Character Creation Feedback Thread

[xordevoreaux]

• Issue: Sometimes the avatar is actually holding a weapon, sometimes they are not.
  
• General Feedback: It would be nice if we could preview Abilities and Stats for each Origin and Style. Show the Damage, Survivability, and Ability trees to give a better sense of what they are getting into before completing their character.
  

Not that I PvP that much myself. but maybe also the purpose, especially for those new to the game hoping to go PvP and wanting the burstiest bursty-burst of the bunch, but I suppose that's buried in the abilities more so than just the general class.

Edited December 9, 2021 by xordevoreaux

[JediJabroni]

Not sure if this goes here, but it's part of new character experience...

 

The character sheet is WAY too big. And the chat window covers it, so you have to drag it around to use it. On one hand I appreciate it being easier to read. It's much cleaner and the font size is much nicer. But there's just way too much empty space that causes it to fill my entire screen. It could be slimmed down a lot and still have all the elements.

 

There is no clear indication to a new player what it means to swap a combat proficiency. I assume that gets locked at some point? I only discovered the new power by accident by messing around trying to look at stuff. I didn't even think it would matter at level 1, but it gives you a new ability that you didn't get by default.

 

Likewise I have no idea what a "Loadout" is or what to do with that tab on the character sheet. I'm not looking for someone to explain that to me... it looks like the kind of thing I should be able to understand up front, except I cannot find it in the tutorials.

[BallisticKaine]

With PTS now live, you can help test Character Creation!

 

Please answer the following questions:

 

• Are you experiencing any difficulties or issues with Character Creation?
  
• How is the flow of using this feature?
  
• Please provide any other general feedback you have in detail.
  

Please note your feedback accordingly so we can track it. Feel free to answer in as much detail as possible to help us understand your thought process and line of thinking.

 

Thank you!

 

The zoom in/out and rotate buttons sit on the skin color bar and make it unable to be used or it moves after using it. Still wish that all human's across all classes had access to all the tattoo options available. Some of the new complexions for males that have stubble can be used on females. Remove cyborg as a races, since no one is born a cyborg, and add it as a customization to species like Human, Chiss, Rattataki, Mirialan, and Miraluka.

[DarthZeroe]

One thing I noticed is when you're previewing the Shadow//Sentinel classes, the way the characters are posed make their lightsabers overlap with the text description of the class on the right, which obscures part of the text. Pretty hard to ignore while you're reading it. Edited December 10, 2021 by DarthZeroe

[Sarova]

Overall the interface seems okay, but I can't say I like it as is. A few issues:

 

• The zoom needs to be adjusted for close-ups of the characters face. Eye colour is difficult to see as it is. I'm sure the live game interface zooms closer than this.
   
  
• Change the default outfits! The Warrior one is the worst as you can't see the hairstyle detail well enough to make a decision. Example.
   
  
• Stubble on female characters? Is this deliberate? Too many to scroll through before I got to the plain options (my favourite ones are on the right side of the selection bar, so I usually slide to that end and work back). However for male or neutral looking characters the new stubble options are good.
   
  
• My warrior is Vengeance by default. Is this how it will be? Will we be able to change this at level 23? I couldn't see any way to alter this after logging in.
   
  
• When creating a cyborg species/race, the icon for turning the character overlaps the skin colour selector so you can only choose lighter skins colours (very annoying). Same with Sith Pure Blood species/race.
   
  
• The lighting for the whole interface seems on the dark side.
   
  
• New hairstyles/horns, eye colours and tattoos for Zabrak would have been nice. Humans really shouldn't be the most customisable, yet here we still are.

 

I will say I'm not sure experienced subscribers are the right people to test this**; it's clearly geared for new to swtor players who are not used to anything or any spec being assigned to a specific class. I'm a ridiculous altoholic and have multiple characters of everyone of the current specs/classes; I couldn't see the point of being able to start a new character with a completely different spec (now called styles) to what I'm used to. It felt wrong making a Warrior that could start off with an a Sorcerer spec/style. I'd have much preferred the option to select additional abilities (such as the Warriors force choke for a traditional Sorcerer or the Assassin's stealth ability for a Marauder) or the ability to equip a dual saber on a Juggernaut. After the very first Livestream back in the summer, this is what I (and many others) thought we were going to get. Shame we're not.

 

EDIT: **I take some of that back! I remembered I could stealth spec a Trooper from creation (Trooper Scoundrel - as mentioned in the Commando thread) and now have a reason to make at least another 20 more alts who start with alternate styles. It might not be as good as us choosing to add on certain skills or abilities however it's still excellent. Thinking about it, do I really want to change my current dozens of characters' primary skill? Not sure I do on most of them. After my evening of testing, I think I'd rather just create more alts. Anyhoo - character slot sale please!

