Fan Friday Gets Class Happy - Join the Fight

In an epic display of awesome BioWare rolls out "Join the Fight" from San Diego:

The movie covers all 8 classes and offers up a plucky line from each one.  In addition you can see some different armor and faces we have not seen before.  This quickly became one of my favorite hype movies from BioWare.

Standard BioWare PR line that we all love:

The uneasy peace established by the Treaty of Coruscant is broken and both the Galactic Republic and Sith Empire build their armies. As both sides prepare for open war, a new generation of heroes must rise up to meet the challenges of a volatile age, declaring their allegiances and fighting for what they believe in.

BioWare PreOrder Madness: It's Official And its Ugly

BioWare stepped up to the plate on the first major day of the San Diego Comic Con and hit a home run only to watch it come back .... sort of.

The big news that everyone knew ahead of time making it not so big but still epic in its own right was great.  BioWare showed its many different options to pre-order.  Everyone that ordered the CE or the Digital Deluxe would receive an early access code for well.... early access.  They even took the time to explain the differences.  If you had even more questions you could just hit their FAQ.

However and this is the ugly part for those paying attention.  From what we have learned those that ordered from Best Buy or Gamestop online have not received their codes.  If you made the decision to order from EA Origin or Amazon online then you where in the clear.  As of 7pm Central both EA Origin and Amazon appeared to be sold out of the CE.

While this is a great day for BioWare its a struggle for a small portion of their fans. Fans that paid $160 or more with the hope of playing the game 6 days early as promised.  Now they can either sit there and stare at an empty inbox or watch the lovely 'Choose' trailer posted for all to see:

Hoth - Flavor Of the Week

I am generally not a fan of loading up Facebook.  But on Wednesday when the word gets out that BioWare has release their pic of the week i have to force myself over there. 

To my surprise - it was HOTH.  I love HOTH.  It's cold, its winter, and it comes with many memories. 

So for those that have not seen all the Hoth images release by BioWare here they are:

 Hopefully these can give you some kind of idea about BioWare's version of Hoth will be like when we play the game later in the year.  Can't wait!

HanDiego Predictions

With BioWare putting so much effort into this weeks San Diego Comic Con we figured we should take the time to knock out some predictions for the event. 

Thanks DoctorDrake!

What We Could See from #HanDiego

1.  The date for when they plan to announce the release date:

Based on comments from BioWare staff they would first announce when they would announce the release date.  So it makes sense to prepare the fans at #SDCC. 

2.  Some additional companion information:

I would imagine that any play through they do would show off more of the companions in the game.  I would even venture to say we would see them use the Smuggler or Imperial Agent in their walk thoughts. 

3.  The Collector's edition packaging:

Well its probably not going to be a big surprise now.  When we started on this article we figured retail package information would surface at either SDCC or PAX.  With all the leaks going on it seems more ripe for prime time. 

4.  The Standard - New World walk-through.  Maybe one of the origin words:

This is a given.  It may or may not be an origin world. But it just makes more sense to do another play through.  The fans seem to really enjoy these! 

What Will Not See From #handiego

1.  Consular info as part of the big reveal:

Probably not.  It feels to me like this will be saved for a Friday Fan update. 

2.  A New Race:

I think we have seen all the races they have for the initial release of the game.  It could happen, but it   just seems like something they would have told everyone in the last 2-3 years. 

3. The Official Release Date:

As indicated above I believe they're saving this for PAX the following month.  Which would probably indicate a October/November release. 

The Republic Episode 47: EPIC SCROLL!

If you hate to read tonight and want to catch up on SWTOR news.  Check out episode 47 of The Republic from GamBreaker.TV.  Always remember the show can be downloaded from itunes and other various media sources. 

This weeks episodes features the lead guy from DarthHater.com and of course everyone's favorite  Larry Everett from Massively.

For future reference you should watch the show live as they have started to do a wrap up section to cover questions that did not make the live viewing. 

CE Now Leaked - Play Early for $150

It's unofficial and disturbing at the same time. BioWare, LucasArts, and EA, seem to have a huge leak of news going on prior to the San Diego Comic Con. Both the Standard Box art and the CE box Art appear to have leaked onto the web early. However lets stress that none of this is OFFICIAL and has not been confirmed by EA, LucasArts, or the great team at BioWare.

While it's great to have this information we would have preferred it to come from BioWare officially - hopefully this week. In fact in our predictions piece for SDCC we had hoped to see this information come out. What's also interesting is that BioWare has not shut down the forum thread covering the leak of information.

So what do the rumors of the CE list as its contents:

*30-day subscription to the game
*Speeder (digital content, unique vehicle, available at level 25)
* Exclusive Gentle Giant Darth Malgus statue
* Star Wars: The Old Republic game discs in collectible metal case
* The Journal of Master Gnost-Dural annotated by Satele Shan
* Old Republic galaxy map
* Custom Security Authentication Key (i.e. Authenticator)
* Exclusive Music of Star Wars: The Old Republic CD
* High-Quality Collector's Edition Box
* DE will let you touch his abs

INCLUDES 7 ADDITIONAL DIGITAL ITEMS:
* Flare Gun: Fire flares into the air
* Training Droid: Hovers at your side for combat assistance
* HoloDancer: Project your own holographic dancer
* HoloCam: Keep visual records of in-game adventures
* STAP: Sleek and unique in-game vehicle
* Exclusive Mouse Droid: Spun-ky droid to join your adventures
* Exclusive Collector's Edition Store: Unique in-game vendor with a dynamic assortment of items


What's also interesting is the option to play the game before release:

*Standard Preorder: 3 day head start
*CE Preorder: 6 Day head start


Remember this is all rumor and speculation. However some tongue and cheek comments from Stephen Reid might indicate this information is indeed legit.

Crafty Fake..... PC Art Box

We at TalesFromTOR hate talking about rumors.  So we want to approach the following out of respect and interest for BioWare.  The following is the latest art rumor for the box art for  TOR.  NOTE - ITS JUST A RUMOR.  No confirmation in anyway shape or form from EA, BioWare, and LucasArts.

But what's interesting about some of the art is that they appear to be images that have not been seen before.  The trooper has been seen before but facing in a different direction.  Darth Malgus in the background also appears to be from the 'Deceived' trailer'.   But the rest . . . 

The Jedi in the center Master is Ven Zallow also from 'Deceived' but in a different stance.  In the background we have the Grand Master Satele Shan from 'Hope' and 'Return' but holding her blade in a position not seen in those trailers.  

In conclusion this is an incredible fake until validated by BioWare.  We have to give the creator credit for this amazing art work.