Here it is, over four months late or perhaps right on time? My honest review of Star Wars The Old Republic’s Game Update 7.0, Legacy of the Sith. I’ve been sitting on this article for over a month now and in that time, I confess this article has gone through several edits and changes. Articulating how I currently feel about a game that has meant so much to me for over 10 years now is not easy.
It’s getting harder for me to stay enthusiastic about the game. My motivation levels to play and make content are going down. Yet here I am still clinging onto the game, yearning for better times and more content. Despite new content creeping slowly over the horizon (Game Update 7.1), it feels like The Old Republic community’s morale is at an all-time low.
Why? What went wrong? What’s happened since? How does the community feel? I’ve decided that the one-year anniversary of the announcement of Game Update 7.0, July 1st, is the right time to finally publish my review and discuss what happened.
Introduction
It’s no secret that Game Update 7.0, Legacy of the Sith was poorly received by most of the player base. The lack of content and large-scale changes left some players feeling deserted.
Let’s give the developers some credit, though. Rehauling the game’s combat system undoubtedly involved a lot of underlying work not necessarily apparent to us, the players. Work and effort that would’ve used up time, money and people power that otherwise would’ve gone towards creating more content.
The developers have emphasised since they announced 7.0 that the 10-year anniversary celebration would be a year-long venture. The launch of 7.0 is merely the first step in a year-long celebration with plenty of more content to come.
Will this really be the case though? Given BioWare’s track record for slowly releasing content over the past few years, I’m sceptical. I don’t expect much of an increase in content being released this year. Especially given the delays to content we’ve already had and issues with 7.0.
Now we do know a little bit about the content to expect for the rest of 2022 and I discuss this in my ‘State of SWTOR and Upcoming Content’ article. Since I published that article, the developers thankfully announced that we can expect 7.1 roughly around mid-summer. Given the decent state, the 7.1 PTS appears to be in, there is a chance that it will launch by midsummer.
Anyway, I’ve delayed long enough. Read on for my honest thoughts on Game Update 7.0.
My Honest Thoughts on Game Update 7.0
My feelings have been mixed about 7.0 since it was first announced. While many players excitedly celebrated the announcement of an expansion to celebrate the 10-Year Anniversary of the game, I was honestly disappointed. Sure, I was curious about Combat Styles and the new Gearing System but beyond that, there wasn’t anything in the update that was of particular interest to me as a PvP player.
Then, the PTS came along a couple of months later. It was apparent pretty early on with the slow, gradual release of the various Combat Styles that the developers had barely begun work on some parts of the expansion and would be cutting it pretty close to launch. By the time all the Combat Styles were on the PTS, it seemed likely that content would be omitted or the update delayed. And it turns out both of these things happened.
The R-4 Anomaly Operation was delayed to Game Update 7.1, along with the Manaan daily area, leaving the expansion increasingly content light. Then, they delayed the expansion itself. By this point, I really wasn’t surprised. There were many issues on the PTS that needed addressing and expansion felt very incomplete.
Then finally, Legacy of the Sith was released in February 2022 and it didn’t go so well. It still felt incomplete and many of the bugs from the PTS were released with the update. At this point, I felt pretty indifferent about the whole situation. And what I tweeted a few days after launch is still how I feel today about the update…
Now there were some positives with 7.0. Long requested and standard MMO features were finally introduced to the game. Shared tagging, loadouts and the ability search bar were all welcomed quality of life changes. And on top of that, I was surprised by how quick and hassle-free it was to gear for PvP!
I overall feel pretty indifferent about Combat Styles. On the one hand, I still have a lot of buttons to press so in that regard, it’s really not that different from 6.0. However, most classes did lose access to a couple of key abilities or utilities which has had an impact on how those classes are played and/or limits their playstyle choices. This means that some classes are leagues better than others. Some classes’ utility can make up for their shortcomings in some circumstances but other classes have been left in the dirt.
Reasons players are upset with Game Update 7.0 and what has changed in the last Four Months
Now in this section, I wanted to briefly look at some of the main reasons players were upset with Legacy of the Sith and what has changed over the past four months.
The general lack of content and delays in releasing new content
Few and small updates have been the norm for The Old Republic for many years now as I’ve mentioned previously. But still, it was disappointing for players to see such a small update touted as an expansion and for a special occasion such as the 10-Year anniversary. Of all the issues I bring up in this section, this is the most prominent ongoing issue with the game. Game Update 7.1 should relieve some of these frustrations at least for some players.
