Surprise, surprise! I'm a Star Wars nerd. Having said that, when Star Wars: The Old Republic was announced last month, naturally, I flipped out. Of course deep down most gamers already knew it was coming. When the rumors started that Bioware was developing an MMO using their Lucas Arts license; it was pretty obvious at that point. Though that wasn't concrete enough to keep us from crossing our fingers. I mean, who wants to see an Indiana Jones MMO? The thought alone, scares me.

Last week I had the opportunity to sit down with Sean Dahlberg, Bioware Community Manager in charge of Star Wars: The Old Republic. Like me, he's a huge Star Wars fan and was eager to share everything he could about the game. During the interview we talked about the storyline, PvP and over sized lightsabers.

Tamat : Hey Sean. Thanks for putting away your lightsaber for long enough to talk with me about Star Wars: The Old Republic. How are things going over at BioWare?

Sean Dahlberg: Things are going great, especially now that we've revealed the game.

Tamat : Let's start off with some basic information about the games storyline? Can you give us an overview of what’s happening in The Old Republic?

Sean : Well, after ending the very war he began - by defeating Darth Malak and destroying the Star Forge- Revan was welcomed back into the Jedi Order. He soon after departed for the Unknown Regions and some believe that he left on a solitary quest to defeat a long-hidden threat to the Republic. What exactly happened to Revan after that is yet a mystery but the Galactic Empire knew relative peace for hundreds of years.

Then without warning, the mighty Sith Empire launched a surprise assault and quickly captured key sections of the galaxy. Where did this Sith Empire come from? During the Great Hyperspace War, the Jedi believed they wiped out the Sith. Unbeknown to them, the last Emperor of the Sith escaped. They licked their wounds, grew in power, and after the next thousand years, learned about the Galactic Republic when two Jedi came upon them.
 
The Sith Empire returned with a vengeance and after numerous bloody battles, the Sith engaged the Republic in peace talks.

During these talks, the Sith actually sacked the Republic's capital planet Coruscant and held it hostage while the negotiations took place. And thus the Treaty of Coruscant was signed, giving the Sith control to several outlying star systems and leaving the Republic and Empire in a cold war of sorts.

Tamat : Where was Revan during all this? Didn’t he ever return?

Sean : There are whole groups of people out there who do remember Revan and hold him in high regard ... but you'll learn more about this when you play the game.

Tamat : Now with the games timeline taking place 300 years after KOTOR, is it safe to assume we might meet some familiar characters or descendants of those characters?

Sean : There is that possibility.  A few members of the TOR Community have pointed out that HK-47 is being used on LucasArts.com and you never know who had children since the end of KOTOR.

Tamat : How has the Star Wars Community reacted to the announcement of Star Wars: The Old Republic?

Sean : There has been a lot of speculation over time as to what exactly this project was going to be and with it finally revealed, the community grew quickly and was overall very positive.

Tamat : Do you feel that TOR will bring in a significant amount of players that are new to MMOs?

Sean : I think the potential is definitely there. Star Wars is arguably one of the largest known pop culture phenomenons in the world. I go to a lot of different conventions and gatherings... Anime, Gaming, Movies, etc. I can't think of a single place I've gone to where you don't see at least a few people dressed up as a character from Star Wars and yet to find a one who doesn't at least know what Star Wars is. Even walking down 6th Street (Austin) this Halloween, I ran into a few Jedi and people dressed up as Darth Maul. So, considering how well-known Star Wars is, that alone will at least draw the attention of those who may not already be MMO customers.

Tamat : In your mind what is the coolest feature that TOR will bring to the table?

Sean : Probably one I can't even talk about or acknowledge it exists yet! Yes, I am such a tease.

Story is definitely high up on there on my list and we're doing a few things with story that you haven't seen in an MMO yet. I also am hugely addicted to our combat system and can't wait to start showing that off. But the thing that is #1 on my list... well, you'll just have to stay tuned to hear about it.

Tamat : The Republic and the Sith Empire have never been friendly so it’s obvious to assume that PvP will exist within the game. Is the game being designed with that in mind?

Sean : Player vs Player is definitely one of the systems within the game; it just wouldn't be Star Wars if you're a Sith and run into a Jedi and want to give them a little payback and the game didn’t let you do it.

In addition, BioWare is not about placing systems within the game without seeing how they mesh and benefit the game as a whole. TOR is not looking to be the "jack of all trades" game. Instead, we are going to focus on what we do best and make sure the game and all its elements are fun and entertaining.

With that said, TOR will offer fun and rewarding gameplay no matter what your play style is. If you're not a PvPer at heart, there are definitely other things within the game to do.

Tamat : Let’s talk about the team. Are there any big names working on the title? Anyone from the KOTOR team?

Sean : The team as a whole is fantastic. Everyone here is integral to creating TOR and we're a big proponent of team-oriented talent. And when you're all about delivering quality work your name gets out there. Some of the more well-known individuals at the office would probably be our Co-Studio VPs Rich Vogel and Gordon Walton.

There is also James Ohlen who has been with BioWare since its early beginnings. He was Lead Designer on games such as Baldur’s gate, Baldur's Gate II, Neverwinter Nights, and, of course, Knights of the Old Republic. And now he is the Creative Director for TOR.

But, like I said, there are a lot of highly talented people here whom the general public probably doesn't know but definitely are key to making this game a reality.

Tamat : When do you plan on bringing the game to the convention floor? Can we expect to see something at E3 2009 or earlier?

Sean : As we get closer to those conferences we're going to be at, we'll definitely notify our community and let them know. Maybe we'll even do a few fan gatherings.

Tamat : Great! I'll look forward to buying you and the team drinks at the Cantina until you share with me all the information that you shouldn't be sharing!

Sean : Remind me not to let you near Jedi Rob, then! You know how those Jedi are... they can't hold their liquor! Me, I was in the Marines for 6 years... at the end, you'll probably be telling me things you shouldn't be instead of the reverse 

Tamat : Noted! Alright so, I’ve been dying to ask. What’s up with ‘big gulp’ lightsabers?

Sean : I was waiting for that one! First, I'd like to point out that the screenshots are not of the final game... because we aren't even to beta yet. So, as with any art, there will be refinement over the course of development and beyond.

Of course, we've heard the community's feedback on the first screenshots we've released and the art team has made some adjustments. These changes will be prevalent in the next round of screenshots we release, I believe.

Tamat : Awesome! Though, all I wanted to know is if you guys were giving them away with every fill-up? Also, does it come with a hotdog shaped blaster?

Sean : *Facepalm*

Tamat : Haha! Thanks again for hanging out with me for a bit Sean. I'm going to get back to perfecting this midichlorian energy drink that I'm working on. It's the next big thing!

Sean : Let me know how that goes! And thanks for having me, it's a definite pleasure. Before I go, I would like to say that now that the Sith is out of the bag, so to speak, we plan on doing regular updates. In fact, we just released a new Blog by our Senior Writer, Rob Chestney. So keep tabs on the official website, or if you're like me, join TOR on some of the social networks such as Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter. And, of course, your favorite websites such as Allakhazam.

Andrew "Tamat" Beegle
Editor-in-Chief
Allakhazam.com