Looks like the Lucasfilm Games rebranding really got the ball rolling. Just yesterday, we got the announcement that Bethesda is working on an Indiana Jones game. Now, WIRED revealed that they have also contacted Ubisoft to develop an open-world game that takes place within the galaxy far far away. Ubisoft’s Massive Entertainment will be at the helm, who has developed Tom Clancy’s The Division 2. They are also working actively on a game based on James Cameron‘s Avatar franchise.
This move is huge, as it is the first Star Wars game that is not being developed by EA since Disney acquired the rights in 2021. Originally, EA stated they have exclusivity rights for ten years, so either the contract was altered since, or it was only for publication, as development is very early and probably won’t be released until the earliest of 2023. Still, Disney’s Global Games and Interactive Experiences Senior Vice President Sean Shoptaw gave the following statement:
EA has been and will continue to be a very strategic and important partner for us now and going forward. But we did feel like there’s room for others.
Julian Gerighty, who worked on both The Division 2 and The Crew will serve as creative director. It will use Massive’s Snowdrop engine. It will be interesting to see what direction they go with this game. An open-world game is a tricky one if you can explore the entire galaxy. Jedi Fallen Order offered multiple areas that were free to explore on various planets. Massive may try to focus on a specific planet. Originally, there were two open-world games that got canceled at some point in development. Visceral Games was working on a game in 2017 before the studio was shuttered. There was also Star Wars 1313 that would’ve featured a playable Boba Fett. We even got an E3 demo for the game a while back that showcased what would’ve been possible.
Source: Wired, Massive Entertainment, Gadgets 360, ScreenRant
