Star Wars: The Old Republic, the most expensive MMO of all time, was announced to go to the free-to-play (FTP) model back in July. Now, EA and BioWare have released the restrictions of what playing FTP will entail.
While FTP players will be able to enjoy the entirety SW:TOR's story, there are the expected limitations. PvE Flashpoints, PvP Warzones, and Space Missions may only be done three times a week each, though you can purchase Weekly Passes to have unlimited access to them. There are also limits on character creation options, login queue priority, and inventory size, though these can all be expanded with "Cartel Coins", which will be offered to previous subscribers who switch over to the FTP mode.
So, basically, you'll still have to pay to get the full experience out of Star Wars: The Old Republic. This is not necessarily a bad thing (server upkeep costs money, after all), though one wonders how EA hopes the game will survive on this model, in the wake of competition from 100% FTP MMOs such as Guild Wars 2.
Star Wars: The Old Republic's free-to-play mode has no set release date, besides a vague "coming this fall" window. Those who wish to continue paying the current monthly subscription fee for full access may continue to do so.
