Lucasfilm Games and Respawn Entertainment have announced that not one, not two, but three new Star Wars games are in development at the celebrated studio. One of these is obviously a sequel to the blockbusting Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, but there’s also a brand new first person shooter and a strategy game being developed.
Game Director, Peter Hirschmann, and his team have begun production on an all-new first-person shooter.
And, we’re partnering with the folks at @BitReactor to embark on the creation of a new Star Wars strategy game.
— Respawn (@Respawn) January 25, 2022
The latter two are perhaps the most surprising – obviously there was going to be a sequel to Fallen Order. Rumours have been swirling around Respawn in the last couple of months that a new first person shooter was in development there with a focus on advanced movement techniques. That might sound like a Titanfall sequel, but it now seems that this rumoured project is actually set within the Star Wars universe.
Alongside that, Respawn are able to act as stewards to a brand new game studio, Bit Reactor. The studio’s formation was announced just last week, but it’s not a group of nobodies behind the name. Bit Reactor was founded by former Firaxis art director Greg Foertsch, drawing on talent behind games like Age of Empires, Civilization and XCOM. This makes for a tantalising prospect, as it’s not clear whether they’ll target real time strategy or instead focus on turn-based strategy, and if the latter, will it be on a galactic scale or smaller tactical battles? From interviews given last week, it certainly sounds like they’re going to be bringing their game to consoles.
We’ll just have to wait and see, but one thing that’s clear from this is that EA still has a seat at the table, despite having lost exclusive rights to the Star Wars franchise.
Speaking of waiting and seeing, it’s likely not going to be very long before we see the full reveal of the Jedi: Fallen Order sequel. Rumours have it that the game is due out in late 2022, roughly three years on from the launch of the original.
In our review for Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Jim wrote:
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is exactly the kind of single player game we had originally hoped to see when EA and Disney joined forces. Even if you strip away the license, you’re left with a super satisfying mix or combat, story, and exploration, deftly crafted by a studio best known for spearheading an entirely different genre.
You can read the full review for Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order here.