Valor exploit in SWTOR update 1.1 causes player uproar

By Fred Dutton Published 19 January, 2012

UPDATE: BioWare readying new patch.

UPDATE: BioWare has told Eurogamer that it is "aware there are some issues on Ilum on some servers" and that it will be issuing a new patch tomorrow morning (19th January) to address the problem.

"We appreciate everyone's patience and feedback and are working quickly to resolve the issue to ensure Ilum is as fun as the other new content introduced in Game Update 1.1, the Kaon Under Siege Flashpoint and Karagga's Palace Operation," explained a spokesperson for the developer.

Further details on the new patch have been posted on the game's official forum.

ORIGINAL STORY: Today's 1.1 update for Star Wars: The Old Republic has seemingly brought with it a number of serious glitches and exploits.

Players have flocked to a 74-page-long thread on the game's official forum to complain about various problems thrown up by the patch.

The most serious allegation is that many users are racking up huge amounts of valor points in Ilum PvP via turret farming and spawn camping exploits caused by factional imbalances.

YouTube user suzpaz has uploaded a video of the camping exploit in action - see below.

Players are also complaining of a number of non-PvP-related issues, including glitches with loading screens and hotbar icons.

A formal response from BioWare posted on the forum stated that the developer is "currently investigating potential issues related to the Ilum open world PVP area post 1.1" and that it "will update as soon as we have more information."

Picture of Fred.

About Fred Dutton

Fred Dutton is Eurogamer's US news editor, based in Washington DC.

Read more articles from Fred by visiting the Fred Dutton archive page.

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Comments (70) Latest comment 1 month ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • FortysixterUK #1 1 month ago

    This game is still somewhat broken.
    Hopefully they will put in things like auto grouping and fix the multitude of issues that are cropping up.
    Good luck Bioware. You're really going to need it. I'm out for now.

  • Retroid #2 1 month ago

    WHOOPS.

    Seems they released the Bethesda-style patch by mistake ;)

  • Hellion83 #3 1 month ago

    Post deleted at 20:12:17 01-02-2012

  • tangoownage #4 1 month ago

    My fps is better, even with aa on. But I have a good rig with no issues before

  • DerpSalad #5 1 month ago

    This is why buying a game AND paying monthly fees on top is a fucking joke. There is literally no reason to be an early adopter of an MMO.

  • soviet_ #6 1 month ago

    That looks fun

  • Vyggo #7 1 month ago

    @Retroid I bet they really wanted this update out because this week is the end of the free first month for a lot of people.

  • Garrent #8 1 month ago

    BTW very nice fps :) Read this about Ilum, its not only valor exploit
    http://www.swtor.com/community/showthread.php?t=191934

  • ActionJacksonMan #9 1 month ago

    Gameplay looks real laggy from the video. But WOW had the same problem too in some of the larger pvp areas. Can any SW players give me any numbers for the numers of players in the battlegrounds?

  • bobfish09 #10 1 month ago

    I've defended BioWare and SWTOR enough, this update was stupid ANYONE could've told them this change was a bad idea.

  • NuY #11 1 month ago

    @Retroid I'm looking forward to seeing the backward flying TIE fighters then

  • Alivada #12 1 month ago

    So if the imperials can level up easily and get the best PVP gear, doesn't this completely destory BGs?
    Poor ol' republic are sitting there with the greens while the bad guys are rocking out purples.

  • Ternon #13 1 month ago

    I'm still getting SWTOR in a few months, I watched a lot of combat videos of mostly shooty classes and I know it will be very enjoyable.

  • red_cruiser #14 1 month ago

    Well, this all but shatters any hope of SWTOR of ever becoming a competitive PvP game.

  • Retroid #15 1 month ago

    This just reminded me of the repeated bugger-ups with the Fallout 3 DLCs. Utter pain in the arse, especially for people who're, as pointed out, nearing the end of the gratis month.

    I know a few friends who're playing this. I don't blame them for being pissed off with the problems.

  • George-Roper #16 1 month ago

    What an utter, utter mess...

  • coomber #17 1 month ago

    The farce is strong with this one...

  • Ternon #18 1 month ago

    BTW, that has to be the worst framerate I ever saw on youtube, it's basically a slideshow. Probably some clueless twit played it and recorded it on a laptop.

  • arcam #19 1 month ago

    I find your lack of framerate disturbing.

