For my second round of Old Republic beta testing, I opted to create a new character and give the Imperial faction a try. A few moments later, I found my newly-minted Imperial Agent on Hutta, tasked with inserting herself into a gang war between crime syndicates to advance the Empire's political agenda. The experience for this class was a very different one from the valiant Jedi Consular, both in gameplay and in story content.
Update: I played through the same amount of story content in Early Access, and aside from minor tweaks, the content is the same.
In combat, the Imperial Agent relies on cover and a blaster rifle to dispatch enemies from a distance-- or to sneak in close and dispatch foes with a carefully-placed twist of the vibroblade. Certain abilities, like sniper shots, can only be performed when in a cover stance, and while you can crouch anywhere and use them, it's far more advisable to find a crate to duck behind if you don't want to get mowed down. Fighting from afar also means that enemies will likely be farther apart, making area management techniques like grenades a little less valuable and strategic use of cover for protection all the more important. While not a pushover, the Agent is somewhat fragile and it isn't uncommon to go down under a hail of blaster bolts. Getting a companion helps a lot, as they can draw some fire away while the player pucks off opponents.
The Agent's mission in the early levels is, as mentioned above, infiltrating a Hutt crime syndicate. Forging alliances, manipulating the NPCs met along the way with threats and guile-- or, I'n the case of my female character, feminine wiles. Voice acting makes for a great touch her, expressing the subtleties and nuance in conversations very well. A lot of inspiration for Hutta is drawn from the cantina and Jabba's palace from the films, lending an authentic taste to this seedier side of the galaxy. Between the shifting plitics and gang-war action going on, there's a lot to like in the Agent's route.
There is something of an odd balance between mundane and exciting missions during the Agent's time on Hutta, While one moment may find you slipping past or blasting your way through an opposing gang's line on a mission worthy of James Bond, thee next may have you intervening in the affairs of a local family. This disconnect is slightly more odd when considering the Agent's cover story, which is far from the kind Jedi you'd expect to see helping locals out.
The combat experience for the Agent was also somewhat rough, with the cover system being inconsistent showing the indicator showing usable cover, and plenty of areas where there was little to no usable cover even though there were trees and such that would make sense to duck behind. It's also worth noting that if you duck behind an object that isn't an intended cover or you miss the designated cover position for it, your enemies may be "out of sight"-- you won't automatically stand or lean out to shoot. Though I don't think this ever cost my character's life, it did claim quite a few hit points.
Playing through several hours as an Imperial Agent has left me pretty impressed. Minor play issues aside, (some which should be expected in a beta version, after all) the Imperial Agent gives an exciting glimpse into life on the dark side. The mix of intrigue and action make for an unusual class and story for players to explore. Furthermore, the vast difference in story, tone, and gameplay from the Consular I played as before indicates that The Old Republic really has a lot to offer with its eight distinct classes. I'm not sure yet if I'll be revisiting the Imperial Agent at or soon after launch, but those that do choose the class should have a lot to look forward to.