Star Wars: The Old Republic Preview, Screenshots

Another hands-on preview of BioWare's Star Wars: The Old Republic has made its way to the Internet, and this time it's VideoGamer.com providing the informative words. A quick snip:
Inside the Cantina a band played out a ditty reminiscent of the Cantina Theme Tune from the first Star Wars film. Outside, Hutta's barren, sludge-infested wasteland presented itself. The once lush jungle planet has been reduced to something akin to Croydon on a Friday night - it is a cesspit of doom, depression and drunken down-and-outs. I bet the Hutta Tourist Board has a hard time selling the planet as a holiday destination for wealthy members of the Galactic Senate.

After a few minutes spent walking towards my clearly marked destination, I came up on the Evocii village and got my hands dirty with Bounty Hunter combat. The Bounty Hunter begins with six special abilities, all mapped to the number keys. Rapid Shot, your basic attack, fires a quick stream of bolts. Missile Shot fires a high damage rocket that knocks your opponents down and has an area of effect. The channelled Flame Thrower ability (check it out in FMV form in the game's glorious E3 2009 trailer) spews searing fire in a ten metre cone. The Electro Dart stuns your opponents for five seconds, making them susceptible to the Rail Shot, a heavy damage attack that only works against vulnerable targets. And finally there's the Vent Heat ability, used to cool down your weapons of destruction when they overheat. The Bounty Hunter's abilities aren't limited by mana, rage, energy or something else that's basically mana. They're limited by heat, ie, when you get too hot, you have to cool them down.
They also bring word that the planet of Hoth will make an appearance, and back up the claim with a selection of exclusive screenshots. Considering that Hoth was one of the coolest planets (no pun intended) shown in the original trilogy, this really comes as no surprise. As long as I can explore it while firmly mounted on a tauntaun, I'll be happy.