The Game Awards 2025 dropped a bomb on December 11 with the announcement of Star Wars: Fate of the Old Republic, a spiritual successor to Knights of the Old Republic directed by Casey Hudson himself. But before you start counting down the days, here’s the cold truth: this game is years away from your console. Like, potentially half a decade away. Maybe longer.
The Studio Is Only 5 Months Old
Arcanaut Studios, the developer behind Fate of the Old Republic, was founded in July 2025. That means when this trailer dropped at The Game Awards, the studio had existed for exactly five months. Bloomberg journalist Jason Schreier, who has an excellent track record with inside information, pointed this out immediately after the announcement. His assessment? A 2030 release date is being “optimistic,” and he joked the game might end up being a PlayStation 7 title.
That’s not even an exaggeration when you look at modern AAA development timelines. Most big-budget RPGs take between four and seven years to develop, and that’s for established studios with existing pipelines, tools, and teams who already know how to work together. Arcanaut is starting from scratch with a brand new team, brand new workflows, and brand new technology. They’re building the plane while trying to fly it.
Casey Hudson Pushes Back on Timeline
After Schreier’s comments went viral, Casey Hudson took to Twitter to address the speculation. “Don’t worry about the ‘not till 2030’ rumors,” he wrote, suggesting the game would arrive before that milestone. But let’s be real here – that still puts us anywhere from late 2028 to 2029, which is still four to five years away. And that’s assuming everything goes perfectly with no delays, no production issues, and no setbacks.
Hudson has an impressive resume as the director of the original Knights of the Old Republic and the Mass Effect trilogy. But he also directed Anthem, which was a notorious disaster plagued by production problems and launched to terrible reviews. His last studio, Humanoid Origin, shut down in 2025 less than a year ago. The point is, pedigree doesn’t guarantee success, and new studios face enormous challenges even with experienced leadership.
What We Actually Know About the Game
Star Wars: Fate of the Old Republic is being developed in Unreal Engine 5 as a single-player, narrative-driven RPG. It’s set during the Old Republic era, the same time period as the beloved KOTOR games, but Lucasfilm has been very clear that this is not a direct sequel or continuation. You’ll play as a Force user making choices that push you toward the light or dark side, with the game promising “innovative storytelling, memorable characters, and heart-pounding combat.”
The announcement trailer showed a mysterious planet, a female protagonist with two companions, and someone bathed in red light suggesting Sith involvement. Beyond that gorgeous two-minute cinematic, we know almost nothing. No gameplay footage, no story details, no confirmed platforms beyond “PC and consoles,” which is vague enough to mean literally anything. Hudson told StarWars.com the team is “still in early development, with many challenges ahead.”
Why Announce So Early?
If the game won’t be ready for four or five years, why announce it now? Two reasons. First, recruitment. New studios need to attract top talent, and announcing a high-profile Star Wars project is an excellent way to get experienced developers interested. Second, securing continued funding and support from Lucasfilm and potential investors. A splashy announcement at The Game Awards generates buzz and shows stakeholders there’s real excitement for the project.
But early announcements come with risks. Star Wars Eclipse was revealed by Quantic Dream back in 2021, and four years later we’ve heard almost nothing about it. The Knights of the Old Republic remake was announced in 2021, entered development hell, got delayed indefinitely in 2022, and its current status remains unclear. Announcing games this early means years of waiting, changing expectations, and the very real possibility of cancellation if things go wrong.
The Reality of Modern Game Development
AAA game development timelines have exploded over the past decade. Games that would have taken two or three years in the PlayStation 3 era now routinely take five to seven years or more. Graphics expectations have skyrocketed, scope has increased dramatically, and teams have grown from dozens of people to hundreds. God of War Ragnarok took four years with an established studio and existing engine. Baldur’s Gate 3 spent six years in development. Star Wars Jedi: Survivor took three and a half years as a sequel using existing assets.
