Electronic Arts is close to an agreement to move the ongoing development and operation of its long-running MMORPG Star Wars: The Old Republic away from BioWare, according to a recent report from IGN.
Star Wars: The Old Republic shifts developers
According to IGN’s sources familiar with the matter, Broadsword Online Games will step in for BioWare and handle operations for the game moving forward. Broadsword and EA already have a close relationship, with the studio also managing operations for EA’s other MMO projects like Ultima Online and Dark Age of Camelot.
The founder and president of Broadsword Online Games, Rob Denton, is also an ex-BioWare executive who was one of the founders of the formerly EA-owned Mythic Entertainment.
As for The Old Republic, the game will continue to see planned content updates, including its next patch and new season of PvP content. It’s unclear what the future holds for the game, however.
Following the report of the story, EA confirmed the news in a statement, noting that “roughly 70-80 people” were part of the core development team of The Old Republic, and that “more than half” are now expected to move to Broadsword. The remaining employees will “have an opportunity to look for roles elsewhere within the company, but may otherwise face layoffs.”
Originally released in 2012, Star Wars: The Old Republic became one of the world’s fastest-growing MMOs ever, garnering more than one million subscribers within the first three days of its launch, and was praised by critics and fans alike. However, the game saw a steep drop-off in subscribers in the following months, and EA eventually switched the game to a free-to-play model that saw the game regain its popularity and player count.
