Summary
As the gaming industry continues to struggle with a bad year of layoffs and cutbacks, publisher EA has canceled aStar WarsFPS that was in the works at Respawn Entertainment. It’s no secret that many publishers and developers are struggling at the moment and this is harming both employees and gamers as devs lose their jobs and games face delays or cancelation. Now this worrying trend is impacting fans of shooters and theStar Warssetting.
As the new year began, those who love the “galaxy far, far away” had lots to look forward to. There’slots to expect fromStar Warsgames in 2024, with numerous titles across many different studios and genres in the works. Unfortunately, it seems one game can now be crossed off the list, thanks to a decision by EA regarding its subsidiary, Respawn Entertainment.
Initially reported byIGN, a letter to employees from EA president Laura Miele explained that aStar WarsFPS in early development at Respawn is being canceled. The internal announcement followed the public revelation that EA is engaging in major layoffs, amounting to roughly 5% of its total workforce, and restructuring how the company operates. It appears that EA is looking to focus on established franchises at the moment and will be moving members of theStar WarsFPS team to other Respawn projects likeApex Legendsand the next entry in theJediseries.
No Word On Other Respawn Projects
It’s currently not clear how this shakeup will impact some other Respawn titles. While the nextJedigame andApex Legendsappear safe, there wasa lot to expect from Respawn in 2024before this announcement, and fans may be worried some other titles could disappear from the list of planned releases. The developer, for example, was also reportedly working as the publisher on a newStar Warsstrategy game. This and other Respawn projects were not mentioned, and their future could be in question.
This news is another example of an ongoing shakeup in the gaming industry that’s hurting numerous studios at the moment. Just this week, for example, thedeveloper ofStar Citizenwas hit with layoffs, and lots of other companies have made similar announcements this year.
Frustratingly for gamers, these cuts in the industry have translated to games being placed on the chopping block. Layoffs at PlayStation have led to thenewTwisted Metalgame being reportedly canceled, and now EA and Respawn are experiencing the same thing. The news of this latest case should be upsetting forStar Warsfans and concerning for gamers in general who care about the industry.
