I couldn't find a thread on this, so...
I just recently received my PC Gamer US for this month, and they have a preview of the Imperial Agent from the massive 2 day session that so many of us have heard about. I'll do my best to compile the information.
Article Summary
- Bioware manages to differentiate the Jedi starting area from the Agent starting area.
- Bioware has done an impressive job of replicating the lifestyle of a secret agent.
- There are still a lot of kill-and-deliver quests, but there was usually a more in-depth class quest which added more meaning to the area.
-Example: "When I was sent to sabotage the power factory..., I ran into a small outpost of downtrodden locals. If I was headed into the facility anyways, why not earn a few extra credits by stealing some power generators and stomping a few bad-guy faces for 'em"
-"Tales of TOR's focus on story have not been exaggerated: it's immediately apparent that this is a BioWare game. "
-Kaliyo reminds the reviewer of Morrigan: "dark, sexy and disapproving of everything I did"
-Cover activated by holding Shift. This
highlights cover locations; you can tap R to roll into the one you're looking at.
-Cover is NOT a flat percent-damage reduction. If you're behind it when someone shoots at you, it misses completely. If you're shooting, you're going to get hit. Cover degrades as it gets shot, and some abilities are designed specifically to shoot over cover or knock you out of it.
-Cover-exclusive abilities (like Snipe- "a high damage ability with a long cast time", Suppressive Fire- "a channeled spray-and-pray technique that hits all targets in front of you randomly", and Explosive Probe- "Sends a small probe to the target that explodes the next time they're hit").
-"Fighting is all about rhythm"
-"Solo Conversation" mode, which allows players to enter conversations alone, even when grouped.
-Kaas City is interesting- "it takes a very interesting twist that involves rival Sith Lords, terrorist cells plotting to destroy the city and a cult of Revanites"
-Crew Skills- Archeology (Gathering skill, able to mine crystal nodes and three rotating missions that the writer could send their companion on- example is a dead Sarlacc), Underworld Trading (spices), and Treasure Hunters (previously announced).
Impressions
-Overall, very positive experience- "I'm thrilled. My enthusiasm for TOR is completely renewed"
-"Companions are the key to enhancing TOR's roleplaying experience"
-"The RPG side of TOR reminds me of Dragon Age: Origins... and the game's PvP system feels like an upgraded version of Warhammer Onlines"
-"I'm starting to believe that BioWare can pull off this massive undertaking- the most hyped and biggest-budget MMO of all time- and if they do, just about everyone will have a compelling reason to play it"
Agent Skill Trees
Sniper
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Marksmanship- cover-based, "take out your enemies from a safe distance"
-Ability- Snap shot- Rolling into cover makes your next snipe instant cast.
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Engineering- "This one's all about controlling pet probes"
-Ability- Detonate probes- Blows up all probes.
Operative
-
Concealment- "Stealth and daggers"
-Ability- Waylay- Detonates flash bomb and charge at a distant enemy, attacking them instantly and boosting next attack by 20%.
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Medic- "favorite playstyle", heals allies with probes and bact-syringe guns.
-Ability- Kolto Probe- Sends healing droid to target and stacks up to three times, like the Lifebloom spell for WoW's Druid.
Both
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Lethality- Adds venoms to melee and blaster attacks.
-Ability- Seeker Probes- Sends out probes to target, poisoning everyone around them.
PvP Combat
-Tanks guard allies and taunt enemies to reduce their damage output on anyone other than the tank
-No player collision
-Deflected damage, taunted enemies, and other effects will be shown visually
-When players are crowd-controlled, their resolve bar fills up. Once it maxes out, player is immune to CC.
-Pace of combat is manageable- no instant kills or burst damage.
-Cover mechanic combined with medic agent is very fun and unique.
-No companions in PvP.
Rewards
-Valor identical to Warhammer's Renown, an alternate PvP levelling system.
-Badge system similar to Halo: Reach rewards for streaks of success.
-Healing and damage absorption is tracked in the match stats to promote and reward tanks and healers.
-Players can "commend" favorite teamates to give them bonus rewards.
-Seperate PvP gear sets while leveling and at max level.
Ships
-Main Room- Contains central computer and Holocom for both players and NPCs.
-Medical Bay- Bacta tank and bed.
-Escape Hatch- Unkown use in space combat.
-Captain's Quarters- No fish tank.
-Cockpit- contains galactic map.
-Engine Room- Shiny equipment, but no interaction so far.
-Mission Terminal- Contains quests that encourage you to do activities taht you haven't tried in a while, such as PvP.
-Companions- each have their own section of the ship
There are a bunch of new screens in the issue as well, but I won't post scans as that may be a bit of a no-no.
In other news, Portal 2 got a 94%. I need to get that game.
