Wow. With one lowercase 'w', not the other capital-loaded sort.

Ever since E3 last year, I have been excited about this title. The prospect of a Star Wars MMO that strives to be as far removed from Galaxies as possible is a tasty one indeed. Add in the fact that it’s being developed by BioWare, one of the more highly celebrated RPG developers on Earth and my mouth is saliva city.

After running through a brief behind-closed-doors presentation with a LucasArts staffer, doors flew open to a room humming with 12 hotted-up Alienware PCs and we were each randomly given one of three classes (of a total eight) to play with. Out of Sith (WORD!), Bounty Hunter and Trooper, I had my hopes pegged on getting some Boba Fett fantasy fulfilment. The lovely LucasArts promo girl who was loading the game for me sang the first few bars of MC Chris’ – Fett’s Vette... Good news for me. A-bounty hunting we shall go!

Not being a fan of stupid elves, I have never gotten too deep into World of Warcraft. I tried, in earnest, to develop a healthy addiction around two years ago - but found no inspiration to buy in to that world. Getting a start on the bad streets of Hutta as a fresh bounty hunter, however, was quite a different feeling to the mundane fantasy of WoW. SWToR is an MMORPG I can get behind, right from the ground up.

Although the character creation screen was hidden from us, I started the adventure with a swarthy warrior. Something like a cross between Jonah Lomu and Mike Tyson, facial tattoos inclusive. Picking up a couple of quests came easy, the fully voiced NPC and player characters helped ease me into the game world, a key feature for luring new folks into the lucrative yet saturated MMO market. The controls were standard for a third-person RPG, the action bar along the bottom of the screen corresponding to the 1-9 / -+ keys.

One of the criticisms SOE faced in the aftermath of Star Wars: Galaxies was the stale and repetitive fights. BioWare has addressed this in SWTOR, telling us the battles will feel epic and heroic right from the start. No clubbing wamp rats or collecting useless trinkets to impress farmers here, then. As soon as I stepped out of the relative calm of the cantina I had spawned in, I was going toe to toe with some troublesome street scum.

Blaster at the ready, I mercilessly dispatched the creeps. Around the next corner (and already completing quest objectives) I found a more powerful enemy. Seamlessly switching between the bounty hunter’s kit, I fired a ruthless volley of explosive darts into a crowd of baddies. At this stage, a large grin had spread across my face.

One of the things many have asked of SWTOR is how the balance between the classes will work out in an MMO setting. Surely a Sith could make mincemeat of a humble smuggler?

BioWare has taken great pains to ensure the classes are both complimentary and evenly matched. Even in the early version we were shown this afternoon the hard work was showing off. During the demo I was shown prior to my own turn, I saw the classes working as one to defeat a large droid assailant. A Jedi Knight swooped and sliced around the lighter droids, removing support characters and lighter foes. The trooper was tanked up, leading the assault while a Jedi Consular healed from the backlines. The smuggler in the party used cover tactics and pulled off pot shots from safety. According to BioWare, each class has enough tricks up its sleeve to be equal on the battlefield.

Presentation wise, SWToR is a treat. The visuals are superb for an MMO, a genre plagued by shoddy visuals in the name of allowing everyone a chance to play. Smooth character animation and gorgeous textures are hallmarks of BioWare titles, and this is no exception. Effects of light from blasters and fire looked tremendous.

The sounds, too, are up to scratch as you would expect with a Star Wars title. I am looking forward to seeing some epic battles take place with a full orchestral soundtrack and the distinctive ‘sccccchhhhrrrrrcccccccc vwooooommmmm mmmmmmmm’ of lightsabres clashing (excuse the technical term).

My time with SWToR was criminally short. The 20 minutes I had with it felt like a lot longer, and it was painful to pull myself away. The feeling of a massive adventure about to take off, coupled with the massive multiplayer elements lurking on the peripheries proved a powerful incentive for me to become intoxicated by its charms. Bearing in mind I witnessed no PvP, no character creation, no massive battles and only got the tiniest taste of storyline, this is one to keep an eye on. I know I’ll be hunting for a beta key as soon as humanly possible. If you like Star Wars, this game could keep you occupied for a very long time.