Star Wars Zero Company, the newly announced strategy game from Bit Reactor, will officially be revealed this weekend at Star Wars Celebration Japan. Technically, the game was first announced back in 2022, but there really wasn't any details provided at the time. In fact, it's only today that we've learned its official name.
Thankfully though, we won't have to wait much longer for more information. A panel at Star Wars Celebration Japan this weekend will provide us with a first look at the new turn-based tactics game. The Star Wars Zero Company panel is being held on April 19th at 4:30 p.m. JST, which is 3:30 a.m. EST in the U.S.
"Recruit an unconventional team of operatives and deploy them on missions unlike any other in the galaxy far, far away in Star Wars Zero Company!" the Star Wars website announced.
Star Wars Zero Company is being developed by Bit Reactor in collaboration with Respawn Entertainment and Lucasfilm Games. This is Bit Reactor's first game as a studio, although there's no shortage of expertise. The studio, which was formed back in 2022, is comprised of developers have worked on some of the industry's biggest titles, including XCOM, Civilization, Gears of War, and Elder Scrolls Online. It's being directed by industry veteran Greg Foerstch, the art director for acclaimed strategy games XCOM 2 and XCOM: Enemy Unknown.
Speaking to PC Gamer back in June of last year, Foertsch did provide some top-level details about their approach towards creating a Star Wars tactics strategy game. Describing the genre as a space to grow, Foertsch explained that they are looking to create a more cinematic experience, but not at the sacrifice of strategy gameplay.
"I think Hector [Antunez, lead animator] and I have a little bit of an axe to grind in general with the genre. There's this idea that depth costs you elegance," Foertsch said. "Like, oh, if it looks prettier, if it's immersive, if it's got a good story, well, something else got compromised. I say no, not really. I think that you can have both. I don't think that complexity equals depth. And I think that that's really what we're focused on. Differentiating that nuance between those two things."
While we'll have to wait until Saturday to get a detailed look at Star Wars Zero Company, the studio did share a first look at some key art for the game. According to the description, it's "just a few members of the elite squad under your command."
Star Wars Zero Company still doesn't have a release date and platforms have yet to be announced, but that could all change this weekend. Be sure to check back as we update you when we learn more!