Amid another round of layoffs and cancellations at Electronic Arts, one project remains firmly on course: Star Wars: Zero Company. While EA continues to restructure, downsize, and redirect resources, the tactical Star Wars game announced last year is still moving forward and it’s being led by a studio built for exactly this kind of work.
Earlier this week, EA confirmed that Respawn Entertainment had been hit with layoffs affecting around 100 staff across multiple teams. Two in-development projects were quietly scrapped, one of them a Titanfall universe extraction shooter (code-named R7), the other an unnamed incubation title. Staff from Apex Legends and the Star Wars Jedi series were also affected, although it’s unclear how many of those were directly involved in either franchise.
Respawn issued a statement thanking those affected, and said it would offer internal support to help people find other roles within EA. EA declined to say how many of the 100 had already been reassigned, but sources suggest some have been moved to other internal teams like Motive and Battlefield.
Despite all this, Star Wars: Zero Company isn’t caught in the fallout. Development is being led by Bit Reactor, a relatively new studio with veteran talent from Firaxis — the same people behind XCOM and Civilization. Respawn is involved, but in more of a support role. That division of labour has shielded Zero Company from the studio-level changes now affecting Respawn’s core teams.
The game was announced during Star Wars Celebration Japan and is set during the Clone Wars. It features a customizable clone trooper squad, turn-based tactical combat, base management, and branching story missions. It’s been pitched as something in the vein of XCOM or Marvel’s Midnight Suns, but grounded in Star Wars lore. The titular squad, Zero Company, will be made up of distinct characters with their own personalities, relationships, and roles on the battlefield.
With a release planned for 2026, development is still in relatively early stages. But given Bit Reactor’s experience and the game’s niche appeal, Zero Company is already standing out. It’s a rare thing: a Star Wars game that isn’t a shooter, a live-service grind, or a cinematic action title. Just strategy, squad-building, and galactic warfare.
As EA’s slate narrows and more projects are shuttered, this one looks like a calculated bet with smaller scope, clear vision and an experienced team. If anything, the ongoing restructuring may end up benefiting Zero Company by freeing up resources and pushing EA to diversify its Star Wars offerings.
We’ll cover more about squad mechanics, base upgrades, and the mission structure as new details emerge. For now, it’s one of the few bright spots on EA’s Star Wars roadmap.