Star Wars: The Old Republic: The Jedi Trooper

SBFord

Some Star Wars: The Old Republic controversy began shortly after PAX East when it was revealed that players would be able to put on any 'wearable' armor even if it changes the look as created in the pre-existing lore. MMORPG.com Community Manager Mike Bitton has a few thoughts to share about this issue. Read on!

I honestly hadn’t even thought about this, which is weird given how vain I am when it comes to these games, and I’m not entirely sure how I feel about it right now. In previous iterations of the game, players who wore armor of the same armor class (such as heavy armor which both the Trooper and Jedi utilize) but statted for a different class (such as the aforementioned “Jedi Trooper” example) would have the look of the armor conformed to their class. However, in testing this proved to be an unpopular design and so BioWare freed things up to allow players to wear whatever they wish within the armor class they can equip.

Read more of Mike Bitton's SWTOR: The Jedi Trooper.

Kalafax

So why allow them to wear the other armors, if it just gimps you. Useless game mechanic ftw

Zippsn

sounds good to me. we all know that luke weared tropper clothes on the death star and for spying (usw) it sound really good in my ears

agent mission. infiltrate this or that... you have to cloth like a tropper to get in, and if you wear this, you would not be attacked

rottN

Originally posted by Dalgor

So why allow them to wear the other armors, if it just gimps you. Useless game mechanic ftw

You can do that in most games.. what seems to be the problem ? If a trooper wants to run arround in a dress, let him

zakin

I also say let them wear what they want will make spotting idiots a little easier.

twodayslate

Less cross-class armor and more LOTRO-style cosmetic systems I think.

Talin

This is why I like the concept of appearance being separate from stats. Let people wear whatever they want (with the exception of maybe some truly class-specific looks for prestige), and maintain "armor packs" or something like that as a separate set of equipment. Certain "armor packs" can only be used by certain classes, creating the illusion of "better" armor, not necessarily just "heavier" armor.

Let people look how they want and build individuality accordingly. Iconic star wars characters have dressed in trooper armor in the past to hide behind enemy lines, why shouldn't they be able to adopt it as a look?

Thorqemada

I totally do not see any problem in wearing any armor an avatar is skilled enough and strong enough to wear.
I do not share the view of the purists that reject anything that could in their eyes taint the pure vision as it eventually only leads to a game for a very closed audience.

There be reasons in context to the game and situation where it may have a purpose to restrict a choice of armor and weapon but only then i.e. doing official mission beeing a representant having to wear the specific official representative outfit.

For any situation where you be doing your own adventure, doing inofficial mission, privateering its up to the player to choose as he want.

Its also very ok that special rewards in form or armor parts have a specific look and stats as they be tailored for specific needs coming from specific designers doing work for specific organizations that give the designer specific parameters to achieve with their design.

Normally this should not be even be a theme but self-evident.

Ragnaven

They have said the loot will look like trooper armor, jedi armor, robes, or smuggler gear when you see it on the corpse so you will know what gear is for what class. This will help drop the it's got x stat I should have it arguments, but with cross class armors we will see people getting it for look gear when they are doing whatever. Honestly I don't get why they let people wear whatever, but then again I prefered the kotor dex tank jedi over the tor armor wearing one.

Unknown

just go to the bottom of the guild page to see a jedi in trooper armor.  this is where a big part of the question came from and was confirmed at pax it was trooper armor on the jedi.

 

http://www.swtor.com/info/systems/guilds

kegtap

It would not be bad If it's kind of like KOTOR where your force ablities are limted by the type of Armor you wear. Yes you can wear it but now you can't use X or Y ablities.  So you would need to make some choices.

eoweth

Originally posted by Dalgor

So why allow them to wear the other armors, if it just gimps you. Useless game mechanic ftw

 

Because there should be more to clothing and armor than simple game mechanics.  If I want to dress up in Trooper armor even if it's stats are horrible, I should be able to.  For RP reasons, or as a disguise or just because I like the look of something.

Ideally we should be able to swap stats on items like you can in Aion, so that if I want to be an armor wearing Jedi I can and still have the game stats required by item centric gameplay while maintaining the visual look I want for my character.

Wrock

I despise fashion facism in these games. "Look like what you're supposed to look like or you can't play with us!" "Well if you're playing a Smuggler, you have to fit the stereotype and have a wookie copilot!" "This is how it looked in the movies, so you HAVE to do it exactly the same or you shouldn't even bother playing, because after all, the only reason to play in a Star Wars game is to precisely recreate something someone else already did!" Bah, these people take the whole point of building a unique, dynamic, and individual charater in a game.

COH got it right, character appearance and function should be completely disconnected.

If you *must* have equippable armor and weapons in a game, then don't determine how well you can use them (or even whether you can use them at all... "Gosh, this pistol looks a lot like every other pistol... has a barrel, a trigger, a grip... but it's not on my list, so for some reason I don't know how to point it at the badguy and pull the trigger") Instead do something that actually makes sense like having a character's effectiveness with a piece of equipment improve over time as he continues to use it (I know that smacks of realism, and there's too many folks who can't stand to have even the slightiest amount of realism supporting their, or anyone else's, suspension of disbelief)

I have a bad feeling about this...

obeloviper95

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Jedi_armor

http://images.wikia.com/starwars/images/7/76/Jedi_Battle_Armors_JATM.JPG

http://images.wikia.com/starwars/images/b/be/SithStalkerArmor-TFUUSE.jpg

http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20081111171657/starwars/images/3/37/Vader_TFU.jpg

http://nsidecollectibles.com/catalog/images/obimaq.jpg

Jedi and sith have always used armor when it was needed or just if they wanted to...

