Early Game Access and Exclusive In-Game Content Announced for Highly
Anticipated MMO with all Pre-Orders Beginning Today
Star Wars: The Old Republic Beta Test Weekends to Start this
September
AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
The start of your personal Star Wars™ saga grows nearer! BioWare,
a division of Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: ERTS) today revealed three
editions of Star Wars™: The Old Republic™, each
custom-designed to delight RPG and Star Wars fans worldwide. The Star
Wars: The Old Republic Collector's Edition, Digital Deluxe Edition
and Standard Edition are available for pre-order today at participating
retailers*, with digital versions available exclusively at Origin™ (http://preorder.origin.com).
Upon pre-order, players will be granted a redemption code that will
unlock early game access** as well as an in-game color stone to change
your weapon effect. Pre-order quantities are limited and Early Game
Access will only be available to those who pre-order the game and redeem
their code before the game's official release.
Star Wars: The Old Republic has been honored with over 95
industry awards and accolades from game critics worldwide and continues
to be one of the most anticipated launches of 2011. The game innovates
and advances the MMO genre by emphasizing story as a key pillar of the
experience — a proven strength of BioWare and Lucasfilm. As anticipation
grows, BioWare also proudly announced today that Star Wars: The
Old Republic will open "Beta Test Weekends" starting this September.
These weekend play sessions will be open to selected players worldwide
and create an opportunity for fans to get a sneak peek of the epic
stories, worlds, quests, battles and characters in the game. Please
visit www.StarWarsTheOldRepublic.com
to register for game testing and to stay tuned throughout the summer for
more details as they become available.
"We are targeting Star Wars: The Old Republic to be one of the
biggest launches of holiday 2011," said Dr. Ray Muzyka, Group General
Manager and Co-Founder, BioWare and Senior Vice President, Electronic
Arts. "Our teams at BioWare and EA, along with our partners at
LucasArts, are laser-focused on creating a high quality game, but just
as importantly, they are resolute in delivering a high quality service.
We are taking all of the necessary steps to make sure The Old Republic
has a thriving community built on a stable online foundation from day
one, including limiting supply at launch to ensure that players easily
transition into the servers. So whether you're waiting to join the
Empire or the Republic, pre-order now to ensure you can enter the galaxy
at launch!"
The three editions of Star Wars: The Old Republic are:
-
Star Wars: The Old Republic Collector's Edition
— The Collector's Edition includes a host of virtual in-game
and physical items for the ultimate Star Wars fan. Physical
items include a Darth Malgus Statue from Gentle Giant, the journal of
Jedi Master Gnost Dural from Chronicle Books, The Music of The Old
Republic soundtrack, a security key and a map of the in-game Star
Wars galaxy. Virtual items include a Flare Gun, Training Droid,
personal HoloDancer, HoloCam, the STAP vehicle and access to the
Collector's Store, an in-game store with new in-game items exclusively
for owners of the Collector's Edition. The Collector's
Edition will also include 30 days of game time and has an MSRP of
$149.99 (USD) at participating retailers.
-
Star Wars: The Old Republic Digital Deluxe Edition
— The Digital Deluxe Edition has an MSRP of $79.99 (USD) and
includes 30 days of game time and five virtual items, including the
Flare Gun, Training Droid, personal HoloDancer, HoloCam and the STAP
vehicle.
-
Star Wars: The Old Republic Standard Edition —
The base edition of the game is available at retailers and online for
an MSRP of $59.99 (USD) and includes 30 days of game time.
Star Wars: The Old Republic has been lauded for breaking new
ground in the genre by building on traditional MMO gameplay pillars of
combat, exploration and character progression, and adding a fourth
dimension to the experience — story. The Old Republic is set thousands
of years before the rise of Darth Vader, when the galaxy is in the midst
of a cold war. Players will be asked to join forces with either the
Galactic Republic or Sith Empire and choose one of eight iconic Star
Wars characters: Jedi Knight, Jedi Consular, Smuggler, Trooper,
Bounty Hunter, Imperial Agent, Sith Inquisitor and Sith Warrior. Every
player's story will unfold based on meaningful choices made throughout
the game, enabling them to becomethe hero of their own personal Star
Wars saga. Along their journey players will encounter companion
characters with which players can build or break meaningful
relationships as they join in your journeys and fight at your side.
Throughout their adventures, players will be immersed in a vibrant
galaxy of planets, engage in heroic battles and experience visceral
Star Wars combat.
