In summary, these aspects include a brand new planet, two
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Details of the Stronghold and new major game updates were both limited to their revelations. Nothing more was revealed about them, however - because of the confusion regarding "major game update" and "expansion" - many initially assumed that these would be akin to both GSF and Strongholds, just with more story behind them. Both of the aforementioned expansions provided little other than a system of PvP not everyone found to their liking and the cosmetic housing system, respectively. Outside of Kuat Drive Yards, the Flashpoint, there was very little story to them.
Since the events from 3.0 vanilla have more story to tell than 2.5 onwards (which, let's be honest, was relegated mostly to Forged Alliances) ever did, it would make little sense for them to come out with updates of a similar scale that don't have the story tied in somehow, especially considering just how large post-Yavin story seems to be making itself out to be. Regardless, the fact that we're getting two updates which are labelled as "major" this year sounds intriguing. I doubt we'll see another paid expansion until 2016 at the earliest - bear in mind it was roughly 20 months between Rise of the Hutt Cartel and Shadow of Revan.
It's additionally nice that they're keeping Strongholds going; outside of new Decorations in the Cartel packs and from the Reputation guys on Rishi and Yavin, Strongholds haven't really seen much attention since they came out. That said, at least they've actually been getting some cosmetic attention throughout; neither ground PvP nor poor ol' GSF have seen any sort of significant update, or promise thereof, for a very long time..!
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The new playable race was finally properly "officiated", although many have known for a long time what it was going to be: Togruta. Expect to see Sith Inquisitor Togruta by the dozen.
It has been a long time since a new playable race was revealed. Cathar had been promised since July of 2012 before finally being released in May of 2013, and since then there has really been a dearth of such updates. It's nice, therefore, to finally receive another race to add to this list, and I know that it will be a popular choice for many.
This does make me wonder, though, whether there are any other popular species which can easily be implemented thus. Cathar are unique in the races for being the least "human", although even then that's limited to teeth, nose, ear, and eye shapes. All other playable species retain these as a rough constant; skin colour, hair, horns, and lekku are really the only major differences. Heck, even the Sith retain a large portion of the human aspect, just with tendrils thrown in.
I do hope that another species will eventually get added, but the only two I can see easily being approachable are Bothan and Nautolan. It's a shame, really; the Star Wars universe has so many fascinating species, and it would be nice to have a chance to do more beyond interacting with plain NPCs representing them - although I'll draw that line at Hutts, Chevin, and Gungans.
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The new planet hearkens back to what I was saying with regards to the story being a must for expansions this year. In April, we will all reportedly have the chance to travel to Ziost. From what I understand of the planet, it used to be incredibly prominent in the early days of the Sith Empire, essentially being the first Imperial capital beyond Korriban. Given this little fact, and especially the conclusion to 3.0, it is sensible to assume that with this world begins our first steps into BioWare's new story.
We don't know anything beyond this in terms of "in-game spin", though. We don't know whether it will be another Oricon - although it can safely be assumed that it will bring Dailies and another Reputation faction - or whether it will be another Rishi. Of the two ideals, I would easily prefer Rishi; a story one plays through once per character and then totally separate Dailies, rather than a story which then becomes the Daily missions in their entirety. 3.0 got a lot right with its management of Rishi, and it would be nice to see that repeated.
Regardless, the fact that we're getting another whole planet in just a couple of months really is rather exciting. That it will very likely expand 3.0's conclusion is equally fantastic; content is seemingly coming to us a lot quicker this year, although it remains to be seen what else will come to us quicker, such as new Flashpoints or Operations.
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Finally, the new cosmetic system. I kept this deliberately vague in the summary because I really wanted to elaborate drastically here as I love the idea of it.
In the game as we know it now, if you have two or more characters across your legacy who are either the same class as each other, or a mirror class on the opposite faction, you'd need a set of Legacy gear to transport your equipment over (weapons and peripherals not withstanding in many cases). You'd annoyingly be constrained by what the Legacy gear looked like; whilst your Dark Side Juggernaut might be rocking his Dreadseed gear, your Light Side Guardian might look very strange in Dark Side-esque equipment.
Come 3.2, though, the implication is that you need no longer worry about this disparity. An "Outfit Designer" will be introduced into the game with this patch. Whilst we do not yet know what exactly this entails, it is incredibly likely that this will allow you to have an entirely separate set of armour 'overlaying' your Legacy gear. Thus, your Legacy gear would still see use, but you would be able to hide it behind an entirely different set of equipment more befitting your class.
As someone who has mirrors for several of my characters on both factions - Guardian and Marauder notwithstanding - I absolutely love this idea. Whilst I do have a set that works rather well for both my Gunslinger and Sniper, my other classes aren't so lucky. For example, my Commando and Merc share the Makeb Assault Gear, and neither of them look like they suit it.
There is another aspect of this which I hope is made viable. Whilst it is fantastic for players, I feel that it would be even better if it could be used for Companions as well, and particularly with the Devoted Allies gear that you now receive from the Yavin Weekly.
Take, for example, Lokin as I would use him with the outfit designer, versus Vector with just the Devoted Allies gear.
[caption id="attachment_177" align="aligncenter" width="199"]
In one corner, we have Doctor Lokin, looking dapper in his Clandestine Officer's Uniform.[/caption][caption id="attachment_178" align="aligncenter" width="121"]
... and in the other, we have Vector, looking bizarre in his gothic Sith imitation outfit.[/caption]We've yet to find out more about this feature. I don't ask all that much of it, but I do hope it lets us manage our companions' outfits. Regardless, I cannot wait to see more people becoming more varied across Fleet; constraints of Legacy Gear can only be worked around so much by so many people.
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Even though we've only been informed of the absolute basics, they do sound very promising, and I cannot wait to see how they are implemented. In terms of the new planet and major game updates, I await with extreme interest to see to where they lead and how they tie in to the game and its story as a whole.
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