It's been six years since the Disney purchase of Star Wars and it's time for fans to admit something rather unpleasant: it's far too late for Knights of the Republic 3. There are a ton of factors for why this is the case, but the central reason is Disney's treatment of the former Expanded Universe (now called Legends).
Originally released on Xbox back in 2003, the first Knights of the Old Republic was regarded as one of the best video games ever created (and still remains one of the best Star Wars stories). The game was praised for its fun and strategic Dungeons & Dragons-like combat system, excellent voice cast and - perhaps most of all - its exhilarating and captivating story. In fact, the third act twist in Knights of the Old Republic is still cited today as one of the most shocking moments in Star Wars history, fifteen years after its original release.
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While Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords, created by the now-Microsoft-owned Obsidian in 2004, didn't reach the same level of popularity as its predecessor, the game was still well-received for its voice work and more complex treatment of morality (though that non-ending is still perplexing for anyone who hasn't played The Old Republic MMO). Both games sold quite well and ended in ways that begged for a third game, but sadly nothing ever materialized. Instead, Electronic Arts elected to make an MMORPG in 2011 called Star Wars: The Old Republic and set 300 years after the Knights of the Old Republic games. While the game was mostly well-received, a subset of hardcore fans still hoped for a proper sequel.
Thanks to the Disney purchase, however, a Knights of the Old Republic 3 will probably never happen. When the company purchased Star Wars in 2012, it rebranded the franchise's Expanded Universe - where the Knights of the Old Republic games existed - as Legends, effectively making everything in it non-canon. Now, everything created under the Disney brand is considered canon, so the prospect of them suddenly putting a Knights of the Old Republic 3 into development just doesn't seem feasible.
Sure, one could argue that The Old Republic is still going strong and receives regular content updates, but that's the exception, not the rule and the game is in no way actually canon with Disney's Star Wars. It was developed a few years before the Disney purchase and remains something of a money maker for Electronic Arts (and presumably Disney themselves). With Knights of the Old Republic, it's been 14 years since the last main entry in the single player series and the logistics of another main game, especially considering Disney's stance on canon, just does not make sense.
So what are the options? Well, there's one in particular that makes the most sense: a full reboot of the Knights of the Old Republic. This would be a win-win for all parties, especially Disney. Not only could they pick and choose which of the original games character to make canon, but they could potentially bring more old fans who haven't warmed to the new films back into the fold. It also wouldn't be the first time they've made old characters from Legacy officially canon. Star Wars Rebels made fan favorite villain Thrawn officially canon during its run and Star Wars: The Last Jedi potentially hinted at Knights of the Old Republic's protagonist Revan existing in Disney's canon at one point.
There's also the fact that Disney's run of content has barely touched on the Old Republic era of Star Wars at all, so fitting a new, rebooted Knights of the Old Republic game into their official canon wouldn't exactly take a lot of effort to make work. Of course, beyond the reboot idea is the theory that Kylo Ren himself is something of a Revan proxy and has been following a similar character arc ending in the upcoming Star Wars: Episode IX. While this would certainly work for his character, it still seems like a waste on Disney's part to not eventually do something significant with the Knights of the Old Republic property.
However it ends up materializing, it's still sadly apparent that the original two Knights of the Republic games are more than likely all fans will see of that particular story. Sure, there's always the very slim possibility that Disney caves and suddenly includes the games in its canon but, more than likely, anything resembling Knights of the Old Republic 3 would probably have to be a reboot now. This is grim news indeed for many Star Wars fans, but at least the original games will always exist in their original form and thankfully remain highly replayable to this very day.
More: Knights Of The Old Republic Is STILL The Best Star Wars Game
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