There's exciting news for Ubisoft was announced recently. The newly-formed Lucasfilm Games has opened the door for all sorts of partnerships with new studios, but that also means Disney's new Star Wars canon will be growing exponentially. So far, Disney has done a decent job of tying together games, books, movies, shows, and comics under a united canon. However, Ubisoft's new Star Wars game should NOT be canon, in order to give players a truly immersive experience.
Although the teaser for Ubisoft's open-world Star Wars game didn't reveal much (or anything, really, outside of the announcement itself), it's still enough to get fans excited. A new open world Star Wars game is something fans have been asking for, so it's great to see that it's finally happening. However, in order to make the best game possible, Ubisoft's Star Wars game should exist outside of Disney's established canon.
While it might seen counterintuitive for Ubisoft's Star Wars game to work outside of canon, this approach could actually help multiple aspects of the game. Outside of canon, player choices can actually matter. It's one of the driving forces behind successful Star Wars titles like Knights of the Old Republic I and II, which gave players a multitude of choices and possibilities - from character interactions to plot development. By existing outside of canon, Ubisoft's game can have multiple endings and nearly endless possibilities based around character decisions without having to worry about its impact on established Star Wars events and characters.
Ubisoft's Star Wars Game Needs Player Choices To Matter
One of the biggest draws to an open world game is being able to interact with characters and environments as players see fit. If Ubisoft's Star Wars game is tied to canon, then its story won't belong to the player. Instead, a protagonist would most likely be a blank-slate character with a bit part in someone else's story. An open world game is based around freedom, and sticking to canonical events and story doesn't allow much freedom at all.
While fans have wondered if the new game is based around The Mandalorian series or the new High Republic media, a game outside of established Star Wars canon works best. It simply allows for freedom of choice, for decisions to matter, and for multiple endings - without being concerned about what does and doesn't tie in to everything else. The open world of Ubisoft's Star Wars game could be whatever players make it.
Of course, development still appears to be in its earliest stages, so it could be months or years before players learn more about Ubisoft's new Star Wars game. Right now, the possibilities are nearly endless - which is how the actual game should be, instead of being concerned with canon.
