Back in February 2021, developer Zynga officially announcedStar Wars: Hunters, a free-to-play hero shooter set in a Galaxy Far, Far Away.Star Wars: Hunterswas originally planned for release in late 2021, but those plans proved a little too ambitious. Though it soft-launched in some regions in 2021,Star Wars: Huntersdidn’t release fully until June 2024, after suffering several major delays over a three-year period.
Unfortunately,Star Wars: Hunterswasn’t quite worth the wait, at least according to many of the critics who reviewed its day-one iteration. The game’s microtransactions, underwhelming progression systems, and lack of originality were all prominent criticisms at launch. Just nine months later, Zynga announced thatStar Wars: Hunterswould be shutting down its serverscompletely in October 2025. But this doesn’t need to be the end ofStar Wars: Hunters' legacy.
Star Wars: Hunters' Shutdown Doesn’t Need to be the End
Star Wars: Hunters' Setting Opens Some Doors
Though its exact place in the timeline wasn’t specified,Star Wars: Hunterswas set between the events ofStar Wars: Return of the JediandStar Wars: The Force Awakens. And with one of the game’s playable characters being a defected Imperial Stormtrooper, it’s likelyStar Wars: Hunterstook place closer to the fall of the Empire thanthe rise of the First Order.
The vast majority of recent live-actionStar Warsmedia has revolved around this time period.The Mandalorian’s first season takes place around five years afterReturn of the Jedi(9 ABY), andThe Book of Boba FettandAhsokatake place soon after. WithAhsokaSeason 2 andThe Mandalorian and Groguon the way, there might be room to squeeze in a reference or two toStar Wars: Hunters.
Star Wars: Hunters' Characters Could Live On
The most likely element to surviveStar Wars: Hunters' imminent shutdown is the game’s colorful cast of characters. A consistent point of praise among critics,Star Wars: Hunters' rosterwas vibrant and diverse, containing a wealth of larger-than-life Outer Rim scoundrels, bounty hunters, and everything in between. Jedi droids, Rodian surgeons, Wookie juggernauts, Zabrak archers, and even an AT-ST-riding Ewok were all present inStar Wars: Hunters, alongside 12 equally sprightly characters.
Though most of these characters didn’t get much fleshing out inStar Wars: Hunters, their designs are enough alone to warrant at least one more appearance in theStar Warsgalaxy. Some of these characters could show up in a futureStar Warsvideo game as sidekicks or secondary antagonists, or they could even team up again in a different gameplay setting, such as a turn-based strategy game akin tothe upcomingStar Wars Zero Company.
It’d be highly unlikely, but some of these characters could even work in someupcoming live-actionStar Warsprojects. Characters like Zaina the Rebel war hero would be a great fit in any New Republic-related show or movie, and characters like Aran Tal the Mandalorian Vanguard would look right at home alongside Bo-Katan and the rest of her Mandalorian tribe. Some characters could even be the subject of their own animated show, such as the Jawa scavenger duo Utooni or bounty hunter Imara Vex. At the very least, it’d be great to seeStar Wars: Hunters' diverse roster appear in a future comic book.
