After a long day pouring over toys, getting force choked by Vader, and drooling over Slave Leias, it was time for the Star Wars: The Old Republic after party. Drinks, photo ops, and a panel discussing some of the future plans for The Old Republic were in the cards. We fought our way through the sea of raving Jedi and Sith lords squaring off in the Celebration plaza breakdancing to EDM with lightsabers blazing. Once inside the Hilton’s upstairs ballroom where the TOR gathering was happening, I was bounced from person to person asking questions about the game. Finally I was brought behind the panel stage to speak with TOR creative director, Jesse Sky.
I was told I had exactly 1 minute before he had to go on stage for the panel and livestream.
I asked if his team had recognized the potential of Galactic Starfighter, and if so, did they have any plans to expand on its current state. He was quick to reassure me that there is a strong understanding with their creative team that GSF has a lot of potential, and they would love to do something more with it. Sadly, he ended the statement with a big but; that there are no immediate plans to expand on that platform. For the foreseeable future we will have to enjoy GSF for what it is, and most likely, what it will be for a while.
Hit the jump for the full scoop and stay tuned for more from Star Wars Celebration!
Next, it was time to hit the bar and watch the panel. By this time a lot of the crowd members, most notably a gaggle of Sith cos-players, were a bit intoxicated and getting loud so hearing what was said on stage became pretty difficult. However, I was able to piece together the words I did hear with the words on the projector screen and I got the following information:
- Star Wars day, May 4th (Ed. Note: That’s the day this writer was married. Not a coincidence), will bring us a new astromech pet type companion as well as a pet tauntaun.
- The long hoped for Epic Story XP boost will be coming on the 4th! I don’t know if this will be the same as the 12X boost, but something is better than nothing, right?
- There will be a pretty cool addition to the Strongholds feature; Yavin 4. We will be able to post up on the iconic planet very soon, the press shots of the stronghold interior look great with plant life covering the exposed rock walls a la A New Hope.
- We have a new transport vehicle which looks like General Grievous’ wheel bike without the laser cannons on the front. Lore Hound has about a dozen codes to giveaway for this, so stay tuned for the code drops.
Now, one that I am very excited for, the introduction of the planet Ziost for the Shadow of Revan expansion. Ziost was known as the Gateway to the Empire and for a time was the capital of the ancient Sith empire! Cityscapes and rocky crags will cover this planet, and we are all anxious to see what story the team at TOR decides to play out on its surface!
