Get ready to dive deeper into the criminal underworld of a galaxy far, far away as GeForce NOW brings the first major story pack for Star Wars Outlaws to the cloud this week. The season of giving continues - GeForce NOW members can access a new free reward: a special in-game Star Wars Outlaws enhancement.

It's all part of an exciting GFN Thursday, topped with five new games joining the more than 2,000 titles supported in the GeForce NOW library, including the launch of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl and Xbox Gaming Studios fan favorites Fallout 3: Game of the Year Edition and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. And make sure not to pass this opportunity up - gamers who want to take the Performance and Ultimate memberships for a spin can do so with 25% off Day Passes, now through Friday, Nov. 22. Day Passes give access to 24 continuous hours of powerful cloud gaming.

Intel has released the newest version of its Arc GPU Graphics drivers, version 101.6297 Beta. As this is a minor Beta update, it does not fix any previously seen bugs and issues, but rather just adds Game On support on Intel Arc A-series GPUs and Intel Core Ultra CPUs with Intel Arc GPUs for Farming Simulator 25, Planet Coaster 2, and Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake. Surprisingly, Intel did not add Game On support for two big upcoming titles, S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2: Heart of Chornobyl and Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, launching on November 20 and November 19, respectively. Hopefully, we'll get another drivers update soon.

There are still several known issues that are pretty much the same as with the previous Intel Arc Graphics 101.6130 Beta drivers, and these include issues with Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, Doom Eternal, DaVinci Resolve Studio, and other games and applications.

DOWNLOAD: Intel Arc GPU Graphics Drivers 101.6297 Beta

NVIDIA has released its latest GeForce WHQL Game Ready drivers, version 561.09, which brings optimizations for FINAL FANTASY XVI and God of War Ragnarök games, including support for DLSS 3 technology. It also adds launch support for EA SPORTS FC 25 and Frostpunk 2 games. The new GeForce 561.09 WHQL Game Ready drivers also add new GeForce Optimal Settings for Black Myth: Wukong, F1 Manager 2024, and Star Wars Outlaws games. Unfortunately, it does not fix any previously seen gaming bugs, but it does add several general bug fixes, including a fix for GeForce Experience where Performance Monitoring overlay could stop refreshing GPU information, a fix for NVIDIA App, where game filters may be missing when invoking the NVIDIA Overlay in-game, and a fix for performance issues in some workloads with Chaos V-Ray. Interestingly, there are no listed open issues with the latest driver either.

DOWNLOAD: NVIDIA GeForce 561.09 WHQL Game Ready

It's time to mana-fest the spirit of adventure with Square Enix's highly anticipated action role-playing game, Visions of Mana, launching today in the cloud. Members can also head to a galaxy far, far away, from the comfort of their homes, with the power of the cloud and Ubisoft's Star Wars Outlaws, with early access available on GeForce NOW. Plus, be among the first to get early access to the Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Open Beta on GeForce NOW without having to wait around for downloads - early access runs Aug. 30-Sept. 4 for those who preorder the game. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 will join the cloud when the full game is released Oct. 25. These triple-A titles are part of 26 titles joining the GeForce NOW library of over 2,000 games this week.

Cloudy With a Chance of Mana
Visions of Mana details a whimsical journey through the enchanting world of Mana. Step into the shoes of Val, a curious young man on an epic quest to escort his childhood friend Hina to the sacred Tree of Mana. Along the way, encounter a colorful cast of characters and face off against endearing yet formidable enemies. The game's combat system blends action and strategy for real-time battles where party members can be switched on the fly. Different party members offer unique skills, such as Val's powerful sword strikes or magical spells cast by Careena's dragon companion Ramcoh. Plus, traverse the game's expansive, semi-open world on Pikuls - adorable, rideable creatures that can also ram through enemies.

