Hey everyone!<\/p>\n
There has been a flurry of activity behind the scenes as we wrap up our character modernization efforts for Game Update 7.7, and with it came some changes since the last time you were on the Public Test Server (PTS). \u00a0The team wanted to give you all one last update before 7.7\u2019s release to showcase the improvements that were made based on your feedback, track current known issues, and talk about what to expect as we look beyond 7.7!<\/p>\n
First and foremost, what has changed since the close of PTS?<\/p>\n
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- Rattataki<\/strong>. Originally, there were plans to address issues with Rattataki neck seams and rendering for 7.7, but we needed to shift this back a bit to accommodate the work going into making additional face definition changes shown below. \u00a0We have certainly not forgotten about our Rattataki players, and hope you can be patient just a little while longer.<\/li>\n
- Facial definition and skin texture changes<\/strong>. Over the course of our character modernization journey, we\u2019ve re-evaluated our tools and approaches to better apply player feedback and set us up for our future efforts. \u00a0Doing so has allowed us to deliver what we see as a solid balance between your suggestions and our modernization goals. Below are some changes we wanted to highlight.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
![\"image.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/swtorista.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image.thumb_.png.6f744a5d9cbbf2eef06c0dab6014533d.jpg\")
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- Facial depth<\/strong>. Our facial definition and smoothing changes inadvertently made the faces render flatter than we would like. \u00a0We have made some adjustments since the close of PTS to address this, but will continue to make refinements as we move forward.<\/li>\n
- Skin splotchiness<\/strong>. This issue was more difficult to solve due to the complex ways our assets interconnect, but we have made broad texture changes which address the bulk of the problem. \u00a0However, there are still some specific skin colors that need to be tweaked in order to fix the issue as a whole. \u00a0The changes you will see in 7.7 affect the full faces and bodies of Humans, Cyborgs, Miraluka, Miralians, Imperial\/Republic Zabrak, Chiss, and Togruta.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
![\"image.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/swtorista.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image.thumb_.png.85c1352db506bbc0f0a6093ec225b12f.jpg\")
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![\"image.thumb_.png.1e40141265b5e6c3419dcbd8886d1b76.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/swtorista.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image.thumb_.png.1e40141265b5e6c3419dcbd8886d1b76.jpg\")
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- Preview Window<\/strong>. One of our big goals with the adjustments to Preview Window lighting was to remove the harsh, overly blue, and oftentimes misleading rendering that did not properly represent what you would see in general gameplay. \u00a0While reviewing everything, we found a stark difference between the Preview Window lighting prior to 7.7 and what was seen on the PTS (especially when comparing older screenshots taken in the window) so we\u2019ve made adjustments to compensate.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
![\"image.thumb_.png.64973710588882af5c498c05ff02197d.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/swtorista.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image.thumb_.png.64973710588882af5c498c05ff02197d.jpg\")
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Other player feedback<\/u>.<\/strong>\u00a0We have seen the demand for a toggle or slider to switch between the pre-modernization appearance and the current one. Back in November, we acknowledged that we couldn\u2019t make any promises as we needed to understand the scope of that request as it is not as easy a task as some assume.<\/p>\n
The reality is that due to the way the appearance system works within our tools and engine it is a technical impossibility to implement such a feature at this time. We understand where this request is coming from and we\u2019ve had many conversations about it, but for now, we want to be clear there is no expectation of such a feature being added.<\/p>\n
Known issues as of Game Update 7.7\u2019s release<\/strong><\/u>. While this list is not all-inclusive, everything listed has already been investigated and will be addressed in future bugfix patches:<\/p>\n
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- Player neck seams \u00a0– \u00a0Under certain lighting conditions a subtle neck seam can be seen on Humans, Cyborgs, Miraluka, Miralians, Imperial\/Republic Zabrak, Chiss, and Togruta.<\/li>\n
- Character Level of Detail neck seam \u00a0– \u00a0Currently a neck seam is visible when you have Character Level of Detail set too low on certain species.<\/li>\n
- Companion neck seams \u00a0– \u00a0While many of our humanoid companions have had their neck seams fixed already, there are a few with unique facial textures that need special consideration to address.<\/li>\n
- Skin splotchiness \u00a0– \u00a0As mentioned in the previous section, we have addressed the bulk of the issue, but certain skin colors will still show more splotchiness than we would like.<\/li>\n
- Dark Side corruption \u00a0– \u00a0Certain skin colors slider selections will show the complexion changes when under Dark Side corruption, but the skin color is not turning pale as expected. \u00a0We are investigating the cause of this issue, and hope to have it fixed soon.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
All of that said, we would like to showcase how far we have come since PTS, and what you should expect to see when Game Update 7.7 releases soon!<\/p>\n
![\"image.thumb_.png.54f373d5f895952f1beefac3f4ad9abf.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/swtorista.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image.thumb_.png.54f373d5f895952f1beefac3f4ad9abf.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"image.thumb_.png.70957e11fad2f6e139d43a823e143a35.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/swtorista.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image.thumb_.png.70957e11fad2f6e139d43a823e143a35.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"image.thumb_.png.984c3c820f37a4520517628caec29a9a.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/swtorista.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image.thumb_.png.984c3c820f37a4520517628caec29a9a.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n
- Skin splotchiness<\/strong>. This issue was more difficult to solve due to the complex ways our assets interconnect, but we have made broad texture changes which address the bulk of the problem. \u00a0However, there are still some specific skin colors that need to be tweaked in order to fix the issue as a whole. \u00a0The changes you will see in 7.7 affect the full faces and bodies of Humans, Cyborgs, Miraluka, Miralians, Imperial\/Republic Zabrak, Chiss, and Togruta.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- Facial definition and skin texture changes<\/strong>. Over the course of our character modernization journey, we\u2019ve re-evaluated our tools and approaches to better apply player feedback and set us up for our future efforts. \u00a0Doing so has allowed us to deliver what we see as a solid balance between your suggestions and our modernization goals. Below are some changes we wanted to highlight.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
![\"image.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/swtorista.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image.png.88db40f008c35d960ef69c0947af1171.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n