Edited December 10, 2021 by Sarova

[casirabit]

With PTS now live, you can help test Character Creation!

 

Please answer the following questions:

 

• Are you experiencing any difficulties or issues with Character Creation?
  
• How is the flow of using this feature?
  
• Please provide any other general feedback you have in detail.
  

Please note your feedback accordingly so we can track it. Feel free to answer in as much detail as possible to help us understand your thought process and line of thinking.

 

Thank you!

 

Not really a complaint Jackie, but I miss the hairstyles I have on live.

[BenKatarn]

I find that the character creator now has a whole lot of negative space due to the stark black background. After 10 years of playing this game, I'm used to having something in the background that makes everything look more immersed, for the lack of a better word. This is just blackness with a bit of blue or red fog around the interface. I really hope something else gets added in there. Same can also be said to the very first page of the character creator, when you have to choose your faction. Sure, the previous iterations also didn't have nothing much going there except for a field of stars and a hologram of one of the faction's major characters when hovered over (at least the one for KOTET and Onslaught had some sort of space battle going on there).

 

As others have mentioned, rotating and zooming is kind of difficult. In particular I think the camera should once again zoom relatively close to the character's face so you can get a good look at them during creation, on PTS it's too far away, even if you zoom in as far as the current build will let you.

 

Likewise, the lighting in the character creator has been bad for years. I still miss the one from launch (before advanced lighting or whatever was implemented) when you had a very natural light source that illuminated the character the way they are supposed to look, not like how today there is more "cinematic" lighting that makes certain colors difficult to gauge (looking at you in particular, Imperial side).

[validatio]

From what I've seen, the new Character Creator looks great, even though it does have a few design and button placement issues. But those have already been mentioned by other posters so I'm going to address something else when it comes to character customization.

 

Bioware, I think it's about time you opened up class tattoos and face paints, specifically the ones that are only available to humans, to other races. It would open up more ways for players to make character more unique. For example, I've always wanted to rock Sith Warrior tattoos on my Chiss Juggernaut. The contrast between blue and red would look amazing imo. It should be noted that there would be a lot of weird combinations as well, so only the ones that look good and make sense should be added.

 

However, these shouldn't be opened up to every race, just the ones that don't have access to tattoos. Races like the Rattataki, Mirialan, and Zabrak, already have unique tattoos available to them. Instead, these races should get new tattoos that make sense for them to have.

 

Also, I am asking you to please consider making eyebrows a separate customization choice. There are so many complexion's that I'd love to use for my characters but the eyebrows that come with them have a tendency of making my characters look weird or funny. As of right now I only have five or six complexions that I use for my characters out of the dozens that are available. By separating eyebrows from complexions you'll open up more customization options for players.

Edited December 9, 2021 by validatio
Spelling, grammar, and clarification.

[DarthCasus]

Positives:

 

Sleekness of the new modern introduction (though I'll always enjoy the original, it added in-game ambiance) is great. Really, even the little fizzling when clicking a faction is a nice touch. Kudos on that, I feel it was done better than the live screen.

 

Modern menu look, though I didn't think the previous looked out of place. This one has only adopted a specific color dynamic and UI elements, but a new take on it would have been awesome (like use of more rounded boxes). There are a lot of squares here lol

 

New hairstyles look GREAT. As a Black long time Star Wars fan, this is incredibly refreshing to see. They were well done but the Braids could use some thinner hair such as what comes with the new gruff complexions that have stubble.

 

The new advanced class icons are great! Only personal issue is the lack of coloring that gives that extra character imo, but if that were to be added, please do not go with the colors that are meant to be the new in-game class symbols. Those colors look awful imo.

 

Negatives:

 

Why are the newer complexions so awesome, yet ruined with the face dirt? Could the ones with dirt be separate from a dirt free version, please? Why no separation of eyebrows from other tones still?

 

Imperial side selection has weird lighting. Legit as bad as Dragon Age Inquisition's. Maybe a dark environment isn't best for character creation? Especially when its seemingly Force-related yet we can play non-Force classes. This sort of feels like everyone should suffer because LS and DS are the main characters. I miss the bustle of ships in the background while creating Smuggs and Hunters already.

 

Not a fan of the weapon unsheathed animations being a constant thing rather than a controllable action. And while the talking upon clicking on live can get grating, I prefer that to this silence.

 

Character models look pretty rough during the Origin selection. Maybe that could be at a more flattering angle? I don't know.

