STAR WARS: THE OLD REPUBLIC JUMPS TO LIGHT SPEED

source:swtor.com


Critically Acclaimed Game from BioWare Already the Fastest Growing Subscription MMO in History

REDWOOD CITY, Calif – December 22, 2011 – BioWare™, a Label of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA), launched Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ on Tuesday, and already fan engagement is setting new standards for an MMO game launch. Star Wars: The Old Republic is the fastest-growing subscription MMO in history, with more than one million registered players since launching on December 20th. BioWare and EA will continue to steadily pulse players into the game through the holiday and into 2012 by limiting supply, ensuring a smooth and enjoyable experience for all while further growing the community. Fan reaction has been extremely positive, with the first wave of players posting impressive play-time feats after having been granted Early Game Access and playing up to seven days before launch. To date, players have:

• Logged 28 million in-game hours – roughly equivalent to watching all six Star Wars movies, two million times
• Averaged well over five hours a day playing the game
• Created more than 3.8 million characters; 510,000 Jedi Knights and 550,000 Sith Warriors
• Killed more than 2 billion non-player characters in the eight days since Early Game Access began

“Already over a million players strong after our Dec 20th launch, The Old Republic has become the fastest growing subscription MMO in the history of our industry,” said Dr. Ray Muzyka, General Manager of EA’s BioWare label and Co-Founder of BioWare. “Everyone at BioWare, EA and Lucas Arts is honored - and humbled - by the stellar response from our fans. We're going to work together closely with our community in the weeks, months and years ahead, continually serving our audience with regular delivery of compelling new features and content!”

The first reviews are in and critics around the world are giving the game high praise for dramatic, genre-changing innovations in the MMO category. By adding voiced characters and story, BioWare is innovating the genre and giving players a much more immersive experience, much like the transition from silent films to talkies. In the USA, G4 scored Star Wars: The Old Republic a perfect 5 out of 5 and PC Gamer rated the game a 93%. Australia’s AUSgames.com and Germany’s Games Aktuell scored the game 95%, and Sweden’s GameReactor gave the Old Republic a 90% rating.

Star Wars: The Old Republic stands as one of the greatest and most ambitious achievements in video game history. Beyond the critical and commercial success, this game represents an enormous milestone for Bioware and LucasArts teams. In 2006, Dr. Ray Muzyka, Dr. Greg Zeschuk and the talented team at BioWare began this project with a great vision and a plan to recruit an army of engineers, designers, artists, quality assurance, customer service agents, marketers, community managers, network operators, scriptwriters and voice-over talent. Five years and millions of hours of game testing later, BioWare and LucasArts have released an unparalleled artistic achievement, always putting fans and product quality first.

Star Wars: The Old Republic is a story-driven, massively multiplayer online (MMO) game from BioWare and LucasArts. Set thousands of years before the classic Star Wars™ movies, players will be immersed as they team up with friends online to fight in heroic battles reminiscent of the films, exploring a galaxy of vibrant planets and experiencing visceral Star Wars combat. Players join forces with either the Galactic Republic or Sith Empire and choose one of eight iconic Star Wars characters, including the Jedi Knight, Jedi Consular, Smuggler, Trooper, Sith Warrior, Sith Inquisitor, Bounty Hunter and Imperial Agent.

Included with the purchase of every copy of Star Wars: The Old Republic is 30 days of access to the game, after which players can continue to play through subscribing*** at either $14.99 per month, $41.97 for 3 months ($13.99 per month), or $77.94 for six months ($12.99 per month). For more information on Star Wars: The Old Republic, please visit www.StarWarsTheOldRepublic.com, follow the game on Twitter at http://twitter.com/swtor or “Like” Star Wars: The Old Republic on Facebook at http://facebook.com/starwarstheoldrepublic.

*** Subscription pricing in the United Kingdom will be £8.99 per month, £25.17 for three months (£8.39 per month) or £46.14 for six months (£7.69 per month). Subscription pricing in Europe will be €12.99 per month, €35.97 for three months (€11.99 per month) or €65.94 for six months (€10.99 per month).

About LucasArts
Founded in 1982 by filmmaker George Lucas, LucasArts is a leading publisher and developer of interactive entertainment. With development facilities in San Francisco and Singapore, LucasArts leverages the global skills, technology and resources of the Lucasfilm family of companies -- including visual effects leader Industrial Light & Magic, Lucasfilm Animation and Skywalker Sound -- in addition to strategic partnerships with best-in-class external partners, to further the boundaries of game development. LucasArts is dedicated to delivering deeply immersive, visually spectacular and engaging experiences that inspire and amaze generations.

About BioWare
The BioWare Label is a division of EA which crafts high quality multiplatform role-playing, MMO and strategy games, focused on emotionally engaging, rich stories with unforgettable characters and vast worlds to discover. Since 1995, BioWare has created some of the world's most critically acclaimed titles and franchises, including Baldur's Gate™, Neverwinter Nights™, Star Wars®: Knights of the Old Republic™, Jade Empire™, Mass Effect™ and Dragon Age™. BioWare currently operates in seven locations across the world, including Edmonton (Alberta, Canada), Montreal (Quebec, Canada), Austin (Texas), Fairfax (Virginia), San Francisco (California), Los Angeles (California) and Galway (Ireland).

In 2008, BioWare was acquired by Electronic Arts, a leading global interactive entertainment publisher. In 2011 EA created the BioWare Label, alongside EA Games, EA SPORTS™ and EA Play. For more information on BioWare, visit www.bioware.com, or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/bioware. To join the millions of fans already registered with the BioWare community, go to http://social.bioware.com.

About Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:ERTS) is a global leader in digital interactive entertainment. The Company’s game franchises are offered as both packaged goods products and online services delivered through Internet-connected consoles, personal computers, mobile phones and tablets. EA has more than 100 million registered players and operates in 75 countries. In fiscal 2011, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $3.6 billion. Headquartered in Redwood City, California, EA is recognized for critically acclaimed, high-quality blockbuster franchises such as The Sims™, Madden NFL, FIFA Soccer, Need for Speed™, Battlefield, and Mass Effect™. More information about EA is available at http://info.ea.com.