AMD has released its latest version of AMD Software Adrenalin drivers, version 24.8.1 WHQL. The latest drivers update adds game optimizations for Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Open Beta, Concord, FINAL FANTASY XVI, and Star Wars Outlaws, as well as expands HYPR-Tune support. It also adds Anti-Lag 2 support for Ghost of Tsushima DIRECTOR'S CUT and adds support and optimizations for Amuse 2.1 with FLUX.1 model on select Radeon, Radeon PRO and Ryzen AI series products.

AMD also fixed several issues seen with previous drivers, including intermittent application crash or driver timeout in Black Myth: Wukong, Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess on some Radeon RX 6600 and 6700 series GPUs, and Pacific Drive or KINGDOM HEARTS -HD 1.5+2.5 ReMIX-. It also fixes artifacts in games like Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales or Rust, improves "Optimizing Shaders" time when launching Forza Motorsport, and fixes issues with Anti-Aliasing and Anisotropic Filtering settings for some OpenGL applications. There are also several known issues, and AMD also issued an important note that it is working with the developers of Star Wars Outlaws to address an intermittent corruption issue that occurs after changing certain in-game graphics settings, which can now be resolved by relaunching the game.

DOWNLOAD: AMD Software Adrenalin 24.8.1 WHQL

Welcome to the end of August and this week, we have a bunch of new releases for your perusal. This week's AAA release allegedly has something to do with criminals in a galaxy far far away. The remaining releases this week contain some other big releases as well and the week starts off with a post-apocalyptic survival city builder, which is followed by you waging war as a god, if that's what you're into. If big flying robots are your thing, then there's a game for you this week, alternatively we have a game for those that prefer fast cars. The week ends on a bit of a slower note with a Japanese action-RPG and an office RPG or sorts.

Star Wars Outlaws / This week's AAA release / Friday 30 August
Experience the first-ever open world Star Wars game, set between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Explore distinct locations across the galaxy, both iconic and new. Risk it all as Kay Vess, a scoundrel seeking freedom and the means to start a new life, along with her companion Nix. Fight, steal, and outwit your way through the galaxy's crime syndicates as you join the galaxy's most wanted. Not on Steam, but available on uPlay and EGS. Gold Preorder ($110) gets headstart on Tuesday

In December we celebrated the release of over 500 RTX-enhanced games and apps. And now, we've already surpassed 600 RTX games and apps, as adoption of NVIDIA DLSS, NVIDIA Reflex and advanced ray-traced effects continues to accelerate! RTX encompasses an ecosystem of technologies that make high-performance, high fidelity gaming a reality. Ray Tracing, powered by dedicated RT Cores, brings immersive and realistic lighting and reflections to games. NVIDIA DLSS, made possible by Tensor Cores, enables industry-leading AI graphics acceleration, capable of delivering up to 5 times faster performance in the most immersive games, like Alan Wake 2, Black Myth: Wukong, Cyberpunk 2077, and Star Wars Outlaws.

RTX is also integrated in the world's leading creative applications, accelerating workflows by orders of magnitude, powering exciting AI tools and enhancements, and enabling real-time ray-traced previews in apps that previously took hours to render even a single frame. And the RTX momentum continues - at Gamescom 2024, we're announcing 20 new RTX and DLSS integrations.

Take on high-risk, high-reward missions as the galaxy's most wanted in Star Wars Outlaws and marvel at iconic ray-traced Star Wars locations, enhanced with NVIDIA DLSS 3.5's AI-powered graphics, using the power of the GeForce RTX 40 Series to deliver an unparalleled PC experience. And gain the upper hand in thrilling dogfights with The Empire thanks to NVIDIA Reflex and its unbeatable responsiveness. As the Galactic Empire relentlessly pursues the final defeat of the Rebel Alliance, the criminal underworld thrives. Fans will play as cunning scoundrel Kay Vess and her loyal companion Nix, as they attempt one of the greatest heists the Outer Rim has ever seen. Seeking the means to start a new life, players will join Kay and Nix as they fight, steal, and outwit their way through the galaxy's crime syndicates and join the galaxy's most wanted.

