FTP Coming Soon?

It seems SWTOR is going free to play (ftp) on November 15th.

I realize for some people, it may seem the final nail in the coffin for the game . . . and perhaps, in their more enlightened evaluations, it is.  But for me, it's an opportunity.

Face it, between the time demands of my current job and the monetary demands of the current economy, I have had neither the time nor the money to subscribe to any game.  (Ok, ok, given that we are subscribed to Netflix and Audible, I'm sure we could have found the money.  But these two subscriptions provide entertainment to the entire family, while a SWTOR subscription for me would have provided entertainment for . . . well, mostly me.)  I confess there was a time and there is still a temptation to reopen my WoW account, just to talk with my old friends, even though there is no way I could raid and would probably end up spending all my time fishing or farming stuff to help out the guild, because mindless repetition does not annoy me as much as some other people, but I simply cannot justify the cost, given the small amount of time which would be available to me for play.

Most evenings, I stare through my computer screen at a formerly inviting virtual world which now seems rather blank and empty and go to bed early out of sheer boredom.

But come Saturday, two of the three teaching endorsement examinations I am taking will be finished (now you know what I'm doing the other evenings), so having the free to play model of SWTOR come out on the 15th is perfect timing for me.

Some evening when I have an hour or two, I'll be able to wave hello again to my agent, relearn what all her abilities are, and continue the adventure at least until her story line is complete.  My husband and I will be able to play together during the upcoming long weeks when he will be traveling and I will still be at home.

They tell me that warzone access will be limited, which is kind of disappointing, as I'd probably like to spend quite a bit of time in warzones.  However, given that I am unlikely to have nearly as much time as I'd like, perhaps the default access will prove sufficient.

They tell me that as a former subscriber, I will have certain  privileges unavailable to new free to play customers--more action bars or something.  While I'm glad of that, I have to wonder if what they are taking away will end up reducing my enjoyment to the point where I simply stop playing, because at this point, subscribing is not an option.

It will be interesting to see how it all pans out.  Will the satisfaction be sufficient to fulfill my hopes, or will I be forced to conclude that in ftp SWTOR, as in so many other aspects of life, you "get what you pay for"?