Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic: The PS5 Exclusive Sony Needed

The long-awaited Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic remake is the big RPG the PS5 needed most.

Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic Remake
Photo: Lucasfilm Games

We heard rumors that Sony’s PlayStation Showcase was going to be a big event, but we never imagined that they would kick off the show by confirming that the long-awaited Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic remake from developer Aspyr will be a timed PS5 exclusive.

Yes, in case you haven’t heard, Aspyr is not only taking on the tall task of remaking BioWare’s beloved 2003 RPG (and the greatest Star Wars game ever made) Knights of the Old Republic, but Lead Producer Ryan Treadwell has since confirmed that the game will be a “console exclusive on PlayStation 5 at launch.”

We’ll have to wait and see whether or not that very specific wording means that the remake will be released on PC at the same time (*Update*: It’s now confirmed to be a PC release as well), but based on that wording, we can seemingly confirm that the KOTOR remake will not be released for PS4 and will not be available at launch on any other console for an unspecified period of time (likely 6 months, the standard timed exclusivity window).

That’s a lot to take in, but the first thing that has to be said is that this is an incredibly smart acquisition on Sony’s part as it gives the PS5 the exclusive game it needed most.

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Coming out of E3, we talked about how Xbox’s focus on upcoming RPGs directly targeted the biggest weakness in the PlayStation lineup. While there were some PlayStation RPGs on the horizon, it didn’t seem like Sony was in a position to immediately compete with games such as Starfield, Avowed, and The Elder Scrolls VI.

Now, though, PlayStation 5 gamers can look forward to what you could easily consider one of the most anticipated RPG remakes in the last 15 years. There’s a lot to be said about whether or not Aspyr can possibly remake KOTOR in a way that will live up to such incredible expectations (and we’ll have a few words to share on that topic ourselves), but for right now, that doesn’t matter. Right now, what matters most is that Sony just gave those RPG fans who came out of E3 leaning heavily towards investing in an Xbox at least a reason to hesitate and reconsider the benefits of the PS5. At the very least, it now seems like you’ll need to own a PS5 if you want to play all the biggest upcoming RPGs in the next few years.

More importantly, Sony chose to pursue an upcoming RPG that just so happens to be associated with one of the biggest properties in the world. The PlayStation brand is incredibly strong, and when you pair that brand with a major new upcoming Star Wars game…well, it’s easy enough to imagine how Sony can use this to continue the PS5’s record-setting sales streak.

The fact that the KOTOR remake isn’t coming to PS4 is a bit curious, but based on what we know so far, it sounds like this game will not be released for quite some time. That hopefully means you might actually be able to buy a PS5 by the time the KOTOR remake is released, but given that recent estimates suggest the shortages could last until 2023, we’re going to have to wait and see how that plays out.