Sony recently removed the game’s announcement trailer from YouTube and social media, according to the report
According to Jeff Grubb of GameSpot sister site Giant Bomb, Embracer Group’s troubled Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic remake is no longer in active development.
Grubb definitively stated in the latest episode of his video game news show Game Mess Mornings that the Knights of the Old Republic remake, which was once handled by developer Aspyr Media but later announced to be a co-project between it and Saber Interactive, is not being worked on right now.
“This game is not being worked on right now, full stop,” Grubb said. “This game is not being worked on in any way, at any studio.”
Grubb’s statement follows a report last year that stated the game had been delayed indefinitely due to the firing of two lead developers at Aspyr who were working on the project. Saber Interactive was also said to be taking complete control of the game’s development. Though publisher Embracer has not confirmed the project has completely changed hands, the company did state in August 2022 that one of its “AAA projects has transitioned to another studio within the group” in order to “ensure the quality bar is where we need it to be for the title.”
A PlayStation 5 and PC remake of BioWare’s beloved 2003 Star Wars RPG was announced with a teaser trailer during a PlayStation Showcase in 2021, with Sony set to co-publish the title. In September of this year, Sony removed all mention of the title from its YouTube and social media channels, causing immediate concern about the project’s future. Sony stated that the trailer was removed due to the need to “delist assets with licensed music when the licenses expire.” That response, however, did not allay fans’ fears.
Knights of the Old Republic Remake – Cinematic Reveal Teaser Trailer:
Sony has not elaborated further, but according to Grubb, Sony will no longer be involved in the project. Grubb believes that the only party who could potentially save the project is Lucasfilm.
“The only reality of this game getting made is if Lucasfilm completely takes it over and does all the work themselves to spin it back up,” Grubb went on to say. “No way this game ever happens. That’s my opinion right now.”
During a recent financial presentation, Embracer CEO Lars Wingefors was asked about the status of the Knights of the Old Republic remake and said “I notice that anything I say to this becomes a headline, so that is my only comment.”
The Knights of the Old Republic remake isn’t the first time Aspyr Media has had issues with a Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic game. Aspyr’s remaster of Knights of the Old Republic II for the Nintendo Switch promised to include much of the game’s cut content as DLC at first. Later, the studio announced that the restored content DLC would not be released, instead offering those who purchased the game another free Star Wars game of their choice.
As a result, disgruntled fans who purchased the game filed a class-action lawsuit against Aspyr, accusing the developer of false advertising. Aspyr has since stated lawsuit that it intended to release the DLC but was thwarted by the objections of an unnamed third party.