So the big news this past week was undoubtedly the announcement of Star Wars: The Old Republic, the upcoming MMO based on the Knights of the Old Republic franchise, developed by Bioware and LucasArts. SWtOR takes place a few hundreds years after the end of Knights of the Old Republic, but continues the Stars Wars storyline in no doubt great ways, considering Bioware’s talents at developing massive storylines with quality gameplay, we can only imagine where they could take such huge possibilities as an ever-expanding world based on the Star Wars backstory.

But with the forthcoming release comes some big questions. First, what about that other Stars Wars MMO? What was it again….oh yeah….Star Wars Galaxies. Is it sticking around? Yes states LucasArts exec Tom Nichols, who sees no reason the two games can’t exist together. It seems they still have big plans for Galaxies, plans they wish to pursue aggressively should The Old Republic be a big enough hit to revive the original Sony-backed Star Wars MMO.

But then comes the whopper of a question. Can SWtOR really take on World of Warcraft? EA games president Frank Gibeau believes so and we certainly think World of Warcraft will be in a run for it’s money.

“Just look at the base of Star Wars fans, plus what BioWare can do. Trust me: we want to win. EA’s reputation is for wanting to win. This is going to be a powerful category and there’s lots of ways to compete in this category. [Blizzard] created a much larger opportunity for everybody else, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to stay that way.”

In addition to the announcement, LucasArts and Bioware launched the official site for Star Wars: The Old Republic, including an FAQ, which gives some exciting information and insight into what this game can and will become. Some gems are quoted below!

Will I be able to play on the Light or Dark side of the Force?

Yes, during character selection you will align with the Republic or the Sith Empire. In addition, throughout the game you will also be faced with many decisions which can change your path down the Light or Dark side of the Force.

When does Star Wars: The Old Republic take place in relation to the movies?

Star Wars: The Old Republic takes place more than 3,500 years before the rise of Darth Vader. The most powerful Sith Empire in history has emerged from deep space to attack the Republic and its legendary Jedi guardians. After decades of war, a tenuous truce has been established between the Sith Empire and the Republic, but events occurring in the game are leading the galaxy back to an all-out war.

How does Star Wars: The Old Republic relate to Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic?

Star Wars: The Old Republic takes place approximately three hundred years after the events of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (KOTOR). At the conclusion of the Jedi Civil War in KOTOR, Revan disappeared into unknown space in search of a great threat to the Republic, an expanding Sith Empire led by a mysterious Emperor who planned vengeance for his ancient Jedi enemies. Revan never returned from unknown space, but the Sith Empire did, kicking off a war with the Republic that lasted for decades. Now, despite the uneasy truce created by the Treaty of Coruscant, the tension among the divided star systems is threatening to once again tear the galaxy apart.

Sweet baby Jesus I hope this is true. As the Star Wars license wallowed away under the steaming pile that was the prequels and the horrible mess that Star Wars Galaxies became, Knight of the Old Republic was a bright shining star of the Force. Even the sequel, “Sith Lords”, though rushed and extremely buggy, was of higher quality than Galaxies. I remember thinking, self, this needs to be an MMO. Well, it seems that dream will come true. Rumors are flying around the gaming press about a recent news report from CVG stating that BioWare has recently begun forming an online team to work on a Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic MMO. Though no true details have emerged, just the fact that it appears BioWare is behind the development can only mean it will be perfection.

Read more: Knight of the Old Republic MMO in the works?

Old news, but hey I’m old school, so whatever to the haters, I love this game and I’ve been watching this project in anticipation for awhile now. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic was one of the hottest new titles at the time of it’s release, almost helping us to completely forget the dismal prequels which were bouncing around the local megaplexes. With the release of KOTOR, Star Wars gaming was reborn as an incredibly immersive and rich action adventure wonderland of Droids, exploration and lots of text to read. Bioware’s stock jumped high into the skies, riding on the back of a best-seller. Then, came Knights of the Old Republic 2. A valiant effort by new developers Obsidian, but, one couldn’t help but get the feeling that the game was extremely rushed and had more bugs than a South American rain forest (if there are any even left to speak of). One also couldn’t help but get the feeling that if only Bioware dropped Jade Empire and gave KOTOR2 the attention it deserved we’d all be eagerly waiting KOTOR3 for the Xbox 360 right about now, a natural piece of hardware for such a large project. But, oh well, we can all dream, let me get to the point of this post.

KOTOR 2′s shortcomings have been established, but, something that wasn’t expected was the discovery of a large amount of hidden and unfinished content, including assets which pointed to the existence of an incomplete new planet (M4-78). Enter Team Gizka, a rabid group of KOTOR fans and modders who have decided to try and ‘fix’ (at least partially) the shortcomings of KOTOR 2. With access to a large amount of the cut content, Gizka are re-scripting, cleaning up code and unlocking hours worth of new content, missions and characters for us Star Wars fans to enjoy.

Read Team Gizka’s manifesto after the jump..

Knights of the Old Republic 2, we feel, is a fantastic game. It’s also undoubtedly a wounded game: a lonely game that knows it’s incomplete as it is but just can’t bear to admit it to itself. It’s okay, KOTOR2. We’re here for you. Shhhh. We’re here.

If you’re here, you probably know that KOTOR2 had a lot of cut content, including some very important scenes near the end. If you didn’t know: KOTOR2 had a lot of cut content, including some very important scenes near the end.

We’re adding back in as much of the cut content as is possible. We are dedicated to forming a coherent story out of these sound clips and occasionally-ambiguous action descriptions, so unfortunately, we cannot include every single cool thing that was cut. But, we will still have plenty of coolness, including:

* The long-lost HK Droid Factory! (not the same as the Droid Planet M4-78)
* Several ways to murder Visas!
* A whole new group of people who want to kill you!
* Multiple endings! (no, really, actual endings)
* Various ways to be responsible for the deaths of all your party members!

Read more: Team Gizka restoring lost KOTOR2 content

There is still hope for Star Wars Galaxies, somewhere. With the upcoming release of the Star Wars Galaxies: The Complete Online Adventures, Sony and LucasArts are trying to shore up interest in the once massively popular MMORPG by offering a 14 day free trial to new users (and presumably to the scores of people who left). Available now, I for one will be checking out some of the changes that are happening throughout the game, which I haven’t played since it began years ago and maybe see if I can live out my dream of being a jedi master.

Read more: Star Wars Galaxies offers 14 day free trial

Microsoft’s Major Nelson announced the new content this week for the Xbox Live Arcade, with no major announcements other than the availability of the Lego Star Wars II demo, which is now available for download. The only other items announced are trailers for titles such as Just Cause, The Darkness, Sonic and several others. I’m totally looking forward to the new Lego Star Wars though, not only because Chewy rips off little Lego arms, but also because I think the original was quite a feat for a Lego-inspired game and certainly a fun little extension of the aging Star Wars brand.

Read more: Major Nelson’s XBLA announcement | Lego Star Wars II