Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic remake studio reportedly cutting ties with flailing corporate overlord Embracer in $500 million deal

The developer of the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic remake is reportedly being sold in a $500 million deal, with the project continuing despite development difficulties.

A Bloomberg report states that Saber Interactive will be sold "to a group of private investors" for "up to $500 million." Saber, which is understood to have taken over development of the Star Wars: KOTOR remake after the project was removed from Aspyr Media in 2022, plans to continue its work. The remake is hotly anticipated as a return to one of the best Star Wars games of all time, but was thought to have been cancelled after a long period of silence, punctuated only by exasperated comments from the company's CEO.

That silence was broken in November, when two Saber developers told Bloomberg that they were still working on the game, but there's been no official update for some time.

Saber Interactive's separation from Embracer Group is likely to be taken as a positive sign for the remake. Not only does the developer itself have a range of its own hits, but the new ownership distances it from the catastrophic impact that Embracer has had on the industry in recent years. 

Having acquired a large number of small to mid-size studios, the company's strategy is understood to have fallen apart as a result of a failed bid for a $2 billion investment. As a result, Embracer has drastically cut headcount and even shuttered many of the studios it purchased during its buying spree, cancelling dozens of unannounced games.

Saber was purchased by Saber in 2020 for $525 million, suggesting that the developer is being sold at a loss.

If a Star Wars FPS based on The Mandalorian can't get made, what hope is there for original creativity right now?