As part of our collaboration with Ubisoft, Massive Entertainment and Lucasfilm Games on Star Wars Outlaws, we're today introducing a new Star Wars Outlaws GeForce RTX 40 Series Bundle, available until September 19th. Buyers of eligible products from select retailers and etailers, including GeForce RTX 4090, 4080 SUPER, 4080, 4070 Ti SUPER, 4070 Ti, 4070 SUPER and 4070 graphics cards and desktop PCs, and laptops with a GeForce RTX 4090 Laptop GPU, RTX 4080 Laptop GPU, or RTX 4070 Laptop GPU, will receive a digital copy of the Standard Edition (valued at $69.99) to play when released on August 30th.

Calling all gamers and Star Wars enthusiasts! Get ready for an extraordinary adventure across the stars as MSI proudly introduces the Star Wars Outlaws Game Bundle in collaboration with Ubisoft. This thrilling collaboration includes a copy of Star Wars Outlaws along with MSI's top-notch gaming hardware, offering an experience that will transport players to a distant galaxy.

Featuring MSI's cutting-edge gaming hardware, the Star Wars Outlaws Game Bundle invites players to dive deep into the heart of the Star Wars galaxy like never before. This bundle offers an array of exhilarating adventures that will leave players on the edge of their seats. Risk it all as scoundrel Kay Vess, seeking freedom and the means to start a new life, along with her companion Nix.

As July comes to an end and we enter the month of August, we have a week of mixed releases where the major release appears to be a StarCraft clone of sorts, built by ex Blizzard developers. This is followed by a Diablo-ish game, a No Man's Sky clone of sorts, a game about a data ghost, a Star Wars remake, a very British game and finally a very gooey sequel. August should finally start bringing some bigger releases yet again, after a pretty slow summer of new game releases.

Stormgate / This week's major release / Tuesday 30 July / Early Access
Human defenders and their faithful robot allies stand defiant against two warring alien factions: a race of warlike demonic invaders and their technologically advanced angelic rivals. Together, these three are locked in a relentless struggle for dominance. Crafted by developers renowned for their work on StarCraft II and Warcraft III, Stormgate puts you in command of epic real-time strategy battles. Steam Link

Aspyr is excited to announce STAR WARS: Bounty Hunter, in collaboration with Lucasfilm Games, a new title that brings the original STAR WARS: Bounty Hunter (2002) to modern platforms with visual enhancements, improved environmental textures, new dynamic lighting effects, and a new flashlight tool for navigating dark places. STAR WARS: Bounty Hunter will launch on Aug. 1, 2024, for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC via Steam for the suggested retail price of $19.99 and is available to pre-order today with a 10% discount until the official launch.

Become the most feared Bounty Hunter in the galaxy! As Jango Fett, you'll have to jump, jetpack, climb, and maneuver in this iconic action-adventure game featuring a variety of visual improvements on modern platforms, as well as Steam Deck support and a number of DualSense controller features for PlayStation 5 players.

More than 500 games and applications feature RTX technologies, and each week new games integrating NVIDIA DLSS, NVIDIA Reflex and advanced ray-traced effects are released or announced, delivering the definitive PC experience for GeForce RTX players. This week, we've got a ton of DLSS news. Alan Wake 2: Night Springs is out now with full ray tracing and DLSS 3.5, Black Myth: Wukong is launching August 20th with full ray tracing and DLSS 3.5, and there's a new gameplay trailer from Star Wars Outlaws, which launches August 30th with ray tracing and DLSS 3.5. Also, Pax Dei enters Early Access on June 18th with DLSS 3, The First Descendant launches July 2nd with DLSS 3, and a Dragon's Dogma 2 game update has introduced support for DLSS 3. Additionally, the Final Fantasy XIV Online: Dawntrail benchmark, Killer Klowns from Outer Space: The Game, and Soulmask are all available now with day-one DLSS 2 support.

