Always one to pursue useless knowledge wherever he can find it in a seemingly never-ending quest to achieve the improbable and downright unlikely status of modern-day Renaissance man, Mark Bittmann has indulged his desire to never be lost in any conversation, by developing an arcane understanding of things of little consequence or import while maintaining his alleged status as a small fish in a small pond.
As long as his self-indulgent whim is catered to, he manages to sustain the facade of someone under the misperception that others care about what he thinks. With a ubiquity normally reserved for greenhouse gasses, he chases his random and inconsequential thoughts with all the tenacity of a banana peel. This is his life, his curse, and his twisted and maniacal way of impressing the ladies.
Just when I had resigned myself to the fact that there will never be another decent Star Wars film and that I no longer need fear contributing to George Lucas' filthy lucre, they decide to come out with a Star Wars Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG for the uninitiated). Turns out the time period in which it's set is during the classic (read: good) period of the franchise; after the destruction of the first Death Star and before Lucas had written himself into a corner and the "New Hope" trilogy began its tailspin into childishness and subsequent crash-landing on the Teddy Bears' picnic.
Evidently either Lucas (who has, over time, proven quite the 800 pound Gorilla when it comes to his properties) has realized that the last three wastes of celluloid-captured pixels passed off as Star Wars movies are just that and himself suggested the game be set during this period, or someone else managed to convince him that the atmosphere of the original films better lends itself to the game in that both the Empire and Rebellion are in the midst of their struggle for supremacy. One can play on the side of the Rebellion, for the agenda of the Empire or even as a minion of Jabba the Hutt. A cool element of the game is that it allows for players to hold political influence over events in the game and, ultimately, the universe and fate of player-characters themselves, so having it all take place during the heat of a galaxy-wide power struggle will be interesting to say the least.
Developed by Verant Interactive (a division of Sony and the progenitor of EverQuest), Star Wars Galaxies promises to be the most ambitious, involving, challenging and no doubt addictive MMORPG to date. If that is even remotely true, I may never be seen again…or at least not until I come up for air upon the release of the superhero-driven City of Heroes, planned for this summer. EverQuest has taken a considerable bite out of my free time as it is (although I seem to be pulling back on the EQ stick somewhat…"for there were no more worlds to conquer"…sigh.), so something's got to give. I have a feeling EverQuest will be taking a back seat to SWG once it is released. Although it is certainly true that I have made some good friends playing EQ, most of them are talking about leaving behind their Swords, spells and shields in a mass exodus to a galaxy far, far away come the April release of SWG. It's all good for Verant, as they reap profits from both and their new, improved, higher-polygon version of EverQuest is in the works, so as not to abandon those that prefer their take on the sword and sorcery motif to that of a world of blasters, X-Wings and Hutts (oh, my!).
Verant promises that SWG will set a new standard in online role-playing, citing the fact that characters will advance through the betterment of skills instead of set levels of accomplishment as determined by the parameters of the essential design of the game. There will also be more ways that any given character can advance than just killing critters and accomplishing missions, as required by EverQuest. Theoretically, one can advance strictly through skills such as the design and manufacturing of weaponry, the taming of animals for transportation by other players or even by becoming a master of hair-styling, likely to be in demand by the average Wookie about town concerned with their physical appearance. With grooming being an optional skill for a player to pursue, I think it's safe to assume that Verant is taking an aggressive stab at reaching the much coveted and largely untapped female market (it's not just comic books that have trouble appealing to the ladies), so expect social-oriented skills to be more prevalent than those present in other MMORPG'S.
Another cool thing about SWG is the fact that it is friendly to the solo player, so even those that don't cotton to the idea of forfeiting a large chunk of their disposable time to the advancement of their in-game alter ego and merely wish to drop in to the game when their schedule allots can still feel a sense of accomplishment after logging off. Games like EverQuest have, for the most part, been not very solo-player friendly and require that one play in a group to safely advance.
As a player who cannot abide the stressful process of finding and looting one's possessions off their corpse upon death, within a limited period of time, I personally like the idea of having my character's possessions insured and his body cloned back to life after dying as is the case in SWG. It makes for a stress-free death and resurrection and doesn't require that one hunt down some bodyguards to help in corpse recovery, as EQ does. If your character dies, you wake up in a cloning station, hop out of the tank, claim your previously insured gear and are ready for adventure once again. Sounds good to me.
So, what race of character to play? Me, I want to be a Rodian like Greedo, or maybe one of those Trandoshan lizard guys. Whatever I decide, I will not be specifically looking to become a Jedi. Let's face it, everybody and their dog is going to want to be a damn Jedi. Me, I want to be a rogue smuggler (like Han's original characterization) or bounty hunter, skilled at range weaponry and capable of piloting a spice freighter across the far reaches of the galaxy. Considering SWG promises expansions along the lines of literally more worlds to conquer, it will only be the most skilled pilots that will be able to reach more remote areas of space on a whim. Other forms of transportation will require waiting for a ship and who wants to put the slaying of Mynocks on hold while one waits for a transport when they can charter a ship from a player/pilot at the nearest spaceport. However, if suddenly the option to pursue the path of a Jedi appears on my skill tree, I may as well give it a shot because merely having the option is promised to be a privilege and the path said to be extremely difficult. It is said to be so difficult that there is even the possibility of permanent character death, something that will make the cautious adventurer think twice, as no one wants to lose a character they have spent many hours developing. Verant claims that a couple of deaths will be allowed on the path to Jedi status, but how many times one can recover from death is unclear. As preached in the movies, the path of Jedi is evidently a treacherous one and not to be taken lightly.
With a wide array of races to choose from, a veritable wealth of skills for them to pursue and the promise of additional races, skills and additions to the parameters of the Star Wars universe to follow in subsequent years, Star Wars Galaxies should have something to offer everyone. Whether they are an online gaming junkie or casual player, anyone willing to install the proper software and pay a monthly fee to feel like a part of the ongoing saga of Luke, Han, Leia and company will be able to say that they know what it's like to roam the Star Wars universe and engage opponents once thought conquerable only by those fortunate enough to be cast in the movies. Womp rats will fear you and Stormtroopers will flee in terror at the slightest mention of your name…or the approach of your hair dryer and comb.