  • Red-Moose #20 1 month ago

    That is truly an appalling fps. It could be drawn by hand and flicked in an animation booklet faster.

  • thebuzzard #21 1 month ago

    @FortysixterUK I agree the game is broken right now, I dont know how much time people who have done positive reviews of the game have played it but clearly not enough to get past whooo light sabres phase I also enjoyed for the first week or two. Server mergers coming soon and freemium within a year.

  • FerrisBueller #22 1 month ago

    Eurogamer, I'm disappointed in your lack of comment on this. This story could, on the basis of the YouTube video, lead to Eurogamer being banned in the US, blocked from search engines, and blocked from getting any advertising revenue, if SOPA/PIPA passes in the US. In other words, this story could lead to the demise of Eurogamer.

    Think I'm exaggerating? I'm really not. This is what the legislation is designed to do, because EA won't have approved the YouTube footage, so technically it is a copyright infringement. What I listed above is the reprecussions SOPA/PIPA sets up, and they can be enforced without any due process, but on a coporation's demand. Even to websites outside the US. Stop SOPA/PIPA. Keep the internet for us.

    http://blacklists.eff.org/
    Edited by 2 at 18/01/12 @ 22:49

  • OverWind #23 1 month ago

    I haven't been to the level 50 battlegrounds yet, so I can't say anything about that. But all the other fixes in the update are very nice. :)

    I find it weird that people have so little patience, that they feel the need to scream on forums and ragequit. Oh well. I'll enjoy the rest of the game, which I'm not planning on unsubscribing to anytime soon. Level 44 with my main now, and enjoying the hell out of it. (And already got several alts lined up). :)

  • Velios #24 1 month ago

    This video confirmed that I will never ever play this game. It looks abysmal.

  • FerrisBueller #25 1 month ago

    @gotyourmoney I'm more disappointed Eurogamer didn't. Cf Wikipedia/Reddit/RPS.

  • iamtheoneneo #26 1 month ago

    So on the 17/1 a mod is found to be a hacker on bf3 and covered up - EA lead
    and on the 18/1 a similar and equally messed up thing happens with SOR lol

    my god, you couldnt even make it up.

    negged for pointing out a FACT? wow
    Edited by 1 at 19/01/12 @ 09:09

  • dsmx #27 1 month ago

    Ahh once again another new MMO proves that my policy of waiting 1 year until jumping in is always the correct decision.

  • Sunyavadin #28 1 month ago

    @dsmx Indeed, I'll be taking up this game as soon as it gets a free option. Maybe purchase a couple of extra character slots, a class or two, and that'll be it. The game for a fraction of the thousands that subscription based mugs end up paying for an MMO over the years they play.
    Edited by 1 at 19/01/12 @ 01:46

  • HeNiCiDe1988 #29 1 month ago

    lmao the fps he is gettin is horrendous. But I think it sucks pretty bad for bugs and stuff, if the game is awesome you will contine. I just dont get why people didnt just leave.

    But what is utterly hilarious is the fact that people show time and time again how much of dickheads they can be when an exploit door opens for them :p

  • Okamiwolf #30 1 month ago

    That video sums up why I have no interest in this game.

  • redwyne #31 1 month ago

    Not only bad development, they removed cancel subscription button !!!
    and lets see what James Lol Ohlen says about the patch :
    " This first Game Update will show everyone how serious we are about expanding Star Wars: The Old Republic, and there’s much more to come. "

    ORLY ?
    I mean lololol whats wrong with BW ?

  • TazerFan #32 1 month ago

    @gotyourmoney

    None of those were funny.

  • Hellion83 #33 1 month ago

    Post deleted at 20:12:17 01-02-2012

  • redwyne #34 1 month ago

    @Hellion83 yes they did and ask people in the forum to call them for further assistance !!

  • Hellion83 #35 1 month ago

    Post deleted at 20:12:17 01-02-2012

  • redwyne #36 1 month ago

    @Hellion83 check this out a guys posted this in the forum :
    " After calling, I talked to a series of incompetent morons who I had to repeat the spelling of my last name 5 times to, and then get put on hold 5 times while being transferred twice. Then I was told that "They are unable to process the unsubscribe at the present time, and must file a ticket to their superiors", which would have obviously been resolved after being billed tomorrow. So after displaying my displeasure about that, they were SOMEHOW able to process the unsubscription immediately. I don't think I've been more disgusted with an MMO experience in my life. " lol

  • Hellion83 #37 1 month ago

    Post deleted at 20:12:17 01-02-2012

  • Ahskay #38 1 month ago

    Looking at that video the game seems like no fun at all. You would've hoped that mmorpg's would've evolved by now but it's still the same mess as it was ten years ago. PVP in mmorpg's will never be balanced unless GW2 has a trick up it's sleeve and i bet it has many.