 

Name entry box at the top right with the 'Play' button being so far to the low right and small? Both at the bottom right, enlarged, and perhaps maybe a namecheck validation would be (a bit) too much to ask for? Doesn't hurt to ask

 

Some eye colors are hard to see differences from so far. Also, could Cartel Market unlocks be turned on in the PTS to test this with them?

 

Could we get an option to remove clothing? I find that Sith have a particularly hard time making their case with the enormous, unnecessary shoulder pads and collar. Just a button that brings it back to the bare essentials.

 

I am guessing that some races long forgotten are still not receiving any of the new customizations as well?

 

Issues?

 

I noticed that it is possible to arrow-key through the selections. I only noticed because the Skin color slider on Humans is blocked by the camera buttons. Is there meant to be no highlight on the selections here too? Like a misty red or blue on the selected bar? Because otherwise, there's no way to tell what option one is on until they play with the options.

 

Thumbing through the selections is sluggish. I expect that this is only because its a WIP, but I hope this doesn't remain in the eventual release. Rotation is also woefully slow.

[Exly]

I originally liked the idea of separating story from play style, and was looking forward to it. Then you said that I wouldn't be able to select a different play style for an existing character, and I was bummed, but was more upset that we weren't told the truth in the first place.

 

Now that I have created a couple of characters on the pts, I am really upset that I will have to reroll characters to get this feature that will be available to new players and newly created characters.

 

It's like you are punishing existing players with by withholding a really cool feature from us, and that sucks big time.

[Kurvah]

This is talking about the screen where we choose class and combat style. When the Consular-Shadow animation is showing, the light saber washes out the text of the description.

[TrixxieTriss]

Not really a complaint Jackie, but I miss the hairstyles I have on live.

 

Wait, does that mean they’ve removed some hairstyles in 7.0 to add different new ones or that they removed them only for the PTS?

[Kadotus]

I originally liked the idea of separating story from play style, and was looking forward to it. Then you said that I wouldn't be able to select a different play style for an existing character, and I was bummed, but was more upset that we weren't told the truth in the first place.

 

Now that I have created a couple of characters on the pts, I am really upset that I will have to reroll characters to get this feature that will be available to new players and newly created characters.

 

It's like you are punishing existing players with by withholding a really cool feature from us, and that sucks big time.

 

This^

 

Also, let us be more liberal about our weapons! For example: I really want to play an assassin with a single bladed lightsaber.

[Dingoe]

It's probably already mentioned, but the interface is straight up broken on 1440p. The game (PTS) is updating right now, so hopefully that fixes it, otherwise I'll update this post with a screenshot.

 

EDIT (1): Oh snap! Should I post this in the bugs sub-forum instead? @Musco save me!

Edited December 10, 2021 by Dingoe
addition

[orichichan]

Opinions:

• It's a clean and clear new UI for character creation.
  

• The new hairs are nice. The new complexion option is a pretty nice addition.
  

• Separate beards and hair is a good idea. We got many new options with that and there are many possibilities for the future with that too.
  

 

Issue:

• The only bug I saw: it's the missing weapon for the animation character when we switch of style (it happens sometimes but not everytime)
  

 

Customization options:

• As you rework the character creation and you add new customization options, do you think it's possible to add purple, white and lavender skin colors for playable Twi'lek?
  

Edited December 10, 2021 by orichichan

[Rion_Starkiller]

Character Creation:

• The vanilla armors used in character creation have low res texture -- and it shows. Might be better to use a more modern textured armor that really grabs the new players.
  
• My weapons often disappear during the animations, especially when switching between combat styles.
  

 

Other than that char creation looks good.

Edited December 16, 2021 by Rion_Starkiller
stuff

[robwettengel]

I have no issues with the interface.

 

It might be a great idea to provide some more information about each of the origin stories--something to tell new players about what to expect in the prologue-ch. 3 story, and it doesn't need to be a paragraph. For the SI origin story, I have framed it as a Rise of an Evil Overlord story, with supernatural elements--and its meme-y too (Evil Overlord List).

[casirabit]

Wait, does that mean they’ve removed some hairstyles in 7.0 to add different new ones or that they removed them only for the PTS?

 

The ones that are missing are the ones you purchased from the CC shop prior to this and I have found that a lot of things like that are not available on the PTS and while they added some new ones, just not really my style, I want the ones I have on my character lol

[xordevoreaux]

The ones that are missing are the ones you purchased from the CC shop prior to this and I have found that a lot of things like that are not available on the PTS and while they added some new ones, just not really my style, I want the ones I have on my character lol

 

That's how I took what you meant, the cc styles not there.

