I’m Larry, and I’m an altoholic. (Pauses for everyone to say “Hi, Larry.”) The toughest part of any game for me is which class to choose when starting out. Star Wars Galaxies after the NGE, which is what Legends is, made everyone make that choice right up front. Given that many of the classes play the same in the beginning, knowing which class you will ultimately like was impossible after only an hour or so of gameplay. As the game progressed, it offered class-change vendors to players, but that didn’t make the initial choice less difficult. Thankfully, I have two things working in my favor this time around. First, I have played through all the classes before. Eight years ago, when the game shut down, I knew many of the classes like the back of my hand. But it has been eight years, so I am going to be rusty starting out on this adventure. Secondly, the choice isn’t up to me. The choice is up to you. I’ve decided to roleplay these choices just a … [Read more...] about Hyperspace Beacon: This is the toughest choice in Star Wars Galaxies Legends
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The Game Archaeologist: What Star Wars Galaxies life was like before the NGE
A decade after Star Wars Galaxies’ “New Game Enhancements” hit the game, controversy, grumbling, and revelations still pop up about the notorious decision to overhaul the entire game. Some maintain that it ruined the game, while others acknowledge that what came after actually ended up being better. As the 2003 to 2005 pre-NGE era is quickly vanishing into the distant past, I wanted to preserve some of the history of what the game was like before that fateful patch day. To aid in this project, I asked six Star Wars Galaxies veterans to share some of their memories and stories from that time. Here’s what they had to say about what in-game life was like in those first few years. 1. It was a true sandbox Joshua M.: “I think the big thing back in the pre-NGE era was that the content was what you made it; it was a true sandbox. There were no concept of levels, just the skills you’ve learned and the weapons you were certified to use. You could spend the … [Read more...] about The Game Archaeologist: What Star Wars Galaxies life was like before the NGE
Overwatch League gets ESPN and Disney XD television contract
Count this as a huge victory for Blizzard’s attempt to legitimize and popularize its fledgling Overwatch League. The studio announced this week that it has signed a deal with both ESPN and Disney XD to exclusively televise Overwatch League games for the next two years. The coverage began yesterday with the League’s first season playoffs and will continue through the grand finals later this month. In fact, Blizzard is touting the fact that Overwatch will be the first e-sports championship broadcast ever on ABC. “We are pleased to partner with Activision Blizzard to bring Overwatch e-sports to our audience,” said Disney XD Senior Vice President Marc Buhaj. “The Blizzard team has created a genre-leading esport and a premium professional franchise system in the Overwatch League. We are kicking off the agreement by showcasing the inaugural season playoffs and Grand Finals live across our linear footprint. Together with our telecast partners at ESPN, we look … [Read more...] about Overwatch League gets ESPN and Disney XD television contract
Hyperspace Beacon: Memorable moments in Star Wars Galaxies, the original Star Wars MMORPG
Yesterday, the game that solidified my place in the MMO space would have turned 15 years old, and MJ, Bree, and I took a trip down memory lane by hopping into one of the Star Wars Galaxies emulators. All the memories of the adventures I had came flooding back, even though my muscle memory for the combat mechanics was gone. Since the launch of SWG in 2003, we have seen the launch of two other MMORPGs (Clone Wars Adventures and Star Wars: The Old Republic) and other multiplayer online Star Wars games, like Battlefront. If your experiences in these online games were anything like mine, you’ve made many friends that you would otherwise never had contact with and have lived through virtua; adventures you’d never dreamed of experiencing in real life. There was a time in this column’s lifespan that I would talk about all things Star-Warsy, leading up to the launch of SWTOR. And given that we just celebrated the original Star Wars MMO’s 15th anniversary, I figured I … [Read more...] about Hyperspace Beacon: Memorable moments in Star Wars Galaxies, the original Star Wars MMORPG
Star Wars Needs An MMORPG That’s Official Canon
Long ago, in a galaxy far, far away, a new story was told that captured the minds of millions, and to this day, continues to capture them. The movies started it, then books, then video games, then a duo of animated series, all have helped make it grand. Yet, for video games, there’s one key drawback, many of them are considered “non-canon”, and by “many”, we mean pretty much all of them. The one exception being the upcoming Battlefront 2, which has a story which is made to be canon. But, for some, including us here at MMOExaminer, we think that the people at Disney/Lucasfilm can take this a step further, what if they did a canon game…set within an MMORPG? You might be thinking, “Aren’t they doing that in Star Wars: The Old Republic?” Well…yes and no, they’re trying to do something meaningful with the game, but, whether it’s canon or not is up for debate. Not to mention, because this takes place in the “Old … [Read more...] about Star Wars Needs An MMORPG That’s Official Canon