Star Wars: The Old Republic pre-loading now; early access begins Dec. 13

With Star Wars: The Old Republic is less than twenty days from launch, developer BioWare has decided to allow pre-order customers to pre-load the game now. "To ensure that players can get into the game as quickly as possible when their Early Game Access begins, we are now allowing everyone who has redeemed a Pre-Order Code at our Code Redemption Center to pre-load the game to their computer," the developer announced.

According to an official post on the game's blog, Star Wars: The Old Republic will begin rolling early access to the game for users beginning December 13.

"Invitations will be sent throughout the Early Game Access period offering rolling access to the game in the order in which you redeemed your Pre-Order Code, so be sure to check your email inbox," the blog revealed.

Old Republic players must redeem pre-order codes via BioWare's Code Redemption Center in order to pre-load the game; however, the blog clarifies: "Pre-Ordering the game only allows you access to the Early Game Access period and your Color Crystal." The pre-load does not grant access to the game following release, players must redeem the official game product registration code after launch to continue uninterrupted.

According to the blog, "Early Game Access may be up to 7 days," which is slightly longer than BioWare originally announced. "The length of your Early Game Access depends on the date and order in which you redeemed your Pre-Order Code," the post added.

For more details, including a detailed breakdown of how to transition from the current beta into the final Early Access, check the official Old Republic blog.