LucasFilm veteran appointed as new LucasArts president

US publisher LucasArts has finally announced the appointment of a new president, over half a year after Simon Jeffrey left the company, with LucasFilm marketing boss Jim Ward being parachuted into the role.

Ward, who will continue to act as head of marketing and distribution at LucasFilm while adding the LucasArts role to his portfolio, was reportedly hand-picked by George Lucas for the job after a review of the holiday sales figures from last Christmas.

His position at the publisher was made official after the firm was criticised by a number of commentators for failing to appoint anyone to fill Jeffrey's role at the company, although it's not certain whether this factor influenced the company's decision.

The formal announcement of Ward's appointment came as the publisher confirmed the existence of a sequel to the successful PC and Xbox RPG title, Knights of the Old Republic, which was developed by Canadian studio Bioware. Although the KOTOR sequel has been one of the worst kept secrets in the industry for months, it's still great news for LucasArts, which has recently cancelled a number of titles and last month laid off almost 30 staff.

"I've worked closely with every division of the Lucas companies," seven year Lucas veteran Ward said in a statement, "and it's clear there is enormous potential for synergy between visual effects, video games, licensing and film and television production. I'm looking forward to exploring how to integrate them into the current and emerging interactive entertainment markets, where so many possibilities exist. It's going to be a great adventure."

One of his first tasks, according to the company, will be ensuring that Star Wars: Battlegrounds, an ambitious free roaming action title, meets its ship date of September 21st - an important date to hit, since it coincides with the DVD release of the original Star Wars Trilogy.