It's finally happened. EA and Bioware's Star Wars: The Old Republic has gone free-to-play, following a rather limp launch year. Although there is now no official payment barrier to play, subscribers can still pay a monthly fee to get unlimited access to the game's content.
If you choose not to pay the $14.99 charge, there will be free-to-play restrictions imposed, which includes a level 50 cap. A micro-transactions system has also been implemented so that items and equipment can be purchased using real-world currency.
The last year has been particularly turbulent for the ambitious MMO. After launching to a reasonable 1.7 million active subscribers, numbers started to drop to 1.3 million and hit a low of under 1 million in July. Fellow MMO developer Trion opined that The Old Republic's problem wasn't necessarily its business model, but the content that Bioware was offering.
Now that it's free-to-play, are you considering jumping back in? Let us know, as always, in the comments box below - or the forum.
If you choose not to pay the $14.99 charge, there will be free-to-play restrictions imposed, which includes a level 50 cap. A micro-transactions system has also been implemented so that items and equipment can be purchased using real-world currency.
The last year has been particularly turbulent for the ambitious MMO. After launching to a reasonable 1.7 million active subscribers, numbers started to drop to 1.3 million and hit a low of under 1 million in July. Fellow MMO developer Trion opined that The Old Republic's problem wasn't necessarily its business model, but the content that Bioware was offering.
Now that it's free-to-play, are you considering jumping back in? Let us know, as always, in the comments box below - or the forum.
Read More Like This
Comments
dwizcreations 19 Nov 2012 10:08
1/1
After a considerable session through the weekend, the following are my thoughts on it.
+ (In my opinion) the most engaging storyline of any mmorpg to date ( this might be due to me being a SW fanboy ).
+ Lots of gameplay elements to go through and it doesn't feel like I'm being restricted to any sections (atleast till I hit the cap ) of the game just because I'm a free to play user.
+ Fantastic graphics for a MMORPG
- The game does however constantly remind us of how much the free to play user is at a disadvantage in terms of higher product prices and cooldown times relative to subscribers.
- Bit of a strange fighting mechanic. ( Don't know if this changes as my character develops, so I'll leave it here ).
+ (In my opinion) the most engaging storyline of any mmorpg to date ( this might be due to me being a SW fanboy ).
+ Lots of gameplay elements to go through and it doesn't feel like I'm being restricted to any sections (atleast till I hit the cap ) of the game just because I'm a free to play user.
+ Fantastic graphics for a MMORPG
- The game does however constantly remind us of how much the free to play user is at a disadvantage in terms of higher product prices and cooldown times relative to subscribers.
- Bit of a strange fighting mechanic. ( Don't know if this changes as my character develops, so I'll leave it here ).