A brand-new Star Wars real-time strategy game may be on its way if one source is to be believed. While Respawn and Bit Reactor are working on a new Star Wars strategy game, this is reportedly a new project yet to be officially announced.It's been quite a while since Star Wars gave RTS fans something to really sink their teeth into. The closest they had was the mobile game Star Wars Commander, which launched in 2014 and shut down in 2020. Before that was Star Wars: Empire at War, a 2006 RTS developed by Petroglyph Games. Set during the Galactic Civil War, Empire at War let players command fleets and armies loyal to either the Empire or Rebellion. A commercial and critical hit, some still consider Empire at War to be one of the best Star Wars games of all time.Empire at War fans apparently include GamesRadar editor Josh West, who featured it on the publication's May 4th list of the ten best Star Wars games available today. Sharing the article in a Tweet, he wondered what it would take for the game to have a sequel and suggested that studios Relic or Blackbird might pick up the torch. This prompted Video Games Chronicle owner and editor Andy Robinson to drop the bombshell that a new Star Wars RTS is currently in development.
West initially assumed that Robinson was referring to the untitled Star Wars strategy game being produced by Respawn Entertainment and developed by the newly formed studio Bit Reactor. EA quietly announced that game in January, but the publisher hasn't revealed anything about it since. However, Robinson clarified that he was talking about a different, unannounced game in development.
Robinson didn't say much about this unannounced RTS. His only hint was that the new Star Wars game is being worked on by "a big-name developer," which still leaves a lot of room for interpretation. Petroglyph seems like a natural choice, though it's presumably still busy with its upcoming game Earthbreakers. Relic Entertainment could be another likely contender now that Homeworld 3 and Company of Heroes 3's console port are wrapping up. Alternatively, Creative Assembly and Paradox Interactive have the potential to do something interesting with the Star Wars IP.
Unfortunately, there isn't enough information to do more than speculate about the possibilities. EA's Star Wars license loses its exclusivity this year, so there's no saying who the new game's developer might be. Star Wars and RTS fans will just have to wait and see.