Overly Positive

So Bioware has finally decided that it’s time to stop teasing SWTOR fans by only showing a little ankle under the skirt of their game, and has moved on to giving us a little leg to stare at for a while. Today’s SWTOR Gameplay Demo weighs in at a hefty 20 minutes. You can grab the vids over at this link on IGN to see for yourself – they had to divide it into 4 parts, each covering a specific class.

Before I get into a bit of a breakdown, I do want to say that this is definitely a great thing that Bioware did in terms of presentation. There’s narration, and there’s the usual marketing sell, but what it is accompanied by is actual gameplay footage. This is a calculated risk for Bioware, considering that fans may take a look at the graphical presentation of the game, or its play, and decide not to bother with it for one reason or another. But at the same time, it shows that Bioware is A)confident about its product to show it in this state and B)giving the players what they want. A three to five minute walkthrough would have been nice – to see twenty minutes of it is a blessing that exceeds expectations. It’s also worthy to note, as you watch, that the gameplay, aside from shifting from topic to topic, is compeltely uncut and continuous. That means that whether it has flaws or not, Bioware wants to honestly show off the current state of their game, and thinks that you’ll want to play it despite them. It’s something you don’t see in the buildup for MMOs these days.

So I’ll be sticking to a bit more of a summarization and the high points of the walkthrough. To be perfectly honest, as pleased as I am with the demo, there’s no way I can give it justice by doing a granular breakdown – that’s what the walkthrough is for, after all – and you can and should watch it. So I’ll keep it simple.

Part 1 – Part 2 – The Bounty Hunter

What we see:
Our first look at the basic UI, the first conversation we have regarding a mission to join “The Great Hunt” to find the best Bounty Hunter in the galaxy, some character choices, and long range/short range combat with the class.

Impressions:
It’s clear that the conversational style mimics Knights of the Old Republic/Mass Effect. It’s good to see Hutta, although we don’t see enough of it to really get a good impression of this being the home planet of everyone’s favorite carbonite collector, Jabba. What is nice, however, is a look at the Bounty Hunter’s versatility, a supposed hallmark of the class, looking at the traditional blaster weapons, a stun dart, and a nice little bunch of flame for close range combat. Boba Fett fans won’t be disappointed. It’s also good to have Bioware state that they fall into the camp of making the player independent despite it being an MMO – that heroic battles with multiple enemies are the norm and that death from adds is not going to happen too easily.

Part 2 – The Smuggler

What we see:
A tricksy class with a bunch of interesting mechanics at his disposal. The Smuggler’s cover system explained in some detail, an ability called Barrage that fires off a volley of blaster shots, and of course, a well-placed kick for close combat.

Impressions:
Having a cover system for an MMO is going to be interesting. For PvE, it actually is a nice little boon for a Smuggler – being able to utilize the environment in the manner that was shown in the video was great. Obvious cues for taking cover with big green icons, as well as a change in abilities are going to be great for getting players used to this new mechanic, and having a statistical bonus against enemies isn’t bad either. We’ll see, if there is PvP in TOR, how the cover system works in that respect, but if there was any class that could serve as the most common class to be played besides any Republic Force-wielding class, this is it. There is a channeling of Han Solo‘s swashbuckling tactics here – and it shows.

Part 2  - Korriban and the Sith Warrior

What we see:
An environmental walkthough of the home planet of the Sith, as well as some of the Sith Warriors deadly melee skills. We also get a look at some of the organic creatures you’ll be facing off with in the game, and how NPCs may react in battle to your movements.

Impressions:
Ah, a lightsaber-wielding class. The most crucial thing that Bioware needs to get right with all of these classes is, more than anything, the animation. Combat in the Star Wars universe with its most iconic weapon is meant to be elegant and flowing, yet deadly and precise. From the few shots seen here, that is exactly what Bioware did. You can see the swings of the lightsaber for the different abilities flow into each other, as well as a logical conclusion to battles – the Sith Warrior’s buildup of points to unleash finishing moves like the spinning Impale is easy to track. Of interest is also the opening move, the Force Charge. This isn’t like a running move like expected, but an actual Force-powered jump and two handed slash onto an enemy. That’s not bad. There’s also an interesting side note – enemies take cover, which means the system used by the Smuggler is also used by NPCs. That will provide a different challenge, even for players wielding the Force like the Sith. Overall, a nice and expected, reveal for the newest class in SWTOR.

Part 3 – Part 4 – Flashpoint – A captain, a Star Destroyer, and one heck of a Jedi party:

What we see:
The oft-explained demo that has been shown from E3 regarding the quest with multiple choices for an imperial star destroyer captain and a Republic boarding. The choice to be made is highlighted and the consequences are shown in detail from a gameplay and narrative standpoint.

Impressions:
Now this is something those who have been following the game probably have become familiar with. But this is the first time we’ve seen it actually working out in actual gameplay. As some of you may know, killing the captain leads to a harder fight, but the narrative explains that the rewards could be better for doing it on “hard more”. Multiplayer dialogue may affect this greatly, but the random choice of the player making the decisions is definitely something that will need to be dealt with the avoid griefing. We also saw some additional abilities – the Force choke for example – as well as a lightsaber-to-lightsaber fight, which I especially enjoyed for the back and forth between the player and the enemy. It’s interesting to note the teamwork with multiple enemies as well, with the Bounty Hunter providing some firepower and the Sith Warrior rolling over enemies from melee range. And of course, looking at the loot, which included a second lightsaber for the victorious players, can’t have been a bad thing.

To be honest, overall I felt above average about the demo. It’s not everything, and it omitted the Trooper class, but for 20 minutes, it was well spent. The reveals and various details are going to set off a whole new slew of speculation – and I know that this won’t be the last time I post about the gameplay demo, either. Again – the real heartening thing is to see uncut, continuous gameplay, with no qualms about hiding some of the elements that are going to make the game possibly one of the best releases. If Bioware is cautious enough to polish and release the details as they have here, in huge, detailed chunks, then the future of the game is bright indeed.