Jedi Knight Character Progression Trailer Features Original Music

LucasArts has released another teasing bit of goodness for the upcoming STAR WAR: THE OLD REPUBLIC. This time we get to look at the character progression of the Jedi roles. From a noob-jedi wielding, essentially, a pole, to some full-on, Jedi mastery, this short video gives us a tiny clue as to what your game journey could be like.

But nevermind that for now. Throughout the whole video you get treated to original score written for this colossal game by composer Mark Griskey et al.

Sounding so very "Star Wars" to be sure! What do you think of what you are hearing thus far?

More Star Wars: The Force Unleashed to come. More new music, too?

UPDATE: 7/26/09

Well, some sad news. We won't be hearing any new music from composer Mark Griskey for any of the DLC or Ultimate Sith Edition. Of course, that doesn't mean there won't be ANY new music at all, but looking pretty doubtful at this point.

----------------------------------------

And even more news from the Star Wars galaxy...

Also announced at Comic-Con today, LucasArts tells us that there is more DLC (downloadable content) coming for THE FORCE UNLEASHED for both Xbox360 and PS3. It will be available sometime this Fall. That's all well and good and I'm fairly excited about that, but they've gone the next step and announced THE FORCE UNLEASHED: THE ULTIMATE SITH EDITION!

Looking good. No? As you saw in the teaser, this new DLC and Ultimate Sith Edition will explore the question "What if the dark side had won?" Now, who wouldn't want to play through the answer to that?

Admittedly, I'm scratching my head a little over the marketing strategy: make the first part of this new storyline available as DLC, but make us have to buy the new edition to complete the storyline. Seems like a double-dip of the Sith kind. Yes...well...call me weak-minded, because I'll be forkin' over the dollars to finish that story. Plus, battling an aging Obi Wan and Boba Fett? Impossible to resist, the double-dip is.

Last of all, could all of this new content mean some additional new music from MARK GRISKEY and/or JESSE HARLIN? This alternative storyline is begging for some new thematic material. Let's hope I'm right.

You can check out more on The Force Unleashed: Ulimate Sith Edition at the official site.

New Star Wars: The Old Republic Trailer is Bard Arse!

Now THIS is what it's all about! Straight up...bard arse! No countless droids or clonetroopers that no one cares about...but Jedi Versus Sith and lots of em. This is exactly what my 7 year old brain imagined when Obi Wan first uttered "The Clone Wars" in Star Wars: A New Hope. (Of course, I didn't know what a 'clone' was at that age, but I knew it had to have been some great war with the Jedi).

Thirty plus years later, I'm still looking for that itch to be scratched...and, by Jove, I think they are getting close...if this trailer is any indication. This just gets my long-dormant, Star Wars juices moving again. I'm not sure how the game will turn out, but I know I'll be into the cutscenes for sure! I'm looking to LucasArts and Bioware to fan my flames of Star Wars fandom...because they are all but dead. (They might be a little stronger, if I could have passed that bloody Star Destroyer level in The Force Unleashed...but I only have one life to live.)

Oh yes...the music in the trailer appears to be all pre-existing John Williams material. As much as I love Williams' music, I have high hopes for some fresh music for this game.

So what do you think of this trailer?

Star Wars: The Old Republic: Galactic Timeline 1 incl. music by John Williams

LucasArts and Bioware just posted a new, quasi-animated short. This appears to be the first of a series of timeline-shorts giving us the all-important "history" and backstory for the upcoming MMORPG, STAR WARS: THE OLD REPUBLIC.

I have to admit I love these simple little stories. I'm not the biggest fan of the particular art style they are going with for this game, site and shorts, but I've scene a lot worse. I am also a sucker for Jedi/Sith "history." It holds far more potential than any "clone-story" ever could.

Admittedly, my first time through this video...I hardly watched at all. Instead, I was listening. No. Not to the narration, but to the music, of course. I have been doing my best to find out who is doing the music for this game, but I have yet to get any answers whatsoever. I was hoping this video might give me a clue.

Sadly, as it turns out...it's all recycled music from JOHN WILLIAMS' prequel efforts. It works well enough for the little animated short, but certainly didn't excite me. This might, in the end, prove to be what they do for the game (recycle Williams' score) which would be a cryin' shame. While Jesse Harlin has proven himself a capable musical editor on previous Star Wars games, the fact is, there are composers out there who would do a great job of holding to the musical tradition of Star Wars, while bringing in something fresh...and I don't mean of The Clone Wars variety either.

So check it out. It's an interesting few minutes of Star Wars history. I think this Galactic Timeline series could hold my attention for a while...if only they'd inject some fresh music into the experience. Tell us what you think of the video, the game, and the music.

Watch THE TREATY OF CORUSCANT here

Star Wars: The Old Republic coming from LucasArts and Bioware

Well, just as we complete our feature on LucasArts' most recent release, FRACTURE, they and Bioware make a big announcement regarding their next "biggie." As many have speculated about for months, LucasArts and Bioware are returning to the STAR WARS universe, but in MMO style.

STAR WARS: THE OLD REPUBLIC is under development. The official announcement was made today amidst much hoopla. This sequel (of sorts) to the KNIGHTS OF THE OLD REPUBLIC (KOTOR) franchise, is set some 300 after the events of THE SITH LORDS. Claims are that, while some tasks can be completed as a single player, others will take cooperative efforts to complete. So perhaps both the KOTOR faithful (which were RPGs) and the massively multiplayer online (MMO) crowd will be happy with the game.

The official site offers some concept artwork, backstory details, discussion forum, and the like, but it is early days yet. No official announcements have been made regarding the game's music. Well, we can always speculate...

I think we can rule out KEVIN KINER, as THE CLONE WARS appears to be his era. JEREMY SOULE did a nice job with the first KNIGHTS OF THE OLD REPUBLIC and of course we have gotten more familiar with the good work of MARK GRISKEY since KOTOR 2: THE SITH LORDS via his recent work for THE FORCE UNLEASHED...or perhaps resident composer and music supervisor, JESSE HARLIN will pen this one. We have quite some time to think about the possiblities as no release date for the game has been mentioned yet.

Who do you think would be the best choice to score STAR WARS: THE OLD REPUBLIC?


You can check out the official site here


Stay tuned...

Visiting the Lucas Empire

In making one of my regular excursions back to California, I will be privileged to visit both LucasFilm/ Skywalker Sound and the new home of LucasArts (on the Presidio in San Francisco). Having been to "the ranch" once before, I can say it is a creative environment like no other. With THE CLONE WARS and THE FORCE UNLEASHED on the horizon, there should be a ton of activity; making these two days insanely cool. Want to come along? My plan is to send updates about the visit via Twitter - provided Twitter is functioning, that is.

Follow me on Twitter here!