A Star Wars: Republic Commando Remake Could Be The Perfect Halo Clone

Star Wars: Republic Commando is well known as a classic Star Wars game, hailing from one of the best eras of Star Wars gaming. The Halo-inspired FPS was well-regarded for its squad-based tactical mechanics and unique story within Star Wars gaming. Republic Commando was released in 2005 and still is considered to be one of the best Star Wars games ever made. 

Inspired by the Spartan super soldiers of Halo, Republic Commando follows Delta Squad, a unit of elite clone commandos, with the player playing as RC-1138, “Boss”, the leader of a squad of 4 commandos. Delta could be considered an analog of Halo’s Blue Team. This was a Star Wars story that was more grounded, which was appealing for many players, but a modern remake of this game could be just what we need. 

A Halo Clone?

From the earliest days, Republic Commando was heavily influenced by the Halo franchise, which was near its height in popularity when Republic Commando was released. Halo 2 had been released months earlier, and Lucasarts wanted something to compete with the popular franchise. Republic Commando was their answer, a game about clone supersoldiers, part of an elite unit. 

Halo is known for its arcade gameplay, something that Republic Commando also emulated with its multiplayer. while the servers are shut down now, the multiplayer was influenced heavily by Halo. Some mechanics in the game influenced by Halo include regenerative shields, emphasis on team play, multi-layered map design, and the design of the games matchmaking and game modes. 

Halo Infinite continues the legacy of the Halo franchise, with a modern twist. Halo Infinite’s customization and battle pass/live service systems are some of the best out there and could inspire a modern Republic Commando game. The original Republic Commando had some simple customization options but I think the way Halo handles customization could inspire many different armors, colors, and cosmetics for a RC remake. 

While Republic Commando never was as popular as Halo, it still was an important piece of Star Wars gaming, and considered by many to be among the best of this era of Star Wars games. A remake should wear its influence on its shoulder, and adapt what the best of Halo has to offer. 

A Modern Republic Commando Is The Star Wars Remake We Need

If there is anything lacking, it’s new Star Wars FPS games. Star Wars: Battlefront was released in 2017, and while the game released a slew of new content years following release, support ended in 2020 with the Scarif update. Since then, a majority of Star Wars releases were either smaller scale, like Star Wars Squadrons, or single-player, like Jedi Fallen Order and Jedi Survivor. 

A remake of Republic Commando could fill the FPS void that is missing in Star Wars gaming. The squad-based mechanics of the original RC game could make for interesting co-op experiences, and the small-scale, arcade-like multiplayer is something that has not been seen before in Star Wars gaming, besides the original RC game.

A remake could also fill some unexplored plots, like what happened to Sev at the end of the original game? The story would have to fit into the current Star Wars canon, which would be interesting as a remake could be built around the events of Star Wars: The Clone Wars and The Bad Batch. 

Could A Remake Be In The Works? 

Back in 2017, a team was working on an unofficial Republic Commando remaster in Unreal Engine. The project would later be shut down by LucasFilm through a cease and desist letter. All public information about the project was deleted. A similar fate happened to an indie team working on a remaster of Knights of The Old Republic in Unreal Engine. 

From the shutdown of the KOTOR fan remaster project, I assume that Lucasfilm saw the demand for the remaking of these old Star Wars games. Lucasfilm would later commission Aspyr, and later Saber Interactive to begin the development of a KOTOR remake, which was announced in 2021. I wonder if a remake of Republic Commando also crossed their minds. 

But who else is making Star Wars games now? EA’s exclusivity license ends this year, and so far the only known Star Wars games in development there are a number of titles from Respawn Entertainment. An FPS game is in the works at Respawn, but as far as we know, the game will likely only be single-player, negating the possibility of the game being Republic Commando due to its multiplayer modes. 

After the backlash of Battlefront 2 and the success of the Jedi franchise, EA has stepped back from multiplayer Star Wars titles. In recent statements from the company’s earnings call, company executives suggest they are not focused on multiplayer and live service Star Wars content at the moment, and emphasize a careful, collaborative approach with Disney & Lucasfilm. 

We’ve had incredible success with Disney & Lucasfilm. To an extent, when we find new opportunities, to execute new experiences including live services as part of that partnership, we will explore them.”  

In other recent Star Wars media, characters from the original Republic Commando game reappeared. In The Bad Batch, the clone commando “Scorch”, a main character from the Republic Commando game appeared as a minor antagonist for a few episodes. This is Lucasfilm, specifically Dave Filoni acknowledging the Republic Commando games, which others might interpret as a “wink.”

Conclusion 

Star Wars: Republic Commando is a gem from the golden age of Star Wars gaming, and is a game worthy of a remake or a remaster. Lucasfilm Games surely sees the demand for a continuation of the story of the Delta squad, only time will tell if they will deliver.