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SWTOR working on reducing queues

source:swtor.com

 

Hey folks, as you may likely have seen in the last 24 hours, we've been redoubling our efforts in optimally managing the time it takes to get into Star Wars™: The Old Republic™.

The BioWare Live Team has been carefully watching the influx of players into the game and is addressing with surgical precision the longer wait times on the small number of servers that were having longer wait times previously. We've also being doing our best to get every little bit of possible performance on our servers to increase capacity: we’ve “turned them up to 11” to do our very best to get you in and playing as quickly as possible. As a result - you should now be seeing significant improvement versus waiting times at the end of last week.

We're also addressing the concerns about losing your place in line if you happen to disconnect for some reason before getting into the game. We've been working very hard on this and are performing final testing on potential solutions.

Thanks for your patience and we really appreciate your enthusiasm for Star Wars: The Old Republic. We’re absolutely dedicated to ensuring you have a great experience both inside and outside the game.

Greg

SWTOR introduces Public Test Server

source:swtor.com

Welcome! The Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ Public Test Server is in place to test future game content and bug fixes and is available to all players with an active subscription. The server should be available the majority of the time and as with our other servers you can monitor it on the server status page.

Because development is ongoing during testing, it should be noted that all changes and updates listed in the patch notes should be considered incomplete and are subject to change or removal before release to the live servers. The Public Test Server patch notes will be provided in English. The final release notes will be provided in English, French, and German when the content is moved to live servers.

To access the Public Test Server:

• Log in to the Star Wars: The Old Republic launcher using your username and password.
• Click the Settings button (gear) in the bottom left corner of the launcher
• Under “Enable Public Test Server Access”, select “Yes”
• Click “Save”
• Now the bottom left corner will have two buttons: select the new button next to settings
• Under "Pick an Environment" select "Public Test"
• Click "Next" and you will begin patching on the Public Test Server*
• Click "Play"

*Please note that the initial patch download will be very large, as you will be installing an additional version of the game client. Any future patches will be significantly smaller.

At this time players are not able to copy characters from the live servers to the Public Test Server, but we plan to include this feature in the future. However, any new characters on the Public Test Server will be persistent and will generally not be removed at the end of any testing phase. Extremely rare instances may require character modification or removal, and under those circumstances, we will notify players via this forum and on the Community Blog.

At this time, we will not be providing Customer Support for the Public Test Server. Attempts to file in-game will result in an error and will not be processed. However, we encourage you to use these forums for feedback and bug reporting. All gameplay policies are still in place; inappropriate or abusive players will not be tolerated on the Public Test Server, and we ask that you please report this behavior to Customer Support here.

Your feedback and participation are truly appreciated. We encourage you to create a character, level up, and help us test future content for Star Wars: The Old Republic!


Amber Green | Game Testing Coordinator

One Awesome Heavy Metal Christmas Lights Show!!!

source:pcworld.com+youtube.com

View this awesome video on YouTube here:

Each winter season, there's several standard ways you can dress up your house in festive decorations. Maybe you simply want to hang a wreath on your front door or buy a few strands of Christmas lights for your roof. Or, you could animate an entire series of Christmas lights to your favorite heavy metal music, complete with a demonic-looking snowman.

As seen on The Loop, that's exactly what this metalhead did, going as far to record his holiday tributes to Slayer, Machine Head and all-female Canadian quartet Kittie on his daughter's YouTube account. It's not Christmas music, but it works quite well regardless. At the very least, we imagine that this house is quite popular with the neighbors.

Granted, this light show isn't quite as elaborate as more expensive ones from some other notable homes, but the improvement from this house is nonetheless impressive. Not only is the entire thing captured in crisp HD, but the snowman to right of the house is actually lip-syncing in time with the music. Talk about fine attention to detail.

If you want to remake your own holiday decorations into a crowd-gathering light show, just about any computerized lighting controller should do the trick. As long as you have enough lights and free time, your entire music catalog is ripe for the picking. Just make sure that you warn people before you start breaking out the Mastodon CDs.

Editor's Note: Still waiting for the one catered to The Imperial March by Epica. (Metal Version)

Cool Holiday Greeting from The Witcher Team

SWTOR: Issues getting into the game due to error messages in the launcher? Start here.

source:http://www.facebook.com/starwarstheoldrepublic

 

Issues getting into the game due to error messages in the launcher? Start here.

by Star Wars: The Old Republic on Thursday, 22 December 2011 at 08:58

I receive a Launcher error message telling me that my account requires additional activation steps before I can log in and play, what should I do?

Note: With the end of the Grace Period any player who has not yet entered their Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ Product Key will be unable to access the game until this has been added. If you have not done so already, please add the code (found in either your game box or via email sent by you digital retailer) into the code redemption section of your account page to help ensure uninterrupted game play.

If you find that you receive this error message when attempting to access Star Wars: The Old Republic since it officially launched then we would first like you to take some time to ensure that you have set your game account up correctly and completely.

In order to check whether you have successfully completed all of the steps necessary to continue please visit your account page through the official site at http://www.swtor.com. To fully activate your account, you will need to have completed the following:

• Created three to five security questions.
• Entered correct and accurate contact information.
• Redeemed a Product Registration Code.
• Entered a valid subscription method or redeemed a Game Time Code.
• Set up your Star Wars: The Old Republic Security Key (Optional).

Below you can find some helpful information on some of the main account setup steps required to access the game.

Creating Security Questions

This is the first step in account creation. You will be prompted to choose five questions from a pre-written list and assign answers to them. Please make sure that the questions you choose will be easily to remember by you personally, as you may be asked one of them randomly when you log into either the game or the website.

If you at any point experience issues related to your Security Questions after you have fully created your account, please do not hesitate contact our Account & Billing Customer Service team.

Entering Contact Information

When putting your contact information into this section of account set-up we would ask that you put as correct and accurate information as possible.