For a brand new studio making a massive single-player RPG from scratch, five years is actually pretty reasonable. The problem is that five years is an eternity in gaming. Entire console generations come and go. Studios get acquired, projects get cancelled, key staff leave for other opportunities, and funding dries up. There’s no guarantee that Arcanaut Studios will even still exist in 2029, let alone have shipped a game.
Platform Confusion
One of the biggest question marks is what platforms this will actually release on. PC is a given, but consoles? The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S will be seven years old by 2029. PlayStation 6 is widely expected to launch sometime between 2027 and 2028. If Fate of the Old Republic doesn’t arrive until 2029 or 2030, it might skip current-gen consoles entirely and target whatever comes next.
Schreier’s joke about PlayStation 7 was obviously exaggerated, but the underlying point stands: this game could very well be a next-gen exclusive launching on hardware that doesn’t even exist yet. That’s wild to think about when we’re still in the early years of the PS5 generation. It also means potential delays if next-gen console specs change or launch dates shift, adding even more uncertainty to an already murky timeline.
Frequently Asked Questions
When will Star Wars: Fate of the Old Republic release?
There’s no official release date. Jason Schreier estimates 2030 at the earliest based on how new the studio is. Director Casey Hudson has pushed back saying it will come before 2030, which suggests a late 2028 or 2029 target. Expect a long wait either way.
Is this a sequel to Knights of the Old Republic?
No. Lucasfilm has explicitly stated this is not a direct sequel or continuation of KOTOR. It’s a spiritual successor set in the same Old Republic era with new characters and a new story, but not connected to the events of the original games.
Who is making Star Wars: Fate of the Old Republic?
Arcanaut Studios, a brand new developer founded in July 2025 by Casey Hudson. The studio is based in Edmonton and Kelowna, Canada. Hudson previously directed Knights of the Old Republic, the Mass Effect trilogy, and Anthem at BioWare.
What platforms will it release on?
PC and unspecified consoles. Given the lengthy development timeline, it’s unclear if this means PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S, or if it will target next-generation consoles like PlayStation 6. Switch 2 is also a possibility depending on when it actually launches.
Why did they announce it so early?
Early announcements help new studios recruit talent and secure continued funding from publishers and investors. Announcing a Star Wars project at The Game Awards generates massive buzz and shows stakeholders there’s real excitement for what they’re building.
What happened to the Knights of the Old Republic remake?
The KOTOR remake announced in 2021 by Aspyr Media ran into serious development trouble in 2022 and was delayed indefinitely. Its current status remains unclear, though reports suggest work may have continued in some form. It’s separate from Fate of the Old Republic.
Is Casey Hudson a reliable director?
Hudson has an impressive track record with KOTOR and the Mass Effect trilogy, which are considered some of the best RPGs ever made. However, he also directed Anthem, which was a notorious flop, and his previous studio Humanoid Origin closed in 2025. Experience matters, but success isn’t guaranteed.
Could this game get cancelled?
It’s always possible. New studios face significant challenges, and several high-profile Star Wars games have been cancelled or stuck in development hell in recent years. Early announcements increase cancellation risk because so much can change over five years of development.
Tempering Expectations
Look, a new Knights of the Old Republic-style game directed by Casey Hudson sounds incredible on paper. The Old Republic era is the best setting in Star Wars history, and single-player story-driven RPGs with meaningful choices are exactly what fans have been begging for. The announcement trailer looked gorgeous and hit all the right nostalgia buttons. But we need to be realistic about what “early development” at a five-month-old studio actually means. This game is not coming out anytime soon. You’ll probably buy at least one more console generation before you play Fate of the Old Republic. Your favorite current games will have sequels and those sequels might have sequels before this launches. That’s just the reality of modern AAA development, especially for brand new teams building ambitious projects.
So temper your expectations, keep the hype in check, and maybe don’t pre-order anything until we actually see real gameplay sometime around 2027 or 2028. And if Casey Hudson is reading this: prove us wrong. Ship early, ship great, and give us the KOTOR successor we’ve been waiting two decades for.