The development cycle for the Knights of the Old Republic Remake has been a shaky one. Last August, it was revealed Embracer Group was moving away from the original developer (Aspyr Media) and going with Saber Interactive instead. Now, folks are speculating the game could be canceled as Sony makes the YouTube trailer private and deletes mentions of it on its social media.
What’s going on? Sony has issued a statement through multiple outlets: “As part of normal business, we delist assets with licensed music when the licenses expire.” That statement doesn’t do much to address the speculation that something is amiss. The only music from the reveal trailer appears to be Star Wars music.
And while the trailer is now private on the official PlayStation channel, the 2021 showcase where the remake was announced is still live with the audio. The video below should start at the announcement. If not, fast forward to 3:56.
The reason for all the speculation today also concerns the parent company’s (Embracer Group) current situation. After going on a spending spree in recent years, Embracer is now trying to tighten up. That means canceling games, shutting down studios, and potentially selling off others. Here’s a brief recap of what’s been happening at Embracer over the past few months.
May – Saudi-owned Savvy Games Group backed out of a $2 billion deal. Embracer planned on using this influx of money to develop and publish games over the next few years.
June – Embracer begins a restructuring program.
August – Campfire Cabal was one of the first studios to close after this restructuring began.
September – Volition announces they are closing. According to Deep Silver (owned by Embracer), the Saints Row and Red Faction IPs “will live on.”
September – Embracer is fielding potential offers for Gearbox Entertainment (makers of Borderlands).
So, while Sony says it’s due to a licensing issue, we’ll see if Embracer and Saber Interactive come out with statements of their own confirming the Knights of the Old Republic Remake is still in active development.