Alan Wake 2: Night Springs Expansion Available Now
Night Springs, a new expansion for Remedy Entertainment's critically acclaimed Alan Wake 2 is now available to download and play. Alan Wake is trying to find a way out of the endless loops of the Dark Place by penning new scripts for a TV show he once wrote for: Night Springs. Play as several characters from the world of Alan Wake and experience the familiar turned strange in multiple self-contained episodes. By playing on a GeForce RTX 40 Series PC, you'll receive the definitive experience in Alan Wake 2 and the new Night Springs expansion. Crank fidelity and immersion to 11 with fully ray-traced visuals, further refined by DLSS Ray Reconstruction. Play at over 80 frames per second at 4K thanks to our AI-powered DLSS Super Resolution and Frame Generation technologies. And maximize responsiveness with NVIDIA Reflex.

During Ubisoft Forward showcase, we got a whole new gameplay trailer showing off a lot of details for the upcoming Star Wars Outlaws open-world game that is set to launch on August 30th. In addition, Ubisoft also released the new overview trailer, showing off some of the locations and missions that you will be able to take in the game.

The new gameplay trailer focused on locations and encounters, including Tatooine and Mos Eisley. It follows the protagonist, Kay Vess, on a mission to Mos Eisley, where he needs to track an expert gunslinger. The trailer shows off dogfights, and what to expect from the dynamic side, including stealth aspect of the game. It also reveals how you would be able to gain skills.

NVIDIA DLSS 3.5 with Ray Reconstruction maximizes frame rates on GeForce RTX GPUs, and renders more immersive and realistic ray-traced effects and lighting in games using AI. At Computex 2024, we've announced that DLSS 3.5 with Ray Reconstruction will be available in Star Wars Outlaws, launching August 30th. To demonstrate the incredible quality and performance delivered by DLSS 3.5, we're showcasing a new, exclusive trailer from the game. Additionally, Marvel Rivals will launch with our AI-powered, performance boosting DLSS 3 technology, and we've got a new trailer showing it in action in the new, upcoming game.

Upon release, these new games will join an ever-growing list of over 500 games and apps that are enhanced with RTX technologies. Such is the pace of adoption, barely a week goes by without new games integrating NVIDIA DLSS, NVIDIA Reflex and advanced ray-traced effects, ensuring GeForce RTX players receive the definitive experience in their most anticipated titles. In the last month alone, Capes, Die By The Blade, EA SPORTS F1 24, Ghost of Tsushima Director's Cut, Gray Zone Warfare, Homeworld 3, INDIKA, MotoGP 24, Senua's Saga: Hellblade II, Serum, Ships At Sea, Ships That Fight Underground, and Wuthering Waves have all launched with support for DLSS, and Star Citizen introduced support for DLSS 2.

The Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection launched last Thursday (March 14), with day one adoptees experiencing a plethora of issues. Player feedback and press coverage painted an ugly picture—an unreasonable install size of 70+ GB was an immediate point of discussion, considering the lo-fi origins of the Collection's graphical assets. Players were greeted with a low number of servers, and in-game sessions were often interrupted by crashes and other bugs—at the time of writing, overall Steam feedback (from 5315 user submitted reviews) is "Overwhelmingly Negative." The Embracer Group-owned development house is also under fire due to alleged uncredited usage of modder content—iamashaymin's character reskins were present in the PlayStation 5 build, but promptly removed by a post-launch patch update.

Aspyr quickly responded to community feedback—their support department stated: "we'd like to thank the Battlefront community for their overwhelming support and feedback for the Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection release. At launch, we experienced critical errors with our network infrastructure. The result was incredibly high ping, matchmaking errors, crashes, and servers not appearing in the browser. Since launch, we've been working to address these issues and increase network stability, and we will continue our efforts until our network infrastructure is stabilized to prevent further outages. Please continue to report bugs, errors, or unexpected behaviors to our support team via our Request Form." Aspyr's licensing partner, Lucasfilm Games, has not issued a statement on this situation.

