Star Wars: The Old Republic (SWTOR for short) has since it came out in 2011 taken millions of players on a journey into a part of the Star Wars universe that hasn’t had the same level of attention in the movies.
Published by EA and made by BioWare, the game is still enjoyed widely to this day. Here we will look at why that is and what SWTOR can offer to players in the year of 2021 compared to other MMO’s.
A Classic BioWare Game – MMO-Styled
BioWare as a game developer is very well known for crafting games that are heavily narrative driven and full of interaction between the many unique and relatable characters. The most famous example here is the Mass Effect series that puts the player in control of Commander Shephard as he attempts to save the galaxy from an apocalyptic fate.
SWTOR also incorporates this narrative aspect very heavily in its game. Every class you can choose in the game has their own story arc with unique characters that take you throughout the galaxy to many of the well-known planets from the movies such as Hoth, Tatooine and Alderaan. All dialogue in the game is fully narrated and you get several dialogue options in every conversation. This means you can roleplay your character in the exact way you want: an evil mastermind, a heroic saint or just someone interested in acquiring wealth, it’s your choice. Dialogue choices also have direct impact on how your story progresses which means you can get many different outcomes depending on how you play your character.
This is probably one of the aspects of SWTOR that separates it from most other MMO’s. Typically, MMO’s don’t have class specific story arcs like SWTOR does. And neither do they let you, the player, have much of an impact on how the story progresses. In SWTOR you are an active part of the story whereas in for example WoW, you are mostly an onlooker that just flows with the events.
SWTOR gives you a connection to your character that is not just limited to the gear and end-game progress you’ve made. The connection is emotional and personal which is a great addition.
An Interactive Companion System
Another thing that SWTOR brings to the table that works amazingly in most aspects of the game is the companion system. During your progress through your characters story arc, you unlock several companions each with their own personality and skills.
You can interact with these companions and quite often play a monumental part in their story development as well. Many of them are even available for romance, which is something BioWare never fails to deliver on.
Companions can accompany you on your journey one at a time and function as teammates. You can set them to be tanks, healers, or damage dealers to suit your playstyle. This makes it quite easy for you to experience the game’s content on your own without having to rely on others to get something done. Now, this may seem contradictory to what the MMO-genre is all about: teamplay and socialising. But SWTOR gives you the option to enjoy the game in both ways. If you don’t want to socialise but just experience the story you can do that. If you want to play with others and tackle the really hard content, then you do that.
Huge Expansions with New Story Lines
Throughout the years SWTOR has released several quite large expansions that add a wide array of new content to the game to keep it fresh and going. Some of these new additions are the expected dungeons, raids, and new cosmetics. But the real joy of the new expansions is their brand new and interesting story arcs.
Each new story arc adds new characters, events, and fun possibilities to enjoy that builds on what you’ve previously done in the original character story arc. Legendary characters from the ancient Star Wars mythos also make appearances and play pivotal roles in the story, giving hardcore fans the service, they so desperately hunger for.
Almost Infinite Replayability
If you bet on a football match on https://betting.com/bet-calculators you have infinite possibilities as to what can happen in the fight. The same goes for SWTOR. You can play every story arc at least three times for different outcomes. And then you have 8 different classes to plough through with the expansion content on top of that. Better get started!
