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Broadsword has formally revealed Game Update 8.0 for Star Wars: The Old Republic and given a name to the era it opens: Masters of the Force, MassivelyOP reports. Much of the update's content had already been public — class balance changes, quality-of-life work and the Children of Nul operation in story and veteran mode have been on the public test server all month — but the announcement is the first time the studio has attached a title to the version number.
Prepare for the launch of Masters of the Force, a new Star Wars: The Old Republic Era! Beginning with the Galaxy in Chaos storyline, this new era introduces a variety of exciting additions, including the world of Ryloth, new overworld Difficulty Modes, challenging Ventures, a new 3 Boss Operation, an increased level cap, new abilities, gearing updates, quality-of-life improvements, and more.
Galaxy in Chaos
The narrative picks up from the fallout of Darth Malgus's actions, which the studio frames as a galaxy-wide broadcast rather than a contained event.
Darth Malgus's legacy has been broadcast to every Force sensitive being across the galaxy, sowing chaos and unrest in its wake. Will this message inspire hope, fear, or vengeance? For good or ill, the Galaxy is forever changed. We will explore the Galaxy in Chaos storyline and the consequences of Malgus's actions and the rising unrest spreading across the Republic and the Sith Empire later this year.
Ryloth and overland difficulty
Beyond the Twi'lek homeworld and its storyline, the most significant structural change is the set of overland difficulty modes — a concept that has become considerably more popular across MMORPGs over the last few years, and one that changes how open-world content scales rather than adding a single new instance.
There is still no official launch date. Broadsword's Keith Kanneg has previously said the update would require a “months-long PTS cycle”, so the release is not imminent, and the Galaxy in Chaos storyline itself is slated for later in the year.
