Sobur Posted November 28, 2012 Share Posted November 28, 2012 Do you ever wonder why so many people complaining that SWTOR is single-player game? Or at least not MMORPG at all? I can tell you why - because of companions! Yeah, that's it! You don't need buddies to level up. You don't need budies to do major part of the game. At all. Companions can do the same. You can have whatever role you want to help you make it through without any contact with other players. Crazy opinion? I don't think any mmo needs you to team up with someone to level sense all are faceroll. I know i would of liked to see more elite mobs instead of just strong ones when leveling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anyakaschala Posted November 28, 2012 Share Posted November 28, 2012 Do you ever wonder why so many people complaining that SWTOR is single-player game? Or at least not MMORPG at all? I can tell you why - because of companions! Yeah, that's it! You don't need buddies to level up. You don't need budies to do major part of the game. At all. Companions can do the same. You can have whatever role you want to help you make it through without any contact with other players. Crazy opinion? TBH, companions or no companions does not matter. The game was made and designed with companions in mind, thus they could get rid of companions, but then they'd have to rebalance the entire game again. Besides, in a way, you are completely wrong. If for example, the basic part of the game were not designed around companions, then a lot of mobs would have to be toned down and made so that any class can do it. Elite level mobs without a healer companion for a non-healer would have to be severely nerfed. The game as it is now, actually lends itself better to being grouped than it would without it. Still, grouping or not grouping, it is up to you. Heck, you can even choose to not play with a companion for some added challenge if you like. What most mmorpg veterans do not miss is the endless lfg aspect of the older mmo's. Having to wait and basically put yourself in a fake queue to find a group to do content because it wasn't soloable. Just hanging out at the entrance to zones waiting to get into a group. Yay, that was so much fun doing nothing for 3 hours waiting to get into a group. And yet, somehow it seems you want to bring that back? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malkavier Posted November 28, 2012 Share Posted November 28, 2012 (edited) I think some of the less intelligent responses in this thread seem to ignore the fact that in KOTOR 1 and 2 we got companions as well. This game is the replacement for KOTOR 3. You got companions, just like in the previous two. Enjoy! Oh, for the people struggling in Heroic 4's solo: Tanks do it rather easily. It was rather funny showing up on Tat the other day with my lowbie Jugg tank and having people ask me how I was doing Heroic 4 Jawa Trade with no issues whatsoever. Had a group of people follow me through that mission and watch. TBH I think DPS classes have it more difficult doing solo 4s than tanks or healers. Edited November 28, 2012 by Malkavier Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CosmicKat Posted November 28, 2012 Share Posted November 28, 2012 What most mmorpg veterans do not miss is the endless lfg aspect of the older mmo's. Having to wait and basically put yourself in a fake queue to find a group to do content because it wasn't soloable. Just hanging out at the entrance to zones waiting to get into a group. Yay, that was so much fun doing nothing for 3 hours waiting to get into a group. And yet, somehow it seems you want to bring that back? Have you been to a fleet? It's usually got upwards of 200 people all sitting around waiting for a group... while flaming the old games that made you sit around and wait for a group. Even in the early days of EQ when it was sadistically hard, you only ever had to wait for a group if you wanted the easy spawn camps. The world size dwarfed anything today and finding your own place to hunt was not hard. If you were not a jerk you generally had a friend's list full of people who were also looking for a group or more for the group they were in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RixoFutu Posted November 28, 2012 Author Share Posted November 28, 2012 Go back to WoW. No, thanks. Never played it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soluss Posted November 28, 2012 Share Posted November 28, 2012 I think that companions are one of the best parts of the game and actually make it worth playing. As a side note to those who solo heroic 4s "at level" please link a video. I've tried it and failed. My characters just don't seem to have the horsepower to take down multiple golds and silvers at one time. I would much like to see how it is done, learn, and find out what I am doing wrong. I have done it. No, you cant do all of them but certain ones you can. Im not going to post a video, simply because I dont make videos and Im not about to start to proove something. Im not gloating about it nor do I gloat about anything I do. Im just saying that it can be done. You need good gear for your level as you arent going to do it with any old chicken scraps you picked up from questing 10 levels ago. Getting this gear can be accomplished by any solo player that puts the work in and is smart with what stats he needs. You also need to do so for your companions. Last, but not least, you need to have some skill. You really need to know how to play your class and use your companions effectively. Even with all of the above, you will probably die alot. Eventually though, you will have finished it, if you dont get so frustrated with dying. Mistakes happen to all players, no matter how good they are. Bad random numbers happen to all players no matter how good they are. Some things require a perfect storm. Too many people get upset with dying and give up. I dont understand it because dying means nothing