Disney and Electronic Arts are entering a multi-year exclusive deal to produce new Star Wars videogames. Under the agreement, EA will develop and publish new Star Wars games for a “core gaming audience” while Disney will retain rights to develop new Star Wars titles for the social, mobile and tablet markets.
Even more interesting is the fact that EA’s top studios are part of the arrangement. In addition to Bioware, who are already working on Star Wars with The Old Republic, DICE (Battlefield, Mirror’s Edge) and Visceral (Dead Space) will be producing new Star Wars titles as well.
“Every developer dreams of creating games for the Star Wars universe,” said EA Labels President Frank Gibeau. “Three of our top studios will fulfill that dream, crafting epic adventures for Star Wars fans. DICE and Visceral will produce new games, joining the BioWare team which continues to develop for the Star Wars franchise.”
“The new experiences we create may borrow from films, but the games will be entirely original with all new stories and gameplay.”
The news comes just a month after reports that Disney have shut down their LucasArts publishing subsidiary, who were responsible for Star Wars development, and cancelled in-development titles like Star Wars 1313 and Star Wars: First Assault.