Bioware, THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

[lorefultv]

Star Wars: The Old Republic Team,

 

First let me say that you have done the impossible. You have made a Tolkien fanatic fall in love with the Star Wars universe. As many, my introduction to Star Wars came with a Episode IV in 1979. I was 8 years old. Unfortunately, growing up in a household where Tolkien was held aloft as "more prolific than Shakespeare and the greatest writer of the 20th century", I out grew Star Wars fairly quickly. And haven't given it much thought or credit since.

 

I resisted the temptation to join the beta. As a cautious consumer, I wanted to hear the reviews first. And additionally, I have been in many betas before and wanted to experience this game with a fresh perspective in Early Access. (BTW, thanks to all of you who did beta test). I've been a Bioware fan since Neverwinter Nights and had determined that, despite the IP, I was going to try SWTOR out.

 

My first moment in your universe was last evening. I played for seven hours, couldn't sleep and played for three more hours. Wow! Absolutely amazing! Not only have you made me fall in love with Star Wars but I believe you have begun a massive revolution in the MMO industry. I haven't felt this way about an MMO since my first. In fact, I don't think I will ever look at MMO's the same way again. You completely just blew my mind. Thank you for your hard work and for having the courage and insight to innovate where appropriate while staying true to the mechanics of MMOs. This is what will make this MMO playable for years to come. Please congratulate your teams on the best launch in MMO history. I've provided some detailed feedback below.

 

Graphics

I love the approach. I feel like I am playing in an artist's pre-visualization. I wasn't sure it would work looking at screenshots but it's pretty damn amazing to experience it. Looking forward to anti-aliasing in the future. Your world environment team has shined like no other team in the business. The natural subtleties of land erosion and organic patterns and hues of foliage truly hold this game together visually. When you stare down at your character for hours, this makes all the difference in the world.

 

Storytelling

As a creative director in the marketing industry, I've directed a number of story telling experiences from commercials to digital campaigns. I know that story is key in everything we do. As you know, this is the biggest innovation you have done with SWTOR. When I logged out of my account last night, I felt as if I had grown very close to my character and my companion. I actually almost choked up a couple of times. Please keep investing in this area as it is completely worth it.

 

Crew Skills Crafting

Although, I haven't logged many hours in crafting, I have researched it heavily. I believe wholeheartedly that your approach here is a true innovation. It is absolutely brilliant. As a big crafter I hope to provide more feedback down the line. Please don't forget us, the mad crafters of the world!

 

Typography

Thank you, thank you, thank you. Type is something I care deeply about. And I always hate the usage of type in MMOs. This is the first MMO and indeed your first game that I can expressly say that I love the minimal and on-brand type usage. It is anti-aliased where appropriate, kerning and leading seems good in most cases. Very pleased!

 

UI

While I would like the ability to move a couple of things around, your UI set up is incredibly close to how I like to organize my UI. It shows that you put some thought into the UX. Graphically, going with the opacity, blue effect is a wise choice. The subtle layered curves and inner glows define borders enough without feeling over the top. Would like some scalability to drop down the size but I believe it is an excellent start.

 

Staggered Launch

I really tried to hold back my opinions about the launch. I realize there are a lot of factors we are unaware of. I will say that I had one of the smoothest entrances to an MMO. I only found one quest that was impossible to finish because of loot ninjas. It was a bonus quest, so I just moved on. Clearly, you made a wise decision for staggering launch and I believe it was over all successful. It was the right thing to do. And, as a consumer, I appreciate you finding an alternative plan. However, I believe you missed an opportunity to more effectively communicate when people would receive access. Leaving customers in the dark is never a good thing as was evidenced by the mass community back lash. While I understand the rationale for not communicating, it may have been wise to find a more diplomatic way of handling it.

 

Once again, please congratulate all of your teams on some amazing work. I look forward spending many wonderful years in a galaxy far, far away!

 

PS: If you ever manage to steal the Middle-earth Enterprises Licensing/IP from WB/Turbine and produce a revolutionary LOTR MMO, I'd be more than happy name my firstborn "Bioware". K. THX.

[Revelationjp]

Well said. Unlike you, I've been a lifelong Star Wars fan, and I have to say that I still agree with what you've said here 100%.