The long awaited MMO Star Wars The Old Republic can now be pre-ordered from publisher Electronic Arts and a number of game retailers. The game from developer BioWare, set thousands of years before the Star Wars movies, will be sold in three different versions. All three versions will have a pre-order bonus that will allow players to access the game earlier than the general public (exactly how much earlier has yet to be revealed) and also an in-game Color Stone that will let players change the color of their weapon effects.
The standard edition will just have the game, 30 days of free game time and the pre-order bonuses. It will be available via retail stores and also via download on EA"s Origin web for $59.99. In addition EA will sell a Digital Deluxe edition of Star Wars The Old Republic exclusively via its Origin web site for $79.99. In addition to the game and the pre-order extras, the Digital Deluxe version contains a number of exclusive in-game items (Flare Gun, Training Droid, HoloDancer, HoloCam, and STAP).
If you want to go all out, you can also purchase the Collector"s Edition of the game for $149.99. This version will only be sold in a boxed edition and will be sold in retail stores and on EA"s Origin site. In addition to the game, the pre-order bonuses and all of the in-game items from the Digital Deluxe edition, the Collector"s Edition will have two more exclusive in-game items (a Mouse Droid and a special Collector"s Edition version of the in-game store). It will also have a number of real world extras such as a nine-inch Darth Malgus statue, a game soundtrack CD, a 14 x 20 inch map of the Star Wars galaxy set at the time period of the game, a Security Authentication Key Fob to keep your game account safe, and a 111 page book that serves as a Journal of the Master Gnost-Dural. The game"s disks will also be stored in a collectible metal case.
Star Wars The Old Republic is currently scheduled to be released by EA and co-publisher LucasArts before the end of 2011. A more specific release date has yet to be announced.