Redeeming a Product Registration Code

If you have not entered the Product Registration Code for your Star Wars: The Old Republic purchase then you will not be able to access the game until you have completed this step.

How you receive your code will depend on how you purchased the game:

• If you purchased a physical copy of the game, you will be able to find the Product Code printed on a piece of paper within the game box.
• If you purchased a digital copy of the game, the Product Code will have been sent to you via email.

Redeeming the code to your account could not be simpler, any account actions you need to complete can be done by logging into your account on the www.swtor.com website, clicking on the My Account button at the top of the page and then following the steps from there.

If you are experiencing difficulties with redeeming your Product Key or with the key itself then please do not hesitate to contact our Customer Service team.

Entering a Subscription or Game Time Code

In order to protect the integrity of both the game and your play experience, we require that every account holder set-up a valid subscription plan or add a Game Time Code before being able to continue playing the game beyond launch.  When completing this step you will be asked for one of the following:

• Sign up for a recurring subscription plan
• Redeem a Game Time Code

If you choose to sign up for a recurring subscription plan you will need to add valid payment information into your account page. We will not charge you any subscription fee during the 30 days of free game time. Should you decide not to continue playing before or after the 30 days has expired you will be able to cancel your subscription directly from your subscription page.

If you experience any payment issues beyond the 30 days of free game time then please do not hesitate to contact our Account & Billing Customer Service team.

Adding a Security Key to your account

This is an optional step in account creation. A security key is an enhanced method of account security.

Further Troubleshooting

Once you have ensured that you have gone through the mandatory steps required to fully set up and create your account, you should now be able to access the game. If you are still having trouble or are experiencing any other issues related to this then please do not hesitate to contact our customer service team.

Come explore the new STARWARS.COM

source:starwars.com email

TOP 5 NEW FEATURES TO EXPLORE:

 

More than just details, the new Encyclopedia brings the characters, locations, technologies and wonder of the Star Wars universe to life like never before, with new videos, slideshows, images and more!

Explore Now >

  

The best place to find Star Wars video online, from full-length episodes of The Clone Wars to highlights from the movies, trailers, parodies, behind-the-scenes featurettes and more – with new video added each week!

Watch Now >

Before and after each episode of The Clone Wars, head to StarWars.com for exclusive companion content and extras, including detailed slideshows, new Encyclopedia entries, behind-the-scenes commentaries, trivia and more.

Explore Now >

Want to see the newest and greatest Star Wars toys, books, comics gadgets and more, all in one place? The new SHOP features a one-stop interactive catalog, complete with images, reviews, and links to purchase!

Browse Now >

Looking for offline fun? Use the force of your creativity and check out a growing gallery of Star Wars craft, drawing and cooking lessons that'll keep families busy for hours. Perfect for kids of all ages.

Create Now >

SWTOR: Official launch in Australia/New Zealand

source:swtor.com

We can confirm that Star Wars: The Old Republic will be launching in Australia and New Zealand in the spring of 2012.

Right now we are targeting March 1st, but that could change as our number one priority is making sure that customers have a great service to play on.

For those of you who may have already imported the game, we will be investigating solutions to allow you to continue to play on a local server once they come online in March.

EDIT: As pointed out, southern hemisphere seasons are reversed! When we say 'Spring' you can substitute 'Q1/Q2 2012'. Apologies for that. 

Stephen Reid | Senior Online Community Manager

Ready, Set, Star Wars: The Old Republic Reviews Incoming

source:pcworld.com

Let's be frank: What we really wanted from BioWare wasn't a Star Wars MMO, but another single-player something-or-other, Knights of the Old Republic style. Because—and I think I speak for most here—the original Knights of the Old Republic remains BioWare's finest hour, easily the best Star Wars game yet made. Why mess that up by cramming jedis, wookies, smugglers, and sith lords into another boilerplate MMO?

Easy: 12 million players, a.k.a. World of Warcraft's peak subscribers base—subscribers playing a boilerplate MMO that costs $15 a month. Whatever that adds up to once you've subtracted 30-day trial players, the free-to-play crowd, and multi-month subscription discounts, it's still cha-ching on an unprecedented MMO revenue scale. EA wants in on that action, and Star Wars is probably the most recognizable entertainment brand in the world, absolutely dwarfing Activision Blizzard's Warcraft franchise. Ergo Star Wars: The Old Republic, which you may recall just last year was under fire by someone claiming to be an ex-BioWare employee, who called the game "a joke" and said it would be "one of the greatest failures in the history of MMOs from EA."

Sure enough, it sounds like the MMO parts are indeed very MMO-y, so if you're looking for the online roleplaying 'verse that breaks the "go kill X of Y" mold, the latter's still the predominant template here. But early impressions of the solo PvE story bits, which make up most of the launch content, are that BioWare's delivered the goods—"the goods" being a slew of KOTOR-like content.

"...Star Wars: The Old Republic is at its core eight different single-player BioWare Star Wars stories rolled up into one," writes Kotaku, rating the game a buy. "Each of the eight classes in the game has its own story that sees players traveling to the far corners of the galaxy in pursuit of their own personal adventure."

"The degree to which SWTOR's implementation of fully-voiced in-game cinematics for every quest improves player engagement cannot be overstated," writes Shacknews, celebrating the PvE perks. "I actually cared about many of the NPCs I met--a first for me in a massively-multiplayer title--due in no small part to some great voice acting. I suspect a significant number of WoW players might have a hard time going back to the text-based missions in Azeroth."

"The story is pervasive and driving, and I feel like I have a part in it," writes RPGamer of the singular class instancing. "Overall, despite the fact that I might rub shoulders with fellow Sith Warriors Darth DarthSephiroth and six Clouds on the Imperial Fleet, I still feel very much that I, and my character, are at the focus of the larger overarching story."