  • Eisenstein #39 1 month ago

    @redwyne This makes me glad I canceled my subscription on Monday already. Not being able to unsubscribe on the last day of your free month really seems like a shady tactic.

  • ucankurbaga #40 1 month ago

    I didn't know people are interested in playing slideshows.

  • Dizzy #41 1 month ago

    That being said... the Kaon under Siege FP is absolutely ace. L4D MMO style :) So there are PvP issues, but the PvE side of the patch is rather good.

  • Dizz #42 1 month ago

    @gotyourmoney

    ROFL yea in 3000 years historians are going to wonder why they can't find any history on the time period we're living in.

    At least people in ancient times built enormous pyramids and used stone tablets to record stuff. I'm worried for our current generations...

    Anyhow...this patch sucks, and Bioware (or perhaps Mythic since Amatangelo is one of the Mythic idiots) fucked up bigtime, and shows they're in WAAAYY over their heads. Ironically, Rift's first patch killed that game too...

    Stick to single player games guys. :>
    Edited by 3 at 19/01/12 @ 07:48

  • anomagnus #43 1 month ago

    Its a patch in an MMO that had unintended consequences. How original... This never happens to anyone else.

    Of course, every thing negative will be seen as absolute proof that the game is fucked by those that aren't just hoping the game fails, but actively praying for it (because then they can be 'internet right')

    As for FPS issues, have none of you even thought about the fact he's running fraps? In the background of a high intensity pvp zone? Last time i checked, FRAPS isn't a performance booster... I'd love to see teh specs on the machine thats running what appears to be 1920x1080, all visual effects on, in a high intensity pvp setting with fraps and have no FPS drop off.

    But hey guys, don't let the truth get in the way of a good 'fuck me guys, i was so right, SWTOR is shite, heres an MMO that dropped their first patch it didn't work, BWAHAHHAHAHAH' story ....

    Also, Fred, this patch, 1.1, is this the patch you've formally written on this site hasn't been launched, and as of this morning, still haven't bothered to update your story? Yea, i think it is.

    Edit George roper is pretty awesome!
    Edited by 2 at 19/01/12 @ 10:06

  • anomagnus #44 1 month ago

    @Dizz
    Lol, in what way was Rift killed?

  • 3william56 #45 1 month ago

    @Alivada Yeah, but isn't that the way it should be? Overequipped imperials with all the advantages, underfunded rebels getting by on spit and sawdust. The Empire had ATATs and Death Stars, but the rebels couldn't afford a broadband connection or long distance phone call to transmit the DS plans and had to get a amublatory dustbin, a golden ponce and some rube from the sticks to hire a sh*tbox freighter to get a message home manually.

  • faselei #46 1 month ago

    Why do MMO players, and specifically Star Wars related MMO players, whine, complain and moan so much?

  • anomagnus #47 1 month ago

    @faselei
    Its not the MMO part thats important, its the RPG bit thats important.

    You see, some elitist assholes used RPGs to reinforce their own superiority, after all, if they played videogames, they certainly didnt play COD, thats for 12 year old mouth breathers. The true sign of intelligence was playing an RPG.

    But now Bioware is making rpgs that appeal to more people, and a very small vocal minority of rpg fans don't like the fact they arent special anymore. So they moan a lot about bioware and sw:tor.

    It makes them feel good i guess.

  • Kanjin #48 1 month ago

    @OverWind you forgot that everything on the internet is Serious Business. Don't you dare put things in perspective you're meant to RAGE.

    (edit grammer)
    Edited by 1 at 19/01/12 @ 08:31

  • johnson81 #49 1 month ago

    I've never played an MMO in my life but I have a small question? If you unsubscribe now, does this mean that persons has paid £30-£40 on one month of gaming and can no longer play?

  • cnlfailure #50 1 month ago

    I'm a player, I'm not uproaring.

  • Zozzilla #51 1 month ago

    The game has only been out officially for a month. It's bound to have bugs that still need fixing, and every new patch ANYTHING gets has a chance of breaking something else. I mean, look at WoW - been out for what, 6 years, and it's still a buggy piece of shite.

