Overview

If you enjoy Galaxies as it is now, with the CU, and enjoyed quests like the Rebel Themepark, Jabba?s Palace, the Deathwatch Bunker, and the Geonosian Cave, you will love Rage of the Wookiees. If you are half hearted about the quests side of things, and not enjoying the Combat Upgrade, Rage of the Wookiees will disappoint you.

Misconceptions but Long-Missed Content

Firstly, this review is not of the Combat Upgrade, and any views of the game are made from the viewpoint of contentment with the CU. One of the major complaints from players is that there is little to do in Galaxies. Those critics have found their soapbox significantly shakier, because this expansion is all about content.

Kashyyyk itself is not a planet like any of the others in the game ? it seems significantly smaller (at first glance) and a lot more restrictive. You can move only on the paths designated, but the paths lead you to the massive gates that open new zones to you (which you can sometimes move about on more freely). All told there are four of these zones, each one different in its composition and smaller than a normal planet. If you read the books, I suggest looking at the Rryatt Trail first ? it matched my mental picture of Kashyyyk nearly perfectly and is a real joy to adventure through.

A lot of the quests are on the new planet, but if you limit yourself to only looking there, you?ll be missing out on some of the most rewarding adventures. Scattered in cantinas, palaces, and less desirable places across the galaxy are a handful of people who need your help, and have some spectacular rewards if you spend the time to assist them. I was spectacularly impressed with both the quality and variety in quest rewards ? weapons are really useful, armor is cool-looking, unique and protective, and there are even reward foods! Many professions will even find unique quests or rewards for them ? Creature Handlers can do a special quest to get an upgraded mount, Weaponsmiths get a quest for a decorative Knife Schematic, There are a few Master Teras Kasi reward weapons, a Master Bounty Hunter carbine, Squad Leader Pistols, and more.

One of the things that really struck me about the quests is the tie-ins with Jump to Lightspeed. JTL is required for this expansion (it?s how you get to Kashyyyk), but you get it with whatever version you purchase. As someone who has never really done the JTL quests and missions (and subsequently never got above Novice Pilot), I found myself deadlocked in a number of quests, because many quests take you up into space to deliver, fight, escort, or otherwise. And sometimes, the enemies up there are big, mean, and travel with friends. Which just means you need to group up with a few of your friends to complete the mission. Not all missions are do-able by yourself, so getting a group of friends to hike through the depths of the Myyydril Caverns or take to space will be a routine occurrence once you?re past the first group of missions.

The expansion is not perfect. There are a number of bugs that they are (hopefully) working on fixing, so waiting a few weeks to buy the boxed, full bundled copy (Galaxies, JTL, and RotW), or even a few weeks after that will not hinder you at all ? in fact, it may help if you get stuck and need advice on where to go next! Once you finish all the quests, there are dungeons you can return to, to play around in and help your friends do the quests, and you can mine asteroids in space if you like. For a casual player though, you won?t run out of quests for a while.

Bottom Line

If you enjoy the content of Galaxies, and are willing and able to group up with friends, you will enjoy Rage of the Wookiees.

Score

9/10