In 2012, fans of theStar Warsfranchise would have their hype bolstered by an E3 trailer for a newStar Warsgame titledStar Wars 1313. It showed an action-adventure experience with an unnamed protagonist and mentor. People were extremely excited to play this gritty, realisticStar Warsgame, but sadly, it was never meant to be.
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The gameplay, which showed off what LucasArts was up to after completion ofStar Wars The Force Unleashed 2, was met with great appraise but was soon canceled following Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm and theStar Warsbrand. Many still wonder what could have been.
12It Was Originally Star Wars’ Grand Theft Auto
Within Jason Schreier’s book,Blood, Sweat and Pixels, he stated that1313was conceived in 2009 and that LucasArts was inspired byGrand Theft Auto. This was a concept that was quickly dropped, due to the complexity of the idea.
Creating an entirely open space for players to explore every crevice, was too great a challenge for any studio. To have every corner of the galaxy oozingStar WarsDNA was a task too long and expensive. However,fans might not have to wait much longer for an open-worldStar Warsgame.
11It Was Going For A ‘Mature’ Rating
One of the earliest indications ofStar Warsgoing mature was that in the gameplay demo, one of the characters says a curse word never uttered inStar Warsbefore, or since. This character tells the other to stop “bitching”.
Swearing isn’t the only gateway into a mature rating. As the game director,Dominic Robilliard stated“it means adult themes and stories”. The game’s direction wanted to tell a gritty story that didn’t need grotesque violence. The developers believed violence was notStar Wars, but serious story content was.
10It Wasn’t Originally A Boba Fett Game
The game had been in pre-production for a few years at LucasArts. The team had even submitted a few drafts of the story, and several levels mapped out. However, two months before the game’s reveal,George Lucas mandatedthat the game be centered around a young Boba Fett.
The developers, who had already put a great amount of work into the story and gameplay of their originalStar Warsgame, needed to find a way to make a Boba Fett game work into their concept.
9A Video Game Tie-In To A Canceled Live-Action TV Show
1313was going to be a video game tie-in to thelive-action TV showStar Wars: Underworld. The show was supposed to be between Episode 3:Revenge of the Sithand Episode 4:A New Hope.Underworldwas announced in 2005, and throughout the years that Lucasfilm ran independent, they hired many writers and art designers to visualize Lucas’ ideas.
The show never managed to get off the ground because of the budget restraints in making each episode a movie for TV back in the late 2000s. EvenGod of War’s directorCory Barlog having read some episode scriptssaid how the show was going to make The Emperor a sympathetic character.
8There Was Bounty Hunting
Although there is no official confirmation or former employee comments on the matter, one of the leaked gameplay segments showsBoba Fett in a chase scene of the two characters we saw in the official gameplay reveal. This gameplay showed what fans could expect from an action-adventureStar Warstitle. With ships flying overhead, and sprawling city views.
From the leaked gameplay, and theleaked tackling animation test, it’s clear that running after and capturing people was going to be a theme. Perhaps1313was going to follow inStar Wars: Bounty Hunter’s footsteps, and allow the player to hunt on the side.
7Boba’s Arsenal Of Weaponry Is Utilized
It is more than likely that the HUD revealed inleaked gameplaywas incomplete, but had the basics to feature what could have been. Toward the right of the screen, keen eyes would spot a fire symbol, rockets, and perhaps a dart.Developer Matthias Worch also detailed a working jetpack.
These symbols represent some of Boba Fett’s iconic weaponry, like his flamethrower, the dart his father uses in Episode 2:Attack of the Clonesto kill Zam Wesell, and his wrist rockets that come in a barrage.
6It Became Star Wars’ Uncharted
With the gameplay shown, it was clear that1313wastaken heavy inspiration from Naughty Dog’sUncharted. Not just in the dynamic between the two unnamed characters and how they played off each other like Nate and Sully, but from the cover shooting mechanics, large-scale set pieces, and climbing mechanics.
As a human bounty hunter, the player was limited to normal abilities and would have to rely on Parkour and climbing to traverse hard areas, much like Nathan Drake. Ironically,Uncharted’s game director,Amy Henning worked on aStar Warsgame with Visceral Games, which was also canceled.
5The Original Protagonist Model Was The Force Unleashed’s Starkiller
Whenin-game screenshots leakedfor LucasArts’1313project, fans would be able to spot the build and year that the game was in development. As well as being on Unreal Engine 3, the date was titled 2010, showing that the game was in the works for quite some time before its reveal.
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What’s also interesting, is thatThe Force Unleashed’s protagonist Starkiller was the player model. Perhaps this was simply a placeholder that LucasArts used, or maybe it was intended for something more. We will never know, yet the former seems likely.
Jesse Harlin was a composer at LucasArts who was set to create the music for1313.On his personal Twitter accountyears after the game’s cancellation, he revealed that he was working on hip-hop music that would be the obsession of a malfunctioning protocol droid named 80-HD. Harlin speculated that the droid shown in the leaked animation demo was 80-HD.
What’s most interesting about this droid is the buddy system that would have been in place. The animations show the player character injured, to which 80-HD would be able to heal and revive the player, asdetailed by YouTuber Bombastic.
3A Boba Still Mourning
One of the most notable aspects of Boba Fett is his character design. Boba’s armor is so iconic that it practically spurred the creation of the Mandalorians. When fans learned of the armor’s original owner, Jango Fett, they saw its original silver and blue design.
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In1313’s leaked screenshots,Boba wears his father’s helmet, without giving it the distinctive green paint job seen in Episode 5:The Empire Strikes Back. We can assume that Boba is still mourning the loss of his father, and honoring him as the greatest bounty hunter.
