[12] This story takes place in the Star Wars universe shortly after the establishment of a tenuous peace between the re-emergent Sith Empire and the Galactic Republic.

In an earnings call to investors in October 2019, Electronic Arts announced that Star Wars: The Old Republic was closing in on a billion dollars in lifetime revenue, making it a financial success based on the reported $200 million development budget.

During these events, a smuggler named Nico Okarr is led to his prison cell in a jail orbiting Korriban by a Jedi, Satele Shan, and her master, Kao Cen Darach.

[25] Players also have access to several planets,[20] including Korriban, Ord Mantell, Nal Hutta, Tython,[27] Coruscant, Balmorra, Alderaan, Tatooine, Dromund Kaas, Taris, Belsavis, Voss, Hoth, Corellia, Ilum, and Quesh, and the moon Nar Shaddaa.

Jake Neri, LucasArts Producer, told PC Gamer in their October 2010 issue that their goal was to "capture the most cinematic moments that we can create.

It's about highly cinematic, controlled combat moments ... very heroic, action-packed, exciting, visceral and dangerous encounters that'll make you pee your pants."

Lana Beniko, a soft-spoken Sith Lord known as "The Dark Advisor" who is seemingly serene and thoughtful in temperament, is a notable companion who first appears as part of Update 2.7 in April 2014 for Rise of the Hutt Cartel alongside the addition of Theron Shan.

[46] Larry Everett from Massively Overpowered claimed that Vette is "almost universally liked" by players, singling out her quirky personality, sense of adventure, and the quality of Taber's performance for praise.

He also suggested that Vette's popularity may be connected to nostalgia, as Taber's earlier character from Knights of the Old Republic Mission Vao was another fan favorite.

[53] Writing for Kotaku, Mike Fahey, after playing the game, recalled players boasting of their torturing of Vette and her low affection rating for them.

[54] The Daily Mail cited Fahey's article as a source and published a story the following day alleging that the option to treat Vette decently was not popular or encouraged; the paper was criticized for its lack of evidence for its statements and its selective information.

MCV writer Ben Parfitt and James Stephanie Sterling from Destructoid both criticized the Daily Mail for the lack of evidence behind its sensationalist assertions.

[55][56] Andy Robinson of Computer and Video Games echoed the criticism of their lack of evidence, as well as noting their omission that female player characters are equally able to shock Vette and a hypocrisy displayed by the paper's other sexually-oriented articles.

Within minutes, the official website was down due to traffic, and BioWare announced shortly after that the site was being changed in order to accommodate the increase in visitors.

On June 6, a new trailer "Return" was released at E3 2011 depicting the initial Sith invasion force as it retakes its home world of Korriban.

BioWare community manager Allison Berryman said "Data from this test will be used to inform decisions about the launch of the game in Oceanic regions".

The update included the new Legacy system, a new Flashpoint, Operation, a PVP Warzone, as well as improved character textures and advanced options such as user interface customization.

[82] In January 2014, BioWare revealed plans for 2014 including two expansion packs, with one similar to Galactic Starfighter in scope and one more closely resembling Rise of the Hutt Cartel.

The campaign raised the level cap to 60, and takes place on two new worlds: Rishi, a tropical pirate haven on the edge of the galaxy, and Yavin 4 (which first appeared in the original Star Wars film), home of an ancient Sith warrior sect called the Massassi.

[86] Knights of the Fallen Empire features a renewed focus on cinematic storytelling, as well as new planets, new companions, a dynamic story affected by player choices and a level cap of 65.

After the release of Knights of the Fallen Empire, Rise of the Hutt Cartel and Shadow of Revan became free for those subscribing to the game, and access remains on the account if a subscription is canceled.

Players were given the ability to strengthen their rebellion by providing resources to "Specialists" that oversee four areas of operation: Technology, Underworld Trade, Military and Force-Usage.

Most of the early game content was heavily streamlined, allowing players to level up a character by completing solely story and class-specific missions if they so choose.

In December 2016, Knights of the Eternal Throne was released as the fourth story expansion and sixth major update that coincided with the game's five-year anniversary.

In celebration of the game's ten-year anniversary, Legacy of the Sith was revealed as the eighth major expansion on July 2, 2021 in an official Twitch livestream.

The expansion represents a continuation of the storyline from Onslaught, where the player pursues Darth Malgus across the galaxy to uncover his plans, while participating in a major battle on the ocean world of Manaan which has been invaded by the Sith Empire.

Deceived was released on June 1, 2009 and shows the Sith attack on the Jedi Temple on Coruscant ten years prior to the game.

[95] Return was released on June 6, 2011 and shows the attack on a Republic space station over the ancient Sith homeworld Korriban, that started the war, 38 years prior to the game.

[98] Disorder was released on February 15, 2022 and shows the Jedi Denolm Orr and Sa'har Kateen as they try to retrieve the holocron of Darth Nul, the creator of the Children of the Emperor.

[121] GameSpy gave a review of 4/5, praising the story lines and companion system but criticising the "standard kill and fetch" quests.