Electronic Arts has announced an extension of its partnership with Lucasfilm Games, which will see Apex Legends developer Respawn work on three new Star Wars projects.
In an announcement on Tuesday, the company officially announced a sequel toStar Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, along with two new projects in development at new teams within theRespawnhierarchy.
Firstly, a new Star Wars first-person shooter game is being helmed by former LucasArts veteran and Medal of Honor co-creator Peter Hirschmann, who has previously worked on the original Battlefront games, The Force Unleashed and more.
Hirschmann most recently directed 2020 VR title Medal of Honor: Above and Beyond.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor Guides:
Jedi: Survivor poncho location|Jedi: Survivor blue battery doors|Jedi: Survivor green gates|How to change lightsaber color in Jedi: Survivor|Star Wars Jedi Survivor new game plus|Star Wars Jedi Survivor bounties list
Respawn’s third Star Wars project is a strategy game developed through a production collaboration with Bit Reactor, which is a new studio formed by veterans of XCOM and Civilization studioFiraxis Games.
Respawn will produce the new Star Wars strategy game while Bit Reactor leads on the development of the title,EAsaid.
Respawn co-founderVince Zampella, who will be overseeing the games, said: “We are huge fans of Star Wars here at Respawn and we’re thrilled to work with Lucasfilm Games on new titles that we have wanted to make for years. If you want to make greatStar Wars games, you should come join us on our journey.”
Sean Shoptaw, SVP, Walt Disney Games added: “Building on the previous successes of our EA relationship, this new collaboration highlights the trust and mutual respect shared between the world-class teams at EA, Respawn and Lucasfilm Games. Fostered by the expertise and passion within each team, we will create thrilling original games for diverse audiences across the Star Wars galaxy.”
The news follows last year’s confirmation that Lucasfilm’s previous exclusivity deal with EA was set to end bypartnering with Ubisoft on a new open-world game, although EA responded by stating that its “long-standing collaboration with Lucasfilm Games… will continue for years to come”.
Quantic Dream, the independent developer behind narrative games Detroit andHeavy Rain, alsorecently announced Star Wars Eclipse.
Commenting on EA’s relationship with Lucasfilm during its third quarter earnings call last February, CEOAndrew Wilsonsaid the companywould continue to invest in Star Wars gamesnew and old.
“If you look at our history with Star Wars, we’ve had a long and very profitable relationship, first with LucasArts or Lucasfilm, and then with Lucasfilm as part of Disney,” he said.
“As we’ve established these very strong parts of that franchise,” Wilson added, “you should expect that we will continue to invest in those as well as some new experiences across platforms for the future.”
EA has previously said that its Star Wars exclusivity deal —signed in 2013—would last for 10 yearsand its comms directorclaimed last yearthat the agreement was still in place, suggestingUbisoft’s and Quantic Dream’s games won’t be released before 2023.
Star Wars SquadronsdeveloperMotivehas previously said it’s working ona new Star Wars action game.
