Stephen Reid clarifies on EA Origins

Soeren Kamper ea, forum post, origin, Stephen Reid
If you had questions about EA Origins and how it relates to getting your own copy of SWTOR, Stephen Reid has made a lot of clarifications on the official TOR forums. We’ll save you the trouble of hunting and sum it all up for you here.
 
 
 
Q: Do I have to install Origin to play the game, get updates and more if I purchase a boxed copy?

Reid answers: “No, you won’t.


While Origin will be the exclusive digital retailer for Star Wars: The Old Republic (in other words, if you want to buy it online and download it, you’ll do so through Origin) that does not mean that Origin is required for you to access or play The Old Republic.

Origin is a digital storefront, and the desktop application is there to give you quick access to Origin exclusives and deals.

However, you won’t need to launch the Origin application to run The Old Republic, nor will you patch the game via Origin. Once the game is on your hard disk, you’ll be connecting to our servers to patch and launch the game, and Origin does not have to be running to do that.

To answer another question – boxed versions of the game will include the client on DVD(s).”

Alright, there’s one question cleared up.

Q: Do I have to play through Origins if I use it to digitally download the game?

Reid answers: “The Origin desktop application does not need to be launched to play The Old Republic.


However, if you want to purchase and download the game digitally, you’ll need to do that via Origin. As you can see if you visit Origin today, purchasing a title there doesn’t require you to download the Origin desktop application. You might also notice if you look hard enough that Origin ships physical products (ie boxes) as well as digital ones.

(Yes, you’ll still be able to purchase SWTOR at a local retailer.)”

So no, you don’t have to launch through Origins to play the game once you have it downloaded. You can even buy games through Origin just like an online store without downloading the desktop application.

Q: Will Origin be the only way for guilds to count in the number of pre-orders for guilds made on launch?

Reid answers: “No. When you pre-order, you’ll get a pre-order key. Once that key is redeemed, that’s what counts for your guild pre-order number.”

 
There you have it! That pretty much answers the questions about Origins and SWTOR. Do you have questions not answered here?