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Everything old is new again: https://www.pcgamesn.com/lucasfilm-games-revival
Disney is reviving Lucasfilm Games (not LucasArts)
After the acquisition of Lucasfilm by Disney in 2012, one of their first acts was to close the company’s videogame development division – the legendary LucasArts. While Electronic Arts has held the Star Wars license for videogames since this time, the fact that the publisher has only released two titles in over six years has lead many to believe Disney are unhappy with EA’s handling of the license. That argument got a lot stronger today, as it seems like Disney are looking to revive Lucasfilm Games – the forerunner to LucasArts.
In the last few days, Disney has posted job descriptions for numerous roles, all specifically for work at “Lucasfilm Games”. These include producers, marketing coordinators, art directors, and other major roles. It even looks like there’s going to be separate branch for Asian territories.
According to the postings, Lucasfilm Games will be working on “interactive products” based on Star Wars or other Lucasfilm IP, for “all digital platforms”. These include PC, Mac, all current-gen consoles, mobile phones, and AR/VR devices. We’re already expecting Willow VR to be announced later this year.
While the listing for a Producer role only specifies that the studio will be working on “interactive products”, the job description for Brand Art Coordinator specifically requires “experience and knowledge of best practices in the game industry” – in fact, it also notes that applicants should ideally have a “passion for video games” They will also need to “maintain an up-to-date knowledge of the gaming and digital industry”.
You can check out the full selection of Lucasfilm Games job postings on the Disney Careers website, if you’re interested. While none of this indicates that Disney are going to pull the Star Wars license from EA, it’s looking likely that Disney are going to start developing their own videogames internally – at least for Star Wars, Indiana Jones, or other Lucasfilm properties. Fingers crossed for the long-overdue Loom sequel.
LucasArts halted all internal development around 2013, although the name itself was kept as a licensor – which is possibly why this new studio is going under Lucasfilm Games, which LucasArts was known as from 1982-1990. The Secret of Monkey Island was one of the last games to be released under the old name. In the meantime, EA are still releasing Star Wars games – at least, when they’re not cancelling them.