Over 500 RTX games and applications have revolutionized how people game and create with ray tracing, NVIDIA DLSS and AI-powered technologies. Today, we're unveiling even more RTX games that will deliver the definitive PC experience for GeForce RTX gamers. At GDC 2024, we're announcing several new exciting integrations of cutting-edge RTX tech! In Black Myth: Wukong and NARAKA: BLADEPOINT, we're working with our partners to incorporate Full Ray Tracing and NVIDIA DLSS 3.5.

In Portal with RTX, our free, fully ray-traced reimaging of Valve's classic game, DLSS 3.5 with Ray Reconstruction and RTX IO are now available, further upgrading its technology, graphics and image quality. Diablo IV's ray tracing update arrives March 26th. Star Wars Outlaws will launch with DLSS 3 and ray-traced effects. The First Berserker: Khazan will launch with DLSS 3. And Sengoku Destiny introduced support for DLSS 3 earlier this week.

As we enter the second week of March, we have a packed week of new releases for you and the big release this coming week is an open world third-person action adventure shooter. This is followed by a game in Vegas, a classic style run-'n'-gun side scroller, a trippy llama related game, a classic collection Sci-Fi game and the 25th release of a sports title. Sorry, no strategy game this week either.

Outcast - A New Beginning / This week's major release / Friday 15 March
20 years after the award-winning action adventure hit, Outcast, pioneered the genre of non-linear open-world games, the long-awaited sequel sees Cutter Slade return to the spectacular alien world of Adelpha. Resurrected by the almighty Yods, he has returned to find the Talans enslaved, the world stripped of its natural resources, and his own past intertwining with the invading robot forces. It's up to him to go on a mission and save the planet again. Steam Link

Electronic Arts revealed a workforce reduction program last week—reportedly impacting around 670 employees—alongside announcements regarding a number of major development project cancellations and reassignments. Laura Miele, President of EA Entertainment and Technology, disclosed that Respawn Entertainment's mysterious "Star Wars FPS Action game" had been axed, with staffers moving onto "new projects based on our owned brands" instead of licensed material. Industry insider reports suggested that an internal Respawn team—not assigned to a "Star Wars: Jedi" sequel—had started work on a Mandalorian/bounty hunter-themed first-person shooter IP. The official announcement of a renewed focus on Respawn's "rich library of owned brands" has generated plenty of internet speculation—Titanfall franchise fans have long demanded a proper third entry in the series. Studio boss, Vince Zampella, has teased revisits in the past—an Axios interview revealed that veteran Titanfall game director, Steve Fukuda, was incubating "something new" with a very small skunkworks-type team.

Earlier this week, Giant Bomb's Jeff Grubb addressed rumored goings-on at Respawn. His "Game Mess Mornings 03/04/24" videocast—co-hosted by Emma Fyffe—included a segment dedicated to EA's adjusted development strategies. Grubb reiterated insider information about "Titanfall Legends" getting canned early on last year—allegedly a single-player Apex/Titanfall crossover experience. Giant Bomb's News Editor has reached out to his network of moles—he shared this inside info during Monday's broadcast: "They're not making Titanfall 3. They just straight up aren't. They do have another team that has been kicking around a project that is very early. There's been a very small team in the prototyping phase and now they're going to go to wider. This is a real project now, but still in the prototyping phase. This game, as it stands today, as far as I understand, is a Titanfall game. It's in the Titanfall universe. But everyone I talk to keeps saying, don't get in your mind that it's Titanfall 3, a game with online multiplayer and a single player campaign."