in games anymore. Small credit bill, no big deal. Oh, almost forgot. You need to know what companion to use in each situation. You have multiple companions for a reason and its not just for crafting. Certain companions are better in certain fights. So experiment and play around. Sometimes a healer is better and sometimes DPS is better. Sometimes a tank is better. Sometimes ranged and sometimes melee. Depends what class you are too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sinosleep Posted November 28, 2012 Share Posted November 28, 2012 Companions are great, that is all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bahdasz Posted November 28, 2012 Share Posted November 28, 2012 Umm... it wouldn't be an "old republic" game without companions... they're kind of the hook of the series. TBH, we should be able to roll with 2 of them, just like in the KOTOR games. I suggest if someone doesn't like companions they have two options... don't use them or quit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RazielHex Posted November 28, 2012 Share Posted November 28, 2012 Do you ever wonder why so many people complaining that SWTOR is single-player game? Or at least not MMORPG at all? Because they're idiots. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAVM Posted November 28, 2012 Share Posted November 28, 2012 Companions aren't there to make the game easier. The difficulty, and the lack of a need to group on most content, would not change without companions because they would have balanced the game differently. I was going to type something but this sums it up perfectly. I'll also add that I might not have played this game at all without companions. I like having AI squadmates in combat. I wish they made it so that you could have two out at a time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guancyto Posted November 28, 2012 Share Posted November 28, 2012 (edited) Companions aren't there to make the game easier. The difficulty, and the lack of a need to group on most content, would not change without companions because they would have balanced the game differently. Pretty much. The game assumes you have a companion and has been tuned from the ground up around that assumption. Overall I like them because they balance out your own decisions in class/spec. It's entirely viable to level as a tank or a healer because of them, unlike the way it was in That Other Game (which has come around to the idea somewhat). Not to mention they're fun to have along; if I had to lament anything about them, it's that I don't get to hear their sass as often after I've bought a speeder. They're easily one of the best decisions Bioware made in designing this game. Easily. Edited November 28, 2012 by Guancyto Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clevelandboy Posted November 28, 2012 Share Posted November 28, 2012 Do you ever wonder why so many people complaining that SWTOR is single-player game? Or at least not MMORPG at all? I can tell you why - because of companions! Yeah, that's it! You don't need buddies to level up. You don't need budies to do major part of the game. At all. Companions can do the same. You can have whatever role you want to help you make it through without any contact with other players. Crazy opinion? You do know GW was like this as well, but in GW you could make a full party of NPC's. But yet people dont call it a single player game. Get over it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grecanis Posted November 28, 2012 Share Posted November 28, 2012 I've never played an mmo that I couldn't level solo. That's the way they're set up, so any player can make it from 1 to endgame solo. (with or without a pet) Now if you want to enjoy the extra's and collect the best gear ...that's another question It just so happens this game was written for a companion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarthOvertone Posted November 28, 2012 Share Posted November 28, 2012 Personally, I think that the Companion system in this game was a huge Win for BW and something they did exceptionally well. More of this in the future please, not less. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lunafox Posted November 29, 2012 Share Posted November 29, 2012 I prefer my digital companions to most people thanks. Take away the companions and you turn this into a generic piece of crap with nothing interesting going for it at all. It's already borderline. Companions are the only thing making it worthwhile. What a shame Bioware doesn't wake up, and give us more companion dialogues and stories to do. More companion stuff, less FP, Ops, and boring crap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soluss Posted November 29, 2012 Share Posted November 29, 2012 You do know GW was like this as well, but in GW you could make a full party of NPC's. But yet people dont call it a single player game. Get over it Alot of people wouldnt call GW1 a real MMO either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ephesia Posted November 29, 2012 Share Posted November 29, 2012 I see companions as one of the features that makes this game unique over others and I disagree entirely on the idea that this is "doom of the game". The argument is purely ridiculous in my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GalacticKegger Posted November 29, 2012 Share Posted November 29, 2012 (edited) Do you ever wonder why so many people complaining that SWTOR is single-player game? Or at least not MMORPG at all? I can tell you why - because of companions! Yeah, that's it! You don't need buddies to level up. You don't need budies to do major part of the game. At all. Companions can do the same. You can have whatever role you want to help you make it through without any contact with other players. Crazy opinion?Crazy? Perhaps. Inaccurate? Absolutely. Single player means single player - exclusively and without option. Tired of soloing? Park your companion (or better