A brand-new Star Wars game by veteran XCOM developers is in the works. Described as a Star Wars XCOM like, this tactical strategy game will draw on the small 15-person team’s history of developing some of the best games ever.
In development at new studio Bit Reactor, the named Star Wars XCOM game is being published by Respawn Entertainment, the studio behind Star Wars Jedi Survivor. While few details are known, this is one of the most exciting Star Wars projects in years.
Revealed in an interview with PC Gamer, Bit Reactor’s new team consists of 15 developers from XCOM studio Firaxis. Every member of the team worked on some form of the XCOM games, from gameplay designers to animators, and that experience is being used to create a brand-new Star Wars experience.
Bit Reactor founder and the new game’s director Greg Foertsch explained that there’s a lot of innovation without the tactical strategy genre they hope to explore. In fact, after years of developing games in the genre, they have an “ax to grind” and boundless space for creativity.
“It’s a space that honestly has the most room of any genre to grow, through immersion and storytelling and visual presentation and pacing," they explained. "It's got a lot of space to innovate in. And so for us, those are kind of the things we focus on. And I think we've made a few games in the past that have displayed those things that are just like tips of icebergs in a lot of cases."
Alongside Bit Reactor’s new Star Wars XCOM game, other game studios are also working on bold new takes on the franchise. For example, a Total War Star Wars game is reportedly in the works at Creative Assembly, and Ubisoft’s open-world Star Wars Outlaws release date is closely approaching.
With an endless supply of new Star Wars content, it’s never been a better time to be a fan of the iconic sci-fi series. As a fan of both Star Wars and XCOM, Bit Reactor’s upcoming project is a nerd’s dream come true.