20 days of SWTOR, day 17

Favorite location? But I haven't been everywhere yet.  Ah, well, we'll go with my default of babbling about the subject of the question my own way.

While SW:TOR isn't as pretty as some games, it's got pretty good graphics and a wide variety of planets, most of which I find quite nice.  And a few of which are appropriately eyesores.

I was surprised to find myself enjoying the deserty wide open spaces of Tatooine, which are somehow more appealing in game than they were in A New Hope.  Some of my friends hate Tatooine, but I rather like it.  (The Empire does seem to have shuffled all its least competent people there, though.  Which leads to some very funny overheard NPC dialogue.)

Alderaan is also very lovely, though I found myself wondering if I shouldn't have packed a winter coat.  (I expect to be bothered by that to a far greater degree when I arrive at Hoth. But there doesn't appear to be any cold weather gear in game.)

Dromund Kaas is horror movie pretty, though I wouldn't go so far as to picnic there.  (Kaliyo, you are so weird.)  It also feels like perpetual dusk, which makes me wonder how the heck the plants manage to survive so marvelously.  They must have epic photosynthesis abilities.  Or snack on the wildlife when we're not looking...

Korriban is another deserty planet, though you see so much less of it than Tatooine that it makes less of an impression.  Likewise, parts of Tython are pretty, but the WoWishness of questing there kind of ruins it.  (Why do the Manka Cats all have dentures!?  WHY!?)  And Balmorra somehow fails to leave an impression (even if the quests there do).

Hutta is appropriately disgusting, Taris is the sludgy swamp of wreckage everyone loves to hate (or just hates), Ord Mantell is just kind of there, and...

Then we get to the planets where my opinions make no sense even to me.  Coruscant and Nar Shaddaa are both city-planets and the questing all takes place in corridors and rooms, yet I don't care for Coruscant (except for the view when I'm outside) but enjoy Nar Shaddaa.  And I don't know why.

Actually, I have a suspicion why - maybe two suspicions - Coruscant is where you learn that the Republic is a frickin' mess and possibly hopelessly corrupt.  If my Republic characters manage to somehow get off their starting worlds without realizing that the good side is messed all to hell, they'll quickly learn it there.  You're fixing messes created by the Republic failing miserably to live up to anything resembling its ideals, discovering how speciesist it is just under the surface, and how corrupt it all is.

Nar Shaddaa, that neon-lit land of debauchery, slums, and rampaging gangs is exactly what you'd expect of Smuggler's Moon, the seedy jewel of Hutt space.  It's an awful mess, but you're not supposed to be on the side of the ruling establishment (in as much as there even is a ruling establishment).  Also, Empire side, you get to punch a Hutt.  And who hasn't always wanted to punch a Hutt?

There is also the fact that the quests on Nar Shaddaa have a bit more humor than the ones on Coruscant.  Now, I've had it claimed to me by people of a forum I visit that the Republic side is every bit as funny as the Imperial side, it's simply a different kind of humor.  A more blatant kind.  A kind that, apparently, sails right over my head.  (Excepting the humor of the Smuggler quests.  There is humor there!)

I don't suppose anyone could point out this blatant, possibly Benny Hill accompanied, humor that I'm missing on the Republic side?


20 Days of TOR (Redux)
Day 01 – Introduce yourself
Day 02 – Why did you decided to start a blog?
Day 03 – Your best SW:TOR playing experience Your first day playing SW:TOR
Day 04 – Your favorite SW:TOR quest or quest chain
Day 05 – Favorite item(s) in game
Day 06 – How many active characters do you have? Do you suffer from "altitis"?
Day 07 – The reason behind your blog’s name
Day 08 – Your favorite class so far, and why
Day 09 – Favorite attack or special move
Day 10 – Crafting: yay or nay? What professions, if any, do you seriously pursue?
Day 11 – Bad in-game habits and flaws
Day 12 – What's a typical TOR gaming session look like for you?
Day 13 – What do you hope Bioware will add to the game?
Day 14 – What aspect of the game upsets you the most?
Day 15 – Have you created a unique headcanon for your characters? If so, what is it?
Day 16 – Your favorite character companion
Day 17 – Your favorite in-game location
Day 18 – Your favorite outfit
Day 19 – What strange things do you keep in your bags or bank?
Day 20 – Conclude with a free day! Write about a SW:TOR topic that the previous 19 days failed to address

Odd storytelling decisions and what people are willing to take on expectations.

I've noted a time or two already that the factions of SW:TOR do not tidily break down to Good (the Republic) vs. Evil (the Empire).  Which is actually kind of nice and, at least in my opinion, better than the Protagonist-Centered Morality Good vs. Evil of the prequel movies.  (It's even better than the Good vs. Evil of the original movies, especially if people are going to be playing both factions.)  But I've noticed some odd things about it.

( Cut for mild spoilers and space saving )