Class Balance
As I mentioned above, some classes faired better than others from the combat restructure. We are now left with a situation where there is quite a substantial gap between top-tier disciplines and bottom-tier disciplines. Sadly this means quite a few specs are not viable in higher tiers of endgame content. Some are useless not just because of terrible DPS output but some also had key utilities taken away. So far it seems not much is being done in Game Update 7.1 to address these gaps.
Not everyone likes the new Gearing System
This is understandable. I caused quite a stir by saying that the gearing system had ‘improved’ (from 6.0) in a recent article I wrote. However, I never said it was good for everyone. For some players, the grind is slow and for others, PvPers and skilled Raiders, for instance, the grind is quite quick.
Thankfully the developers have taken some steps to improve gearing. They reduced some Gear upgrading costs, added more ways to get Tech Fragments, and increased some currency caps. All of these changes have been welcome improvements. Hopefully, more will be done in the future to improve the system and make the gearing experience a bit equitable for more players. Ideally, they should halve the costs of upgrading Conquest gear.
The other sore point for some players is the lack of moddable gear. This is being addressed in Game Update 7.1. Players will be able to get mods through both endgame PvE activities and PvP. Details on how this will work will follow (as the system is not quite working yet on the PTS).
The Legacy of the Sith story was the shortest of any expansion ever released
This is very true and was a major source of disappointment for many players. I admit I was surprised to discover that it was even shorter than Onslaught’s story. However, it looks like we will be getting some story in Game Update 7.1 that’s more than just a two-minute conversation on Odessen. I’ve found four different story phases in the Manaan Daily area alone.
Many known bugs from the PTS made it into 7.0.
Most of the bugs have been fixed now. But still, it was disappointing for players who tested on the PTS to see many of the known bugs, make it into the live game.
The UI changes weren’t well-received
Yes, the UI looked weird for a time, and many players complained about it. Thankfully, with Game Update 7.0.1 they improved it and made further tweaks in 7.0.2.
How do Players feel about The Old Republic 4 Months Later?
I conducted a Twitter Poll recently to determine how some of the community feels about the game. Here are the results.
These results didn’t surprise me. If it had been possible to poll the whole community, I feel that the results would’ve been somewhat similar. Most of the replies to my poll expressed disappointment with the current state of the game but there were some also feeling hopeful. I’ll be curious to see if some player perceptions change after 7.1 launches.
Concluding Thoughts and What I Looking Forward To
I think we can all agree that we wish The Old Republic had more content and got updated with new content more regularly than it currently gets. It’s a bummer to still see the game lag behind other MMO’s. I want the developers to know that my criticism or disappointment comes from a place of gratitude. I know they are passionate about the game too. It may not seem like it to some players but they are. I am grateful for the work they put into the game and I desperately wish they had more resources to deliver more and better content for us the players.
Despite the state of the game, I’m not going anywhere just yet! As a PvPer, I’m still holding out for Game Update 7.2 which is supposed to feature a PvP Revamp. My fingers are crossed that it will be decent. All we can do is wait and see what happens (patiently). I’m also quite excited to see modifications returning to gearing and look forward to better being able to BiS my characters.
I will admit though that if it wasn’t for the anticipation of a PvP-centred update, I would have been very tempted to move on to another MMO (as my main MMO) while waiting for The Old Republic to bring out another update. The Game Update 7.1 PTS is giving me some hope for the game though and I’m looking forward to it going live (hopefully with fewer bugs than 7.0).
Now that just about does it! Thank you for reading! Let me know your thoughts in the comments below or on Social Media. And a special thank you to my Patrons and Twitch Subscribers for your continued support!
Yo! Thanks for your article and email telling me about it!
I haven’t played swtor properly since 7 hit, I still consider it my best game tho and really want them to bring in some decent story updates. Wasn’t too blown away by the story after kotfe so went back to my unfinished Operative and Sorc characters stories.
I’m pleased you’re hanging on though as I fully intend to but am not looking forward to finding out which classes have been badly needed as I run all (except a warrior) and don’t like the thought that some are effectively defunct.
Thanks again for your continued support and balanced fair veiwooint. I really appreciate your effort!! ???