This announcement was shared with EA Entertainment employees by Laura Miele, President of EA Entertainment and Technology: "Hi Everyone, over the past six months, you've heard me talk about aligning our portfolio and organization to deliver on our ambitious growth strategy. One of the essential parts of delivering on our plans is making sure we are listening to our players and investing in the games they want to play. As Andrew noted in his EA Action, the reality of a creative business is that market conditions and players' needs are always changing. We're seeing a rapid player shift toward large open-world games, massive communities, and live services. With that in mind, we have shared the following updates with our teams:"

Respawn:
Respawn's unique ability to connect with players and create exceptional game experiences is unrivaled in entertainment. As we've looked at Respawn's portfolio over the last few months, what's clear is the games our players are most excited about are Jedi and Respawn's rich library of owned brands. Knowing this, we have decided to pivot away from early development on a Star Wars FPS Action game to focus our efforts on new projects based on our owned brands while providing support for existing games. It's always hard to walk away from a project, and this decision is not a reflection of the team's talent, tenacity, or passion they have for the game. Giving fans the next installments of the iconic franchises they want is the definition of blockbuster storytelling and the right place to focus.

Last year, it was revealed that the masters of remasters at Nightdive Studios have taken on the task of bringing the beloved 90s classic Star Wars: Dark Forces to modern audiences. The remaster is set to release February 28 on PS5 and PS4, nearly 30 years after the release of the original game from LucasArts in 1995. Similar to Nightdive's previous endeavors with titles like Quake II and Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion Remastered, Star Wars: Dark Forces Remaster honors the strong foundation of the original while updating it for modern consoles through the studio's proprietary KEX engine, allowing the game to run at up to 4K resolution at 120 FPS on PlayStation 5. With this, fans of the original as well as a whole new generation of gamers, will be able to experience Star Wars: Dark Forces and appreciate what made it such an essential title within LucasArts' (now Lucasfilm Games) impressive catalog. Further honoring the work that went into its initial development, it's been revealed that Star Wars: Dark Forces Remaster will feature a special Vault jam-packed with never-before-seen content from the making of the 1995 original!

With improved spritework and remastered cutscenes, those looking to dig deeper into a truly unique story within the Star Wars galaxy will be able to enjoy a visually pleasing narrative experience as they join protagonist Kyle Katarn, a defector turned mercenary for hire working for the Rebel Alliance, in foiling the Galactic Empire and its secret Dark Troopers Project. As much as we'd love to continue gushing over why this has been such an exciting project for Nightdive and must-play title for fans and newcomers alike, let's dive deeper into the fascinating history and behind-the-scenes work of breathing new life into Star Wars: Dark Forces with Nightdive's Project Lead and Producer, Max Waine.

Job listings posted by Respawn Entertainment last summer indicated that their Star Wars Jedi: Survivor development team had moved onto an unsurprising project—the ideal candidate(s) would help: "create an incredible Star Wars experience for our players in a fun, third-person action-adventure setting." Games industry watchers believe that a third Star Wars Jedi title is in the works, given that the franchise has—so far—generated a large paying audience. Insider Gaming's Tom Henderson reckons that another Star Wars IP has been bestowed upon Electronic Art's action specialist studio—the report posits that this rumored project is in an early stage of development. Veteran developers at Respawn Entertainment have a long history of producing blockbuster first-person shooter titles, although Apex Legends signaled a slight change in course. Their deviation into third-person with 2019's Jedi: Fallen Order also surprised a segment of longtime Respawn fans.

It is possible that the Electronic Arts and Lucasfilm Games partnership has incubated a new first-person title semi-connected to a popular Star Wars television series IP—Henderson has gathered a few tidbits: "according to sources, the game will see the player take control of a Mandalorian bounty hunter (unclear who) set during the time when the Galactic Empire is dominating across the galaxy. It's your job, as a bounty hunter to capture bounties dead or alive for cash rewards." Rumor mill wires were crossed when it was claimed that a former Apex Legend director was heading up development on the unannounced "Mandalorian" project, but an Insider Gaming update reveals that the former Respawn member was involved in development of a cancelled Apex title.

