues.
As of dyes, I think people will like them much more when more combinations will be available. Look at all possible combinations. Everybody can look absolutely different with this system. Personally, I think the system has enormous potential.
They just need to hire now a fashion designer or adviser for color combinations...
Sith Warrior - Story of Hate and Love http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxKrlwXt7Ao
Imperial Agent - Rise of Cipher Nine http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBBj3eJWBvU&feature=youtu.be
Imperial Agent - Hunt for the Eagle Part 1http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQqjYYU128E
This is the reason I stopped playing this game. As a developer, they must first ask themselves, "Is this fun?" These systems they are implementing have been done before, and done much better by many, many others. It's not like it's the first time someone thought of these things.
Free to play is too expensive to play this game. They would have to pay me to play this piece of garbage.
This game got off to a bad start and never got going. I feel bad for Star Wars fans that this was foisted on them.
You should be limited to only two colors of text and they should be picked for you. I pick black and white for you. Enjoy.
I don't know why people think SWTOR is the worst MMO. I just got back to playing it again last week, and I'm enjoying myself enough to subscribe again.
Anyways, on the update, I love what they added. Cathar look awesome, and appearance change was a long time missing feature.
However, my only quark with this update is Cathar, and the appearance change are not available free to subscribers. I'm not talking about effort to get them, but there is no other way to get Cathar or change appearance other than wait for the month cartel coins.
This is pushing me anyway from subing more when my time runs out. Subscribers should have all of game oriented features, like appearance change, and races. I don't care if they charge for extravagant mounts or special looking armor, but subers should be getting everything the game has to offer.
Then I could one time purchase what subscription features I actually take advantage of, and the new Cartel Market Only stuff I actually want and save myself the recurring bi-monthly expense.
Subbing is quickly becoming, if not already, less valuable and less advantageous then "coining"
SWTOR business model is an exercise in fan milking. Never i have seen so many people willingly being whales over so mediocre purpose. Ofcourse, things i consider mediocre, like the TOR MMO, other people might consider exceptional. Fantastic. Stunning.
And do I believe that this game had and still has potential? Yes, Hell, yes but it is badly managed. Someday all the whales will go away when they ll realize that they spent their money over digital items (and not real ones where they can be kept), just for the excitement of the moment.
Is it necessary to have those dyes, this thone-mount or this hair to play the game? No. And still EA/Bioware capitalizes on what many MMO players and overly attached IP fans consider very important. Personalization. Fake sense of "Coolness". To stand out of the rest.
To own "cool" items.
That does not make you a better player though it does not hinder you, also. But it does makes you a show-off, standing in the fleet proudly posing with your new item that you mindlessly spent a load of real money on casino packs, betting red or black. Your money, your call, i guess but that does not change you a bit. That does not make you cool. If you where an a-hole before you now will be an a-hole with a throne/black dye armor/funny hair.
Bioware could do much more at least for subscribers, those angry people at their forums feeling devalued and attacked by the Biodrones. They could meet them half way by charging in game money for minor things like hair change to subs and make a better system of acquiring dyes. Some people say like GW2, i do not know but something less greedy is needed. They ll get their money anyway, just show some good faith to your loyal customers.
People say the money Bioware makes will be used for making quality content but that is not proven yet. Makeb was a mediocre addition, an ok DLC at best but not an expansion. No class stories and not enough quests to take you to the level cap. Then they finished Cathar and asked additional CCs from their subs where in most other MMO's races are free to subs. I think that a large portion of their "more than doubled" profit goes to their investors and owners, EA, and that is understandable. What is left is mostly used on designing new CS products and only a tiny portion goes to new content, QA and bug solving dept if that really exists.
And that is sad. This business model sustains the bad name SWTOR, EA and Bioware have around the MMO community and dooms the great potential this game clearly has.
Now I like SWTOR but not the F2 setup. I sub when i want to play TOR. Also spend too much in the cash shop while subbed .lol. Though some of the changes they're making with more account wide stuff available will help that. I always have liked RIFT and its F2P model will allow me to play both games..I believe. My problem is they're too many good options for me...GW2..TSW..Defiance..STO .Aion and Tera are also pretty damn free.. I'm even playing a tutu modded Baldur's gate and looking to play Ultima 7 again. Not to mention all the other games. Damn F2P ,,,Steam and GOG.
I almost miss the times when choices were limited.lol