The Old Republic going free-to-play later this year

Bioware has announced that Star Wars: The Old Republic will be turning into a free-to-play game sometime this fall, though the option to pay for a subscription to gain access to higher level content remains.

The free-to-play aspect of the game will have its limits, but gamers will be able to access 50 levels and all eight playable characters and classes, akin to being able to purchase higher ranking content with Cartel Coins.

“Players want flexibility and choice. The subscription-only model presented a major barrier for a lot of people who wanted to become part of The Old Republic universe,” said Matthew Bromberg, GM of BioWare Austin.

Analytic data for the game has shown a fairly steady decrease in subscriptions since its release back in late 2011, so SW:TOR becoming a free-to-play game is not a huge shock, although there is no doubt that this could lead to the game becoming ever more a pay-to-win title.

Do you play Star Wars: The Old Republic? If so, what are your opinions on this announcement?

Source: G4TV