EA, BioWare and LucasArts usher in a Force in online games as STAR WARS™: The Old Republic™ goes live today

source:swtor.com

EA, BioWare and LucasArts usher in a Force in online games as STAR WARS™: The Old Republic™ goes live today

From Midnight Store Openings to the Opening Bell of the NASDAQ, Gamers and Star Wars™ Fans Celebrate the Start of their Personal Star Wars Saga Online Today

 

REDWOOD CITY, Calif – December 20, 2011 – A stunning Star Wars universe. Thousands of hours of gameplay. Gripping stories. Engrossing dialogue performed by hundreds of talented voice actors. BioWare, a label of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA), today is proud to turn on the servers for one of the most anticipated games of all time, Star Wars: The Old Republic, winner of over 100 awards from critics around the world. Last night, fans lined up around the block on the eve of launch at retail outlets in New York, Paris, London, Austin and other cities across the world, celebrating the debut of the game with gatherings complete with costumed characters and memorabilia giveaways. This morning, EA, BioWare and LucasArts continue the launch celebration by hosting the opening ceremony and ringing the bell at the NASDAQ stock exchange. The ceremony can be viewed at http://nasdaq.com/. As the servers go live and fans flood into the game, BioWare customer support teams are managing the network infrastructure to ensure every player has a smooth, easy and fun experience getting into the game.

“Today represents an amazing milestone for BioWare, EA and Star Wars fans everywhere and we are confident it has been worth the wait,” said Dr. Ray Muzyka, Co-Founder, BioWare and General Manager, EA’s BioWare Label. “The support and resources going into Star Wars: The Old Republic are not ending today. The innovations we’re bringing to the category are just the start of a journey and ongoing investment in our players that will grow, evolve and transform based on player feedback over the weeks, months and years ahead.”

Dr. Greg Zeschuk, Co-Founder, BioWare and General Manager of the BioWare Label’s MMO Business Unit, added: “The addition of story and personal choice to the MMO genre is going to fundamentally change the way people perceive MMOs moving forward, especially when it is experienced at its fullest potential with high-quality writing and voice acting. We are extremely happy with where The Old Republic stands at launch and we can’t wait to grow the game with our community to make it even better in the future.”

Star Wars: The Old Republic is a story-driven, massively multiplayer online (MMO) game from BioWare and LucasArts, breaking new ground in online gaming by delivering high quality, fully voiced storylines with personal choice and consequences. Set thousands of years before the classic Star Wars movies, players will be immersed as they team up with friends online to fight in heroic battles reminiscent of the films, exploring a galaxy of vibrant planets and experiencing visceral Star Wars combat. Players will be asked to join forces with either the Galactic Republic or Sith Empire and choose one of eight iconic Star Wars characters, including the Jedi Knight, Jedi Consular, Smuggler, Trooper, Sith Warrior, Sith Inquisitor, Bounty Hunter and Imperial Agent. Set against a sweeping musical score, Star Wars: The Old Republic will be the most emotionally engaging online gaming experience ever.

Included with the purchase of every copy of Star Wars: The Old Republic is 30 days of access to the game, after which players can continue to play through subscribing* at either $14.99 per month, $41.97 for 3 months ($13.99 per month), or $77.94 for six months ($12.99 per month). For more information on Star Wars: The Old Republic, please visit http://www.swtor.com/, follow the game on Twitter® at http://twitter.com/swtor or “Like” Star Wars: The Old Republic on Facebook® at http://facebook.com/starwarstheoldrepublic.

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*Subscription pricing in the United Kingdom will be £8.99 per month, £25.17 for three months (£8.39 per month) or £46.14 for six months (£7.69 per month). Subscription pricing in Europe will be €12.99 per month, €35.97 for three months (€11.99 per month) or €65.94 for six months (€10.99 per month).

About LucasArts
Founded in 1982 by filmmaker George Lucas, LucasArts is a leading publisher and developer of interactive entertainment. With development facilities in San Francisco and Singapore, LucasArts leverages the global skills, technology and resources of the Lucasfilm family of companies -- including visual effects leader Industrial Light & Magic, Lucasfilm Animation and Skywalker Sound -- in addition to strategic partnerships with best-in-class external partners, to further the boundaries of game development. LucasArts is dedicated to delivering deeply immersive, visually spectacular and engaging experiences that inspire and amaze generations.

About BioWare
The BioWare Label is a division of EA which crafts high quality multiplatform role-playing, MMO, social, play-for-free and strategy games, focused on emotionally engaging, rich stories with unforgettable characters and vast worlds to discover. Since 1995, BioWare has created some of the world's most critically acclaimed titles and franchises, including Baldur's Gate™, Neverwinter Nights™, Star Wars®: Knights of the Old Republic™, Jade Empire™, Mass Effect™ and Dragon Age™. BioWare currently operates in eight locations across the world, including Edmonton (Alberta, Canada), Montreal (Quebec, Canada), Austin (Texas), Fairfax (Virginia), San Francisco (California), Los Angeles (California), Sacramento (California) and Galway (Ireland).

In 2008, BioWare was acquired by Electronic Arts, a leading global interactive entertainment publisher. In 2011 EA created the BioWare Label, alongside EA Games, EA SPORTS™ and EA Play. For more information on BioWare, visit http://www.bioware.com/, or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/bioware. To join the millions of fans already registered with the BioWare community, go to http://social.bioware.com/.

About Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) is a global leader in digital interactive entertainment. The Company’s game franchises are offered as both packaged goods products and online services delivered through Internet-connected consoles, personal computers, mobile phones and tablets. EA has more than 100 million registered players and operates in 75 countries. In fiscal 2011, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $3.6 billion. Headquartered in Redwood City, California, EA is recognized for critically acclaimed, high-quality blockbuster franchises such as The Sims™, Madden NFL, FIFA Soccer, Need for Speed™, Battlefield, and Mass Effect™. More information about EA is available at http://info.ea.com/.

