republic

15 Sep

How Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic Can Become Canon Again

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After years of rumors, reports, and leaks, Lucasfilm Games finally has a new Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic game in the pipeline. Mind you, it isn’t the threequel most players hoped for, but a remake of the original, spearheaded by Aspyr, the veteran studio that’s spent the last few years porting Star Wars classics to modern consoles, including next-gen and mobile versions of Knights of the Old Republic and its beloved sequel. But a remake of one of the best Star Wars games ever made is a different challenge altogether. Much will be said about what should and…

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10 Sep

Star Wars: Knights of The Old Republic Remake Can’t be Afraid to Change the Original

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If you would have told me two, five…even ten years ago that we were getting a Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic remake that would update the beloved 2003 RPG with modern graphics, modern audio, and a few mechanical improvements, I would have been thrilled. In fact, I probably would have been upset if you told me that remake would go so far as to significantly change any aspect of the original game’s combat, story, or any of the other elements that have led many to call it one of the best RPGs of the last 20 years and…

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21 May

Did Rangers of the New Republic Plans Change Because of Gina Carano’s Firing?

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When Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy announced the future of the Star Wars live-action TV universe on Disney+, she named several new series spinning out of The Mandalorian. A series called Ahsoka would pick up where the Jedi’s cameo in season 2 of Mando left off, as she continued her search for Grand Admiral Thrawn. The Book of Boba Fett would follow the further adventures of the franchise’s foremost bounty hunter and the assassin Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wen). Then there’s the more mysteriously titled Rangers of the New Republic, a series that up to this point we know little about beyond…

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22 Apr

Will Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic Remake Give Us the Game’s Unseen Ending?

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It’s perhaps gaming’s biggest open secret at this point: Aspyr, the studio behind recent current-gen ports like Republic Commando and Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast, is reportedly working on a remake of the seminal RPG Knights of the Old Republic, arguably the greatest Star Wars game ever made. Rumors of a remake have made the rounds for years, but it’s uber-reliable Bloomberg journalist Jason Schreier who has finally given the hearsay a bit of credibility. Speaking on The MinnMax Show podcast (via IGN), Schreier confirmed the existence of the project and that Aspyr is the studio handling the long-awaited remake:…

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23 Jan

What Star Wars: The High Republic Reveals About the Galaxy Before the Movies

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This Star Wars: The High Republic contains spoilers. With Star Wars: The High Republic, Disney and Lucasfilm set out to explore a new galactic era that looked and felt different from anything that came before. Long before the rise of the Empire and the fall of the Jedi, the Republic was stable and prosperous. In fact, the High Republic books and comics released so far show Jedi using their skills for situations other than all-out war. New Star Wars characters, villains, and settings are enough to get any fan excited but getting in on the ground floor of this era…

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14 Jan

Star Wars The High Republic: Light of the Jedi Ending Explained

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This Star Wars: The High Republic article contains spoilers. Set 200 years before The Phantom Menace, the High Republic era was a time of relative peace for the galaxy. Wars weren’t being fought, and the Jedi weren’t limited by the Sith’s machinations. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t still some threats waiting out there in the far reaches of unexplored space. By the end of Light of the Jedi, the flagship novel by Charles Soule that kicks off Lucasfilm’s new The High Republic series of books and comics, a new conflict is just beginning, as a mysterious band of pirates…

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13 Jan

Star Wars The High Republic: The Nihil and Their Plan Explained

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This Star Wars: The High Republic article contains spoilers. In the time of the High Republic, 200 years before The Phantom Menace, control of hyperspace is key. The Republic seeks to expand outward, but much of the galaxy is out of their reach simply by virtue of distance. It makes sense that in this time of unification, the most dangerous threat in the galaxy comes from a band of pirates known as the Nihil who don’t have to use established hyperspace lanes. This is a game-changer during this new era of Star Wars storytelling. In the galaxy far, far away,…

