Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic Remake Has Reportedly Been In The Works For Years
Get ready to punch it Chewie, because there are reports the long-rumoured Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic game has been in the works for much longer than we thought. With the resurrection of Lucasfilm Games, news that Ubisoft is working on an open world game set in that galaxy (far, far away), and confirmation EA will keep making Star Wars titles, conversation has obviously turned to the potential of the Knights of the Old Republic series.
Following rumours that a new entry to the franchise is in the works, there's also the idea that the beloved 2003 game would be brought to a next-gen audience. Given the fact that both KOTR and its 2004 sequel are held as some of the greatest video games of all time - let alone just Star Wars titles - we're amazed they haven't already been remastered. News of a remake is nothing new, but if the latest speculation is to be believed, it's been lurking in the shadows since 2019.
What's the scoop on a Knights of the Old Republic remake?
Posting on Reddit u/mtol115 claims the studio known as Aspyr has been tinkering away on a Knights of the Old Republic remake. In the post, they noted that around 20 former BioWare employees now work at Aspyr. For those who need a history of KOTR games, the first was handled by BioWare before Obsidian Entertainment (Fallout New Vegas) took over for the sequel. The interesting bit is the fact a number of ex-BioWare employees joined in 2019 and hold senior positions such as Art Director, Lead Narrative Designer, Cinematics Lead, Environmental Artist, Animation Lead, and World Designer. The suggestion is they all joined to work on a remake of the first game.
As we've seen with recent speculation for a Halo Infinite spinoff or Ghost of Tsushima sequel, studios tend to hire a number of big positions at once. The development time on any game is notoriously long, especially on a AAA title. Even if a KOTR remaster has been in the works since 2019, it's doubtful we'd get a surprise release in 2021. Then again, stranger things have happened in terms of gaming news. Following the Lucasfilm Games announcement, it seems everyone wants a piece of kyber crystal.
Is a Knights of the Old Republic remake on the way?
News that Aspyr was working on porting the first two games to modern consoles first emerged in late-January. Aside from a rumoured reboot, there were whispers the Nintendo Switch will be welcoming KOTR before the end of the year. In the past 12 months, we've seen re-releases of the Star Wars: Jedi games and Star Wars Episode 1 Racer, so it's easy to imagine Aspyr working on a modern revival of the first game.
With so much news surrounding Knights of the Old Republic, it looks increasingly likely that something is going on. Whether it's a straight-up sequel, reboot, or remaster, there's also the possibility multiple projects are on the horizon - like those swirling Silent Hill rumours. If this is the case, it will be the first entry to the critically acclaimed KOTR franchise since BioWare’s released Star Wars: The Old Republic as an MMO in 2008. We can hear the whoosh of Darth Revan's lightsaber from here.
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