For more information on Star Wars: The Old Republic, pre-order
details and special editions, please visit www.StarWarsTheOldRepublic.com/pre-order,
follow the game on Twitter at http://twitter.com/swtor
or "Like" Star Wars: The Old Republic on Facebook at http://facebook.com/starwarstheoldrepublic.
* Conditions and restrictions apply. See www.StarWarsTheOldRepublic.com/preorder
for details.
**Codes are redeemable at www.StarWarsTheOldRepublic.com/preorder.
Pre-order quantities are limited and will be processed in the order they
are received.
About Lucasfilm Ltd.
Lucasfilm Ltd. is one of the world's leading film and entertainment
companies. Founded by George Lucas in 1971, it is a privately held,
fully-integrated entertainment company. In addition to its
motion-picture and television production operations, the company's
global activities include Industrial Light & Magic and Skywalker Sound,
serving the digital needs of the entertainment industry for
visual-effects and audio post-production; LucasArts, a leading developer
and publisher of interactive entertainment software worldwide; Lucas
Licensing, which manages the global merchandising activities for
Lucasfilm's entertainment properties; Lucasfilm Animation, which is
currently producing content for film and television, including Star
Wars: The Clone Wars, a CG-animated half-hour television series; and
Lucas Online creates Internet-based content for Lucasfilm's
entertainment properties and businesses. Additionally, Lucasfilm
Singapore produces digital animated content for film and television, as
well as visual effects for feature films and multi-platform games.
Lucasfilm's motion-picture productions include three of the 20 biggest
box-office hits of all time and have received 19 Oscars and more than 60
Academy Award nominations. Lucasfilm's television projects have won 12
Emmy Awards. Lucasfilm Ltd. is headquartered in San Francisco, Calif.
LucasArts, a Lucasfilm Ltd. company, is a leading developer and
publisher of interactive entertainment software worldwide for video game
console systems, computers and the Internet. Based in San Francisco,
Calif., as well as on the Internet at www.lucasarts.com,
LucasArts was created in 1982 by George Lucas to provide an interactive
element to his vision of a state-of-the-art, multifaceted entertainment
company.
About BioWare
BioWare develops high quality console, PC and online role-playing games,
focused on rich stories, unforgettable characters and vast worlds to
discover. Since 1995, BioWare has created some of the world's most
critically acclaimed titles, including Baldur's Gate™, Neverwinter
Nights™, Star Wars®: Knights of the Old Republic™, Jade
Empire™, Mass Effect™ and Dragon Age™. BioWare
operates in Edmonton (Alberta, Canada), Montreal (Quebec), Austin
(Texas), Fairfax (Virginia) and Galway (Ireland). Currently announced
projects at BioWare include the ongoing downloadable content for Dragon
Age II, Mass Effect 3 and Star Wars®: The Old RepublicTM.
In 2008, BioWare was acquired by Electronic Arts, a leading global
interactive entertainment publisher.
For more information on BioWare, visit www.bioware.com
or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/biofeed.
To join the millions of fans already registered on our community, go to http://social.bioware.com.
About Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:ERTS) is a global leader in digital interactive
entertainment. The Company's game franchises are offered as both
packaged goods products and online services delivered through
Internet-connected consoles, personal computers, mobile phones and
tablets. EA has more than 100 million registered players and operates in
75 countries.
In fiscal 2011, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $3.6 billion.
Headquartered in Redwood City, California, EA is recognized for
critically acclaimed, high-quality blockbuster franchises such as The
Sims™, Madden NFL, FIFA Soccer, Need for Speed™, Battlefield, and Mass
Effect™. More information about EA is available at http://info.ea.com.
LucasArts, the LucasArts logo, STAR WARS and related properties
are trademarks in the United States and/or in other countries of
Lucasfilm Ltd. and/or its affiliates. © 2011 Lucasfilm Entertainment
Company Ltd. or Lucasfilm Ltd. All rights reserved. BioWare and the
BioWare logo are trademarks of EA International (Studio and Publishing)
Ltd. EA and the EA logo are trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. All other
trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Electronic Arts
Lisa Chan, 650-628-2748
Sr. Publicist
lisachan@ea.com
or
Electronic
Arts
Andrew Wong, 650-628-2781
Director of PR
anwong@ea.com
or
Electronic
Arts
Tammy Levine, 650-628-7223
VP, Worldwide PR
tlevine@ea.com
or
Lucasfilm
Ltd.
Emilie Nicks, 415-623-1962
emilie.nicks@lucasfilm.com
Source: Electronic Arts
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