I usually try and watch each game update livestream the SWTOR developers do on Twitch. 7.7 was no different, and I figured I'd share some of my thoughts on the most recent livestream. Overall, I enjoyed it, and it was quite a meaty presentation, which was nice. I did notice in the previous 7.6 livestream, some discourse about how the developers don't present in a serious enough manner, which I find weird. I've always liked the more relaxed, chilled out friend vibe the developers put across, real or not. It seems like a fun place to work.
For me, the most interesting part was the new "Eras" tab. This is SWTORs first step into actually documenting where your character is in the story, albeit in a very basic way, it's at least a good first step that I hope they expand upon in the future. I am one of those players that uses a big Excel sheet to track where each of my characters is in the story, and what they've completed. While Eras won't replace that, before I had that sheet, remembering where alts were, especially after taking a break, was a nightmare. This will be a welcome addition, and I'd love to see it expanded to tracking major decisions later on and more minute missions.
I'm not a big end game player, so the new master mode stuff didn't really interest me, but that's good for people wanting that stuff. Same with PvP seasons, although being able to buy PvP season rewards with cartel coins is a nice addition. Furthermore, I can't really comment on the story, as I've never got past Iokath before, so I'm some ways behind on the current up-to-date story. I think everyone knows they are limited at the moment due to the video game voice actors strike, so there isn't really anything the team can do but wait. I do find people saying to "just replace the actors or use AI" as equally funny and sad. Patience is a virtue, I suppose.
The Nar Shaddaa Night Life event returning isn't really news at this point, but it's one of the events I enjoy, despite going slightly insane every year having to hear BOOP DE BEEP BOOP every few seconds on the machines. New rewards are always welcome, although I'd love to see them added to the collections tab.
I welcome the new mission log & map, it looks good, and it'll be nice not having to play find the quick travel icon when I want to quick travel next to quest turn-ins. I'm glad they continue to update the game's UI as time goes on (despite my issues with some of the changes over the years).
The development team recently added a new "Dynamic Encounters" feature, which is essentially SWTOR's version of WoW's world quest system. It's a feature I enjoy, allowing older planets to feel more relevant again. Furthermore, due to the lack of voice acting and cutscenes, it's content the modern development team can pump out relatively quickly. With 7.7 they've really gone heavy on this system, with dynamic encounters across seven new planets! This will bring the total planet count with dynamic encounters up to nine. This includes the starter planets, with an example provided on Ord Mantell controlling a giant mech walker. My first thought was how amusing it'll be seeing new Troopers or Smugglers come out of their first cutscene only to see level 80s with fancy cartel armours riding around giant mechs to destroy everything, then leaving. They also revealed some of the new rewards from these missions, including some nice mounts.
Default combat changes didn't really do anything for me, as I usually mess with that stuff myself as I level. I do think having it be easier for people that don't want to mess with their combat style choices will be good for those players. The game is already super easy as it is while levelling, so it makes sense they want it to be a smooth as possible for new people to retain them in the long term.
At the end of the stream, we got an extra announcement of new customisation options! It is only skin colours, but it's a huge amount of expanded colours. I'll always welcome new customisations to the game, although as a Zabrak main, I was hoping for some new Zabrak skin options (and a fix to that ancient Empire Zabrak skin bug) but alas, that'll have to wait for now. I imagine they'll expand on this in the future anyway. They also hinted at a new species entirely, which is great to hear. I imagine it'll be a humanoid variant, but there are lots of options they could add, so we will see.
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