The community team at BioWare told us that we would know when the train was coming, but it came crashing through our house when half of us were still sleeping. As we reported earlier, Star Wars: The Old Republic set its launch day for December 20th for North America and December 22nd for Europe. All the fans exhaled in relief, then promptly started asking more questions.
First off, the Australian and New Zealand launch dates have not been set, and BioWare cannot commit to a launch day yet for that region. However, back in August, Senior Community Manager Stephen Reid posted on the official forums that "There are no plans to 'region lock' or 'IP block' players from the game. You may experience some latency issues if you're not playing in a launch territory." This still holds true today.
To prevent signup issues on launch day, log-ins will be throttled. However, pre-order customers will still gain early access to the game. Senior Community Coordinator Allison Berryman reported on the official forum: "The beginning of Early Game Access will depend on a number of factors, including results from our Game Testing Program and Pre-Orders, but there will be multiple days of access."
Lastly, in case you missed it earlier, BioWare did announce the subscription costs. It comes as no surprise to most MMO gamers that the first month is free with the purchase of the game. After that it's $14.99 per month (£8.99 or €12.99), $41.97 for 3 months (£25.17 or €35.97), or $77.94 for six months (£46.14 or €65.94). There have been no lifetime subscription announcements as of yet, but we will let you know if we hear anything.
Reader Comments (101)
Posted: Sep 24th 2011 1:31PM Utakata said
Oh, I missed this...
*Checks back with Massively SWTOR entries*
Confirmed! There is infact a release date for this game! :)
...I guess no more "RELEASE DATE OR GTFO" /drool. We can go back to having intelligent discourse now.
*Checks back with Massively SWTOR entries*
Confirmed! There is infact a release date for this game! :)
...I guess no more "RELEASE DATE OR GTFO" /drool. We can go back to having intelligent discourse now.
Posted: Sep 24th 2011 2:04PM Spacegrass said
I'm glad they went with the standard subscription price, raising it would've been one of the few ways they could screw themselves at this point.
Posted: Sep 24th 2011 2:41PM SpikeCS said
I really hope they offer a lifetime sub at some point, or even a yearly sub rate. I know this EA we're talking about, so i won't hold my breath.
I'm more than willing to drop $250-$300 for a lifetime sub and not have to even think about the $15 a month.
And man, between now and Dec 20th is going to break my bank: CE of this $150; CE of Arkham City, $100; Normal edition of Skyrim, $60, christmas shopping, not to mention blu-rays of Captain America and others, and a NYC trip.
That's okay, eating is over-rated anyway.
I'm more than willing to drop $250-$300 for a lifetime sub and not have to even think about the $15 a month.
And man, between now and Dec 20th is going to break my bank: CE of this $150; CE of Arkham City, $100; Normal edition of Skyrim, $60, christmas shopping, not to mention blu-rays of Captain America and others, and a NYC trip.
That's okay, eating is over-rated anyway.
Posted: Sep 24th 2011 2:52PM Keeop said
@SpikeCS I wouldn't mind a yearly sub, but to be honest, and echo the last 20 times this has come up here this month...my opinion is that lifetime subs is a thing of the past, and not a good idea for this particular title at all.
You're right about the expensive times coming up though. A few games just aren't going to be purchased until next summer or fall. I'm looking at you Diablo 3.
Reply
You're right about the expensive times coming up though. A few games just aren't going to be purchased until next summer or fall. I'm looking at you Diablo 3.
Posted: Sep 24th 2011 3:10PM Space Cobra said
@SpikeCS
While I, myself, would also like a Lifetime Sub, I doubt EA will offer it.
I see them being more "old fashioned" in their business nature. I see them wanting the slow ebb of constant subs rather than a one quarter spike. There have been times in the past that support this assumption of EA philosophy.
This has nothing to do with if the company views SWTOR as a success and how other companies view their launches, I think this is about a constant, steady stream of money. Also, I don't see this product going f2p now or in the near future, because NONE of EA's MMOs have gone f2p.
