• Star Wars: The Old Republic revealed

• Posted Oct 21, 2008 2:00 pm PT

• A not so long time ago, in a studio somewhat far away...

• When Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic debuted in July 2003, it was an instant sensation. It sidestepped the controversy
surrounding the Star Wars prequels by introducing a new era set 4,000 years prior that was packed with Jedi Knights and a whole army of
their nemeses, the Sith. Using BioWare's trademark in-depth dialogue system, the game let player's choices in individual situations build
up to a permanent alignment with either the Dark or the Light sides of The Force. At times, the dilemmas were deliciously agonizing, such
as when, right at the game's climax, a player was forced to chose between killing an Obi-Wan Kenobi-esque father figure or a romantic
interest made all the more tempting by the Dark Side. Not long after the PC edition of the sequel hit stores in 2005, BioWare approached
LucasArts with a pitch for what would be their biggest collaboration yet.

• Described as "the most important guy at BioWare no one has ever heard of" by insiders, Ohlen has been a lead designer on virtually
every game the studio has produced, including Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, and the original Knights of the Old Republic. Now, as
lead designer of The Old Republic, he is overseeing what he isn't afraid to say is BioWare's most ambitious project ever.

• "The biggest challenge for this game is the sheer amount of content you have to create," boasted Ohlen. "This is a HUGE game. Just to
give you an idea of how huge this game is, we were taking a look at it, and it has more story content than every single other BioWare
game that's come before put together. That would mean Baldur's Gate, Baldur's Gate II, Neverwinter Nights, Neverwinter Nights II,
Knights of the Old Republic, Knights of the Old Republic II, Mass Effect--and all the expansions." Currently, the Old Republic has 12 full-
time staff writers who are "cranking out" content, some for as long as two years.

• The Fourth Pillar

• So what is the setting for this massive epic? The Old Republic takes place 300 years after the events of the original Knights of the Old
Republic games, or about 3,600 years before the events of the films. While story elements from the first two games will "definitely play a
role," much has changed since the end of KOTOR II. The old Sith Empire, which had been banished into deep space after nearly being
exterminated by the Galactic Republic, has reemerged. Its return came in the form of a massive sneak attack by its huge fleet.

• A brutal war ensued, which saw the Sith's elite armies conquer dozens of worlds in the Outer Rim and sack the Republic's capital planet
Coruscant. Pacifist factions within the Republic forced the signing of a treaty, leading to a fragile peace across the galaxy. Those same
factions blamed the Jedi for the Republic's drubbing by the Sith, forcing the relocation of the decimated Jedi Council from Coruscant to
Tython, the Jedi's homeworld.

• As the game begins, the interstellar Cold War is thawing, and players will find themselves at ground zero as a new conflict begins to flare
up. "Players get to come in and take the roles of heroes--or villains--at this pivotal moment where we're starting to go back into a big
galactic war," promised Erickson.

• Like other MMOs, The Old Republic will have two factions--the Galactic Republic and the Sith Empire. Though led by respectively
benevolent and malevolent leaders, the two sides will be home to characters of morally varying stripes. "There's a lot more people than
Sith and Jedi in the Empire and the Republic, so one of the things that became important to us is that we separate the idea of faction and
good and evil," said Erickson. "Light Side and Dark Side is not the same as faction. In the original KOTOR, you could be Dark Side, even
though you worked for the Republic. Here, just because you're in the Empire [faction], doesn't mean you have be Dark Side. You can play
as the good guy in the bad place trying to do good things or the bad guy in the good place trying to do bad things."

• Erickson hopes such background will make the Sith Empire more compelling than the evil factions of other MMORPGs. "These
[Imperials] are actual people," he said. "They don't get up in the morning and say, 'What can we do that's evil today?' They have to have a
legitimate point of view. You have to believe when you're playing that the things you're doing make sense and be proud of where you are.
"

• Nichols agreed that having strong dramatic underpinning is what will set the Old Republic apart from competitors such as World of
Warcraft. "What's really missing [in other MMOs] is context--why you're doing all these missions, why you're on this quest, why you're out
killing 10 wolves," he asserted. "So story puts that in the context, and gives you a much more immersive experience where you're really
building a stronger relationship with your online character than you would without it."

