I miss SWG, but not that much...

Kurke_Aumea · Post by **Kurke_Aumea** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 7:37 pm

I've been contemplating this thread for a while. I'm not sure why it took me so long to write it either. But, here's the truth. I miss SWG. I miss the experience. I miss the style of social interaction it offered. I miss crafting. I miss the fun of it all. Then again, I miss SWG the way it was when I left. It wasn't perfect, but it wasn't the mess that I would consider it now. I'd love to come back, but I just don't think SWG would cater to my likings anymore. It's been two years since I quit playing and I know it's not the same game it used to be when I left. On one hand, that really sucks for me. But on the other hand, it's probably a good thing. I mean, I could go out and try to play SWGemu, but it seems like a waste. The emu project is simply to recreate old school SWG for the die hards out there. Would I enjoy playing it? Hell yeah! But, one only knows when it will be finished and there are new MMOs on the horizon that offer better concepts than SWG.

Despite WoW and a plethora of other MMOs that have flooded the market, I have always beleived that SWG was one of the most in-depth MMOs out there (especially when you toss in the JTL expansion pack). It's a shame that we will never find such an experience ever again unless they release a SWG2. Still, I long to play an MMO which can still capture my enjoyment and imagination. But at the same time, I have no desire to jump onto the WoW bandwagon just because it's the popular thing to do. Maybe SWG set my expectations too high for what to expect out of an MMO? Truthfully, SWG is the only MMO that I have played to this day. I read about other MMOs and they just don't seem to live up to what SWG was. SWG wasn't perfect, but it offered a depth other MMOs could only dream of (WoW included).

So, for the past month or so I have begun looking at other MMOs that are out there. Old ones, current ones, and new ones alike. I'm not sure I want to dive into old MMOs as I would likely face a very steep learning curve compared to the number of vets out there and I want something a little more fresh. Current MMOs leave me at a loss. We have the king of all, WoW. Then, we have clones of WoW. What a choice, huh? From what I've heard, it sounds like the playstyle of WoW really doesn't fit me or who I am. The one thing that I enjoyed supremely in SWG was the old crafting system. Sadly, I haven't found any game that even comes close to offering a similar crafting system. But what about combat? Well, I enjoy it to a point. I have always found RPG combat to be a bore. Auto-attacks and spells have never truly thrilled me and I find them somewhat boring. That doesn't mean I want to go play a MMOFPS either. Let's face it, there's only so much excitement to be had shooting shit before you want to shoot yourself and call it game over.

So, I keep on searching and reading; hoping to find an MMO that might entice me in some way. I did manage to find The Lord of the Rings Online. From what I've read, it looks promising. The environments remind me heavily of some of the SWG planets. The vocations and professions also seem similar. LOTRO also has a crafting system that might just appeal to me. What bothers me about crafting it is that you can still find loot drops that are better quality than crafted items. In my book, that already spells doom for a crafting system. But, since LOTRO isn't even out yet, it's hard to really know what the game offers. I mean, the LOTR license is a familiar piece of pop culture, so it is sure to attract many players if it is half way decent. I'd still like to see how the game systems function though (crafting in particular). So, I've signed up for the beta, albiet a little late. If I get in, it will give me a chance to see what the game has to offer. If not, I'll wait for the reviews to come in (It comes out at the end of April).

Still, it won't compare to what SWG offered. To my knowledge, there isn't even player housing (one of the things that made SWG truly great and unique). But, maybe this is my best hope at finding an MMO that I will enjoy. Or maybe there will be a SWG2 (OK, wishful thinking). Either way, I miss what was SWG and I hope that I can find a game that gives me a similar experience somewhere along the lines.

Post by **Lexx Yovel** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 7:40 pm

Maybe start up a trial account, just to see how things are. I cant really offer an opinion on the crafting part, but I guess there's only one way to find out!

Kurke_Aumea · Post by **Kurke_Aumea** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 8:02 pm

LexxYovel wrote:Maybe start up a trial account, just to see how things are. I cant really offer an opinion on the crafting part, but I guess there's only one way to find out!

The other thing kicking my ass when it comes to playing any games is a severe lack of time. Weekends are always booked because that's the only time I see my girlfriend and I'm burnt out during the week... Summers should be better and fall will be interesting to say the least.

I've been tempted to give the trial a try, but I'm very skeptical about the current state of SWG.

RettVescan · Post by **RettVescan** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 10:31 pm

In regards to SWG2, There are a lot of people who saw on the forums that a SWG2 is currently in the plans for the distant future. So that possibility isn't so far fetched as you might think. I have no knowledge of a schedule for it or anything, but I think it was Thunderheart who said SWG2 was a big time possibility.

Kurke_Aumea · Post by **Kurke_Aumea** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 10:59 pm

Given the fact that SWG has only been out for almost four years, I doubt we'll see any kind of SWG2 announcement for a couple years or so. Seems like they'd at least give the original about a 5 year lifespan before pushing any kind of sequal. Then again, I have no idea what kind of subscription numbers SWG is currently getting. If they are down and keep going down, then expect them to milk the cow earlier than expected.

However, things have been quiet lately in terms of development. There haven't been any new expansions listed (not too surprising though). Also LucasArts have been real quiet lately. And I mean real quiet. I know they cut back the number of games that they'd work on, but it's been too quiet lately. The only new game they've announced is The Force Unleashed, but many people saw it coming after some early tech demos. I think that LA will be announcing several new games at E3 this year (yeah, the "new" E3...). I doubt there will be a SWG2 in the list (which would rock), but LA definitely has something up their sleeve. Otherwise, LA's going to be screwed...

