pet, 28. srpnja '06 u 08:02
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Star Wars Galaxies: Three years and counting
By Robert "Sabrehawk" Cox
SWG.WarCry.com
Three years is a long time in the online gaming world. For some, it's longer than others.
In the case of Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided, an argument can be made that the summer of 2003 was a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away.
Since that initial launch, the game has seen over 30 updates, a major upgrade to the combat system and a complete overhaul that left many players wondering if the game's developers, Sony Online Entertainment and LucasArts, had completely lost their collective mind.
The NGE, or New Game Enhancements, were added to the live servers seven months ago, changing nearly the entire game, from the combat system to the smallest profession detail, even eliminating several professions loved by the player base.
According to SOE producer Grant "Rogue_5" McDaniel, there's a method, or at least a reason, behind the perceived madness.
“There was certainly a concern over how [the NGE] was going to be pursued by the players, but we knew that to make the kind of game that us and LucasArts expected for a Star Wars online game, we needed to make the changes,” said McDaniel. “And to actually be able to continue to support the game that we've got, we needed to make those type of changes, to make it something that we could really feel good about, that we could really make sure was a high-quality game that provided the action experience that you'd expect from a Star Wars game.
“Certainly, we were a little nervous about how that was going to play out, but so far we've been very successful with the changes and we're happy with the direction of the game.”
Many players, however, disagree, making McDaniel's frequent trips to the forums something of an adventure in themselves, as some veteran players continue to rant, vent and, in general, complain about those changes.
And it's never dull. McDaniel said that, despite the occasional flamefest, staying in touch with the community's feeling are definitely worth it.
“There's also a lot of good stuff out there,” McDaniel said. “These people are just trying to express what they'd like to see in the game, the things they'd like to see in the game. That's all good stuff. We like to hear that feedback and we certainly want to try and get that stuff incorporated in the game. Ultimately, it's all for the best.”
But, McDaniel said, the future of SWG doesn't include the past.
“We are dedicated to continuing forward with the direction that we've set,” McDaniel said. “We are not going to do any type of rollback, [pre-Combat Upgrade], classic server, anything like that. We're going forward with where we're at now.”
The next steps in that forward progression will be along the path of war. McDaniel pointed out that a big part of Star Wars is the Galactic Civil War, in which the Rebels are struggling to overthrow the oppressive Empire. To that end, the SWG development team will be looking at ways to ramp up the conflict.
“That's what a lot of people expect out of Star Wars so we want to make sure there's lots of content based around that in the game,” McDaniel said. “Some of that will be player vs. player, some will be player vs. environment. We want to add something for all types of players.”
Rogue_5's Comlink, once McDaniel's semi-regular chance to write about the game, has been expanded recently to a general developer column, in which members of the design team are able to inform the players about projects they're working on directly.
“No conspiracy theories there,” McDaniel said. “I just went on vacation.”
In the most recent iterations of the Comlink, the focus was on the new Jedi and Bounty Hunter expertise systems, the first installments of the latest upgrade.
According to McDaniel, the expertise systems are basically designed to allow players to make their characters different from others of the same profession by choosing abilities and modifiers on top of those they receive as part of their regular progression.
While many players are already getting a taste of these on Test Center, McDaniel pointed out that those on the live servers won't have to wait much longer to make use of them themselves.
“Our first two professions will come out probably sometime next week for Jedi and Bounty Hunter,” McDaniel said.
Also on the horizon is the latest compilation. Star Wars Galaxies: The Complete Online Adventures, available Nov. 14, will feature Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided, along with all three of the game's expansions: Jump to Lightspeed, Rage of the Wookiees, and Trials of Obi-Wan, all in one box with a few extra goodies, including the AT-RT, a Clone Wars-era one-man scout vehicle along the lines of a smaller, open-top AT-ST.
“I think it'll be a lot of fun, McDaniel said. “I think people will like it.”
Finding out what the players like and don't like is a big part of McDaniel's job. As producer and team leader, he works mainly with the various development teams, but also spends a lot of time paying attention to the players, wading through the forums with the patience of a fisherman looking for that perfect catch – in this case, useful suggestions and feedback.
“It can be a challenge, but it's a lot of fun [dealing with the community],” McDaniel said. “Ultimately, they are very passionate. They're by far the most passionate group of players I've seen. A lot of that is due to the fact that they're Star Wars fans.
“I'm a huge Star Wars fan so I know that Star Wars fans in general tend to be very passionate when it comes to Star Wars and that license. Ultimately, these people care a great deal about this game. They spend a lot of time on it, they have a lot of fun with it and it's just because of that passion that they are that outspoken and they are that vocal.”
Their feedback can also carry a lot of weight. According to McDaniel, a recent update was actually delayed based on player feedback about the player bounty system.
“There were some significant changes they wanted to see made so we delayed the publish and made the changes the players wanted to see before we rolled it out,” McDaniel said. “It turned out to be the right decision, absolutely. That feedback is very important to us and it does carry a lot of weight for what we're doing and we very much encourage people to give it, both in the forums and through [private messages]. We do focus groups and various other methods to get that information. It's definitely very important and we definitely do listen to it.”
So even when red names – the color used to designate members of the development team on the forums – are scarce, the developers behind them are still around, albeit in the background.
“I try to read the forums on a daily basis and I try and get out there and respond at least every week or two to let the people know, 'Yes, we are still actively listening,' ” McDaniel said. “I strongly encourage my teams to get out there on the forums on a daily basis. A lot of the design team are out there actively responding or gathering feedback on some of the systems we're working on.
“It certainly takes up a good portion of my time each day, but it's time well spent because it gets me in touch with what our player base is thinking and to make sure that the vision we have for the game matches what they're looking for.”
And that can vary widely. As an online roleplaying game, SWG can be many things to many people, options McDaniel says his team is dedicated to keeping alive.
“Ultimately, Star Wars Galaxies is about becoming your own hero in the Star Wars universe,” McDaniel said. “It's not about you playing Han Solo or you playing Luke Skywalker; it's about you playing a character that can become as famous as either of those characters, giving you the opportunity to become a hero and to live in the Star Wars universe.”
And for those players who would rather play Uncle Owen, Luke's decidedly unadventurous foster father?
“You can ultimately still do that,” McDaniel said. “You can choose to play however you like – there are lots of playstyles open to you. If you don't want to be the hero, if you just want to be a crafter, if you just want to hang out in the background, if you just want to hang out in the cantina and entertain, you can still do all that. We haven't taken that away from the game at all.
“You can go as far as you want with it, from being an Uncle Owen-type character to being the hero if you want. That variety is still there.”
Enough variety to carry the game for another three years? Only time will tell.
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