Battlefront 3 & Jedi 3 Anchor a Massive Year for Star Wars

Big changes hit Star Wars: BioWare is shutting down, hackers are ruining matches, and a Kylo Ren movie got dropped.

A lot is going on in Star Wars right now, and not all of it is welcome. Battlefront 3 is being made, but the story behind it is hard to feel good about. Battlefront 2 is also running into problems, and there are fresh updates on the Kylo Ren movie and Jedi 3.

Earlier, an insider reported that EA shut down BioWare to put its money into Battlefront 3. EA reportedly reviewed the numbers and decided it could back only one costly sci-fi action game. Battlefront 3 was seen as the safer bet, which left Mass Effect 5 behind.

That hurts if you love RPGs. BioWare is one of the most respected studios the genre has ever had, and it made Knights of the Old Republic. In recent years, EA also pushed the team toward live-service games, away from the RPGs it was known for.

It is fair to wonder if EA is spinning the closure, because framing it as the price of Battlefront 3 makes a bad situation sound better than it is. Nobody is calling this good news. EA is basically saying the studio had to go if you wanted a new Battlefront, and a lot of gamers don't trust the company.

Its handling of the series is the reason, and Battlefront 2 had one of the messiest launches in video game history. Plenty of people online are upset about the BioWare closure, and nothing guarantees the new game will be any good. Still, there are reasons to be hopeful.

DICE and Respawn are the studios most likely to build it, and both have Star Wars experience.

DICE makes great shooters, and Battlefront 2 remains one of the best Star Wars games ever made. Maybe this sacrifice had to happen. The hope is that in four or five years, when you finally get to see Battlefront 3, losing BioWare will have led to a great game.

Meanwhile, the sequel is in trouble. Over the past few days, videos have been showing up on social media of players hacking Battlefront 2 on console. PC has dealt with hackers for years, but seeing it spread to consoles is a bad sign. People are getting into online lobbies and making matches unplayable at times.

If you have played the 2015 Battlefront, you know it had the same problem. As the game aged, lost support, and saw its player base shrink, hacks wrecked the online experience, and it started to die off. Nobody wants that for the sequel. From what is known, EA works behind the scenes to fix these issues. On PC, that's usually a small team at the company, along with community members who help out.

That is why this is worth raising now. The game is too good to be wrecked by hacks. There is another concern as well. EA is moving resources to Battlefront 3 at DICE and Respawn so the older game can be left alone, and it has barely been touched in six years. The servers have stayed up, though, and the hope is that EA keeps them running even after Battlefront 3 arrives.

The sequel should stay playable for many years.

As for Battlefront 3 itself, it is still years away and in the earliest stage of development. The team has probably not started in earnest, since the decision to close the studio was only just made. The predictions of 2030 or later look accurate.

One thing worth thinking about is what you would want in Battlefront 3 that will probably never make it in, whether that is a ship, a character, or a bold hot take. For some fans, it is a favorite side character who isn't mainstream enough for Star Wars, like Bidi Bla. There is already a Bidi Blas mod with a speeder bike, but it is for Starfield. Hopefully someone is working on one for the older Star Wars shooter too.

There is also news on The Hunt for Ben Solo, and it is sad. Adam Driver said on a talk show that the project is pretty much dead and that his time with Star Wars is over. A few months ago, Dave Filoni hinted it might be happening, saying only that the film is not being made right now.

Driver also said he would still be open to it if someone wanted to do it, though he thinks the ship has sailed. He spent two years on the script with Steven Soderbergh; they landed on the idea, then shelved it. In his view, Disney doesn't want to make it because the character is dead in its eyes. Then again, this is Star Wars, and any character can come back.

Whether you would go to a theater to see The Hunt for Ben Solo is another matter, since other Star Wars projects may sit higher on your list.

Still, the idea is cool, and Soderbergh's involvement counts for something given his reputation. Driver could also be bringing it up again to build hype. Any time a project like this gets mentioned, interest picks up, so he may be trying to get fans excited and show Disney why The Hunt for Ben Solo should be made.

In other news, the budget for Star Wars: Starfighter has surpassed The Force Awakens and now sits at $226.5 million. That is a huge number, and the hope is that Star Wars: Starfighter earns it back at the box office and works as a return to form for the franchise. Next year also looks big for Star Wars gaming.

An insider confirmed that Jedi 3, the third game in the Jedi series from Respawn Entertainment, is far along in development and should be officially announced soon. That points to a release sometime next year, maybe even before it ends, with a proper trailer and reveal likely around Star Wars Celebration in early April. Between Jedi 3 and Star Wars: Starfighter, the franchise has plenty to keep you busy while the rest plays out.