Today, Logitech G, in collaboration with Lucasfilm Ltd., announced the release of a special edition Return of the Jedi - inspired collection in honor of the 40th anniversary of the hit movie. Designed to celebrate the Star Wars legacy, the collection includes an officially licensed G502 X PLUS Millennium Falcon Edition Gaming Mouse and G840 XL Cloth Gaming Mouse Pad in Battle of Endor and Darth Vader Editions.

The G502 X PLUS Millennium Falcon Edition Gaming Mouse features pro-grade LIGHTSPEED wireless and all-new LIGHTFORCE switch technology for achieving higher levels of speed and reliability during gameplay. Built with custom Millennium Falcon-inspired thruster animations and graphics, the gaming mouse features 8-LED full-spectrum RGB lighting.

Electronic Arts and Respawn Entertainment have today issued Patch No. 7 for Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, arriving roughly two and a half months after the last batch of fixes and improvements. The most significant update for PC gamers running NVIDIA GPUs is the addition of official DLSS support, likely coinciding with the end an agreement between EA and AMD to advertise Star Wars Jedi: Survivor as a Team Red sponsored title—their FidelityFX Super Resolution 2.1 system was the only upscaling technology available on day one. Community modders managed to implement unofficial DLSS support a few months later.

It is encouraging to see the game's developer and publisher rolling out a semi-regular release of patches—parts of the gaming community were worried about Respawn Entertainment's recruitment cycle pointing to work starting on a potential sequel two months ago—with priorities shifting to the new project. It seems that a number of team members (software engineering and QA) are still working on refinements for Jedi: Survivor—hopefully we will see further work undertaken following today's release of performance and optimization improvements on PC, as well for Xbox Series and PlayStation 5 consoles.

Gary McKay, General Manager at BioWare, states: "Hello, it's been a little while since I've checked in, and as you might have heard, there's a lot happening here at BioWare. Almost 12 years after launch, Star Wars: The Old Republic (SWTOR) remains a fantastic success, continuing to welcome new players to its vast galaxy and entertaining veteran players with its evolving content. It's the longest-running live service Star Wars game ever and we're enormously proud of the work the team has done in creating, expanding, and maintaining this incredible game. We're delighted to have grown such a dedicated and passionate community through all these years. The future of the game and the community continues to be very bright.

I've been working closely with Keith Kanneg, who leads the SWTOR team, to give the game and the team the best opportunity to grow and evolve. And so, while EA will remain SWTOR's publisher, development of the game will move to our partner and friends at Broadsword, a boutique studio with expertise in managing online games. Both the Broadsword studio and SWTOR team members will be joining forces and working tirelessly to support "every player, every day," ensuring that these worlds and these communities continue to thrive and grow. Their Founder and President, Rob Denton, even has direct experience with SWTOR, having helped lead the team during the development and launch of the game during his time at EA.

A BioWare Austin developer is openly discussing the transfer of their long-running "Star Wars: The Old Republic" MMORPG to an external studio—games news sites picked up on insider information earlier this month alleging that the studio and its parent company (EA) were holding meetings with Broadsword Online Games. An EA spokesperson responded to the leak (at the time) and explained: "We're evaluating how we give the game and the team the best opportunity to grow and evolve, which includes conversations with Broadsword, a boutique studio that specializes in delivering online, community-driven experiences. Our goal is to do what is best for the game and its players." It seems that the involved parties have agreed upon terms for "handing off" responsibilities, according to a developer's recent declarations.

Keith Kanneg - the Executive producer for Star Wars: The Old Republic (SWTOR) - has this week provided a comprehensive update about future plans on the game's discussion board: "Appreciate your patience with us as we continue to navigate the future shift of SWTOR's development team to a third party studio. We're working through the changes right now so I'll share with you the details I have. With 7.3 now live, our priority is continuing to prepare for Game Updates 7.3.1 and 7.4 along with planning for 2024 and 2025 with a focus on content and continued modernization initiatives." It is interesting that Broadsword is not named or directly referred to.