Hengist

UI and Miscellaneous:

The User Interface has to be one of the most important functions for a MMO, simply because it is your gateway to the entire game, and if it doesn’t work for you, the MMO can’t deliver. In a lot of ways I think Bioware has missed the mark with its UI. It is functional, simple and clean, but what kills it for so many people is the inability to do much to customize it.

We are in a day and age where addons and mod’s are a staple of many other MMO’s, and people appreciate the ability to find a UI that is made to their taste. No longer is it an option, but it becomes a benchmark. Eventually we’ll see Bioware allow addons, but until we do, I expect to see loud howling about the current interface. While I don’t mind it, and think it is “okay”, I think the outcry is entirely justified over the UI.

One of the other aspects I’d like to see more depth, is the Guild System. It is barebones, and functional, but little more than that. When I get down to it though, it’s just about what I’d expect from any other MMO, and what most other MMO’s offer, with the exception of not having a guild bank.

The Galactic Trade Network is another item that needs more polish in my mind. We’ve gone on and off with being able to sort for something by name, but the search function of the trade network is about as bare bones and confusing as things can get.

I also look forward to seeing space ship interior customization possible. We’ve finally got a chair we can sit in, but I’d like to hang trophies, add seats, or change rooms around in my ship to get just the look that I’d like.

Character creation could also use some more options. Personally I am able to create characters I like and find appealing, but I also think many, if not most current generation MMO's offer far more customization during this process allowing people to create something unique.

I also have some concerns about the long term health of faction balance. Most poll's show that PvE servers are populated by Republic players who are utterly afraid to delve into PvP, while PvP servers are heavily favored by Sith players. Even during beta, Huttball pops more often (since it is not faction specific) for me than other Warzones demonstrating yet again that most Republic players arent here for the PvP. Other games have had this issue as well, but it is a solid argument for the current "bracketless" Warzone system so people get to play other Warzones than just Huttball.


Conclusions, opinions, and impressions:

The Old Republic is a pretty damn good themepark experience. I’ve been lucky enough to play the past few weekends with people who have been burnt out on the genre, and hearing them interested and excited made me feel that my impressions were actually fairly common. I’ve heard good and bad, but it has been overwhelmingly in favor of the good, and of The Old Republic being a fairly big hit.

2011 is far different than 2004, and the market is jaded, experienced and more burnt out, but it is a much bigger marketplace than WoW released in, so perhaps that is to be expected. People have more choices today than ever before, so people feel that they have to compromise less. I realize that TOR wont appeal to everyone, I think people who prefer sandbox style games will find it lacking, as will die hard role-players who don’t have enough ability to interact or socialize within the game. (Yes, social hubs need more reason for people to visit them; I think space stations will ultimately kill the potential of Capital cities to become social hubs.)

I think The Old Republic is a linear (and linear isn’t a bad word) directed experience within a complete MMO experience, which is a somewhat new experience, and I think some people are unable to draw the distinction. Then again, some people are idiots too, if you take my meaning.

I think The Old Republic is on its way to being a critical and commercial success, even if it never rises to the heights of World of Warcraft. Gordon Walton, former Co-Studio Director of Bioware Austin once famously said “let ‘em quit” when talking about building an MMO in a post World of Warcraft environment. His point was that some games feel friendly to leave and come back, and I hope that The Old Republic hits that mark. If people drop in and out (and that implies they come back and have reason to come back) we’re in for something special. To me, The Old Republic feels like the ne plus ultra of the current generation of MMO’s, taking the absolute best of previous games and making it distinctly their own.

When I look back at everything that I've written, I feel like I've had to nitpick to find things I did not like or needed to improve. Sure, I'm a fan of the game, but I'm not foolish enough to suggest that any game out there is perfect. The experience that I'm getting from the game is actually more than I could have hoped for, simply because so many friends are returning to the genre and have been impressed enough to jump in for launch. The experience is incredibly polished at lower levels, and as a whole is extremely enjoyable. My priorities in a game might be different than most of the rest of MMO gamers out there, but I'm simply looking to have some fun.

Other than the PvP aspects I mentioned, all the other imperfections are things I can tolerate, or dont even notice unless I stop to think. They arent items that take away enough from my immersion to matter. Maybe that isnt the case for other people, and maybe not having a day/night cycle really does make a game unplayable to 'em. Me? I'd much rather accept it for what it is, and realize that Bioware is offering up an awful lot that can appeal to people, but probably isnt everything for everyone. I'm pretty darn happy with we've got!

Apologies for running into character issues and extending this short section. Part 4 will involve classes.