Star Wars: The Old Republic hopes to recapture the ‘classic’ experience with difficulty options and a new way to start from scratch
Star Wars: The Old Republic is preparing version 8.0, a major update designed to recapture the “classic” experience for long-time players. The update introduces new difficulty options and character progression modes inspired by seasonal and ironman mechanics found in action RPGs, with new “venture characters” offering fresh-start pathways.
The MMO, which has maintained operations for nearly 15 years, continues under developer Broadsword, which assumed stewardship from original creator BioWare in 2023. The 8.0 update delivers standard major MMO content including an increased level cap, new spells, and additional loot rewards.
The initiative reflects Broadsword’s effort to appeal to both returning players seeking the game’s early experience and new players drawn to structured progression mechanics. The sustained development of SWTOR underscores the studio’s commitment to maintaining one of the few subscription-based MMOs still receiving meaningful updates after more than a decade of operation.