PlayStation has provided its explanation of why it removed the KOTOR remake trailer online.
Last week when Sony Entertainment removed its trailer for Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (KOTOR), leaving fans wondering whether this meant cancellation for this PlayStation game. Sony issued an official statement regarding this matter which should assuage their fears of this happening.
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic was originally released for Xbox in 2003 and quickly became one of the best selling titles at launch. Now with Aspyr’s PlayStation 5 remake scheduled to hit shelves later this year, fans are anticipating another nostalgic ride back down memory lane – however with numerous reports suggesting cancellation and the removal of its debut trailer it looks set for an uncertain future for this title.
News of the missing trailer surfaced Friday 29 September when IGN reported fans’ concern KOTOR had been cancelled after its removal was confirmed on ComicBook.com by Sony; later Sony provided an official explanation to justify it due to issues regarding music licensing rights.
“Sony has released a statement regarding their removal of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic remake trailers and tweets, attributing this action to music licensing issues,” according to one statement by Sony spokesperson. Once licensed music expires, assets that feature it will also be taken down from assets owned by Sony; so while Sony may claim they only had simple issues at hand; that doesn’t guarantee smooth sailing going forward.
Development has reportedly been put on pause as Aspyr continues to deal with internal issues, nearly one year after KOTOR was delayed indefinitely and reports surfaced that Aspyr had fired its art and design directors while looking for contract developers for other games. Furthermore, Embracer Group reported financial troubles which resulted in mass layoffs as well as eventually closing Saints Row developer Volition.
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic has endured an exhausting journey so far and shows no sign of relent. We hope we’ll get our hands on it sooner rather than later!
