Last week, writer/researcher Liam Robertson (Unseen64, Did You Know Gaming) published a new podcast for his Patreon subscribers, during which he claimed Bioware Austin is currently prototyping a new addition to the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic series. And once those claims reached a larger audience, it set off exactly the wave of speculation you’d expect, with fans rushing to dig up any old tweets, news or interviews that might bolster the claim.
KOTOR rumors are hardly a new phenomena on the internet but many are taking this one seriously because Robertson has uncovered similar stories in the past. He was the first to report Scalebound ’s cancellation and published the cover art for Middle-earth: Shadow of War before the game was leaked by Target. But he also published unproven claims suggesting Bioware outsourced animations for Mass Effect: Andromeda last week. So we’d suggest taking everything with a few grains of salt.
Robertson’s claim is blocked behind a paywall but the relevant portions have been re-published elsewhere. He doesn’t start strong, asserting he’s “learned” that Bioware Austin was “pretty much now exclusively working on Star Wars games” -- the expressed purpose for opening the studio in 2006 -- but Robertson goes on to claim EA and Disney want to revive KOTOR as part of the new Expanded Universe. Something in the same vein as last year’s Battlefront reboot, without attachment to the previous games. And he says the studio is already prototyping.
Those claims are being positioned alongside a report from Cinelinx, published in September 2016, suggesting Electronic Arts shelved an unannounced KOTOR port. The same port that Cinelinx Editor-in-Chief Jordan Maison claimed was already playable (in some form) on “current systems” in 2015. And the only explanation offered is that EA got cold feet after the lukewarm performance of Star Wars Battlefront. Some have also pointed to a recent tweet from Bioware’s Drew Karpyshyn, lead writer for the original KOTOR and the first two Mass Effect games, that confirms he is working on an unannounced project. And the studio is hiring. But I don’t buy it.
Robertson claims to have “good authority” on the matter but can’t tell us whether the project is a remake or a fresh start: two potential outcomes that couldn’t be more different. It’s also hard to take Maison at his word when EA’s alleged concern with Battlefront’s performance didn’t stop the publisher from funding a sequel that will be revealed later this month. If you’d told me the new KOTOR was going to play like Mass Effect: Andromeda -- since we heard similar rumors Dragon Age: Inquisition ’s impact on MEA -- and that the poor performance response sent the team back to the drawing board, there probably wouldn't be many doubters. But it’s hard to believe EA would see complaints about Battlefront’s lack of solo campaign as evidence that a sprawling single-player RPG wouldn’t be viable right now. We’re all well acquainted with The Witcher 3 by now. Furthermore, if people were "playing" KOTOR on modern platforms more than a year ago, as Maison claimed, then Robertson fails to explain why Bioware would still be prototyping in April 2017. But he's just as uncertain about the nature (reboot or remaster) of the new KOTOR. It's the ambiguity around this point, which would seemingly be the easiest to confirm, that leaves me doubtful.
As for Karpyshyn’s new position, look no further than recent comments from Bioware General Manager Aaryn Flynn. Back in January, Flynn said “20+ years of development knowledge and lessons” would help the studio craft its next big IP. Karpyshyn is one of few remaining creatives who’s been at Bioware -- save for a three-year absence to write his Chaos Born trilogy -- since Baldur’s Gate. Who else would Bioware want steering the ship for their next big adventure?
To be fair, it’s worth mentioning that Bioware Austin is currently hiring a pair of lead designers to work on new, unannounced IP “by the same creative team that brought you Mass Effect.” But the description for the Lead Systems Designer position requires familiarity “with online RPG game mechanics” would suggest the prospective employee will be contributing to something other than a Knights of the Old Republic remake/remaster. Could be The Old Republic or the new IP are being revealed later this year. The Lead Level Designer job fits the bill slightly better, searching for a candidate capable of using their knowledge of RPG and Action games to “lead the vision for level design on a franchise.” But it wouldn’t fit the bill for a KOTOR remaster. Only a complete reboot. And it also sounds like a better fit for whatever’s next in the Bioware pipeline.
I don’t doubt that Robertson and Maison have heard rumors or speculation about a new/updated KOTOR . Nor do I have any doubt there are people at Bioware who’d like to see one of those projects (if not both) added to the studio’s developmental slate. But I do have some difficulty believing that Electronic Arts, a publisher that didn’t want to release Battlefield and Battlefront during the same season, is preparing a narrative-focused sequel to its Star Wars shooter, an Uncharted -style Star Wars adventure and a KOTOR reboot all at once. Knights of the Old Republic is a series you can safely speculate about because it’s so popular EA would be insane not to revive the brand. But I’m not holding my breath for an announcement anytime soon.
