Star Wars games have adopted many different genres over the years, from space-faring RPGs, to intense first-person shooters, but with Star Wars: Eclipse, the franchise is set to enter the branching-narrative subgenre, with the game presumably taking after Quantic Dream's Detroit: Become Human. While Star Wars: Eclipse was announced during the 2021 Game Awards, reports following the announcement seem to suggest that the game is still years away, but thanks to a new leak fans have their first key piece of information about the narrative adventure.
According to a recent leak discussed on the Sacred Symbols podcast, Star Wars: Eclipse will center around a new Star Wars species called the Zaraan. If this report ends up being true, then Star Wars: Eclipse may just have one of the most intriguing main protagonists of all time, a Zaraan woman forced into a marriage that's directly at odds with her imperialist ways.
Star Wars: Eclipse's Zaraan Species Shows a lot of Promise
Set during the High Republic era of Star Wars, Star Wars: Eclipse could take place anytime in the centuries leading up to 82 BBY, meaning 82 years before the events of A New Hope and the Battle of Yavin. This gives Quantic Dream plenty of room to establish its own unique set of Star Wars lore, introduce its own colorful and charismatic characters, and tell its own sprawling space opera story. And based on the recent leak, it seems as though that's exactly what Quantic Dream is going to do.
According to this leak, one of Star Wars: Eclipse's main protagonists will be Sarah, a high-ranking member of the humanoid Zaraan species. Apparently, the Zaraan are at the head of their very own empire, which is starting to stretch out across the galaxy. The Zaraan species thrive on military conquest, and take great pride in being one of the most technologically-advanced species in the galaxy. The Zaraan Empire also has equal rights when it comes to societal roles, with both male and female members of the species being able to rise up in the empire's ranks if they show enough determination.
But the most unique narrative hook of Star Wars: Eclipse's Zaraan species seems to be that upon marriage, the couple combines their military ranks and command, and rules as one military body. This will apparently form the central conflict with Sarah's character. While Sarah is a strong believer in the Zaraan Empire's more brutalist take on warfare and colonization, her husband, Xendo, is apparently a little more apprehensive. This tension is bound to carry through Sarah's own narrative, with her decisions likely being greatly impacted by her husband's softer touch. And as can be expected from branching-narrative games like this one, this conflicted marriage will likely have consequences that affect the entire galaxy.
While empires are nothing new in Star Wars canon, the Zaraan Empire sounds somehow even more ruthless than the Emperor's, relying less on fear tactics and more so on military domination and technological terrors. The High Republic era is a fairly new one to Star Wars official canon, and seeing it fleshed out in a game like Star Wars: Eclipse could be the perfect way to integrate it more into the mainstream consciousness. That being said, the Zaraan Empire hasn't been mentioned once in the canon High Republic novels or comics, so its introduction in Star Wars: Eclipse could be a little jarring for those die-hard fans who have a wider knowledge on the universe's timeline and major events.
Star Wars: Eclipse is currently in early development.