LucasArts, the LucasArts logo, STAR WARS and related properties are trademarks in the United States and/or in other countries of Lucasfilm Ltd. and/or its affiliates. © 2011 Lucasfilm Entertainment Company Ltd. or Lucasfilm Ltd. All rights reserved. BioWare and the BioWare logo are trademarks of EA International (Studio and Publishing) Ltd. EA and the EA logo are trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

"Your Saga Begins” Launch Documentary

source:swtor.com

Media > Trailer
“Your Saga Begins” Launch Documentary

Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ has launched! This is an incredibly exciting time for everyone at BioWare and LucasArts, and to celebrate this event we invite you all to watch this launch documentary, “Your Saga Begins.” Watch as members of the Star Wars: The Old Republic development team discuss the many facets of building the game, from bringing life to the epic stories for each class, to hand-crafting the numerous iconic worlds that you can explore!

Launch downtime reminder - new servers incoming (Dec 19th article)

source:swtor.com

Tonight at 12:01AM EST we are officially launching Star Wars™: The Old Republic™.

This is a huge moment for everyone - both the fans and those who created the game. Thanks for being part of the experience so far, and we look forward to running the best game service we can for years to come.

Tonight, we are bringing the servers down for maintenance as we prepare for launch, as previously mentioned. Both the game servers and SWTOR.com will be offline from 6PM CST (4PM PST/7PM EST/12AM GMT/1AM CET) to 11PM CST (9PM PST/12AM EST/5AM GMT/6AM CET). As well as bringing the existing game servers back online, from 11PM CST onwards we'll be bringing up a large number of new servers, spread across all three of our server locations (US West Coast, US East Coast and Europe). As always, every server is open and available to anyone playing - just select your preferred location (US / Europe) from the tab at the bottom of the server select screen.

Even with these additional servers we are expecting queues on the most popular servers, and these queues are likely to persist for a while yet. We are monitoring them closely and raising population caps where necessary, however this is a careful process that is ongoing. Our servers do not have unlimited populations and we want every server to have a healthy population during and after launch.

If you are joining the game for the first time during this launch period, or if you are looking for a lower population server to play on, now is the best time to create a character on a new server. We would strongly advise anyone joining the game to not attempt to create a new character on a server that is listed as 'Full', unless you are comfortable with the potential for queues to enter the server.

Finally, don't forget that after tonight's downtime, you are entering a 'grace period' in which you will need to enter your final product registration code (AKA 'game code') from your copy of the game (or your email from Origin), along with your preferred payment method, to activate your 30 days of game time. You can redeem your game code here.

As another reminder, we'll be taking down the game servers and SWTOR.com at the end of that 'grace period' at 2AM CST (12AM PST/3AM EST/8AM GMT/9AM CET), the early hours of December 22nd. When the servers come back up at that time, you will need a product registration code redeemed on your account to continue playing. To ensure you can continue to play, make sure you redeem your code as soon as possible.

We're getting ready for launch - we hope you are too. We look forward to seeing you online!

Star Wars: The Old Republic Launches

source:starwars.com

Hundreds of thousands of lines of high quality dialogue voiced by some of the most renowned voice actors in the industry. Thousands of hours of gameplay, set in the rich, iconic Star Wars^™ universe. Winner of over 100 awards from critics around the world, BioWare, a Label of Electronic Arts Inc., today is proud to turn on the servers for one of the most anticipated games of all time, Star Wars^™: The Old Republic^™. Last night, fans lined up around the block on the eve of launch at retail outlets in New York, Paris, London, Austin and other cities across the world, celebrating the debut of the game by with gatherings complete with costumed characters and memorabilia giveaways. This morning, EA, BioWare and LucasArts continue the launch celebration by hosting the opening ceremony and ringing the bell at the NASDAQ stock exchange (the ceremony can be viewed at http://nasdaq.com/). As the servers go live and fans flood into the game, BioWare's customer support teams are managing the network infrastructure to ensure every player has a smooth, easy and fun experience getting into the game.


"Today represents an amazing milestone for BioWare, EA and Star Wars fans everywhere and we are confident it has been worth the wait," said Dr. Ray Muzyka, Co-Founder, BioWare and General Manager, EA's BioWare Label. "The support and resources going into Star Wars: The Old Republic are not ending today. The innovations we're bringing to the category are just the start of a journey and ongoing investment in our players that will grow, evolve and transform based on player feedback over the weeks, months and years ahead."


Dr. Greg Zeschuk, Co-Founder, BioWare and General Manager of the BioWare Label's MMO Business Unit, added: "The addition of story and personal choice to the MMO genre is going to fundamentally change the way people perceive MMOs moving forward, especially when it is experienced at its fullest potential with high-quality writing and voice acting. We are extremely happy with where The Old Republic stands at launch and we can't wait to grow the game with our community to make it even better in the future."


Star Wars: The Old Republic is a story-driven, massively multiplayer online (MMO) game from BioWare and LucasArts, breaking new ground in online gaming by delivering high quality, fully voiced storylines with personal choice and consequences. Set thousands of years before the classic Star Wars movies, players will be immersed as they team up with friends online to fight in heroic battles reminiscent of the films, exploring a galaxy of vibrant planets and experiencing visceral Star Wars combat. Players will be asked to join forces with either the Galactic Republic or Sith Empire and choose one of eight iconic Star Wars characters, including the Jedi Knight, Jedi Consular, Smuggler, Trooper, Sith Warrior, Sith Inquisitor, Bounty Hunter and Imperial Agent. Set against a sweeping musical score, Star Wars: The Old Republic will be the most emotionally engaging online gaming experience ever.
Included with the purchase of every copy of Star Wars: The Old Republic is 30 days of access to the game, after which players can continue to play through subscribing* at either $14.99 per month, $41.97 for 3 months ($13.99 per month), or $77.94 for six months ($12.99 per month). For more information on Star Wars: The Old Republic, please visit http://www.starwarstheoldrepublic.com/, follow the game on Twitter or "Like" Star Wars: The Old Republic on Facebook.

---

* Subscription pricing in the United Kingdom will be £8.99 per month, £25.17 for three months (£8.39 per month) or £46.14 for six months (£7.69 per month). Subscription pricing in Europe will be €12.99 per month, €35.97 for three months (€11.99 per month) or €65.94 for six months (€10.99 per month).

