There has been a metaphor running around SWTOR forums and official twitter accounts for quite some time now. I am not sure what is the earliest mention of this metaphor, but looking at the developer tracker I would say that this is the initial post:

I’ve said before that an announcement as big as release date will be so big, it’ll come thundering towards us and we’ll all hear it long before it arrives. That train’s coming… but so far, I’d just say we’ve laid down some early track.

Train speeding down the tracks making “Choo Choo” noises is what represents the announcement of the SWTOR Release date and its eventual release. Metaphor turned SWTOR meme has only been amplified by Stephen Reid, Senior Community Manager, with him using it extensively. It has come to that point where Mr. Reid received a gift, a train conductor’s hat, to be worn when the Day comes, as described in the following tweets:

Rockjaw:
Someone sent me a hat. I won’t tell you what it is, because knowing you lot, you’ll freak out. But person who sent it? It’s here. Link (July 1. 2011.)
Rockjaw:
Disclaimers: Hat does not imply anything. It is merely a hat. No train is coming (yet). Do not panic. Do not adjust your set. Link (July 1. 2011.)
Rockjaw:
The hat in question was bought FOR me, not by me, and I said I would wear it (in a photo) when The Day Comes. (And it hasn’t yet.) Link (July 1. 2011.)
At0mXII:
@Rockjaw So when we do see a tweet that says “Choo Choo!” and has a pic of you in the hat we should THEN get excited? 🙂 Link (July 1. 2011.)
Rockjaw:
Re: previous tweet – yes, something like that. Link (July 1. 2011.)

In line with all this I have decided to alter SWTOR Life website by adding a train countdown. Our train is Imperial Hover Train racing towards the finish line that has “release date” written on it. I have made it so that the train moves closer to the finish line as each day passes. It will move only a couple of pixels per day, but in a week or so the movement should be much more apparent. I have chosen the finish line to be reached on December 31. 2011., because in line with all we know from official sources the game should be out this year and that is the last day of this year. Once we find out what is the exact release date I will modify the finish line and the train’s relative position to it in line with new information. If you think I should add something more to it (like actual number of days left or something) please leave a comment and I’ll see what I can do. I always wanted to put a countdown to release date somewhere on the site and I believe that using the train meme metaphor is a perfect way to accomplish this. All that is left is to watch that train move, painstakingly slow, each day.

San Diego Comic Con is one of those big events on the calendar of any person that loves gaming, comics and SCI-FI stuff. Intersecting with all of these categories, Star Wars The old Republic will have a big presence at the show this year. Beside having a booth on the show floor (and probably a panel like last year) there is going to be a big hands-on gaming area available at a hotel next to the convention, so a lot more people will be able to get their hands on the game without the need to queue for hours. Click here to read full news

These class progression trailers are immense fun. They are one of the few things forum trolls do not hate or fuss much about, which just goes to prove my previous sentence. There was a big squeee in SWTOR Life virtual office because 80% of staff are planning to play Bounty Hunters at launch. SWTORCrafter even managed to play the first levels of it during the Fan Site Summit, so you can check his hands on impressions to complete your overall impression of the class.
The progression trailer shows some great footage of new armor and skills. I particularly liked the last armor they show in the video. It is very “savage” looking. There’s flamethrower AOE-ing, carbonite freezing, rocket launching, jetpack flying, knife in face action all over the place in the video and I am sure you will enjoy it. I have one objection though. I know they’ve done this only to show the skills and that action is a bit staged, but I still can’t get it out of my head. There is no way in hell that anyone or anything, including Bounty Hunters, can one shot Jedi (padawan or not).
 

We found this video among the media SWTORCrafter shot at E3. I’ve posted it a while back on our YouTube channel and I think it is about time I put it up on the site as well. There is some nice footage here of the new UI as well as companion specific UI. There are some nice enough shots of the sexy droid companion Scorpio to be found in the video. I’ve replaced the show floor noise with some original tracks from Knights of the Old Republic. People have been complaining about all the music and trailers that were heard in the background of previous E3 videos. I hope you find this a much better solution.