Today, the Star Wars: The Old Republic team unveiled the next chapter in the story told a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. Update 7.4, called Chains in the Dark, will take players back to some familiar stomping grounds.
The new update marks one of the first major additions to SWTOR since the team changed hands from BioWare to Broadsword earlier this year. Today's stream showcased the upcoming story content, taking players back to a familiar place, Ord Mantell. SWTOR's 7.4 update will add a new landing zone, Kessan's Landing to the MMO, bringing new quests to tackle, achievements to unlock and much more. Chains in the Dark will also bring back some familiar faces, such as Rass Ordo, Captain Byles, Darth Krovos, and more, and introduce a new character, Petra Nihrum.
While the focus is on Kessan's Landing, the SWTOR team also mentions that there will be a "galaxy-spanning" quest chain to build a new piece of technology for the new zone.
Speaking of new tech, Star Wars: The Old Republic is getting some love under the hood with the addition of specularity. The new tech helps highlight materials to look more realistic, which will pair nicely with the new chrome and metallic dyes coming with Chains in the Dark. SWTOR's 7.4 will also bring new character lighting tech to the MMO's cinematic content, with the system casting more accurate shadows while giving the dev team more control over the lighting when showcasing the story content.
A new world boss is coming with 7.4 as well. Called FR3-D0M, the new world boss should challenge players and give them the chance to snag a unique mount, the Mantellian Separatist Hover Turret.
The Galactic Trade Network is also seeing an overhaul, with the Star Wars The Old Republic team stating that it should make it more accessible to players. It'll be interesting to see how players react to the changes, though, once 7.4 is live. Players can also look forward to near gear ceilings as well as Legendary Implants gaining some more power with the new update.
A lot is going into Star Wars: The Old Republic's upcoming 7.4 update. Check out the full announcement in the stream embed below. Chains in the Dark doesn't have an official release date yet, though the team says the update should start to roll out on the PTS in the next few days.
