Star Wars: The Old Republic subscriptions could be declining already, says analyst

Star Wars: The Old Republic might already been on the downslide, if forecasted numbers are any indication. A new analyst report from Cowen and Company suggests that the ambitious title is already facing a decline from gamers in the MMO realm. While the game is still forecasted to keep 1.25 million subscribers by the end of the fiscal year, this is a sharp decline from the 1.7 million recorded in February.

Analyst Doug Creutz believes that recent heavy marketing on EA's part could be a sign that a decline is a very real thing. Newer offerings of free trial subscriptions, and free-periods for invested gamers are causing a bit of a stir within the fan community, enough to make EA offer free subscription periods to other "less valued" players.

"We believe that the apparent decline in subscribers is most likely due to a lack of 'end-game' content for the title, meaning that players who hit the level cap have few compelling options in terms of ongoing game play," he noted. "While the game got off to a good start, the relatively light amount of end-game content does appear to be taking a toll."

"We believe EA is attempting to address the end-game content issue, including a recent major game update, but momentum appears to have stalled and we believe it is prudent to adopt a more conservative forecast on subscribers at this time."

Regardless, Creutz says EA's overall outlook looks quite good. With steady revenues coming from PopCap, EA Sports and a continued push in digital sales, EA is looking at a positive end to the fiscal year.