The second installment in Bioware's series of video documentaries for its upcoming MMO, Star Wars: The Old Republic, reveals how the developer is planning on viciously and irrevocably hooking subscribers. Instead of tapping into whatever mystical, stat-driven formula World of Warcraft has divined, Bioware is focusing on getting players to become invested in the overarching stories of their characters, hoping that players will create "their own personal Star Wars saga."
The documentary gives a brief example of how this will work -- each class will apparently have their own hundreds-of-hours-long storyline to pursue, aided by cinematic pseudo-cutscenes and major, story-altering decisions the player will be forced to make. Check out the video after the break!
There's something off about the art to me... like it's trying for a cartoony look but doesn't quite work. Maybe I'll get used to it. I've gotten pretty used to the art style of Clone Wars..
I really hope they decide to bust this out on the 360. I could totally see them be greedy bastards and keep it solely on the PC just so that they can charge everyone a monthly fee. I really can't wait for an MMO that's either extremely cheap or free, because I sure as hell can't afford over a hundred dollars a year for a game I probably won't be able to play all that often, what with like LIFE and all.
What I'm curious about is how it's supposed to impliment multiplayer elements. In all the press they've gone on about the individual class/character's experience but they've never addressed how this would work out in the context of a guild or party working together. You will have your companion character npcs, you will have your solo story. So far it sounds like a regular single player game with multiplayer elements and a subscription model tacked on. NOW I'm not saying that's what it IS going to be but that's what it SEEMS. I'd like to see how they plan on implimenting this stuff because it sounds very exciting and full of potential. But that's also what people said about Conan which had a similar goal and look how that turned out.
God I can't wait. I think BioWare has the product, and the experience to hopefully put out a whole new type of MMO. Since I am a game story whore, this could very well be my undoing. Especially since I am a major Star Wars fan too, this is like a combination of the ages for me! I really hope they pull it off. I have my faith in BioWare though.
I love the single-player aspect that they seem to be doing, and I will probably play all those hours of story. Though as a whole as an MMO, I am a little concerned how that is all going to tie into an MMO world.
