Star Wars 1313 Concept Art Demo Details

It had seemed to be the case for quite some time, but today, the only hope left is dead: Star Wars 1313 is no more. No grand parades or 21 blaster-rifle salutes announce the passing of what once seemed to be the game that might once again bring respect to the Star Wars brand, only the fact that Disney has allowed the trademark for the title to lapse.

There is still a possibility that something named 'Star Wars 1313' could exist in the future, but it won't be produced with Disney's consent, and it certainly won't be the Boba Fett adventure fans were dying to see released.

Since LucasArts was purchased in its entirety as part of Disney's acquisition of the Star Wars brand, the writing had been on the wall. Production on Star Wars 1313 - along with all other Star Wars games in development - ceased, but the last hopes have now expired, along with the trademark on the series title. It is as if millions of gamers across the world cried out, and were suddenly silenced.

The status of the expired trademark was reported by The Escapist, with the official filing under the United States Patent Office claiming that the trademark had been abandoned "because no Statement of Use or Extension Request timely filed after Notice of Allowance was issued." The game has actually been well and truly dead since December 2013, but has only now been noticed (oh, how far the Star Wars name has fallen in the realm of gaming).

The story of 1313 had begun as promising as one could: first with an incredibly surprising and impressive unveiling at E3, a gameplay trailer that flexed its next-gen muscles like few others, and a development team at ILM that truly seemed hellbent on bringing some respectability back to the brand. And as the new age of Star Wars films began to fall into place, the game seemed the perfect means to expand the audience - especially once it was revealed that it was Boba Fett at its heart, after all.

Now, all that remains of the project once known as Star Wars 13113 is a gallery of concept art showing the bounty hunter adventure that could have been, and vague promises that EA's deal with Disney will produce Star Wars games that won't further tarnish the property.

There is still some reason to hope that the spirit of the game's ambition could live on; Visceral Games is hard at work on a Star Wars property that has yet to be announced, and is drawing some serious talent in the process. However, we’d still love to have seen the finished product from the original studio. Who knows: maybe when Disney releases its Boba Fett standalone film, the hero might be given another chance in video game form.

Now that the tale of Star Wars 1313 has finally come to a close, what do you make of it? Will Disney's decision to cancel one of the most (or only) anticipated Star Wars triple-A video games go down as one of the dumbest in game history? Or have you already decided to look to the future? Sound off in the comments.

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Follow Andrew on Twitter @andrew_dyce.

Source: USPO (via Escapist)