When Lucasfilm Games announced its resurgence, we wondered aloud whether Electronic Arts’ exclusivity contract to create Star Wars games was set to die on the vine. It would appear we’ve gotten confirmation of as much with the unveiling of a new open world Star Wars game that’s being developed by Ubisoft’s Massive Entertainment studio.
Information on this new game is a bit sparse, but it has been confirmed that this new title will be using the Snowdrop engine and will have Julian Gerighty, the director of games like The Division 2 and The Crew, on board as the game’s creative director. Otherwise, the only other news is that the studio is on something of a hiring spree for the project.
As for EA’s exclusivity deal, Lucasfilm Games has not outright mentioned whether the deal was cut short, but a statement from Sean Shoptaw, senior vice president of Global Games and Interactive Experiences at Disney, stated that the clock has effectively run out one way or the other. “EA has been and will continue to be a very strategic and important partner for us now and going forward, but we did feel like there’s room for others,” said Shoptaw.
Lucasfilm Games’ VP Douglas Reilly provided further context on the relationship between Lucasfilm Games and EA, saying, “We’re really proud of the games we have created with EA. We will continue working with them and our relationship has never been stronger. While we may not have a lot of details to share at the moment, we’ve got a number of projects underway with the talented teams at EA.”
We’re thrilled to announce we are working with @Ubisoft and @UbiMassive to develop a brand-new, story-driven, open-world Star Wars adventure!
Learn more about the future of @LucasfilmGames in the Star Wars galaxy and beyond: https://t.co/uO1K1pivl2 pic.twitter.com/wRDccZvi3o
— Lucasfilm Games (@LucasfilmGames) January 13, 2021
✅ We love Star Wars.
✅ We look forward to continuing our partnership with Lucasfilm Games.
✅ We’re making more Star Wars games.
✅ BD-1 is still the cutest.— Electronic Arts (@EA) January 13, 2021
