Star Wars MMO's Next Expansion Coming This Fall

The next expansion for BioWare's Star Wars: The Old Republic MMO has been announced.

Due out this fall is Knights of the Eternal Throne. Players can expect "more of BioWare's cinematic storytelling," as well as some "exciting new game features," according to Eurogamer.

The Old Republic launched in December 2011, meaning it's approaching its five-year anniversary. BioWare put out a video to celebrate the milestone, and in it, BioWare reveals players have created 87 million characters.

Fifty-three percent play on the Light side, while 47 percent have aligned with the Dark side, according to BioWare. Together, players have spent 1.5 billion hours in the game.

Previous expansions for The Old Republic included Rise of the Hutt Cartel, Galactic Starfighter, Galactic Strongholds, Shadow of Revan, and the multi-part Knights of the Fallen Empire.

To celebrate the forthcoming release of Knights of the Eternal Throne, BioWare made Knights of the Fallen Empire's first chapter free.

The Old Republic debuted as a subscription-based MMO, but switched to a free-to-play model in November 2012, less than a year after launch.