Star Wars: The Old Republic Carrie Fisher Memorial Held
By Sarah Fields 12 January 2017
Star Wars fans come together online in Star Wars: The Old Republic to pay tribute to Carrie Fisher, the actress who played Princess Leia, following her passing.
Sci-fi fans are grieving around the world today, as actress Carrie Fisher has passed away due to complications following a heart attack. Star Wars fans have spoken out all over the internet expressing their sorrow and condolences to the actress’s family, and now fans are coming together on Star Wars: The Old Republic to hold vigils for their fallen Princess.
The Star Wars: The Old Republic Reddit community has arranged multiple memorials for Carrie Fisher in the game. The memorials are being held across multiple servers, including The Ebon Hawk, The Harbinger, and The Shadowlands. Each memorial is being held in Castle Organa on planet Alderaan in honor of the character Fisher brought to life, Princess – and later, General – Leia Organa. Organizers are welcoming members of any faction, and are working to keep guard droids from causing any trouble for low-level players.
The loss of Fisher has reverberated through the entire sci-fi and gaming community. Although it initially appeared that Fisher had stabilized and would survive her heart attack, she passed away suddenly earlier today, much to the shock of the general public as well as her own family and friends.
The players of Star Wars: The Old Republic are upholding a fine tradition, as MMO communities frequently come together online to pay their respects to the fallen. Generally, memorials are held for players who have passed or are currently moving on, like in the instance of Final Fantasy XIV players sitting in vigil across multiple servers outside the Free Company of a dying player. There have also been instances of tributes being built for important figures responsible for the existence of a game in part or its entirety, like the shrines in D&D Online to Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, the co-creators of Dungeons & Dragons.
Gamers who want to revisit Carrie Fisher’s work in gaming are welcome to join any of the memorials, should they play Star Wars: The Old Republic. If one doesn’t have access to the game, she also provided her voice talents as Princess Leia in the games Super Star Wars: Return of the Jedi and more recently LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Without Carrie Fisher, the legacy of Star Wars wouldn’t be the same, and her absence will be felt throughout the comic, gaming, and sci-fi communities. Hopefully, this touching move by the fans of the series will resonate with the development team of Star Wars: The Old Republic and inspire them to create a memorial for her, similar to the one constructed for Star Wars Galaxies Gameplay Designer Jeff Freeman.
Star Wars fans, how are you coping with this loss? Let us know in the comments.
