14 DAY TRIAL // At the moment those who play sufficiently extreme versions of the Light and Dark Side in Star Wars: The Old Republic eventually get access to specific loot that enhances their abilities and one leading developer working on the MMO says that truly neutral players will get the same in the coming weeks.
James Ohlen, who is the game director working on Star Wars: The Old Republic, has told PC Gamer that, “We knew with the light side/dark side system that there would be an urge, especially for min maxers, to go completely light side or dark side. We have a system for people who want to stay more in the middle. But that’s something coming up in a later release. It’ll let you play a ‘Gray Jedi’. Basically you don’t need to go to the extreme to get rewarded. You can have a different playstyle.”
The developer believes that all players should be free to explore all their morality options in The Old Republic and that the developers do not plan to channel them to the Light or the Dark Side via in game mechanics.
He added, “We were careful about the rewards for Light Side and Dark Side as well. We don’t want to make them too impactful on the endgame because it would mean players wouldn’t be allowed to join an Operation unless they were absolutely Light Side and or Dark Side.”
At the moment The Old Republic seems to be dominated by players who have pledged allegiance to the Sith Empire, both when it comes to success in Players versus Player battle and when it comes to pure numbers.
The MMO has had a solid first month, apparently surpassing expectations set by publisher Electronic Arts.
Developer BioWare has also promised to continue fixing bugs via weekly updates while also delivering new content for the game, including a major change to the way the fighting system works.