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05 Jan

Star Wars The High Republic: Light of the Jedi Review

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In the new Star Wars novel The High Republic: Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule, a starship has broken up in hyperspace, an accident that wasn’t supposed to be able to happen. The Jedi of the High Republic era (set 200 years before The Phantom Menace), noble, strong, and united by the battle meditation of Avar Kriss, go to the scene of the accident to rescue survivors and prevent the debris from destroying a planetary system. As the Jedi start to unravel the mystery of how the accident happened, their enemies are gaining more information, too. The Nihil, once…

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15 Dec

Star Wars The High Republic: Into the Dark Review

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Into the Dark by Claudia Gray, the first young adult entry in The High Republic series of Star Wars novels and comics, is inventive and adventurous. Ancient aliens, a space station haunted in more ways than one, and space pirates make it a grab bag of what the new era has to offer, all of it explored by well-meaning but burdened Jedi. The main character is the least compelling of the gang, and some twists are signposted as bright as a lightsaber. Despite that, Into the Dark, which is set 200 years before The Phantom Menace, is a good introduction…

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14 Dec

Star Wars The High Republic: A Test of Courage Review

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A major point of entry into Star Wars‘ new The High Republic series of books and comics, A Test of Courage by Justina Ireland is a decent middle grade adventure. At best, it reminds me of the deep emotions that drove the characters in the 2000s Jedi Apprentice series about Obi-Wan Kenobi’s childhood. At worst, it proves that The High Republic aimed a little too high with its marketing. Set 200 years before The Phantom Menace, the novel stars an ensemble cast of new Star Wars characters. Jedi Knight Vernestra Rwoh, tinkerer and senator’s daughter Avon Starros, Jedi apprentice Imri…

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05 Oct

The Walking Dead: World Beyond Civic Republic and Three Rings Explained

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The following contains spoilers for The Walking Dead: World Beyond episode 1. Way back in the tenth episode of The Walking Dead’s sixth season, Paul Rovia a.k.a. Jesus (Tom Payne) made a promise to Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln).  “You’re world’s about to get a whole lot bigger,” the Messianic-appearing figure said. And it did not take long for Jesus’s promise to bear fruit. Rick Grimes’s world did get bigger with the introduction of the Hilltop Colony, The Kingdom, Oceanside, and even The Sanctuary.  Since that moment, the world of The Walking Dead has only continued to grow. That growth reaches…

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04 Sep

Star Wars: Should Yoda Be in The High Republic?

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Jedi Master Yoda, Star Wars’ favorite puppet and the character whose performance could have made or broken The Empire Strikes Back, has a long history. In the real world, he’s a pop culture legend. In the Star Wars saga, he’s a 900-year old font of wisdom, strongly devoted to the light side of the Force but sometimes short-sighted. He’s Star Wars incarnate–but does he need to be in every Star Wars story? Now that the Skywalker Saga has come to an end on the big screen, the next big Star Wars story will take place on the page in the…

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01 Sep

Star Wars: The High Republic to Feature Younger Yoda

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Ever since it was revealed that the Star Wars: The High Republic series of books and comics would be set 200 years before The Phantom Menace, fans have been wondering whether it would feature a slightly younger Jedi Master Yoda. Well, Lucasfilm has confirmed that this will indeed be the case. Set to appear in IDW’s The High Republic Adventures comic series by Daniel Jose Older, Yoda is 700 years old during the High Republic era, slightly younger than in the movies, but he still looks pretty much the same but with slightly less wrinkles. “It’s especially exciting to be…

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27 Nov

People’s Republic of Desire

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In a digital universe where live streamers earn as much as $200K a month, can virtual relationships replace real-life human connection? People's Republic of Desire tells the stories of two such online stars who've risen from isolation to fame and fortune in China. The film takes us on a verite journey through their live streaming showrooms, which have become virtual gathering places for hundreds of millions - from the super rich who lavish performers with digital gifts, to poor migrant workers who worship them. The characters are brought together in a series of bizarre online idol competitions, where they discover…

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