Reply
While I, myself, would also like a Lifetime Sub, I doubt EA will offer it.
I see them being more "old fashioned" in their business nature. I see them wanting the slow ebb of constant subs rather than a one quarter spike. There have been times in the past that support this assumption of EA philosophy.
This has nothing to do with if the company views SWTOR as a success and how other companies view their launches, I think this is about a constant, steady stream of money. Also, I don't see this product going f2p now or in the near future, because NONE of EA's MMOs have gone f2p.
Posted: Sep 24th 2011 3:00PM Strangeland said
I believe the pre-order indicated testing access "in September" and a head start access to the game. There are 6 days left in September yet I have no testing invitation yet (yes I registered for it), and I wonder when the head start will, um, start.
Posted: Sep 24th 2011 3:11PM (Unverified) said
@Strangeland
Headstart, or "early access" as they are calling it, won't be but a week at most prior to the official launch date. There will also be no open beta. Getting a pre-order did not guarantee you access to the closed beta either.
Reply
Headstart, or "early access" as they are calling it, won't be but a week at most prior to the official launch date. There will also be no open beta. Getting a pre-order did not guarantee you access to the closed beta either.
Posted: Sep 24th 2011 3:13PM Space Cobra said
@Strangeland
IMO, that was more a guideline. Bioware has had some hiccups even this past weekend(s) and cancelled some sessions. Nothing to be scared of, but it pushes things back. I also think the Dec. date is a further attempt to push things back to add even more polish, bug-squashing, whatever.
So, maybe speculation on new Beta-test invites are in order now instead of launch dates?
I'd say forget September. October is your best bet, but even November is a possibility.
Reply
IMO, that was more a guideline. Bioware has had some hiccups even this past weekend(s) and cancelled some sessions. Nothing to be scared of, but it pushes things back. I also think the Dec. date is a further attempt to push things back to add even more polish, bug-squashing, whatever.
So, maybe speculation on new Beta-test invites are in order now instead of launch dates?
I'd say forget September. October is your best bet, but even November is a possibility.
Posted: Sep 24th 2011 3:38PM tythimo said
Finally I can stop wondering, and I totally called this back in May.
Posted: Sep 24th 2011 4:16PM (Unverified) said
"To prevent signup issues on launch day, log-ins will be throttled."
This is vague and I am not entirely sure I know what it means. Could the author or someone who understands this jibber-jabber please explain.
It would be nice if writers could relegate the sarcasm and sophisticated metaphor to statements that do not contain vital information.
"throttle" could mean a wide variety of things: "ramped up," "prohibited," or "beaten like a red-headed step-child."
Which one is it, cause it matters.
This is vague and I am not entirely sure I know what it means. Could the author or someone who understands this jibber-jabber please explain.
It would be nice if writers could relegate the sarcasm and sophisticated metaphor to statements that do not contain vital information.
"throttle" could mean a wide variety of things: "ramped up," "prohibited," or "beaten like a red-headed step-child."
Which one is it, cause it matters.
Posted: Sep 24th 2011 4:31PM (Unverified) said
@(Unverified)
It means they will have a maximum number of allowable players in the starter zones. Once that limit is reached, you will not be able to login to that server or be placed in a first-come first-served server queue.
Reply
It means they will have a maximum number of allowable players in the starter zones. Once that limit is reached, you will not be able to login to that server or be placed in a first-come first-served server queue.
Posted: Sep 24th 2011 4:20PM (Unverified) said
Talk about fail.
No hyping the announcement, just ninja it out there at some random convention.
Release the game 4 days before Christmas when the post office and other parcel services are about to shut down and people are traveling to spend time with family.
Whoever decided on 12/20 is a complete moron.
No hyping the announcement, just ninja it out there at some random convention.
Release the game 4 days before Christmas when the post office and other parcel services are about to shut down and people are traveling to spend time with family.
Whoever decided on 12/20 is a complete moron.