 

so get over it...

kalinis

The main reason they are allowing it is players want it. Say this about bioware but they seem to be listening to the future player base. U will see jedi even in movies with armor under there robes. As for the wookie companion i think they did that just cause its cool.

Im sorry sure it happened in movie but who doesnt want a wookie companion? i do  When players were upset at jedi wizard they changed it to a class name that the site visitors got to vote on.

So boiware seems to be heading in a good direction as far as communticy goes. That said im gonna go with best stats for my characeter. why so i can raid and do end game stuff when im max level.

Really dressing up as a trooper as a jedi doesnt really appeal to me p ersonally but allowing it  for those that dont maybe wanna run instances or raid isnt a bad thing.

musicmann

So i guess that the people that are against this, want to all look like each other and wear the same armor as the next person. I just don't see the problem. If i am out running some missions/quest's as a trooper and i decide to wear this outfit/armor that is surely made for a knight or whatever, what's the problem. There's been many times back in the my  pre SWG days that as a jedi i would wear whatever i liked that day. If it was composite to storm trooper, it didn't matter, because that is what i wanted to wear and the game allowed me to do so.

I think it is a good thing to let people be able to wear what they want and play the game how they like. It is very apparent that since the game is in the time period of the old republic, what people wore is not canon and tied to the movies what so ever. 

It's not gonna hurt anyone that Bioware is throwing some sand into this game.

Jimmy562

Originally posted by eoweth

Originally posted by Dalgor

So why allow them to wear the other armors, if it just gimps you. Useless game mechanic ftw

 

Because there should be more to clothing and armor than simple game mechanics.  If I want to dress up in Trooper armor even if it's stats are horrible, I should be able to.  For RP reasons, or as a disguise or just because I like the look of something.

Ideally we should be able to swap stats on items like you can in Aion, so that if I want to be an armor wearing Jedi I can and still have the game stats required by item centric gameplay while maintaining the visual look I want for my character.

Jedi guardians and the sith juggernauts where heavy armor anyway but yes, you shouldn't be limited visually.

Xerith

They are attempting to keep the characters looking like their respective class, it makes sense when they are putting such a huge emphasis on the story. With the word "iconic" getting thrown around so much, this sort of restriction isnt hard to understand. 

That being said, they will need to work harder in the armor designs for each class in order for players to look different, and so not every Jedi Knight or Bounty Hunter is just a carbon copy of the next. 

CujoSWAoA

Whats the difference. All the armor in the game looks terrible anyway.

Just because "Jedi Heavy Armor" has a brown cape on the back? Who gives a darn.

Its all the same anyway. Junk.

obeloviper95

Originally posted by CujoSWAoA

Whats the difference. All the armor in the game looks terrible anyway.

Just because "Jedi Heavy Armor" has a brown cape on the back? Who gives a darn.

Its all the same anyway. Junk.

 

 i cant disagree more. i think the atmor looks fantastic. pulls all the versions of all the movies in to each one. awesome.

MindTrigger

The way I see it, Luke Skywalker wore various things in the course of his adventure, including Storm Trooper Armor, Rebel Flight Gear, Robes, etc.

IMO, all modern MMOs should have a appearance system where you can wear things as "costume", including armor, to make your character look the way you want, with maybe a few restrictions (race, sex).  LOTRO has a nice system where you basically hide your real armor with costume clothes so people can look like individuals, and they offer all kinds of non-armor outfits for people to wear. Something like putting male humanoid armor on any male humanoid character should be a given.

MMO.Maverick

Originally posted by CujoSWAoA

Whats the difference. All the armor in the game looks terrible anyway.

Just because "Jedi Heavy Armor" has a brown cape on the back? Who gives a darn.

Its all the same anyway. Junk.

Yep, you're right.  All the armor looks terrible and junk

GrumpyMel2

The thing that I don't like is that it sounds like a typical "gear-centric" game.... i.e.. put on this armor and your intelligence goes up by +2. I hate that cartoonish garbage....especialy for Sci-Fi/Modern games.

IMO, armor (unless maybe it's a "power-suit" ala Heinlien's Starship Troopers) should do 1 thing...protect the wearer from damage.  Whether you can wear it or not should depend on your training and physical stats.... and the only other effects it should have are PENALTIES to certain skills (stealth, climbing, etc) and attributes (speed) depending upon the type.

Athcear

Why does any game nowadays not have an appearance tab?

jkfc

I just think they should restrict it. There is no use for this. I do not like to see these idiots ruining my screens. Let them dress up in their own home and look good ingame. I know many already look like idiots. We don't have to see them also dressed like idiots when we are playing. 

Samhael

Originally posted by MMO.Maverick

Originally posted by CujoSWAoA

Whats the difference. All the armor in the game looks terrible anyway.

Just because "Jedi Heavy Armor" has a brown cape on the back? Who gives a darn.

Its all the same anyway. Junk.

 

Yep, you're right.  All the armor looks terrible and junk

It might be more accurate to say it's not to his taste.  Personally, I'm not fond of the character models. Tiny waists, massive shoulders, etc.  I wouldn't call them "junk" but I don't like them.