Star Wars

A new developer diary has turned up at the Star Wars: The Old Republic site today. This one comes from Audio Producer Orion Kellogg from LucasArts. He starts with a quote from the Master himself, George Lucas, "Sound is 50 percent of the movie-going experience, and I've always believed audiences are moved and excited by what they hear in my movies at least as much as by what they see.”

There is no question that Lucas is right. We who are Star Wars fans are sure to instantly recognize Darth Vader's theme or the Cantina tunes when we hear them. "It is our job," Kellogg says, "to create an audio experience that enhances the emotional experience of the game and reaches the quality level expected of the Star Wars franchise."

With that in mind, Kellogg details  the creative process behind the sounds for Star Wars: The Old Republic. He discusses voices, aliens, ambient sounds, weapon sounds and, of course, the incredible importance of music.

Lightsabers in particular are a great chance for exploration with every flavor of traditional “vwooooms” combining with truly unique and bass-heavy sabers that will give a terrifying Sith Warrior a rush of power. We’re taking traditional sound effects and then More >

MMORPG.com Community Manager Michael Bitton has some thoughts about game testing. He offers insight into what it is, what it isn't, how to help when you do and, just maybe, reasons not to participate in game testing or beta testing your most highly-anticipated games.

Despite being a self-professed Star Wars geek, and fighting my natural urge to want to get my hands on just about any “beta test” as most gamers often do, I don’t really want to test this one as much. It’s the fact I am a Star Wars geek that makes me averse to full-blown testing this game, for the same reasons I probably wouldn’t have wanted to be there on set when they shot the Star Wars films: spoilers!

Check out the full column.

Bioware and LucasArts have finally released the Star Wars: The Old Republic multiplayer video from last month’s E3 convention in Los Angeles. The video features Dallas Dickinson providing commentary for the group of Republic heroes (all four classes) taking on Imperial Troopers and droids.

SUBJ: E3 Multiplayer Demo

URL: http://www..swtor.com/media/trailers/e3-multiplayer-demo

During E3 we gave live demos of multiplayer game play in The Old Republic for the press. Now we want to share the demo with the world. This demo shows how a diverse group of players use their abilities to complement one another in battle.

Commander Narlock readies his troops for an Imperial assault. As he does, all four Republic classes; a Jedi Consular, Jedi Knight, Smuggler, and Trooper join together to assist in fighting off the attack. Watch as each player does his or her part to take on the enemies, and beat the Imperial Troopers and Imperial Breach Droids.

Check it all out at the link provided.

For those who may have been living under a rock for the past week and missed the details, MMORPG.com's Michael Bitton recounts Bioware's showing at this year's E3 for Star Wars: the Old Republic and gives his own impressions.

Bioware let flow bits and pieces of significant information on Star Wars: The Old Republic leading up to E3, so, naturally, I found myself wondering, "With all that's been shown so far, what the heck do they have planned for E3 itself?" Our Managing Editor Jon Wood was on hand for the EA press conference last Monday where Bioware revealed their second full-length cinematic traile, information on player housing via personal starships, and some details on SW:TOR's "War Zones" PvP feature.

The following day Garrett and I stopped by the Bioware meeting room at the show to check out the game itself and find out what else Bioware had in store for us. It's no secret I'm an avid Star Wars geek and looking forward to Star Wars: The Old Republic, so how did the game's showing stack up at this year's E3?

Read Overall TOR E3 Recap and Opinion on Showing.

MMORPG.com's Garrett Fuller had some time to get up close and personal with the Sith Warrior class in Bioware's Star Wars: The Old Republic. Today, he brings us his impressions of the class.

In our short play session at E3 we got a chance to run around as a Sith Warrior. Well, I chose a Sith Warrior for my first run through. Basically let me preface this article with my all time favorite Star Wars character being Darth Maul. He had almost no screen time and accomplished very little. However, Darth Maul took on two Jedi Knights at the same time and faced a variety of turbulence at the start of the Clone Wars. Maul was also by far the coolest looking Darth, at least in my book. So I am biased toward the Sith Warrior, but I am also harshly critical. Just like our great friend Boba Fett who never really got the time to be an awesome villain we all wanted to see, Darth Maul also got the Lucas cut and we barely got to see his awesomeness on screen. So with Darth Maul in mind, let's look at the Sith Warrior.

Read Hands On With the Sith Warrior.