Star Wars: Zero Company – Tactical Shadows of the Clone Wars
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S
Release Window: 2026 (no specific date yet)
Developer/Publisher: Bit Reactor, Respawn Entertainment, Lucasfilm Games, EA
Concept & Gameplay
Think XCOM meets Star Wars. As a single-player turn-based tactics game, it blends strategic combat with cinematic storytelling. Players command Hawks, an ex‑Republic officer leading Zero Company - a ragtag band of mercenaries fighting a “war beneath the war” during the Clone Wars.
The game structure includes:
- Tactical operations & investigations across gritty battlefields
- A base (the Den) for planning, intelligence gathering, and bonding with squad members
- Squad customization: recruit operatives and Jedi, outfit classes and gear, shape loadouts
Noteworthy systems:
- Permadeath is optional: raise the emotional stakes or play more forgiving
- Bond system opens powerful combat synergies, inspired by Fire Emblem and Marvel’s Midnight Suns
Story & Characters
Set during the twilight of the Clone Wars, Zero Company delves into shadows and gray areas - not flashy Jedi heroes, but covert ops.
- Hawks: customizable protagonist, former Republic officer turned covert commander
- Core squad (authored characters):
- Trick: a cloned trooper with gambling habits, old war buddy
- Tel‑Rea Vokoss: Jedi Padawan honoring her fallen master
- Luco Bronc: Umbaran sniper burning with resentment over Republic occupation
- And more: recruit diverse species including Mandalorians, Twi’leks, Togrutas, droids & clones
The games’ evolving narrative branches story is based on player decisions and is influenced by the style of Andor and Rogue One.
Inspirations & Visuals
- Tactical gameplay rooted in XCOM/Firaxis expertise via Bit Reactor’s Greg Foertsch
- Story tone draws dirty-war grit of Rogue One, political intrigue of Andor, pulpy mythic adventure of the Original Trilogy
- Built on Unreal Engine 5, promising lush next-gen battlefield environments
Why This Matters
- It’s one of the first major turn-based strategy games in the Star Wars saga—bringing tactical gameplay back into the spotlight .
- The bond/permadeath systems add emotional depth and replay value
- A fresh, canon-era viewpoint - no Jedi Council mediocrity: just mercs, spies, clans, and hidden wars. This grounded perspective feels reminiscent of Andor .
What’s Next
- More reveals are expected later in 2025 - likely deeper gameplay trailers and possibly early beta access.
- Wishlisting is live on PC storefronts - see links below.
TL;DR
Star Wars: Zero Company promises to be a major milestone for Star Wars gaming. The melding of grounded Clone Wars storytelling with XCOM-style tactics and emotional RPG depth.
Zero Company Characters
Hawks
Zero Company features a roster of original characters, with Hawks being the primary character that players will take control of. Hawks is fully customizable - although to what extent, we’re not certain yet - so if you want the former captain in the Grand Army of the Republic to not be human, that’s an option.
Trick
An emotionally scarred Clonetrooper with a fondness for games of chance, Trick–formerly known as CT-3301–has been with Hawks since the start of the Clone Wars.
Tel-Rea Vokoss
The Jedi Padawan of a fallen master, Tel-Rea Vokoss is determined to complete her mentor’s final mission and honor their legacy.
Cly Kullervo
A Mandalorian who is one of the last surviving members of the ancient Clan Verminoth, Kullervo joins Zero Company so that she can further her quest for revenge.
Luco Bronc
When you need to do some damage from a long range, Luco Bronc is the Umbaran sniper you call in to get the job done. Sharp-tongued and nursing a grudge against the Republic after it defeated and occupied his Separatist-aligned planet, Bronc joins Zero Company so that he can work toward taking out a bigger threat.
Zero Company Insights
Wishlist It
PC (Steam)
PC (Epic Games)
https://store.epicgames.com/en-US/p/star-wars-zero-company-21b5c6
PlayStation 5
Xbox Series X|S
Read More
I started collecting info and images for this post back in April when Zero Company was formally announced at the Star Wars Celebration in Japan. Then I forgot to come back and actually finish and post it. Then I lost all the files I’d saved. 
I am old and getting older. So now I’ve just fed all the bits of info into ChatGPT and asked it to churn out the summary for this post, and then added in links to more sensible article producers.