10 Forgotten Sci-Fi Video Games You Need To Play

9. Star Wars: The Old Republic - Electronic Arts (2011)

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Electronic Arts

BioWare's surprise 2003 RPG gamechanger Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic has been in the media of late for two reasons. First, even eighteen years after its initial release it is still receiving much-hyped ports to modern consoles (Nintendo's Switch for example). Second, a full remake has been announced by developer Aspyr.

Knights of the Old Republic (and its 2004 sequel) are by no means forgotten science fiction entries but the third incarnation of the mythos certainly is. Star Wars: The Old Republic is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game based in the KotOR universe. Developed by BioWare Austin and a supplemental team at BioWare Edmonton, the game was released in 2011.

With a reported $200-million development budget, it remains one of the most expensive video games ever produced. However, as with most subscription-based models, it managed to recoup much of its exuberant development costs in fairly short order, with over a million subscribers on board a mere three days after launch. The numbers steadily declined since but the property has remained profitable.

The game is still going today and has since benefitted from eight official expansion packs. In 2019, publisher EA stated that The Old Republic was closing in on a billion dollars revenue, and presumably, that figure has managed only to continue to grow since.

The Old Republic rarely gets a fraction of the hype or media exposure of its KotOR cohorts, yet remains a staple for Star Wars role-players the world over.

Contributor

Jason Russell has been working in video game journalism since the early 1990s before the internet existed, the term "fanzine" had meaning and sailors still debated as to whether or not the earth was flat. The first time. More recently he has been the guy responsible for the Retrospective column for Old School Gamer Magazine, pens up a Game Skinny column on a plethora of video game topics. He's somehow managed to author nine novels, writes and runs the blog CG Movie Review, is co-founder of the science fiction publishing house Starry Eyed Press, and sometimes, when the planets align and the caffeine has fully left his system, it's rumored he sleeps.