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Sony Working on New Casual Star Wars MMO?

"Inside source" says Star Wars Galaxies makers working on MMO set in the Clone Wars era.

By Kris Pigna, 09/05/2009


With BioWare hard at work on Star Wars: The Old Republic, it seemed as if Sony's history with Star Wars MMOs would be just that -- history. But now according to a rumor floated by Ten Ton Hammer (via Shacknews), it looks like Sony Online Entertainment might not end with Star Wars Galaxies. An "insider source" says SOE is preparing to build a new casual-centric Star Wars MMO, most likely based on the Clone Wars animated series.

Ten Ton Hammer reports that this anonymous source confirmed this rumor at PAX, where they said SOE will likely use the engine from their popular browser-based MMO FreeRealms to create the new game. Considering the engine it'll be using, and since it'll be set in the Clone Wars timeframe, it's likely that the game will be based on the stylized look of the Clone Wars animated series. And since the game will be built with a focus on attracting more casual gamers, it's unlikely it'll be positioned as a direct competitor to BioWare's highly anticipated The Old Republic.

It all sounds believable enough, especially since LucasArts already has another Clone Wars-based game in development at Krome Studios. Still, as usual with rumors, we'll reserve any final judgment until LucasArts or Sony makes it easy for us, and confirms the news themselves.