Knights of the Old Republic Remake's Status in Question After Trailer Pruning

BioWare’s 2003 game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is one of the most well-known video games to bear the franchise’s name, and players were delighted to hear it would be coming to the current gaming generation. But much like Star Wars Eclipse, whose existence had to be reconfirmed by developer Quantic Dream last week, the remake for KOTOR is now facing similar scrutiny.

Earlier in the week, fans online realized the initial reveal trailer for KOTOR Remake was marked as private on YouTube. What’s more, previous social media posts from Sony—console-wise, the remake is a PlayStation 5 exclusive—had been deleted, even as users were able to pull up the posts either via the Wayback Machine or their Google Caches. When contacted for comment, Sony told outlets the removals were related to music licensing, calling it “part of normal business. We delist assets with licensed music when the licenses expire.” But as many have pointed out, only the main Star Wars theme is used in the trailer, which is owned by Disney.

Part of the reason for concern on the part of players can be owed to the state of the games industry right now. Aspyr (which has recently done remasters of various old Star Wars games) was initially on deck to created KOTOR Remake for a late 2022 release, but that work was put on hold last year when its pitch didn’t fully land with Lucasfilm and Sony. Months later, it was reported that development had shifted over to Saber Interactive. But both studios are owned by Embracer Group, which has spent much of the summer closing studios and shuttering projects. Whichever studio ends up working on the game, it’s believed the game will release around 2025 at the earliest, and that’s if things go properly according to plan.

All games can take years before they actually release under the best of circumstances. But the culling over at Embracer, and Star Wars’ general history with revealing and then canceling games hangs over the KOTOR remake in a different way.

[via IGN]

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

Comments

The Only Version of Return of the King Worth Watching Missing From Max After Streaming Bug

Screenshot: Warner Bros. Bad news for Max subscribers who’ve made re-watching The Lord of the Rings extended editions an annual New Year tradition: the third film in the trilogy, The Return of the King — which just celebrated its 20th anniversary! —is only available to stream in its theatrical version. No ancient evil is to blame, thankfully; it’s an unspecified “tech issue,” according to a Max spokesperson who responded to a comment request from Vulture after the issue was noted by dismayed fans on Reddit . The fact that The Return of the King extended edition is merely temporarily unavailable is actually good news given Max’s track record for removing content in the past, and the explanation makes sense considering The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers remain available in both their theatrical and extended editions. The Max spokesperson assured Vulture that The Return of the King extended edition will be, ah, returning soon to the service, though as of this writing i...

Unicorn Jerky Is Not Only the Perfect Name for a CBD Candy Edible, It's Also 20% Off, and Proceeds Go to The Trevor Project [Exclusive]

You Can Visit Freddy Fazbear's Pizza in Hollywood

Image: Universal Pictures Just in time for Halloween and for the release of Blumhouse and Universal Pictures’ Five Nights at Freddy ’s fans can visit a pop-up location of the fictional franchise from the game and film. That’s right, a Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza has mysteriously appeared in Hollywood. Like in the game and upcoming film, it’s a run-down spot that’s been closed down due to some mysterious activity within. Unfortunately, you can’t actually go in unless you’re hired as a security guard (kidding)—it’s just a facade for photo-ops you can visit. Check out the video captured by deadboifilms on TikTok below at the location on Sunset Blvd in Hollywood (near the Chateau Marmont Hotel). If you want to encounter the animatronic band of fuzzy and totally friendly creatures from the game, you’ll have to visit Universal Studios Hollywood Halloween Horror Nights, there’s a walk-through in the DreamWorks theater lobby that’s been taken over by Blumhouse which features the real Jim ...

Future Stories

Search This Blog