Ten Ton Hammer - Taking MMO Gamers to the Next Level!

Speaking of smugglers in Star Wars, many believe that the writing is already on the wall for that to be the next major class revealed for The Old Republic. While not an exact opposite or counterpart to the Bounty Hunter, Smugglers could still offer a class on the Republic side of the fence that offers some of the same core gameplay concepts, yet is different enough to stand wholly on its own. I’m actually pretty excited about this approach in particular, as it’s entirely possible that faction-specific classes won’t simply be mirror images of one another.  At the same time, I’m sure many fans are wondering how class balance can ever be achieved, or more importantly how content will be created if things aren’t entirely equal while remaining exact opposites. Since I just won my last 10 hands of Pazaak I’m feeling a bit lucky, so I’m willing to bet the answer will be a combination of personalized storylines for each class in the game, as well as the usage of NPC companions – a wildcard gameplay element that could remove the necessity of spending more time LFG than looting. Droid pocket-healers anyone?

Will smugglers be the next official class announcement?

Heroes need allies, plain and simple. Just as Frodo would have never made it to Mordor without the direct help of Samwise throughout the journey and the indirect help of the Fellowship, Luke would have never destroyed the first Death Star without a little (OK, a galactic ton of) help from his friends. If done well, companion NPCs will serve a similar function - and really, who doesn't want a pocket-Yoda training them in the ways of the Force? Personal droids could similarly help in situations involving things like hacking, or engineering tasks beyond the scope of a given 'class' within the game. While I don’t see NPC companions as ever being a complete replacement for human players to the degree they were implemented in Guild Wars, I expect that companions in TOR will offer a means creating iconic classes that don’t necessarily have to be a “jack of all trades” to survive in solo or small group situations.

Captain’s Log: Stardate 4060.9

When I first started contemplating which classes we’re likely to see in The Old Republic, I sat down with nothing more than a pencil and a blank sheet of paper, a single vertical line drawn down the center. On the one side I listed each class I’ve seen players discuss both in Ten Ton Hammer’s forums for TOR, as well as on BioWare’s official boards for the game. In the other column, I listed the mainstay roles that classes in most MMOs fulfill – namely tanks, healers, DPS and support. While connecting the dots between class candidates and the roles they could potentially fulfill may have been a moderately entertaining way to kill part of an afternoon, the process ultimately left me hoping that class selection in what may be the most anticipated MMO in development wouldn’t be so… well, boring.

I have a feeling that no matter what the final class list ends up being for The Old Republic, many old school MMO players out there will cry foul if things are so cut and dried, while still others will be upset if they’re not. Raiders want to know exactly what role their level 1 character will play at the level cap. Casual players want to know if Class X is still a viable option for soloing later on or if, like in many other MMOs, they’ll eventually hit a brick wall where the only “cool” content in the game is locked within instances, or the only interesting equipment upgrades are hidden within the treasure chests of Group Boss Mob Y.

Yet BioWare has selectively revealed specific information about the game that, depending on perspective, weaves a very different MMO tapestry than the industry has previously seen. Somewhere between the strong emphasis on personal stories and the usage of companion NPCs, I’d find it hard to believe that class roles will boil down to neat little spreadsheet equations. You know, the whole thing where Boss X has Y hitpoints and does Z damage, so defeating it necessarily requires you have one Trained Baboon wielding a +2 Attack Kazoo of Doom, 2 healers and a Slave Leia cosplayer in your party. Mind you, no Star Wars party is ever complete without at least one Slave Leia on hand, but that’s beside the point!

What are your thoughts on potential classes in The Old Republic? Do you feel the factional approach is too limiting, or that it opens up more compelling gameplay options? Be sure to drop by our forums and join in on the discussion, or if you’d prefer you can always send a virtual pigeon to my inbox!

Until next time dear readers, this is Captain Sardu signing off!