Star Wars: The Old Republic

For years World of Warcraft has dominated the MMO domain without any elf-y competition whatsoever – but now that spell may have been broken thanks to Star Wars: The Old Republic.

And at first glance, the dwarves, gnomes and ugly goblins of WoW have had their noses put out of joint by the intergalactic heroes of SWTOR. Which is a huge achievement for BioWare, seeing as this is their first blast at an MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Play Game for all you noobs).

But like most decent MMOs, this one is still evolving so there is no definitive verdict yet, despite hours and hours of gameplay (it feels like we started a long time ago and our characters are still far, far away from reaching Level 50).

So far, however, SWTOR has been a sensational space romp worthy of the epic saga created by the blockbuster movies.

Storywise, it’s set 3,000-odd years before an angst-ridden Anakin Skywalker failed to deal with anger issues and donned the Darth Vader suit. As with all things Star Wars, the universe is in the midst of battle – The Empire vs The Republic. So, your first choice is to pick a side – Light or Dark. Are you down with Darth or a Jedi junkie?

The different classes (Goodies: Trooper, Smuggler, Jedi Knight, Jedi Consular. Baddies: Bounty Hunter, Sith Warrior, Imperial Agent, Sith Inquisitor) offer up varied story arcs, which in turn adds an amazing depth to the game.

What’s so enriching about SWTOR is the personal story that you develop. From rescue and kill quests to mini games and side quests, there’s an abundance of action around every alien corner. This is helped with dialogue decisions that plot the fate of your story.

There’s no lobby system, instead it’s easy to meet-and-greet other gamers and form cosmic groups in open play to take on Heroic Quests or Flashpoints.

The melee combat mechanic feels a little familiar but it’s still engaging as you strive to upgrade abilities and hunt for Jedi training to improve your skills. More credits and experience allow you to buy your own ship – making the jump to lightspeed and some cool intergalactic battles.

Animations and spell effects make for dizzying yet mesmerising battles. Throw in some gloriously detailed environments and city-like populations bustling with life and you’ve got more visual excitement than Yoda can shake a stick at.

So far, so good for a game that is lag-free without any bugs. That’s pretty impressive considering the gargantuan scale of SWTOR. It also justifies the £8.99 monthly subscription cost (box price includes first month online gametime).

Watch out World of Warcraft, there’s a new Star on the horizon.