[SithKoriandr]

The female facial hair was some of the ugliest and immersion breaking things I've ever seen in a character creator.

 

Also, the zoom in and out and spin bar was over the skin choice bar, not allowing one to choose the shin color.

Edited December 10, 2021 by SithKoriandr

[Rion_Starkiller]

The female facial hair was some of the ugliest and immersion breaking things I've ever seen in a character creator.

 

Are you offended? Heh

[Sarova]

Also, the zoom in and out and spin bar was over the skin choice bar, not allowing one to choose the shin color.

Agreed this is really annoying. The skin colour slider is affecting Cyborgs and Sith. The Zoom has a mind of it's own - it zooms in closer then immediately zooms back out. And the zoom in is not close enough anyway - I said elsewhere it makes seeing finer details like eye colour quite difficult.

And the Warrior outfit is ridiculous - it covers up several of the new hairstyles so you can't see them properly (the longer styles); this will probably adversely affect the CM styles we've unlocked too unless it's fixed.

[Damask_Rose]

The female facial hair was some of the ugliest and immersion breaking things I've ever seen in a character creator.

 

Also, the zoom in and out and spin bar was over the skin choice bar, not allowing one to choose the shin color.

 

If I had access to my vast armor collection I would do a tribute to Frida Kahlo. It will have to wait for live.

[HKtheindomitable]

With PTS now live, you can help test Character Creation!

 

Please answer the following questions:

 

• Are you experiencing any difficulties or issues with Character Creation?
  
• How is the flow of using this feature?
  
• Please provide any other general feedback you have in detail.
  

Please note your feedback accordingly so we can track it. Feel free to answer in as much detail as possible to help us understand your thought process and line of thinking.

 

Thank you!

 

Difficulties/Issues:

• Switching between Class and Combat Styles often causes the character to have no weapon, and occasionally the wrong weapon.
  
• The camera on the initial class and style screen is too close.
  
• The descriptive text doesn't change properly.
  
• The sliders screen has a few issues:
  
  1. The zoom function doesn't work right.
     
  2. Stubble for female characters... obviously a bug. Biology 101: Women don't have beards. 'tis a fact.
     
  3. The sliders, and even other icons that are the flat white, and name box feel unfinished. They're just flat and look rough. I like the plain white and simple aspect, that's awesome. Yet it doesn't feel like it fits with what's going on. It needs something to make it feel less flat. The same with the "progress bar" at the bottom, though not so much with that.
     

 

These features are very smooth. The transitions are very delightful to experience. The Light and Dark Side fog/mist is so COOL! I love it. It does bog down my GPU, so I have to turn it down to the point of being a light that can only bee seen if I squint hard. However, I'm stuck with a crappy 7850 with only 1GB of VRAM (you folks have a spare GPU in storage I could use?).

The text descriptions for the classes are clear and easily understood. It's clear what combat style does what.

 

Bugs aside, I love it.

[Sarqualin]

I like the new character creation feel but I don't like there is no continuity with rest of the game, eg. character selection, UI in game, compared to live version.

 

Allegiance

I really like the blue/red effect, but I think the logos could be bigger, looks too empty. Not a fan of the black circles, when you hover over them it looks better (because the red/blue line blurs) but not by much, shadow only would look better so it stands out with the same colored background.

I hate the aliased lines that are on almost everything and the thing that you can still see this on live version in the daily login scares me.

Damn, that effect when you choose, love it, but I really think it would look better bigger.

 

Origin

The "show off" for combat styles is really nice touch, but feels like Juggernaut and Guardian are lacking compared to others.

When choosing the Origins, combat styles are not in the same order which is even more apparent for tech styles and on Republic side it's a complete chaos, you mix original imperial with republic on the same row. For force classes it lists the 2 original combat styles 1st but still manages to switch mirror in different order on each faction.

EMPIRE

Sith Warrior

Sith Inquisitor

Agent probably in the order it should look like and makes sense, mirrors are under.

Bounty Hunter completely different, gun styles are under.

 

REPUBLIC

Jedi Knight

Jedi Consular

Smuggler mixing republic and empire side on a row, gun styles under.

Trooper same as above.

When switching from combat style to origin story, the previous description stays instead. Which you can actually see on most of my screenshots.

In this screenshot I switched from Vanguard under Bounty Hunter to Agent, Scoundrel as auto-pick, Vanguard description stays.

No indication of mirrors, that could be confusing and disappointing for new players.

Shadow/Assassin description:

Infiltration/Deception is marked as ranged + only Hatred/Serenity has stealth mentioned.

 

Customize

Species icons don't fit in the theme, especially not on Empire.

Lighting seems good considering it's a dark background.