Posted: Sep 24th 2011 4:37PM (Unverified) said
@(Unverified)
Sounds like somebody can't stay in their mom's basement with the PC for Christmas:(
Reply
Sounds like somebody can't stay in their mom's basement with the PC for Christmas:(
Posted: Sep 24th 2011 4:48PM Bladerunner83 said
@(Unverified)
"Whoever decided on 12/20 is a complete moron. "
I guess the moron thought it would be a good idea to release it before Christmas; Probably because people buy other people presents before Christmas and a video game is an ideal present.
Reply
"Whoever decided on 12/20 is a complete moron. "
I guess the moron thought it would be a good idea to release it before Christmas; Probably because people buy other people presents before Christmas and a video game is an ideal present.
Posted: Sep 24th 2011 5:04PM (Unverified) said
@Unverified
Clever try, but it would make more sense for me to be excited if all I had to worry about was staying in Mother's basement. Maybe one day you'll leave the nest and travel for holidays, too.
@Bladerunner83
Before Christmas = Good idea.
Days before Christmas = Bad idea.
This isn't like going to see a Christmas movie. There are very demanding resources on these games, both from developer and consumer. Any number of things can go wrong during an MMO launch from ISP routing issues to hardware issues, etc. Launching this close to a nationwide blackout of many services and providers is simply asking for trouble.
Reply
Clever try, but it would make more sense for me to be excited if all I had to worry about was staying in Mother's basement. Maybe one day you'll leave the nest and travel for holidays, too.
@Bladerunner83
Before Christmas = Good idea.
Days before Christmas = Bad idea.
This isn't like going to see a Christmas movie. There are very demanding resources on these games, both from developer and consumer. Any number of things can go wrong during an MMO launch from ISP routing issues to hardware issues, etc. Launching this close to a nationwide blackout of many services and providers is simply asking for trouble.
Posted: Sep 24th 2011 6:41PM Bladerunner83 said
@(Unverified)
Sounds to me like a lot of speculation, the pessimistic approach to all things that could possibly go wrong.
"There are very demanding resources on these games, both from developer and consumer"
Why are you even worried about this? The most demanding resource you need to put into the game is your time and money, it's not like you have to run a marathon just to play the game. And if its demanding for them, well that's their problem not yours. They made the decision to release the game on 12/20.
"Any number of things can go wrong during an MMO launch from ISP routing issues to hardware issues, etc."
I can speculate all day, how about the Sun exploding tomorrow or the end of the world in 2012. Aliens could land on earth an interrupt my ISP, enslaving the human race and taking control of our planet.
"Launching this close to a nationwide blackout of many services and providers is simply asking for trouble. "
For the last 10 years I haven't had an interruption in my internet service or any service connected to an MMO, on the eve or during the month of December. As for a nationwide blackout? What is this, third world country talk? More speculation, give it a rest and take a chill pill. I for one have never had an issue with a late December release for any game, single or multiplayer and I buy a new game every week; I thank Steam discounts for that.
Reply
Sounds to me like a lot of speculation, the pessimistic approach to all things that could possibly go wrong.
"There are very demanding resources on these games, both from developer and consumer"
Why are you even worried about this? The most demanding resource you need to put into the game is your time and money, it's not like you have to run a marathon just to play the game. And if its demanding for them, well that's their problem not yours. They made the decision to release the game on 12/20.
"Any number of things can go wrong during an MMO launch from ISP routing issues to hardware issues, etc."
I can speculate all day, how about the Sun exploding tomorrow or the end of the world in 2012. Aliens could land on earth an interrupt my ISP, enslaving the human race and taking control of our planet.
"Launching this close to a nationwide blackout of many services and providers is simply asking for trouble. "
For the last 10 years I haven't had an interruption in my internet service or any service connected to an MMO, on the eve or during the month of December. As for a nationwide blackout? What is this, third world country talk? More speculation, give it a rest and take a chill pill. I for one have never had an issue with a late December release for any game, single or multiplayer and I buy a new game every week; I thank Steam discounts for that.










