I am currently loving this MMO. I used to be a hard core WoW player and I'd have fun playing that every day and doing the new content they'd come out with. But, Bioware? You all have definitely outdone yourselves!
Before I begin, I just want to make clear that YES there ARE many bugs and issues that still need to be addressed and fixed, but overall, it's nothing that keeps me from playing. I will tell you what I love with the game, what bugs I've seen and I'm sure others have already voiced and some suggestions I'd love to see. Some of these suggestions are things that would make ME happy at least, but aren't things that must be in the game BEFORE the bugs and issues are fixed.
What I love:
I've played Everquest, Everquest 2, WoW and now this game. And the main things I absolutely love about this game are the little cut scenes in each quest. Usually quests are text only and boring. I barely ever read those before grabbing it and heading off to go collect/kill/retrieve whatever the quest wants me to.
But in TOR every quest is a story in and of itself. I love how I can choose how to answer and the different reactions the quest givers give you. I even enjoy it when your companion gives his/her two cents on some of your choices. The voice over work was brilliant. This really makes me feel like I'm actually my character. Good job.
I also love being able to romance your companion. I know it's not a vital piece in the game, but it's definitely a favorite of mine. I especially love it that you can flirt with NPCs and even bed them off screen. Very nice!
Some bugs I've found:
These are just a few issues/bugs I've run into. I'm not sure if others have addressed these or not, but I figured I'd list them.
The end boss of chapter 1 for the Imperial Agent is really badly bugged. He fights you no problem, but if he stays on his little platform when you engage him, you get 'cannot see target'. I've found I have to send in Vector to engage him and then make my companion come back to me on passive to pull the Boss. It's not a major thing, but mostly annoying. I encounter this on a few regular NPCs you have to kill too.
Next thing, I'm not sure if it's a computer thing or a game thing, but when I'm waiting to load a planet, especially Nar Shadda, it can take anywhere from 2-4 minutes. Other planets are just as long, but Nar Shadda takes the longest I've found.
Companion bugs I've found is sometimes if they get blown back onto their backs, they'll stay laying down even while they're fighting. It's more of a nuisance then a big issue. Also sometimes their health will show they need to be healed, but when you use your healing ability it doesn't show they're being healed.
I know you guys know about the ability thing where it looks like the ability is ready to use, but in actuality it isn't. It's more annoying then something that keeps me from playing, but I do hope you guys are looking into fixing it.
Some suggestions for future patches:
These are just personal suggestions. Some people may agree and some might not. But when you all are finished fixing the important things, these would be great additions to future patches.
Companions---when you begin a relationship with your companion, it'd be great if when you're doing normal quests or even your class story line, that they give some inclination that you two are a couple. I know some people have relationships with their companion, but they don't actually use that companion as their fighting companion. But I think if you, say, have a relationship with Corso, that he acknowledges it in some of the quest dialogue when he's talking to you.
Crew skills---I know people have commented that these feel worthless. Maybe make them more useful? Like at certain levels the items you craft are way better than drops or quest gear.
Traveling---The traveling the way it is now isn't bad, just a lot of loading screens. Maybe cut out a few steps. Not everything, because I do like the reasoning for this, but 6 loading screens to come from or go to your ship is kind of annoying.
Companions---Okay, I do understand, somewhat, why your companions only want to talk to you in a Cantina or on your ship, but most times, I have to run all the way to my ship just for the companion story lines. Some of them make sense, like when you're about to sleep with them, or you're welcoming them onboard, but if it's just a flirt, or they're telling you about their lives, or offering you a quest, I hate having to run to my ship for them to speak to me.
Overall, I think you guys have done pretty well for a game that has only been live for a little over a month. People like to compare TOR to games that have been out for years. Also, 2012 or not, some things won't be the same. I mean, take WoW, since most people constantly compare you all to them. They've had 7 years to work out bugs (some of which are still happening) and it's popular. Maybe you guys have a different route you're going down and it will be nothing like previous MMOs. I find nothing wrong with your UI, nor with your graphics (though I DO wish there were better hair styles for the female characters cause a few of them are ugly) and I'm not here to going 'oh, well the *insert whatever someone has an issue with that has nothing to do with bugs* so I won't subscribe anymore'.
I DO hope that when I hit 50 that PVPing isn't the ONLY thing to look forward to. If I wanted to pvp, I would have rolled on a pvp server. I play PVE and prefer to stay PVE. Occasional battlegrounds/warzones are fine, but I don't want to hit 50 and only do pvp.
Good job, Bioware, and please remember to LISTEN to your playerbase. We're the ones who pay for and play the game. Thanks.