After eight years of fighting for survival, the troubled first attempt at a Star Wars MMO will finally go offline this year in December.
Gamasutra reports on this news, which publisher Sony Online Entertainment described as a "mutual business decision" between itself and LucasArts. With a newer, shinier Star Wars MMO, BioWare's The Old Republic, set for release some time this year, it makes sense that LucasArts would be interested in clearing Galaxies off the shelves and limiting any consumer confusion as to which is the "correct" Star Wars MMO to purchase.
SOE president John Smedley is adamant that the decision is not related to declining subscription numbers. Likewise, he says there will be no layoffs, with team members from Galaxies being transferred to a new project, but it's worth remembering that SOE already had a huge round of layoffs a few months ago. Whatever layoffs might have resulted from this decision could have already happened then.
If you are still playing Galaxies or want to restart an account and jump in, you can look forward to various game-ending events that SOE is planning for the lead-up to server shutdown. May the Force be with you, etc.
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