SWTOR Discusses Server Queues

source:swtor.com

We know there have been questions about the queues on the servers, so we wanted to take a moment to give you some insight.

In order to ensure that the service would be smooth and stable, we staged how we brought people into the Early Game Access program, adding people in waves.

As you know, there are a lot of folks who want to play the game right now and we want to make sure they have lots of people to play with. Balancing this with figuring out when to bring new servers online to help alleviate the size of the queues is part art and part science. On one hand, you do not want people to wait too long – on the other hand, you want to make sure that people have a dynamic, engaging community to play with for long after launch. Either way, we have one clear objective – to make sure folks have fun.

While we can’t promise that there won’t ever be queues, we can promise you that we are taking this matter seriously and constantly reviewing them to make sure that they are manageable and reasonable.

Jeff Hickman, Executive Producer – Live Services

SWTOR Email invite wave updates - December 16th

source:swtor.com

We are entering into the final stretch for outstanding invites. Those of you who pre-ordered in December should be happy today - barring any major issues.

I'll update this thread as we send invites. As a reminder, we're also updating our official Twitter accounts (@SWTOR, @SWTOR_FR and @SWTOR_DE) with the invites as they sent; that'll be more up-to-the-minute than this post.

For anyone who's not yet been invited, remember to have the email address no-reply@bioware.swtor.com in your address book so it doesn't hit spam filters.

Assuming you have the SWTOR client installed, you can also periodically launch it. If you're ready to go your 'play' button will be click-able.

Wave One was sent at 8AM CST (6AM PST / 9AM EST / 2PM GMT / 3PM CET).

Stephen Reid | Senior Online Community Manager 

SWTOR Scheduled Maintenance Periods between December 15 and December 22

source:swtor.com

Hello everyone, we wanted to inform you of a couple of upcoming scheduled maintenance windows.

Generally speaking we are aiming to limit our scheduled maintenance period to once a week, on Tuesdays. We are aiming for this weekly maintenance period to take place in an off-peak time for both North American and European players. We are also aiming to inform players of the precise duration of any weekly maintenance period at least 24 hours before the maintenance begins.

The upcoming maintenance windows (detailed below) are exceptions, and are needed to prepare ourselves for our official launch on December 20th.

 

Maintenance Window #1:

Date: Early hours of Friday, December 16th (CST)
Time: 2AM CST (12AM PST/3AM EST/8AM GMT/9AM CET)
All game servers and SWTOR.com will be offline during this period. This maintenance is expected to take no more than two hours, but could be extended.

 

Maintenance Window #2:

Date: Evening of December 19th (CST)
Time: 6PM CST (4PM PST/7PM EST/12AM GMT/1AM CET)
All game servers and SWTOR.com will be offline during this period. This maintenance is expected to complete before 11PM CST, and will mark the end of Early Game Access for Star Wars™: The Old Republic™.

 

Maintenance Window #3:

Date: Early hours of December 22nd (CST)
Time: 2AM CST (12AM PST/3AM EST/8AM GMT/9AM CET)
All game servers and SWTOR.com will be offline during this period. This maintenance is expected to take no more than three hours, but could be extended.


Thanks for your patience as we maintain service for Star Wars: The Old Republic.

SWTOR Grace Period confirmed

source:swtor.com

Hello everyone,

While we've worked closely with our retailers in the launch territories to ensure copies of Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ are available from our launch date of December 20th, we understand that for those who’ve pre-ordered there is a concern about getting your copy on time. We’ve heard you want a 'grace period' where you can continue to play without having to enter a final product registration code (AKA 'game code').

We've been listening, and after doing another deep review of our platform infrastructure we're taking action. Today, we're announcing a two day grace period for Star Wars: The Old Republic customers.

This means that everyone who pre-ordered and is in the Early Game Access program has two days beyond December 20th in which to enter their product registration code, which will be found inside the physical Standard and Collector's Editions of the game; for digital editions of the game from Origin.com, the registration code will have been emailed to you after December 16th. After December 22nd 12:01AM EST, you will be required to have a valid payment method and a product registration code registered to your account to continue to play. We strongly recommend that you register your product code as soon as you are able to do so (rather than waiting until the last minute) to ensure a seamless entry into the game, a smooth experience on the account website and to collect any special gifts and items you may be entitled to based on the version of the game you purchased.

We understand that for some, your copy of the game may still arrive after December 21st. Unfortunately we cannot extend the grace period any further. We suggest you contact your retailer to discuss shipping options, if this is a concern.

You may be wondering if your 30 days of game time will be affected by the grace period. The answer is no. If you redeem your product registration code during the grace period, and add a valid payment method to your account, you will begin your billing cycle from then, and you will be entitled to 30 days of game time. If you redeem your product registration code before December 20th, your billing cycle will begin on December 20th at 12:01AM EST (the official launch date and time of the game).

We know this has been an issue for some of you, and we apologize for the concerns. We're looking forward to welcoming all of you to the official launch of Star Wars: The Old Republic

SWTOR Recap for December 15th Invites

source:swtor.com

Hello again all -

We're finished with invite waves for today. The servers are filling up, player populations are growing, and we're monitoring the influx of players carefully. More servers will be opened up as we need them.

We're expecting queues, and at peak times you should be too. That's normal for a large-scale MMO launch, as the initial rush of players hit the servers at the same time. If you don't want to queue to play, it's best to try and login at non-peak hours - or possibly play on a different server. We understand the frustration that queuing can cause, and we're working to minimize, but a certain amount of queuing is to be expected during Early Game Access and launch.

Looking forward to tomorrow, I wanted to try and explain the invite 'pattern' you've seen this week. It can be confusing, because we've been inviting a growing number of people on a daily basis, but the timing of people's code redemptions might not seem to match.

It goes back to our pre-order redemption numbers. Our graph of redeemed pre-order codes looks like two mountains with a flat plain in-between, basically. There's a massive peak from back in July (when we announced pre-orders) and a smaller, but growing peak at the end (recently). In the middle, there was a long period where the numbers of people redeeming pre-order codes were steady, but lower.

