Online game Star Wars Galaxies set to close

[Deleted]

source:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-13925263

Online game Star Wars Galaxies set to close

The game put players in the same Universe as Luke, Han and Leia
Continue reading the main story
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A great darkness is set to consume part of the Star Wars universe in late 2011.

Sony has announced that its Star Wars Galaxies online game will be shut down on 15 December.

The news was broken in e-mails sent to players and via messages posted on the game's support forums and website.

Sony said the closure had come about because its contract to run the Star Wars game runs out in 2012, not because of declining player numbers.

In an interview with online gaming site Massively, Sony Online Entertainment boss John Smedley said the combination of the contract finishing and the imminent arrival of a separate Star Wars game made it "feel like it's the right time for the game to end".

The other Star Wars game is Bioware's The Old Republic that is currently under development. Sony also runs the free-to-play Clone Wars Adventures online game.

In the interview, Mr Smedley denied that the recent hack attacks on Sony had anything to do with the closure or that player numbers had shrunk to the point that it was no longer worth keeping the game going.

"Populations have stayed pretty steady for a long time now," he said. He added that Sony had taken measures recently to ensure that there were enough players on each server running a copy of the game.

Game changer
Mr Smedley said Sony would be running a series of events for players to ensure the game ends in a fitting manner.

Continue reading the main story
“
Start Quote

It's amazing it's kept going for so long”

Alec Meer
Rock Paper Shotgun
All billing for the game will stop in October, according to Sony. Those subscribing at that point will be able to play for free for the last few months.

Launched in 2003, Star Wars Galaxies (SWG) helped to establish massively multi-player gaming which sees thousands of players adventure together in a shared online environment.

The game was set in the Star Wars universe and played out events following the destruction of the first Death Star but before those of The Empire Strikes back. Players could take the form of one of 10 different species, become a Jedi and fight battles with spaceships.

More than one million copies of the game were sold when it launched in June 2003 and it initially enjoyed great popularity.

However, player numbers have steadily declined as a series of updates alienated many established players and stripped the game of its complexity. Sony has since described some of the changes as a "mistake".

Games journalist Alec Meer, writing on the Rock Paper Shotgun blog said: "It's amazing it's kept going for so long, quite frankly."

He concluded: "Farewell then, Galaxies. You were always a bit of a mess - but you were also one of the most fascinating and ambitious MMOs there's ever been."

Online game Star Wars Galaxies set to close

The game put players in the same Universe as Luke, Han and Leia
Continue reading the main story
Related Stories

Sony 'learns lessons' from hacks
The man behind Darth Vader's mask
Inside Games: Bioware
A great darkness is set to consume part of the Star Wars universe in late 2011.

Sony has announced that its Star Wars Galaxies online game will be shut down on 15 December.

The news was broken in e-mails sent to players and via messages posted on the game's support forums and website.

Sony said the closure had come about because its contract to run the Star Wars game runs out in 2012, not because of declining player numbers.

In an interview with online gaming site Massively, Sony Online Entertainment boss John Smedley said the combination of the contract finishing and the imminent arrival of a separate Star Wars game made it "feel like it's the right time for the game to end".

The other Star Wars game is Bioware's The Old Republic that is currently under development. Sony also runs the free-to-play Clone Wars Adventures online game.

In the interview, Mr Smedley denied that the recent hack attacks on Sony had anything to do with the closure or that player numbers had shrunk to the point that it was no longer worth keeping the game going.

"Populations have stayed pretty steady for a long time now," he said. He added that Sony had taken measures recently to ensure that there were enough players on each server running a copy of the game.

Game changer
Mr Smedley said Sony would be running a series of events for players to ensure the game ends in a fitting manner.

Continue reading the main story
“
Start Quote

It's amazing it's kept going for so long”

Alec Meer
Rock Paper Shotgun
All billing for the game will stop in October, according to Sony. Those subscribing at that point will be able to play for free for the last few months.

Launched in 2003, Star Wars Galaxies (SWG) helped to establish massively multi-player gaming which sees thousands of players adventure together in a shared online environment.

The game was set in the Star Wars universe and played out events following the destruction of the first Death Star but before those of The Empire Strikes back. Players could take the form of one of 10 different species, become a Jedi and fight battles with spaceships.

More than one million copies of the game were sold when it launched in June 2003 and it initially enjoyed great popularity.

However, player numbers have steadily declined as a series of updates alienated many established players and stripped the game of its complexity. Sony has since described some of the changes as a "mistake".

Games journalist Alec Meer, writing on the Rock Paper Shotgun blog said: "It's amazing it's kept going for so long, quite frankly."

He concluded: "Farewell then, Galaxies. You were always a bit of a mess - but you were also one of the most fascinating and ambitious MMOs there's ever been."

[moaradin]

SWG died a long time ago when SOE put their hands on it. It used to be great before the combat upgrade.

[farfel]

It's a shame the game was never really able to realize it's potential. It really could have been great.