yet send them out on crafting missions) and group up. Tired of grouping up? Whip out your companiion and go soloing. Want both? Group with another player, both of you whip out your companions and explore all of the game's advanced content save operations - including heroics, flashpoints and HMs. TOR has as much megamultiplayer, multiplayer, or single player as a gamer can ask for. TOR's companions enable more gameplay options than any other MMO. I wouldn't be surprised if others copied BW's model before long. Edited November 29, 2012 by GalacticKegger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bahdasz Posted November 29, 2012 Share Posted November 29, 2012 I prefer my digital companions to most people thanks. Take away the companions and you turn this into a generic piece of crap with nothing interesting going for it at all. It's already borderline. Companions are the only thing making it worthwhile. ^ This, tbqfh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andryah Posted November 29, 2012 Share Posted November 29, 2012 Crazy? Perhaps. Inaccurate? Absolutely. Single player means single player - exclusively and without option. Tired of soloing? Park your companion (or better yet send them out on crafting missions) and group up. Tired of grouping up? Whip out your companiion and go soloing. Want both? Group with another player, both of you whip out your companions and explore all of the game's advanced content save operations - including heroics, flashpoints and HMs. TOR has as much megamultiplayer, multiplayer, or single player as a gamer can ask for. TOR's companions enable more gameplay options than any other MMO. I wouldn't be surprised if others copied BW's model before long. I endorse what GK shared here. On a more practical notion... companions are more reliable and intelligent in combat then some players you meet/group with at random opportunities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CosmicKat Posted November 29, 2012 Share Posted November 29, 2012 Crazy? Perhaps. Inaccurate? Absolutely. Single player means single player - exclusively and without option. Tired of soloing? Park your companion (or better yet send them out on crafting missions) and group up. Tired of grouping up? Whip out your companiion and go soloing. Want both? Group with another player, both of you whip out your companions and explore all of the game's advanced content save operations - including heroics, flashpoints and HMs. TOR has as much megamultiplayer, multiplayer, or single player as a gamer can ask for. TOR's companions enable more gameplay options than any other MMO. I wouldn't be surprised if others copied BW's model before long. Companion characters have been around for decades, at least as far back as the original Fallout, which had voiced autonomous companions that were part of the plot. It's hardly a new concept or a BW innovation. It's implemented far more successfully in BW stand-alone solo games and has been forever. BW has made some great products over the years. This one is not the one people will be looking to for inspiration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doctor_atomic Posted November 29, 2012 Share Posted November 29, 2012 *Watches the herd of majestic dramallamas thunder across the plains and off the cliff to crash into the rocks below* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Addaib Posted November 29, 2012 Share Posted November 29, 2012 (edited) Do you ever wonder why so many people complaining that SWTOR is single-player game? Or at least not MMORPG at all? I can tell you why - because of companions! Yeah, that's it! You don't need buddies to level up. You don't need budies to do major part of the game. At all. Companions can do the same. You can have whatever role you want to help you make it through without any contact with other players. Crazy opinion? I don't buy that. A good game should help facilitate both types of play (solo and group) so people can play the game the way they want to. Dark Age of Camelot was the first to espouse that philosophy and other games followed. Guild Wars is a game that generally is good for grouping and also made with companion pets that help you with solo play. The problem isn't with that its other things like the need / greed system (being in a group can mean getting less treasure than solo), the personal questing system and story arch (If you care about plot etc. being in a group means facing peer pressure to fast forward that content which for many folks is the best part of the game!). And I could add other things, unlike City of Heroes (A game I played where I grouped a lot) this game isn't engineered quite as well. (There were lots of handy things about that game like teleport powers etc. that made grouping easy). Edited November 29, 2012 by Addaib clarity Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andryah Posted November 29, 2012 Share Posted November 29, 2012 Dark Age of Camelot was the first to espouse that philosophy and other games followed. Until the great "dumb down" in the WoW post launch years... DAoC was NOT solo friendly at all. You either grouped, duoed with a buffbot, or stabbed your eyes out with ice picks. Anyone that has forgotten this... there is a classic free server you can go play on and remind yourself about the ice picks to the eyes. Seprately, people expousing that companions have been around in MMOs for a long time... NO... not really. Pets, and minions, yes for one or two classes per faction.... but this is the first MMO to design the core of the game play around you and your companion, regardless of class or faction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vlacke Posted November 29, 2012 Share Posted November 29, 2012 Companion system is actually fantastic, they should work on ways to improve it and add more content regarding story. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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