Star Wars: The Old Republic published its Q3 executive producer letter today, September 30, and the real news is technical: the game's interface now runs on DirectX 12. Expansion 8.0, "Masters of the Force," still has no release date. The letter says it plainly: "We have not announced a release date yet for 8.0."

Why it matters

The interface was the biggest obstacle in the DX12 project, by the technical team's own account. They now call the UI "fully functional" apart from minor visual differences still being fixed. The work has moved on to restoring what makes the game look like SWTOR: shaders, character customization down to tattoos, scars and outfit colors, and the system that recolors particle effects.

Next comes the part players can act on. Keith, the executive producer, says the team is excited to run "a technical test for our players in the near future." There is no date and no sign-up yet; the technical team says its next update will tell players when they can try the new client.

On 8.0, the missing date keeps the July picture. Holiday 2026 is the last target Broadsword gave, at the summer livestream, and this letter neither repeats it nor moves it. That leaves an open window for anyone still farming the Hidden Chain invasions, which switch off when 8.0 launches.

The details

  • 8.0 on the test server: subscribers can already play the first two bosses of the new Children of Nul operation, Ventures: Classic, the new Difficulty Modes, and combat style updates for six class pairs, Sentinel/Marauder through Shadow/Assassin. More test-server rounds are planned before launch.
  • Streams: a Let's Play stream on October 1 at 1pm CT on twitch.tv/swtor, with a later livestream promised on the "Galaxy in Chaos" story, spoiler-free.
  • Free minipet: code GETRDY4MOTF unlocks the Gladiopodling on the redeem page until December 26.
  • Best Dressed contest: outfit entries close October 11.
  • October events, from the calendar posted September 29, each starting and ending at 7am CT:
    • Feast of Prosperity, October 6 to November 3, level 20+. New this run: Waiter customizations for the 2V-R8 and C2-N2 droids.
    • Bounty Contract Week, October 13 to 20, level 15+.
    • All Worlds Ultimate Swoop Rally, October 27 to November 3, level 20+.

Nothing changes on the live servers yet. The DX12 client is not something you can download, and 8.0 has no date to plan a return around, so October's events are this month's reason to log in, with the two waiter droid outfits as the only new rewards on the calendar. Subscribers who want an early look at 8.0 can patch the test server now. If you are holding out for the new client before coming back, there is nothing to do until Broadsword names the technical test's dates. New to the game? The SWTOR hub has the basics, and our player count tracking shows the servers are far from empty.