Wow.. this isn't an easy review to write.
While I play Star Wars Galaxies on a daily basis, this game is testimony to what can happen when there are too many cooks in the kitchen.
Well all in all, I love it. I mean, I get to be a wookiee, who doesn't want to be a wookiee!? With 3 expansions SWG as it's called, can provide months and months of new content for the new players.
Four years ago this game had the potential to be the best MMORPG of all time, and I dare say it enjoyed that title for a solid 2 years. The release of the expansion Jump to Lightspeed or JTL as it's called, allowed players to create, fly, and make insane amounts of customizations to their ships.
However, almost 2 years ago from this posting, a little thing called the "CU" or Combat Upgrade *cough
took place. This change basically completely rewrote combat for the game. Many of the day one and Beta vets like myself took off for a while. Though many returned, it was never the same game again.
Pouring salt in the wound, Sony Online Entertainment, the company in charge of running SWG, introduced the NGE, or New Game Enhancements, thus changing the entire combat system, and for all practical purposes rewriting the game again. When there were once 32 professions to choose from, the NGE left us with 9, and got rid of some of the favorites.
SWG now plays more like a Third Person Shooter on an engine that was clearly not designed for such.
The game is astoundingly intricate, and while anyone with a calculator and the ability to read the official forums when looking for answers can master it, it's still somewhat humbling for new players.
Once again however, they had another "CU". Chapter 6 in their ongoing storyline *starting at Chapter 1 in the NGE dayscombat was dumbed down even further, damage dealt was reduced, damage taken was increased, and large groups were made essential in a game with a dwindling community.Whether SWG will survive these changes still remains to be seen, but the true die hard fans such as myself, can't ween themselves of it.
The crafting system is very wel done, though almost pointless these days as Credit Selling Webiste companies, and Credit "Dupers" from the early days have demolished the economy.
In short, SWG is a labor of love. The community for the most part is supportive and friendly with a few glaring omissions. PVP has taken a front seat and is always taking place somewhere.
A good game for die hard Star Wars fans, but not recommended to casual gamers.
Learning Curve: Takes too long
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