Now, we've been inviting large numbers of people every day, with more being invited day-on-day. What that has meant is, because of the pattern of pre-order codes being redeemed, on Day One of Early Game Access, we invited a lot of people who had redeemed over a short span of time (late July). Yesterday and today, we invited a lot of people but over a larger span of time (all the way to early December).

The question I know a lot of you have is, why haven't we yet invited those who redeemed very recently? The answer is because of the volume of recent pre-orders that have been redeemed, which is spiking up very high. So, a lot of people have redeemed in a short period of time. Essentially we're in the same place we were on the 13th, where we invited a lot of people, but most had redeemed in the same short period of time.

TL;DR - We've seen a LOT of pre-orders redeemed in the last couple of weeks, and that means that even though we're really close (in date terms) to getting everyone in, we couldn't quite do it today.

Tomorrow's invite waves start at 8AM CST, and I'll start another thread then to track progress. 

Stephen Reid | Senior Online Community Manager 

SWTOR Email invite wave updates - December 15th

source: swtor.com

Morning everyone!

We're starting to send out more invites for today.

Here's the good news: overnight we decided to send out more invites than we had originally planned. However, we'll be spacing those invites out, which means we'll have more 'waves' than the previous four-per-day. We are inviting more people today than we did during yesterday.

I'll update this thread as we send invites. As a reminder, we're also updating our official Twitter accounts (@SWTOR, @SWTOR_FR and @SWTOR_DE) with the invites as they sent; that'll be more up-to-the-minute than this post.

For anyone who's not yet been invited, remember to have the email address no-reply@bioware.swtor.com in your address book so it doesn't hit spam filters. Assuming you have the SWTOR client installed, you can also periodically launch it. If you're ready to go your 'play' button will be click-able.

Wave One was sent at 8AM CST (6AM PST / 9AM EST / 2PM GMT / 3PM CET).

Wave Two was sent at 9AM CST (7AM PST / 10AM EST / 3PM GMT / 4PM CET).

Wave Three was sent at 10AM CST (8AM PST / 11AM EST / 4PM GMT / 5PM CET).

Wave Four was sent at 11AM CST (9AM PST / 12PM EST / 5PM GMT / 6PM CET).

Wave Five was sent at 12PM CST (10AM PST / 1PM EST / 6PM GMT / 7PM CET).

Wave Six was sent at 1:15PM CST (11:15AM PST / 2:15PM EST / 7:15PM GMT / 8:15PM CET).

Wave Seven was sent at 2:15PM CST (12:15PM PST / 3:15PM EST / 8:15PM GMT / 9:15PM CET).

Wave Eight was sent at 3PM CST (1PM PST / 4PM EST / 9PM GMT / 10PM CET).


Stephen Reid | Senior Online Community Manager

SWTOR Known In-Game Issues: Updated December 14th

source:swtor.com

Hello everyone! We appreciate you joining us to play Star Wars™: The Old Republic™, and we hope you enjoy the game. As MMORPGs are large and complex projects, inevitably we do discover issues that may affect gameplay. We're working constantly to fix anything that will affect the player experience, but for now this is our current list of high priority in-game known issues.

This list of known issues was last updated on: December 14th, 2011 4:30PM CST (10:30PM London, 11:30PM Paris/Berlin):

For the Sith Warrior mission "A New Master", defeating Teeno first will prevent players from speaking to Phyne to progress as intended.

Workaround: Sometimes, players can leave the mission phase and enter again, which may allow for Phyne to be selected. If she is not, players will need to abandon the mission and complete the fight again, this time ensuring Teeno is not defeated first.

When using the Master Looter grouping feature, players currently cannot assign loot to other people in the group (normal or Operations groups) when that loot is from a chest and will receive the message: "Access denied."

When grouped with another character of your same class and while inside a Class Phase, looting may request players to roll for loot rather than giving it to the player automatically. This happens most often when group members are not within the proper proximity to be eligible for the items. Note that the window may require more than one roll attempt, but the appropriate player will receive the loot after about 30 seconds.

Sorting within the guild window can cause members in the roster to disappear from the list.

Workaround: Sort by guild member name to ensure that the full guild roster appears as intended.

The loading screen that prompts "Press spacebar to continue" will not function properly if the command for "jump" has been remapped to another key in player preferences.

Workaround: If the "jump" command is not bound, players will need to exit the game using Alt+F4 or by pressing Ctrl+Alt+Delete to pull up the Task Manager. Upon returning to the game, players will need to bind the jump key. Players should use the remapped key to progress when at the loading screen.

Some pre-assigned guilds may notice that guild names appear to be misspelled or incorrect when players log on to their designated server. Players should not disband their guilds for this concern, as every new member that logs in will recreate the incorrect guild.


Amber Green | Game Testing Coordinator

Date information on SWTOR invites today and tomorrow

source:swtor.com


A quick update on today's invites, and a little preview of tomorrow.

Today, we invited people who had pre-ordered up to the very beginning of October (roughly). Tomorrow, we're going to be inviting the same number of people again; that will take us up to the last week or so of November. On Friday, we'll be inviting even more, and we'll give you an update on that tomorrow.

You'll see more servers coming online tomorrow, and almost certainly there will be some queuing. That was always expected. As a reminder, our plan here is to maintain healthy server populations post launch, and during the excitement of launch that will mean queues. That said, we'll be working hard to keep those queues reasonable.

We'll check back in tomorrow with another update.

Stephen Reid | Senior Online Community Manager

NINTENDO UNVEILS DEEP AND DIVERSE SOFTWARE LINEUP FOR EARLY 2012

source:nintendo.com

 

New Kid Icarus, Pokémon, Rhythm Heaven and Mario Party Games Are on the Way...

REDMOND, Wash., Dec. 13, 2011 – As some people hunker down for a long winter's nap, Nintendo is getting things fired up. The first quarter of 2012 offers great new installments in popular franchises for both the Nintendo 3DS™ system and the Wii™ console. Nintendo has something for everyone, from family fun to three-dimensional adventure.

