As time has passed since the initial reveal of the upcomingStar Wars: Knights of the Old Republicremake with no concrete news on its development, it’s only become increasingly unclear whether it will ever even arrive at all. With projects in the same franchise being revealed and released in the period since that first announcement of a return to the BioWare classic, the opportunity to capitalize on the hype ofStar Wars: Knights of the Old Republicneeds to be utilized before faith in its eventual release wanes any further.
In the wake ofWarhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2proving to be successfulwithin a broader sci-fi universe earlier this year, it’s only become clearer that Saber Interactive is sitting on a heavy hitter in theKOTORremake. It’s unknown if significant progress has been made on the title yet, but it presumably hasn’t achieved an adequate level of production to be shown off during the past few years. Regardless of where it may be currently, trusting the process and sticking with the remake could yield results for the publisher that prove prosperous for the rest of the decade.
The Development Status of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic’s Remake Has Remained Uncertain
The Implications of the Silence Endured By Fans for Three Years
First unveiled at the PlayStation Showcase 2021, theKOTORremake came as a shock to many fans who expectedThe Old Republicto possibly be the last foray into that time period of the franchise. With a lack of news following that teaser outside publisher comments, and the passage of the project away from Embracer Group and Aspyr as Saber has since taken over, hope for the title’s completion has held up alongside the enduringpopularity of the originalKnights of the Old Republic.
With 2024 now concluding, essentially all the year’s major gaming events that could have facilitated an announcement have come and gone. Given the typical marketing cycle associated with a high-budget release, expecting afurther reveal for theKnights of the Old Republicremakein 2025 would make a release in the year following that an optimistic estimate. There’s still a chance that Saber has planned to subvert this timeline, but it shouldn’t abandon the project even if it does take that long.
Committing to the Release of the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic Remake Can Still Be Worthwhile for Saber Interactive
The High Cost of Leaving KOTOR Behind is More Than Just Upfront Expenses
Despite an ongoing lack of updates on the remake,Space Marine 2selling millions of copies has set a precedent for ambitious sci-fi games that Saber shouldn’t ignore. With thepraisedStar Wars Jedifranchisealso seeing notable commercial performance in the action niche, the momentum built by increased awareness of the genre would be guaranteed to help raise the profile ofKOTOR’s tactical real-time-with-pause RPG gameplay. Assuming that Saber has already invested considerable resources into the project, discarding it after what might be years of work would mean leaving significant profits on the table for years to come.
A New Engine Could Mean a Full KOTOR Revival
Theupdated experience of theKnights of the Old Republicremakecould not only meet the standards of the current gaming generation, but also potentially lay the groundwork for its beloved sequel to follow its example by building on the same structure. This would be able to do justice to the entire duology so far and set the stage for a third game one day, a concept which may ironically be easier to develop without the baggage of living up to fan-favorite RPG classics.
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
WHERE TO PLAY
Choose Your Path.It is four thousand years before the Galactic Empire and hundreds of Jedi Knights have fallen in battle against the ruthless Sith. You are the last hope of the Jedi Order. Can you master the awesome power of the Force on your quest to save the Republic? Or will you fall to the lure of the dark side? Hero or villain, saviour or conqueror… you alone will determine the destiny of the entire galaxy!A brand new Star Wars role-playing experience with unique characters, creatures, vehicles and planets.Learn to use the Force with over 40 different powers and build your own lightsaber.Adventure through some of the most popular Star Wars locations, including Tatooine and the Wookiee homeworld Kashyyyk.Choose your party from nine customisable characters, including Twi’leks, droids and Wookiees.Travel to eight enormous worlds in your own starship, the Ebon Hawk.
