SW:TOR Hit With Code Errors, Long Server Queues
As expected, BioWare's MMOG Star Wars: The Old Republic has launched with a few annoying problems to iron out.
Launching a MMOG is undoubtedly a huge undertaking, from developing a stable platform that will run on most PC configurations to handling the initial load of subscribers on opening day. That said, it's not unheard of to hear reports of instability and other minor problems. But it becomes downright unfortunate when loyal patrons -- those who shelled out money for the software and the first month's subscription fee -- can't even participate.
Star Wars: The Old Republic had problems even before it officially opened its doors for business on Tuesday. Both the developer and publisher EA purposely staggered the game's introduction to beta participants to keep server overload down to a minimum. But the program was littered with reports of wait times of more than two hours anyway. Many servers are currently reaching maximum capacity now that the game has officially gone live, forcing BioWare to plead with gamers and convince them to log onto the lower population servers.
"As many of you know, we're experiencing high load and corresponding queues on some servers," reports senior online community manager Stephen Reid. "This is to be expected during launch, as a high number of people want to play the game, and for long stretches at a time. We're monitoring all of our servers around the clock, and we're raising server population caps where required. However, to ensure our long-term goals of server stability and healthy populations, we do not want to raise population caps too rapidly."
But long server queues isn't the only problem SW:TOR is currently facing. Many customers are having problems getting into the game thanks to a glitch with the registration codes. According to Destructoid, physical copies shipped without codes included, and digital versions aren't working, spitting out error messages instead of granting access to the virtual Star Wars universe.
EA's digital distribution platform Origin is also having issues. Customers who pre-ordered the PC game either haven't received their code, been told that their code is already active, or there's no record that the game was even purchased in their Origin billing info. BioWare has reportedly been silent on the situation which is causing a growing level of frustration for affected consumers.
"Some people are getting canned responses that blame the end user for trying to input their pre-order key instead of their product registration key, despite the fact that it's not the problem," Destructoid reports. "Others are confused as to whether this is an issue with SW:TOR itself, or with Origin, as nobody official will explain what's going on."
As of this writing, EA and BioWare have not commented on the registration code issue, so stay tuned.
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Kevin Parrish has over a decade of experience as a writer, editor, and product tester. His work focused on computer hardware, networking equipment, smartphones, tablets, gaming consoles, and other internet-connected devices. His work has appeared in Tom's Hardware, Tom's Guide, Maximum PC, Digital Trends, Android Authority, How-To Geek, Lifewire, and others.
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giovanni86 I will wait a few months until all this is resolved, and then maybe give it a go. As for all the Origin problems same thing happened with the Back to Karkand DLC that came out for BF3. Thankfully I have had 0 issues with it.Reply -
I haven't had any of those issues, but I find the game incredibly tedious and the combat slow and terrible. So much so that after rolling a Sith Warrior, and a Republic Trooper both to level 14 I am quitting. The combat system seems to get delayed and you end up hitting attack buttons but getting 0 visual feedback for it, and it feels so slow; and after awhile its not fun anymore.Reply
Then it takes forever to do anything as you spend countless minutes just walking back and forth. The ripped straight from Mass Effect in game cut scene bad/good quest elements are fun at first, but after the first 10 or so levels I stop caring about it, because I realize I'm listening to 3min of dialog to just go kill 10x or loot 5y from mob Z. The cool story parts make up like an hour of the 12-14 hours I put in on both of those characters.
Then you have the idiotic things the game won't let you do like disable the Auto Camera rotate. Because god forbid when you are on auto-run for 10 min in a straight line you want to be able to look around you without holding down the right mouse button. Or turn on Anti Aliasing; the graphics look rather poor without being able to turn AA on, might as well be an Xbox game. Or have an effective UI that shows your health and your opponents health, and the nameplates that pop up when you get near an opponent, not just when you attack them, and so on and so forth.
I wish I could get a refund.
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festerovic @stm1185, see pic above, near title. hehe j/k you are right on all points, but I think most of your issues could be patched over. Cut'em a little slack.Reply -
torka sceen311I'm sure EA will do the most they can to take care of their customers...Reply
I'm sure the Bioware will do the most they can to take care of their customers....
fixed* because in my experience EA doesn't care about you after they have your money
With that being said there are very few problems with this game. Compare it to any other MMOG release.
Swtor has fewer bugs (35 hours and I haven't found one) and is more stable than WoW in its 6th year (performance is rock solid, no hang-ups or lag at all)
As a side note, Swtor does not require Origin to either install or run. Bioware/Swtor.com provide the install files so the only connection it actually has to Origin is that you can buy it from the Origin store and if you choose to (dont know why anyone would) you can access it via the Origin launcher. -
ben850 My opinion: Game is horrible. Unless you're a die-hard SW fan, do NOT waste your money.Reply -
ern88 I bought the game online from Orgin. I had no problems with getting codes. I got into the servers pretty good. I did have a wait time the first day about 10 minutes. Today I had no wait time. Love the game. The voice overs are one of the best jobs that I have encountered in a very long time. There is almost always going to be a few problems with launch titles. All and all, really good game.Reply -
clonazepam stm1185I haven't had any of those issues, but I find the game incredibly tedious and the combat slow and terrible. So much so that after rolling a Sith Warrior, and a Republic Trooper both to level 14 I am quitting. The combat system seems to get delayed and you end up hitting attack buttons but getting 0 visual feedback for it, and it feels so slow; and after awhile its not fun anymore. Then it takes forever to do anything as you spend countless minutes just walking back and forth. The ripped straight from Mass Effect in game cut scene bad/good quest elements are fun at first, but after the first 10 or so levels I stop caring about it, because I realize I'm listening to 3min of dialog to just go kill 10x or loot 5y from mob Z. The cool story parts make up like an hour of the 12-14 hours I put in on both of those characters.Then you have the idiotic things the game won't let you do like disable the Auto Camera rotate. Because god forbid when you are on auto-run for 10 min in a straight line you want to be able to look around you without holding down the right mouse button. Or turn on Anti Aliasing; the graphics look rather poor without being able to turn AA on, might as well be an Xbox game. Or have an effective UI that shows your health and your opponents health, and the nameplates that pop up when you get near an opponent, not just when you attack them, and so on and so forth.I wish I could get a refund.Reply
I can clearly tell you don't know what you are talking about, and never opened 'Preferences' to customize nameplates, or learned how to auto-run and control the camera with the left mouse button. You played to 14...rofl... You really didn't do anything then.
ben850My opinion: Game is horrible. Unless you're a die-hard SW fan, do NOT waste your money.
Compared to what? It's a lot of fun.
As far as server ques, I dont know why the derps all try to load up on a few servers. There's a ton of them with light loads when others have 2 hr ques. It makes no sense. If people are waiting to get in, its definitely their choice to wait.
All the major issues, like the Taris issue have already been patched. It's Bioware's baby and there's no way they wont tend to matters very quickly.