On the Nintendo 3DS system, Capcom's Resident Evil® Revelations launches on Feb. 7. In a new chapter of the hit survival-horror franchise, players fight a new enemy and virus in 3D without the need for special glasses. METAL GEAR SOLID® 3D Snake Eater from Konami arrives in the first quarter of 2012. The game is a re-interpretation of METAL GEAR SOLID 3: Snake Eater, and offers a rich jungle world with customizable stealth and camouflage options. On March 23, the epic odyssey Kid Icarus™: Uprising soars into stores and lets players help the winged warrior Pit fight Medusa and her Underworld Army.

The Nintendo eShop for Nintendo 3DS will also be busy with a variety of downloadable offerings. Dillon's Rolling Western™ brings tower-defense strategy and touch-screen driven action to the Old West. Armadillo ranger Dillon defends pioneer villages against waves of attacking rock monsters using gun towers, defensive structures and his own exciting attack abilities. In Sakura Samurai: Art of the Sword™, players travel to ancient Japan and guide a young warrior as he battles waves of enemy soldiers. Players must identify the enemy's attack, dodge and counter-attack with the mystical Sakura Sword to win the battle. The critically acclaimed VVVVVV and NightSky from Nicalis, mind-bending action of Mighty Switch Force from WayForward and immersive 3D visuals of Mutant Mudds™ from Renegade Kid™ round out a diverse selection of downloadable games.

Nintendo is also introducing an optional accessory that gives Nintendo 3DS owners a second analog stick to control compatible games. The Circle Pad Pro will launch in the United States on Feb. 7. It will be sold through GameStop stores and online at http://www.gamestop.com/ at a suggested retail price of $19.99. The Circle Pad Pro is a comfortable cradle that holds the Nintendo 3DS system while adding an analog Circle Pad on the system's right side. The attachment also adds additional shoulder buttons to give it a feel more akin to traditional console controllers. It is designed as an optional accessory and is compatible with Resident Evil Revelations and METAL GEAR SOLID 3D Snake Eater.

On the Wii console, Rhythm Heaven™ Fever arrives on Feb. 13 at a suggested retail price of $29.99 in the United States. The game asks players to test their rhythm in more than 50 easy-to-learn, tough-to-master minigames to prove they've got the groove. Two weeks later on Feb. 27, PokéPark™ 2: Wonders Beyond lets players take on the role of Pikachu™ and his Pals — Oshawott™, Snivy™ and Tepig™ — as they try to make it through PokéPark and discover the secrets of a mysterious new world. On March 11, Mario™ and friends reunite for a new party game adventure in Mario Party™ 9, which introduces new game-play elements to the series such as boss battles and vehicular travel across a wide assortment of stages.

Below is a partial list of upcoming games for Nintendo systems. Note that game titles and launch dates are subject to change.

Nintendo 3DS

2K PlayNicktoons MLB 3D - March

CapcomResident Evil® Revelations - Feb. 7

Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.METAL GEAR SOLID® 3D Snake Eater - Q1
Pro Evolution Soccer 2012 - January

NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc.TEKKEN 3D Prime Edition™ - February
Tales of the Abyss® - Feb. 14

NintendoKid Icarus: Uprising - March 23

Published by SEGA® of AmericaMario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games™ - Feb. 14

SEGA® of AmericaCRUSH™3D - Q1

UbisoftNCIS The Video Game (Based on the TV Series) - March 6
Horses 3D - March 6
Funky Barn - Q1
Rayman® Origins - Q1

Nintendo eShop

Collecting SmilesColors! 3D - Q1

NicalisVVVVVV - Q1
NightSky - Q1

NintendoSakura Samurai: Art of the Sword - Q1
Dillon's Rolling Western - Q1
Kirby's Block Ball™ - Q1

Renegade KidMutant Mudds - Q1

Shin'en MultimediaFun! Fun! Minigolf TOUCH - Q1
Jett Rocket Super Surf - Q1

WayForwardMighty Switch Force - Q1

Zen StudiosZen Pinball - Q1

Wii

2K SportsMLB 2K12 - March 6

GameMill EntertainmentCountry Dance™ Special Edition - Feb. 1

Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.Karaoke Joysound - Q1

NintendoRhythm Heaven Fever - Feb. 13

PokéPark 2: Wonders Beyond - Feb. 27

Mario Party 9 - March 11

 

WiiWare™

NicalisLa Mulana - Q1

 

Nintendo DS™ Family

2K SportsMLB 2K12 - March 6

ATLUSShin Megami Tensei®: Devil Survivor™ 2 - February

GameMill EntertainmentSilverlicious™ - March 20

Xia Xia™ - March 20

Gogo's Crazy Bones™ - March 20

Mentor InteractiveChess for Kids - Feb. 14

NARABA: The Labyrinth of Light - Feb. 21

NARABA: The Mysterious Palace - Feb. 21

 

Nintendo DSiWare™

CosmigoBox Pusher - Q1

CyproniaCake Ninja - Q1

Remember that Wii and Nintendo 3DS feature parental controls that let adults manage the content their children can access. For more information about this and other features, visit http://www.nintendo.com/wii and http://www.nintendo.com/3ds.

For more information about Nintendo, visit http://www.nintendo.com/.

About Nintendo: The worldwide pioneer in the creation of interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and software for its Wii™ home console, Nintendo 3DS™ and Nintendo DS™ family of portable systems. Since 1983, when it launched the Nintendo Entertainment System™, Nintendo has sold more than 3.8 billion video games and more than 610 million hardware units globally, including the current-generation Wii, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo DS, Nintendo DSi™ and Nintendo DSi XL™, as well as the Game Boy™, Game Boy Advance, Super NES™, Nintendo 64™ and Nintendo GameCube™ systems. It has also created industry icons that have become well-known, household names such as Mario™, Donkey Kong™, Metroid™, Zelda™ and Pokémon™. A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo's operations in the Western Hemisphere. For more information about Nintendo, please visit the company's website at http://www.nintendo.com/.