  • Raconteur #52 1 month ago

    I sense a disturbance in the Force. As if many subscribers have cried out at once and then just disappeared.

  • George-Roper #53 1 month ago

    @anomagnus

    But PVP performance is widely known to shit. It's plastered all over their forums. So why now are you trying to argue that the vid must have been done on a poor spec box and all the apps used are responsible for the piss-poor frame rate?

    All I've said on this article is that it's an utter, utter mess and guess what? It is. There are posts here infinitely more damning of the game than mine, yet you choose to highlight my name?

    It's right now, when the 30 free days are over that BW will be scrutinised. What dev in their right mind would roll such an obviously broken patch live, right at the point where players are deciding whether they'll continue to sub or not? What that tells me is that BW are immature. They clearly don't have the checks and balances in place for an MMO update, which inspires precisely zero confidence in their abilities.

  • killuminati2911 #54 1 month ago

    Is that the videoplayer lagging or is the "normal" lag on Ilium?? O_o

  • anomagnus #55 1 month ago

    @George-Roper

    In fairness george, i mentioned your name more in jest, and in the context of my full post, you're right, its not fair, i'll go back and edit the post to remove you.

    Now, in light of your other point, i could say the same of any MMO putting out any patch. They fucked up, but if it resolved today, so what? The people that will continue to play SW:TOR have already made their minds up. The people that haven't, have left already. Those inbetween, i don't know, i know MMO's, and the middle ground, the quiet majority aren't rocked by these things.

    I am surprised though that 4 people think its unaceptable to ask dizz when rift was killed?

    Blizz fanboys?
    Edited by 1 at 19/01/12 @ 10:08

  • telboy007 #56 1 month ago

    I can only see three film related quotes! This isn't good enough...

  • anomagnus #57 1 month ago

    @johnson81

    You pay 50 euro, and get one month free.

    You can play that game as much as any 50 euro game in the first month, and when its done, no you can't play unless you subscribe.

    But anyone that buys an MMO, and then doesn't play it the first month, probably isn't doing it right

  • anomagnus #58 1 month ago

    @gotyourmoney

    lol. i sometimes wonder about text adventures. I mean, can you just say anything. I'm not sure i have the discipline for them!

  • SweetMrGibs #59 1 month ago

    @George-Roper

    "All I've said on this article is that it's an utter, utter mess and guess what? It is."

    Only Sith deal in absolutes ;P

    As for releasing a patch just before the sub's expire... I wouldn't call Bioware immature because of the timing. I think that's a little derogatory. Niave, maybe. But then they were on a hiding to nothing. If they'd released the patch *after* the sub's expired, they'd have been accused of deliberately holding back the patch, because they 'knew it was broken!'.

  • Totza #60 1 month ago

    This game is awful, never seen a game released with so many bugs, for an mmo thats bad, so glad I didnt waste a single pound on this shit

  • MaybeLater #61 1 month ago

    @George-Roper I'll say it if Anomagnus is going to back down. There are very few SWTOR articles which don't feature your claims to precognitive abilities as regards the game's eventual fate in their respective comments sections. You more often then not present your unsubstantiated opinions as fact and guarantee their validity. If you're going to conduct yourself in that fashion at least have the integrity to stand by your claims and not bitch when you're brought to task.

  • SweetMrGibs #62 1 month ago

    @Totza

    You could use your hard-earned cash to buy full stops instead!

  • Jauffre #63 1 month ago

    @redwyne What?! Glad I only paid for 30 days rather than a recurring plan.

    Edit: Had a bit of a dig around, looks like you can use the following link to unsubscribe (you'll probably need to be logged in)

    ht tps://account.swtor.com/user/subscription/cancel
    Edited by 1 at 19/01/12 @ 13:09

  • George-Roper #64 1 month ago

    @MaybeLater

    It's true, I don't think the game will last much more than 6 months but that's nothing to do with BW putting a shitfest of a patch out and ruining PVP.

    My comments here are rooted in BW not having the MMO background. Something required to avoid these kinds of mistakes.

    Have you seen the TOR test realm forum? Those guys were crying out for weeks, to be given the ability to properly test the PVP changes and they were ignored. The patch rolls live and its a total mess. Who's fault is that when BW had a slice of the community sat there begging to be given the ability to test the proposed changes properly?

