A New Empire is Approaching

BLIZZARD FEELS A SLIGHT CHILL IN THE AIR

World of Warcraft is the Mike Tyson of MMO's.

The PC Gaming world just can't get enough of their MMO's (Massive Multiplayer Online Games). World of Warcraft was released 6 years ago and continues to dominate the PC gaming market. There have been countless copycats that have tried to overthrow the giant that is WoW. Blizzard is preparing to release it's 4th expansion "Cataclysm" for its beloved MMO, and with a subscription base of more than 11 Million users, it's going to take a Little-Mac to overthrow this Mike Tyson. Cue Bioware.

Bioware has evolved into a massive gaming studio over the past decade. Console hits like Baldur's Gate, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Jade Empire, Dragon Age: Origins, and Mass Effect have launched the company into a Triple-A developer status. A force to be reckoned with, Bioware added even more pinache to its studio with its recent partnering with Electronic Arts a couple of years back. With World of Warcraft saturating the PC-MMO market, there is a growing need for another big hit title to finally overthrow the behemoth that is Blizzard, and I've got a feeling Bioware's upcoming MMO "Star Wars: The Old Republic" is just the answer we want, and the one we need. 

The hype machine behind The Old Republic is definitely starting to catch the attention of many critics and gamers. Bioware has released several videos showing how combat, questing, and some of the classes work within their universe. You've got your standard tanks, healers, and DPS classes with a Star Wars twist to them (The Bounty Hunter looks to be right up my alley), and Bioware promises that there will be plenty of loot to shape your character into the unique little Jedi Master/Sith Lord you always dreamed of.

Hand me my flamethrower...It's the one that says bad muthaf**ka on it.

It's all very reminiscent of World of Warcraft's style, but there are a bunch of things that will set The Old Republic apart. For starters, the entire game is fully voiced. Every NPC (non-playable character) you come across will speak, and every quest-giver will give you a dialogue rich encounter which you'll have to respond appropriately to. One of the key mechanics of the game, which hasn't been fully revealed, is its morality system. Similar to what we see in many Bioware games like Knights of the Old Republic and Mass Effect, what you say will affect your character in his appearance and leveling, as well as his allegiance to certain people. While the details are scarce, this mechanic gives players a whole new way to mess around with characters, ultimately offering a deep, rich, and most importantly replayable game. 

"You guys see Bioware's new MMO? GAME OVER MAN!"

Something else that should be noted, and my personal favorite, is the aesthetic of the game. The Old Republic has a very animated and colorful "cartoonish" look to its world, similar to World of Warcraft. Other MMO's like Everquest, Age of Conan, and even Warhammer tried to render their worlds with a more realistic approach to their graphics. While the games look pretty, many casual PC gamers just don't have the hardware capable of running these games the way their developers intended. High end gaming PC's can go anywhere from $2,500 to $4,000, and lets face it, not everyone can or wants to cough up that kind of green. PC games that run in a "cartoonish" look tend to run well on lower-end PC's, allowing more gamers to dive in and get hooked. I have a solid PC and I could barely run "Everquest II" without it almost having a seizure and turning my room into a sauna. But when I play WoW, it runs as fast as Usain Bolt in the 100m.

My point in all this is that Bioware has its sights set on a large, collective audience. They're definitely thinking big and may even pluck some of Blizzard's dollars (myself included). From what we've seen so far, the game runs smoothly, looks balanced and user-friendly enough, and is being developed by a development studio with more than enough chops to craft a beautiful RPG environment that'll keep gamers busy for years to come. Plus...it's Star Wars for Ackbar's sake! It's such a rich universe that it'll be impossible to run out of content for future expansions.

Clouded your future is Blizzard

Until then, we'll have to patiently wait for Blizzard and Bioware to release their monster MMO's in the coming months but if I were Blizzard, I better be damn sure to make Azeroth as engaging as ever, because if not, as Yoda once said..."The dark side clouds everything. Impossible to see the future is."

Meantime here's the latest video from Bioware showing some group based combat in The Old Republic. Enjoy.

More Star Wars: The Old Republic Info