During last year’s Game Awards, a brand newStar Warstitle from the developers ofHeavy RainandDetroit: Become Humanwas announced. TitledStar Wars Eclipse, details around the game are still pretty scarce, with itsHigh Republic settingessentially being the only confirmed aspect.
But, according to arecent report from renowned industry leaker Tom Henderson,Star Wars Eclipsemay not end up in gamers' hands until as late as 2027-2028, apparently due to some hiring difficulties at Quantic Dream. AlthoughStar Warsfans are going to have plenty of opportunities to get their fix over the next few years, with titles likeLEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Sagalanding soon and Respawn’s trio of games being in development, there’s always room for moreStar Wars, and reviving some old classics may be a good way to fill the time beforeEclipse’s release.
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Star Wars Games That Deserve a Revival
Over the last few years, Aspyr has released a handful of ports of olderStar Warstitles to modern consoles. Beginning in 2019 with a port ofJedi Knight 2: Jedi Outcastto the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4, Aspyr has continued to release aStar Warsport every year, with classics likeEpisode 1: Racer, Jedi Academy, andRepublic Commandoall being playable on PS4 and Switchwith some remastered visuals and quality of life improvements.
In Nintendo’s February Direct, Aspyr announced that fan-favoriteStar Wars: The Force Unleashedwould be heading to the Switchin 2022. While these titles obviously don’t offer any new experiences for those that have already played them, porting these older games to newer consoles does bring them to a fresh audience, and helps to tap into the nostalgia of long-timeStar Warsfans. When it comes to sheer abundance ofStar Warsgames, Aspyr has barely scratched the surface, and there’s plenty moreStar Warsgames that deserve a revival.
Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire, originally released on the Nintendo 64 and PC in 1996, had a lot of great ideas for the time, but its slow, tank-like controls can make the game a bit of a chore to revisit today. The firstStar Warsgame to really experiment withthird-person shooting along with vehicle sections,Shadows of the Empiredeserves to be played byStar Warsfans, but could definitely use a few quality of life improvements.
Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces 2is another title that hasn’t aged too well. Despite its laughably out-of-place live-action cutscenes,Jedi Knightis one of the firstStar Warsgames that put an emphasis on lightsaber combat and unlockable force powers. Withits sequels already on the Switch and PS4, porting this rough gem seems right.
Star Wars: Obi Wanmay not be the most refinedStar Warsgame, but its arena multiplayer mode and its experimental lightsaber combat mechanics are at least worth a try. Unfortunately,Obi Wanwas Xbox exclusive, and it can be pretty hard to track down a copy nowadays. Porting this game to modern consoles would help to preservethe history ofStar Warsgames, if nothing else.
On a similar note, the originalEpisode 1tie-in game is also quite difficult to play in 2022, due to most PCs not being compatible with it. Again, it isn’t the bestStar Warsgame, but there’s some interesting open-world-like mechanics on display, with some nice environmental design to boot.
ModernStar Warshas a tendency to take itself a little too seriously at times, so a revival of the absurdStar Wars: Demolitiongame could give the franchise some levity right now. This game gives players a handful of iconicStar Warsvehicles to control, and tasks them with destroying the other vehicles, likeTwisted Metalwith aStar Warsoverlay. While none of these games are considered to be the bestStar Warstitles, all have their upsides and could be a great way to keep fans busy untilStar Wars: Eclipseresurfaces.