    When EA swallowed Mythic, then put their own devs onto DAoC you could see just how much they fucked things up. History has a way of repeating itself but the onus is now fully on BW to...

    1) Be responsive to the community, not leave them sitting 'waiting for an update' to game-breaking issues for an entire day.

    2) Quickly and efficiently release hotfixes to address specific problems and not create any more along the way.

    3) Be open with the community on how the problems happened and what they intend to do to stop them happening again.

    I just hope for those people still playing after the 30 days have been and gone that BW ramp up their game because all their spouting about how they were going to address the PVP issues has made them a laughing stock with this patch.

  • SweetMrGibs #65 1 month ago

    @George-Roper

    1) Be responsive to the community, not leave them sitting 'waiting for an update' to game-breaking issues for an entire day.

    Maybe the community needs to be more patient? Also, what game-breaking issues are you referring too? If you're talking about Ilum, that's a tiny % of the entire game. Why don't you - y'know - go and do something else instead? Flashpoints, Operations, Warzones, level an alt and call it 'Mildred'?

    2) Quickly and efficiently release hotfixes to address specific problems and not create any more along the way.

    Yeah, I think that's what they - and every developer - aim to do. But life's not perfect. Also, you're expecting quick and efficent hotfixes AND for them not to cause issues along the way? Seems to me the quicker they rush out hotfixes to appease the impatient, the more likely it is that they *will* cause more knock-on consequences.

    3) Be open with the community on how the problems happened and what they intend to do to stop them happening again.

    Whilst I'm all for developers being open with the community, I'm sure Bioware have QA. I'm not interested in what the mechanics are.

    "All their spouting about how they were going to address the PVP issues has made them a laughing stock with this patch."

    Really? Is that an opinion, or based on your 'laughing stock SWTOR meter'? I'm sorry George, I don't mean to be rude, I'm just tired of guys like you who pontificate and spout their opinion as if it's the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. You act like you're the voice of 'the community'. Well, aside from the vocal part of 'the community', there's a less vocal group of players who are quite content with the state of the game, and quite content to let Bioware deal with the issues in a reasonable timeframe. And lest I be accused of trying to be the voice of the 'less vocal community', I'll say that's just me ;P

    Edit: Also, the following argument is cyclical...

    "It's true, I don't think the game will last much more than 6 months but that's nothing to do with BW putting a shitfest of a patch out and ruining PVP."

    "My comments here are rooted in BW not having the MMO background. Something required to avoid these kinds of mistakes."

    You're basically saying that in your opinion, SWTOR won't last more than six months - but it has nothing to do with the patch. You then say that it's because of Bioware's lack of an MMO background that the patch was full of mistakes, which *will* be the reason it wont' last 6 months. Wha?

    Also, can I borrow your crystal ball?
    Edited by 1 at 19/01/12 @ 15:18

  • MaybeLater #66 1 month ago

    @George-Roper BW are trying to build that background; they can only learn through experience. Are you suggesting no one should try to branch out?

    MMO forums are always full of exceptionally irate users; due in no small part to the addictive nature of MMOs. An 'entire day' isn't a long time to wait for anything.

    Compared to the litany of abysmal MMO releases in the past, BW are doing pretty damn well and compared to the likes of SOE they never stop communicating with their user-base.

    You clearly revel in any perceived failure by BW and you have frequently guaranteed this game will fail and go FTP within 6 months , later congratulating yourself on apparently being correct. You call people gimps and retards for having the audacity to challenge your clearly flawed logic and still expect them to value your opinion.

    If you get your wish and SW:TOR fails then you can wave goodbye to the potential for substantial future investment in MMOs. Then what will you have to bitch about?

  • SweetMrGibs #67 1 month ago

    @MaybeLater

    "If you get your wish and SW:TOR fails then you can wave goodbye to the potential for substantial future investment in MMOs. Then what will you have to bitch about?"

    The fact that Mildred won't let him install broadband in the shed.

  • christopherfischer #68 1 month ago

    @gotyourmoney not really. credit exploiters got a 7 day ban and were allowed to keep their credits, lol.

  • varkdm #69 1 month ago

    @christopherfischer Yea but 7 days worth of income is rather a lot. I dont know the sums involved, but it could actually be quite an elegant solution. It allows other players to catch up with them and evens the playing field.

  • Neil__ #70 1 month ago

    @faselei
    Why are you whining and moaning about people who whine and moan.