As initially reported by IGN, Embracer CEO Lars Wingefors commented during a financial presentation that he has no comment on the state of the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic remake. He also states, “Anything I say to this becomes a headline.” Yes, sir. Yes, sir, it will.
A remake of the classic 2003 RPG Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic was announced back in 2021 during a Playstation Showcase. Since then, we’ve received re-releases of the two games in the series, and then everything kind of hit the rocks. The re-releases didn’t go very smoothly, and the intention of adding restored cut content to the second game (which badly needs it) was canceled.
In 2022, Bloomberg reported that the remake might have been put on hold. This was following the production of a demo – which reportedly didn’t go over very well – and the subsequent firing of the art and design director.
While Wingefors statement doesn’t really say anything, the fact that it says nothing is pretty telling. If production was chugging along on schedule, he probably would have been quick to tout its promising outlook. It also doesn’t clarify if the project is on indefinite hold or canceled outright. So, that leaves us to speculate.
I was pretty skeptical of the project, to begin with. Aspyr and Saber Interactive are capable studios, but they’re mostly known for porting existing games. A remake on this scale is pretty massive, so even if it saw the light of day, I’m not certain it would meet its ambition. Now, however, Embracer has been laying off massive amounts of people – reportedly 900 in a single financial quarter. I’m not saying it’s impossible for the Knights of the Old Republic remake to eventually see the light of day, but I’ll believe it when I see it.
