Posted by Lethality | 2 Comments

Ask A Jedi At PAX East!

The hour is nigh!

The crew here at Ask A Jedi are all busy packing our bags, getting ready for the trek to Boston for PAX East today:

• Plane tickets? Check.
• High-Definition audio/video equipment? Check.
• Adrenals for carry-on luggage, each less than 3 ounces of course? Check.

Myself (Lethality), our resident Jedi expert and forum pundit Professor Walsh, as well as the knowledgeable LordPaladin will all be donning our Ask A Jedi t-shirts and hitting the show floor.

What can you, the AAJ reader expect, you ask?

For starters, we have a whole slew of interviews with BioWare developers lined up, and we plan on asking the tough questions (well, as tough as a bunch of gamers can get without getting kicked out!) With the big Guild System reveal Wednesday, there should be no shortage of new information! Is there something you want us to ask for you? Let us know in the comments section below.

We also plan on getting as much in-game information and HD video footage as possible. As long as the God of wireless tech allows us, we’ll even be editing and uploading right from the show floor.

Plus, we’ll be talking to all kinds of fans, from all over the world, who all had a chance to play The Old Republic… we’ll hear their impressions and opinions about the game just moments after they’ve played it!

And that’s just at the show… there’s even more fun to be had after hours!

On Friday, we’ll be at the SWTOR Community Cantina, which is promising to be a great time for TOR fans! Many fan sites will be there, as well as many TOR pre-launch guilds. There wasn’t an actual intergalactic cantina available, so an Irish bar in Boston is the next best thing. If you’re headed to PAX East, this is a must-do event. Click here for info!

Then on Saturday, we’re headed over to the official BioWare Community Meet and Greet at the Westin Waterfront Hotel. If for any reason you can’t make it to the Friday night meet-up, this is another great chance to get to mix and mingle with the TOR community, and of course share a few beverages with your favorite developers & community managers!

We’ll be there from the moment the show opens until the moment it closes, and we’re only there to see one game. We hope you know which one. If you don’t already, it might be a good idea to follow us on Twitter, as that will likely prove to be a source of up-to-the minute info as well!

So stay tuned to Ask A Jedi all weekend long – you never know who or what might show up! :)

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Posted by Lethality | 0 Comments

Friday Update: Bounty Hunter Report + PAX East Details

Today’s update is indeed an “update -and-half” as Stephen Reid promised, as Future Bounty Hunters from around the galaxy rejoiced!

First up, as was widely speculated after IGN’s exclusive Bounty Hunter class video reveal yesterday, is the long-awaired Bounty Hunter class page refresh, bringing it in line with the other updated class pages.

As with each class page update, we now have information about the Bounty Hunter’s known associates (Mako), their starship (Kuat Drive Yards D5-Mantis Patrol Craft), potential species (Rattataki) and of course the defining class video.

Also revealed were the final details for next week’s much anticipated PAX East gaming convention on Boston.

While we already had details on the booth hours and the developer meet & greet, this time around we got the goods: We’ll be able to play a group encounter of the Taral V Flashpoint! This is an “extended gameplay experience” and it will be great for so many players to get so much hands-on time with the game.

In addition to Taral V, the public will be able to get their hands for the first time on the Jedi classes and their homeworld of Tython! In fact, every original world and class will be available for play at the convention.

The TOR Booth (#912) will also be running constant live presentations of the game as well as Q&A sessions with many of the developers, including Lead Designer James Ohlen and Lead Writer Daniel Erickson.

It sounds like TOR will have a huge booth, and be making quite an impact at PAX East, and of course Ask A Jedi will be there bringing it all back to you, while you lounge around at home in your Yoda slippers munching on a Darth Vader grilled cheese sandwich.

The full details of the PAX East festivities can be found here.

Also don’t forget about the SWTOR Community Cantina, where you’ll be able to meet and greet with members of the community and many of your favorite fan sites! This promises to be a great time in the casual confines of an authentic Irish pub! Find out more here.

We truly can’t wait to meet everyone!

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Posted by Lethality | 2 Comments

PAX East: SWTOR Community Cantina!

If you’re headed to PAX East in Boston in a few weeks, we’ve got one more must-do item to add to your list: The SWTOR Community Cantina!

Come put a face to a name that you might be familiar with from the official Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ forums, or mix and mingle with your favorite writers from sites such Massively, Curse, Darth Hater, Mos Eisley Radio, TOR Syndicate, and Corellian Run Radio. Oh, and we’ll be there too!

When and where you ask? The event will be held at Boston’s Times Irish Bar on Friday, March 11th at 7:00pm EST. The Times is located at 112 Broad Street in downtown Boston, just a short cab ride from the convention center.

This is a community-wide meetup, so if you have friends that might just be hearing about TOR, being them along too, the more the merrier! Although, be on the lookout for Rodians in dark corners.

Also, a big shout out to Darth Hater for spearheading the effort in pulling this together.

We hope to see everyone there!

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Posted by Lethality | 0 Comments

Friday Update: Studio Insider + Fan Friday

The Friday Update is upon us!

First up this week, we’re treated to an all-new Studio Insider. This time around, BioWare Concept Artist Diego Almazan takes fans through his process of creating an ancient Sith temple. Several steps in progression are shown that lead up to the final concept of this imposing location that players will be able to visit:

As with every Studio Insider, there’s also a community Q&A segement. This time around, the duties are handled by Rich Vogel, who is Executive Producer of The Old Republic™, along with being Vice President of Production at BioWare Austin.

Also part of this week’s update, the new Fan Friday offers the usual cavalcade of TOR goodness:

• First is a brand new feature very close to our hearts – the Fan Site Spotlight! The inagural spotlight shines on Mos Eisley Radio, who have been doing an awesome job for the TOR community for a long time. They have a great podcast, and also a new videocast called “Open Bounty” which you simply have to check out! Go now!
• There’s also a new round of 5 incredible pieces of concept art. We see new imagery from Alderaan, Voss, Hutta, Nar Shaddaa and Taris!
• More PAX East details have emerged, and BioWare has revealed that there will be a community meet & greet event held on Saturday, March 12 with more details to follow.
• There are also quite a few impressive entries of fan art and other community creations. Please be sure to check these out because these folks are as dedicated as anyone to this game and provide some great things to look at!
• And as always, there is a usual assortment of new polls, new forum avatars, and new forum smilies to add  to the shenanigans over on SWTOR.COM.

Head on over to the full edition of today’s Fan Friday!

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Posted by Lethality | 4 Comments

TOR at PAX East!

One of the bigger tidbits of news coming out of today’s Friday Update is notice that Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ will be making an appearance at the PAX East game convention in Boston, from March 11-13, 2011.

The original PAX, held each summer in Seattle, is highly regarded each year as one of the best conventions for gamers… Here, it’s all about the fans with plenty of hands-on time!

BioWare Senior Community Manager Stephen Reid as opened up a thread on the official forums dedicated to the discussion of PAX East. BioWare is anxious to know what you want to see from The Old Republic at PAX East:

With that in mind, what we’re happy to hear ideas on are things like:

• What sort of activities we might have on our booth, eg demo suggestions, guests you’d like to see…
• What sort of activities we might have off our booth – including whether, for example, you’d like a community meet ‘n’ greet

This is quite likely the last public showing of the TOR before its much anticipated Spring 2011release, so who knows what BioWare and LucasArts have in store for us at PAX East!

Ask A Jedi will of course be there for PAX East, as we were for PAX Prime, bringing you all the latest news and exclusive interviews!

This is the second year for PAX East, and if you have a chance to attend, I highly recommend it. And now that TOR will be there, what more reason do you need?

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