• However, don't get the idea that BioWare and LucasArts aren't respectful of what MMOs like WOW have accomplished. "We're huge fans
of MMOs and have played just pretty much everything else out there," said Muzkya. "We really appreciate the things that make great
MMOs great. There's great exploration, there's combat, there's [character] customization and progression. The Old Republic has all those
things. It's got those pillars. But what we're adding is a fourth pillar, a pillar of story and character, of meaningful choice with
consequences. You get to experience your personal life story, your history as a character."

• Narrative-based gameplay

• Indeed, BioWare is confident that The Old Republic's story will focus on character and affect gameplay like no other MMORPG before.
"Because our stories revolve around a player's class, his role, we're able to tell stories that are very focused on who the player is, which is
something other BioWare games haven't been able to do," explained Ohlen.

• Ohlen went on to explain that each of the game's two factions will contain various classes, each with its own unique backstory. So far, the
only classes confirmed are the Jedi and Sith, which will allow players to wield lightsabers and force powers "very early on," versus well
into the game as was the case with the first KOTOR.

• Besides the back stories, each class will also have its own branching storyline, which will be affected by players' moral choices as in other
BioWare games. However, unlike in single-player RPGs, Old Republic players have no fail-safe when presented with an agonizing choice.

• "The big difference, and what makes it so impactful when you're playing it, is you have no save button," said Erickson, a borderline
sadistic glint in his eye. "One of the ways people have traditionally played BioWare games is by saying 'Oh my god, that's huge!' and
quickly saving. "Then you reload and say 'Oh, that would've happened! That's exciting!' Well guess what, you're how many dozens of
hours in...[and] that decision is going to make huge ramifications that are going to affect [you] for hours and hours. And you have to make
it, and you have to live with it. That really puts an impact onto choices and story that's much stronger than we've ever been able to do in a
game...During our testing, you can tell when these moments were happening, because you'll see people leaning back from their
keyboards, wringing their hands."

• Such trepidation is understandable, given that a player's choices will permanently open and close storyline options--and their included
quests--and affect non-player characters' reactions. This latter factor is especially important, since players will have NPC companions as
in the first two KOTORs. "You'll have dialogue with them and start building relationships with them," said Nichols. The interactions with
companion NPCs will also open up new options, as they did in Mass Effect and other BioWare games, not all of which will be welcome.
"Piss them off enough, and they may leave, and say 'Screw this, I'm outta here!'" joked Nichols, channeling his inner Eric Cartman.
•
Though effusive about how story would affect players in The Old Republic, both BioWare and LucasArts were reticent when it came to
hard gameplay details. However, interviews and press materials did provide some information. The Old Republic game will feature
"dozens" of worlds inhabited by players, including Coruscant, Tython, and Korriban, the Sith homeworld. Other planets mentioned in the
announcement include Alderran, Utapau, Agamar, Dathomir, and Manaan, though their role in the game is unclear.

• Some planets will be dominated by one faction, while others will be the sites of skirmishes that are flaring up on the Empire-Republic
border. Though reps would not confirm it explicitly, these contested worlds seem a likely spot for player-versus-player battles, which both
LucasArts and BioWare reps emphasized would be a major part of The Old Republic. "It will have all the features you'd expect in a triple-
A MMO," promised Nichols, including guilds and "plenty of other socialization options."

• However, the executive was effusive--even ebullient--about the challenge The Old Republic presents for BioWare. "I'd say this is definitely
our biggest project yet," Zeschuk declared flatly. "We've worked on a lot of games--Mass Effect was a big game, and Dragon Age is a big
game. But Star Wars: The Old Republic is just plain huge. And what makes it huge is not only that it's Star Wars--which means it's got to
be epic--but [in] the MMO space, we've got something to prove. This is our first game in that space, and there's some really great
competition, and we want to stand out...Ultimately in the MMO space, more than any other, you really have to nail it. There's a real high
bar in that space now."