[Xenogeist]

It was a pretty good mmo when it started, despite not having any jedi. My friend has played the game since launch and I was there with him in the first days and we had a blast. A few years later when I got into mmo's myself and bought WoW I could never tempt him away. I think he bought a lifetime subscription or something. Just goes to show that mmo's die too.

Now maybe there is a chance I can get my friend to join me in SW: ToR.

[Syce]

hopefully theres a game that comes that has the crafting system SWG had. man i tell ya, i had the best time trying to create the best foods on Starsider. made millions and millions of gold or whatever the money is called again.

[Cataclysmic Skyris]

i tried it for 5 minutes....deleted it soon after

[Ighox]

This may just be a good thing, the current players of the official SWG will just go to play SWG EMU and then maybe those devs will be faster with adding stuff (like player housing).
Good for the players that there's private servers at least, always sucks when a MMO shuts down and disappears completely.

[lunaspike]

Well they have a good point. Star Wars The Old Republic is due out this year. I can imagine that would pull many players away from it. The market right now is very competitive. They are probably picking a very good time to end it for their fans also.

[PACOX]

LucasArts obviously wanted it shut down because of SWTOR. They should give the remaining subs access to SWTOR beta or a free copy of the game or something.

INB4 WoW clone killed by WoW.

[lunaspike]

LucasArts obviously wanted it shut down because of SWTOR. They should give the remaining subs access to SWTOR beta or a free copy of the game or something. INB4 WoW clone killed by WoW.

1. I don't think calling SWG a WoW Clone is appropriate. That's more fitting for a game like RIFT. 2. I doubt lucasarts would care at all. It seems that Sony is about to lose it's contract, but rather than pay to renew it (and possibly spend more than they will earn if many of their players switch to SWTOR they are just going to let it end. It honestly doesn't make much sense for LA to want SWG closed. They are going to make money off either game. If Sony wanted to renew their contract then LA would make money. If Sony drops it, well they have TOR coming out soon. Either way they will make money.

[PACOX]

I was being sarcastic with the WoW comment.

[lunaspike]

I was being sarcastic with the WoW comment.

Ah, sorry. Sarcasm and text, blah.

[Tarien]

I played this game for a couple of years, right up until the Combat Upgrade and the dreaded New Game Experience. Definitely one of the finest sandbox MMOs ever made, and hands down the most fantastic crafting system too. There was fantastic world PvP, and the initial Jedi system with skill loss was a brilliant implementation.

Sadly WoW came along, did really well, and SOE got jealous and tried to emulate WoW but that was the worst mistake I have ever seen in a games development. As much as WoW is a great game, it's too popular and I feel it has stifled development and success for a lot of MMOs that might otherwise have had a chance to shine.

Anyway, RIP SWG, you gave me some of the best MMO experiences I ever had.

[Fogkin]

Wow, I didn't realize SWG was still around. It died years ago. No wonder I kept seeing it on Steam and D2D, I just thought that they were lazy and forgot to pull the game down. Didn't know people still played that sad game. SOE ruined a good thing

[Trix]

Before the NGE, the best MMO I've ever played. It's main problem (pre-CU) it wasn't nub friendly and you had to do some work to get anywhere. Well it wasn't really a problem, but it kept a lot of players away because they couldn't understand how it worked. The idiots you find in WoW, wouldn't have a clue what to do.

Maybe that's why it had such a great community.

I left for WoW as soon as the NGE hit, sad days. I could of lived with the CU...

I did try it again about a year ago to find out they deleted my hard earned Jedi Guess it doesn't matter anymore though I would of loved to play with it again no matter how bad the game got.

[Deleted]

Before the NGE, the best MMO I've ever played.

Have to agree with this. The game pretty much had the lot. Unbelievable crafting , player houses , extraordinary character classes and speeder bikers! If they never implemented "New Game Enhancements" i think the game would have gone onto great things. Instead it went over a cliff

[Syce]

Before the NGE, the best MMO I've ever played. It's main problem (pre-CU) it wasn't nub friendly and you had to do some work to get anywhere. Well it wasn't really a problem, but it kept a lot of players away because they couldn't understand how it worked. The idiots you find in WoW, wouldn't have a clue what to do.

Maybe that's why it had such a great community.

I left for WoW as soon as the NGE hit, sad days. I could of lived with the CU...

I did try it again about a year ago to find out they deleted my hard earned Jedi Guess it doesn't matter anymore though I would of loved to play with it again no matter how bad the game got.

exactly the same with me and my roommate, both quit right when NGE hit.

[Deleted]

Today is that day... rest in peace Star Wars Galaxies i will not forget you.

[FlawlessSoul]

/tear.

I got out my original boxed copy, found the poster still in there along with my beta discs (oh, a time when the company sent you CDs when you were accepted to beta test).

It was a grand game, ruined by fucking muppets at Sony. Ahem.

I was going to go with something more... elaborate. I hef mooch loquacious craft, after all. But seriously, Sony got their hands on it and wanted to wring it for every goddamn fucking cent, and ended up screwing the players and themselves. The last part, they deserve, but not at the expense of the players.

Sony are douchecocks, all of them.