It wasn’t that long ago that Star Wars video games were everywhere. With RPG’s, third-person shooters, action games, racing games, flying games, movie tie-in games, if there’s a genre then there’s probably a Star Wars game of it. You could even argue “Star Wars game” was a genre in itself. However, since LucasArts was purchased and shut down by Disney in 2013, the Star Wars IP has been stagnant. Exclusive rights to develop games with the IP was given to EA and the results since have been four Star Wars games total.
That is going to change soon, though. On Tuesday, Lucasfilm Games made a surprising announcement that Ubisoft, not EA, would be developing a story driven open world Star Wars game. This means that when the exclusivity license EA possesses for Star Wars reaches its conclusion in 2023, it will be open season for Star Wars games.
We’re thrilled to announce we are working with @Ubisoft and @UbiMassive to develop a brand-new, story-driven, open-world Star Wars adventure!
Learn more about the future of @LucasfilmGames in the Star Wars galaxy and beyond: https://t.co/uO1K1pivl2 pic.twitter.com/wRDccZvi3o
— Lucasfilm Games (@LucasfilmGames) January 13, 2021
“And by “this moment,” Reilly is referring to a new direction and era for Star Wars and Lucasfilm gaming overall, as Lucasfilm Games is now opening the doors to developers that want to come play in the galaxy far, far away. “We’re looking to work with best-in-class teams that can make great games across all of our IP. We’ve got a team of professionals here at Lucasfilm Games who can work with the developers, shape the stories, shape the creative, shape the games, to make them really resonate with fans and deliver across a breadth of platforms, genres, and experiences so that all of our fans can enjoy the IPs that they know and love,” he says.”
This is massive news in the video game community. The last console generation was not good to the Star Wars franchise with Star Wars titles receiving more headlines for loot boxes and buggy releases than it did for the quality of their titles. This also may be why EA is losing out on its exclusivity. It’s hard to believe the consistent negative press surrounding their titles was doing them any favors with Disney or Lucasfilm. Of course, for any fans of the Star Wars games that EA has made, this doesn’t mean that they’re going to stop making games in that universe.
We love Star Wars.
— Electronic Arts (@EA) January 13, 2021
While this is a definite loss for EA, this news can only be seen as a win for fans of video games. Star Wars is a universe with endless possibilities and some of the best games ever made used that world as a base for their creation. The more people that can get their hands on it the better chance we have at something incredible being made.