Still, if there is ever to be a SWG2, I sure hope SOE doesnt even get close to it. Given their track record with the game, I don't see why they would ever be worthy of developing a sequal to SWG. And I hope whoever develops SWG2 has learned from the mistakes that were made in the original SWG.

Waucod Meesman · Post by **Waucod Meesman** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 11:11 pm

SOE loves you too Kurke...

Kurke_Aumea · Post by **Kurke_Aumea** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 11:31 pm

Waucod Meesman wrote:SOE loves you too Kurke...

lol Is it that obvious?

DLela · Post by **DLela** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 9:31 am

The only other game that has similiar crafting is Horizons and that is long gone.

It's too bad they didn't listen to us Beta testers, that could've been a great game.

Apium · Post by **Apium** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 2:52 pm

Force Unleashed is enough for me, it looks great. I'm slightly disappointed that the licenses for euphoria and DMM are exclusive to LucasArts for two or three years. LucasArts has never solely produced an 'excellent' game in my opinion. I would prefer to see the technology in the hands of another studio. I've never seen a developer as hardcore as Bioware, but they like their RPGs.

Anyways EQ2 has a very enjoyable crafting system in my opinion. It can be nearly intense as fighting sometimes. If the trial is still available it is worth checking out.

Apium · Post by **Apium** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 3:10 pm

oh and I have a beta key for LOTRO you can have kurke

Kurke_Aumea · Post by **Kurke_Aumea** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 4:38 pm

Thank you Apium. I am curious how long you've been playin LucasArts games. They've had some top-notch games in the past. TIE Fighter, X-Wing, and the Dark Forces series were some of my favorites. There were a few others in there. Most of them were amazing for their time. Right around the turn of the century, LA hit a slump for some of their games. They did manage to introduce us to Knights of the Old Republic, which was a stellar RPG. However, LucasArt's biggest problem is that they have turned themselves into a publisher. KotOR was developed by Bioware (the kings of RPGs). Ditto for most of their other games in the past five years. I mean, are good devs that hard to come by? Admittedly, some of the games they have developed themselves have been less than average, but when you outsource everything it can hurt you in the long run.

Does anyone know if LA is actually developing the Euphoria and DMM engines? Or is another company selling them exclusive rights to it all? If it is an in-house engine, then I do expect great things out of LA over the next few years. Let's face it, if you have the know-how to build those kinds of engines, then you have the ability to create extremely great games. Then again, ability is nothing without propper planning and leadership...

Lysao · Post by **Lysao** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 4:39 pm

Ya know BioWare has a new office in Austin.....they've also stated that that office is working on an un-named MMO.....

Just as well, one of the guys working at said office worked on Kotor and another is the ex VP of production development for SOE....

I hope this puzzle comes together like I want it to

Kurke_Aumea · Post by **Kurke_Aumea** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 4:47 pm

Lysao wrote:Ya know BioWare has a new office in Austin.....they've also stated that that office is working on an un-named MMO.....

Just as well, one of the guys working at said office worked on Kotor and another is the ex VP of production development for SOE....

I hope this puzzle comes together like I want it to

You know, I hate to get my hopes up or anything, but when you hear things like that it is hard not too.

Apium · Post by **Apium** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 5:01 pm

Kurke_Aumea wrote:Thank you Apium. I am curious how long you've been playin LucasArts games. They've had some top-notch games in the past. TIE Fighter, X-Wing, and the Dark Forces series were some of my favorites. There were a few others in there. Most of them were amazing for their time. Right around the turn of the century, LA hit a slump for some of their games. They did manage to introduce us to Knights of the Old Republic, which was a stellar RPG. However, LucasArt's biggest problem is that they have turned themselves into a publisher. KotOR was developed by Bioware (the kings of RPGs). Ditto for most of their other games in the past five years. I mean, are good devs that hard to come by? Admittedly, some of the games they have developed themselves have been less than average, but when you outsource everything it can hurt you in the long run.

Does anyone know if LA is actually developing the Euphoria and DMM engines? Or is another company selling them exclusive rights to it all? If it is an in-house engine, then I do expect great things out of LA over the next few years. Let's face it, if you have the know-how to build those kinds of engines, then you have the ability to create extremely great games. Then again, ability is nothing without propper planning and leadership...

I loved the old rogue squadrons games, to be honest I forgot they existed when I said that. Digital Molecular Matter was created by Pixelux and Euphoria was created by NaturalMotion. I'm not sure how those are related to LucasArts though. From the sound of the interview it doesn't sound like LucasArts is putting their full effort into the DMM portion. This will be the first game that uses it so most of us want to see something big and two or three breakable walls a level won't do it for us. No complaints with Euphoria though.

Kurke_Aumea · Post by **Kurke_Aumea** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 5:30 pm

The Rogue Squadron games were fun, but if you go back a little further (back when LA did mostly PC games) you'll find some great space flight sims with TIE Fighter and even X-Wing vs. TIE Fghter. The graphis are crap compared to today's stuff, but they are a blast to play and put something like JTL to shame. Every now and then I dig them out and give them a play. There are like six campaigns to TIE Fighter and they all offer something a little different.

While I'm at it, does anyone remember a game called Rebellion (1995-ish)? In the UK and Europe it was called something different (Supremecy or somthing like that...). It was LA's first try at a Star Wars style RTS. It's a little different than most RTS's and has a bit of micromanagemnet to it. For the most part, it wasn't a ery popular game. Personally, I loved it ever since I started playing it. I still pull it out about once or twice a year and play it a bit. Am I the only one who remembers this game?

Also, what about Guild Wars? I have heard about it and read a few things about it, but never researched the game extensively. Is it a good MMO for being free? Is it even worth considering with it's sequal coming out in 2008?