The Star Wars franchise has had its share of ups and downs over the last forty-plus years of its existence. For every Empire Strikes Back, there's a Star Wars Holiday Special, and for every Knights of the Old Republic, there's a Masters of Teras Kasi. The last ten years have been particularly rocky for Star Wars' gaming projects, as the franchise's exclusivity deal with publisher EA has been the source of great ire for many fans. That deal will soon be reaching its end, but even in its waning months, EA has added one more transgression to its list with the cancelation of Respawn's Mandalorian first-person shooter.

It's well-known that Respawn had been working on a Star Wars FPS for some time, and new details just recently emerged that the project would focus on a Mandalorian protagonist. Just as the dust was settling on that news, however, EA pulled the plug, citing a shift towards internal IP. It's proving to be a massive blow to much of the Star Wars fandom, and unfortunately, this isn't the first time fans have experienced a cancelation such as this. Star Wars 1313 remains the one that got away for many fans over ten years after its cancelation, and Respawn's Mandalorian FPS now bears a striking resemblance to it.

Related

Star Wars Strategy Game Dev Comments on EA's Mandalorian FPS Cancelation

The developer behind the still-unnamed Star Wars strategy game reacts to the news of EA canceling Respawn Entertainment's Mandalorian FPS.

Star Wars 1313 & EA's Mandalorian Game Are Two Sides Of The Same Coin

Star Wars has had a lot of canceled games over the last couple of decades, but few have stung just as much as Star Wars 1313. Revealed in 2012, 1313 was going to take players through the seedy underbelly of the Republic's capital, Coruscant. While it was originally going to be a story about a new smuggler protagonist, reports detail how development shifted at George Lucas' insistence to focus on a young Boba Fett. Gameplay demos showed a significant amount of potential, and the darker tone was what many fans had been begging for, but 1313 was lost when Disney cancelled all of LucasArts' upcoming games in 2013.

With EA's Mandalorian game now in the grave, it shares an unfortunate number of things in common with 1313. Both projects would have featured a protagonist who relies more on blasters and gadgets than a lightsaber and the Force, which would be a major change of pace from other Star Wars games. The Mandalorians are also one of Star Wars' most beloved groups, and moving through either game with their iconic armor and tool set could have been a delight. At the end of the day, both titles were the victim of corporate decision-making, and it's the hardworking devs and passionate fans who now bear the weight of that disappointment.

Star Wars Fans May Find Hope In Other Places

Although the potential of 1313 and EA's Mandalorian game will always be unrealized, there is one source of hope for fans who want a similar experience. Ubisoft's Star Wars Outlaws looks to be a distillation of everything fans have wanted in a scoundrel-centered experience. While it may not exactly be a Mandalorian game, Outlaws should still take players through the darker corners of the galaxy for a swashbuckling adventure. Outlaws will also be one of the first major releases to follow EA's exclusivity deal, which could give gamers additional hope for a future title that avenges these unrealized projects.

For many Star Wars fans, the canceled Mandalorian game is a cruel punctuation for ten years of disappointment. While EA had its bright spots with the license, with Star Wars Battlefront 2 and Star Wars Jedi being the strongest examples, it also regularly stumbled. Respawn will join LucasArts and others on the list of developers that have had a promising Star Wars project taken away from them. Fans can only hope that the future of Star Wars gaming includes the Mandalorian game they've been dreaming of.

Star Wars