So where does the truth lie? As in most cases, somewhere in the middle. It must be acknowledged that, as a gaming experience and as a commercial product, Star Wars: Galaxies is a huge, bug-infested mess. It suffers from the kinds of issues that plague nearly every MMO around launch time - broken servers, broken quests, buggy gameplay, lack of content - and adds to it some uniquely Galaxies issues such as infrequent patching and truly poor customer service all at a premium price.

Yet for all that, why do I think about the game all the time? Why, even in the middle of writing this review, did I sneak into the game to see whether or not that cool coat I put a bid on in the bazaar has finally come through? Why am I so proud that my Twi'lek scout has finally managed to get enough Imperial faction points to become a Lance Corporal in Palpatine's New Order? Why am I having so much fun in a game that frequently drives me insane?