Earlier this year, The Old Republic went free-to-play until level fifteen. Yesterday, it was announced that the game would be modified further by offering a restricted free-to-play model to level 50 and an unrestricted subscription model. The dinstinction from BioWare’s press release:

Subscription – A service designed for players who want unrestricted access to all the game features via ongoing subscription or by redeeming a Game Time Card. In addition to gaining access to all game content as our current subscribers do now, subscribers will receive ongoing monthly grants of Cartel Coins, the new virtual currency that will be introduced later this fall. Cartel Coins can be used to purchase valuable in-game items including customizable gear and convenience features that will enhance the game play experience.

Free-To-Play – The first 50 levels will be Free-to-Play, with restrictions on access to new content and advanced player features. Some restrictions can be “unlocked” with Cartel Coins.

BioWare also provided the following chart to explain the difference between the two game models:

In addition, purchase price of the game itself will be lowered to $15 starting on August 7th. In all, this looks like a good thing for people who are curious about the game but didn’t want to be tied down by a monthly subscription. Still, why is BioWare and Electronic Arts taking this drastic step in restructuring how the MMO is played and paid for? The unfortunate answer appears to be rapidly falling subscriber numbers.

Electronic Arts has revealed that the number of people paying to play its online video game Star Wars: The Old Republic has dropped below one million.

The title is the US firm’s biggest investment to date.

Launched in December, it initially attracted more than 1.7m subscribers.

The firm said the news was “disappointing” adding that it was switching to a new pricing plan which would allow users to access much of the content for free.

While the new free-to-play model is good for gamers, this appears to be more bad news for BioWare and Electronic Arts. Hopefully this new pricing model will allow The Old Republic to avoid the same fate as the Galaxies.