Star Wars Battlefront II has “out of this world” potential
This could be the game that 2015 deserved
A lot of longtime Battlefront fans have been fairly bitter since 2015. Seeing firsthand the series’ resurgence back at E3 2014 gave a lot of fans reason to believe that a remake would stay true to both Star Wars canon and the existing Battlefront formula. The pre-alpha footage shown at E3 2015 delivered a promising glimpse at how incredible Star Wars Battlefront was going to look, and how easily it could immerse players into a real Star Wars battle. The hype for this game was on another level, quite identical to how a certain Empire constructed a certain Death Star…
…And we all know how that turned out.
EA’s Star Wars Battlefront undoubtedly delivered the kind of visual experience that fans were expecting, especially given the implementation of developer DICE’s Frostbite 3 engine. The game was truly stunning, and the visuals were well beyond immersive during the early gameplay moments. It was all too easy to find yourself frozen in place for a few moments, simply gazing at the surrounding environment and the incredible attention that DICE had paid to every little detail. In fact, it was difficult to fault the initial few hours of few hours of gameplay, until the cracks truly started to show.
Unfortunately, Battlefront lacked the longevity that it desperately needed to entertain and survive. While jumping to each unique game mode for the first time was revitalising for a longtime fan such as myself, these battles quickly grew far too repetitive, taking away almost any desire to come back and play again later. A huge reason for this lies in how each game mode is set out, with many mode objectives playing out somewhat more narratively than a lot of shooter fans would be used to. Walker Assault, for instance, has very little depth outside of simply playing towards the main objective, either defending or destroying each AT-AT, and this doesn’t encourage much creativity in the way that the game is played.
Competitive play is further stifled by Battlefront’s token system, where access to heroes, villains or vehicles is entirely dictated by who can reach the necessary token first. This concept completely abandoned the system that Star Wars: Battlefront II used back in 2005, where characters could be accessed after completing specific goals, most of which tied in to completing objective goals or achieving a certain number of kills. It demanded that players earn their keep, and not shy away from the face of danger in order to earn the right to wield a lightsaber on the battlefield. What’s more, players constantly had access to vehicles that would spawn in naturally just as players would, which tended to keep things about as fair as you’d hope for. This kind of balance was significantly lost in EA’s Battlefront adaptation, which undoubtedly created further difficulty in keeping players interested.
The final blow came in the form of Battlefront’s Season Pass; an EA calling card that often seemingly aims to fill the gaps in what feels like an incomplete game. Sure enough, it didn’t take a keen eye to see the severe lack of launch content — such as having a single-player campaign, or even multiple Star Wars eras — which is undoubtedly what made all of the additional downloadable content feel so much more “necessary”. The pain that this discovery inflicted probably wouldn’t have been anywhere as severe if it didn’t add an extra AU$45 on top of a AU$100 game. Then again, the game itself is currently fetching only AU$28 at local Australian gaming stores, so that’s certainly a testament to the fact that the game has severely depreciated over time.
Given how very little Star Wars Battlefront offered, it wasn’t unreasonable for any gamer to have their doubts about the success of a Star Wars Battlefront II, despite knowing that its development and release was inevitable. Somewhat surprisingly, fans received some early signs that the game might be headed in the right direction, coming in the form of a reveal trailer during the annual Star Wars Celebration this past April. The trailer focused on a female imperial soldier following the destruction of the second Death Star, seemingly hinting at a campaign that would help bridge the gap between the films Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. It also confirmed that players would be able to experience all Star Wars eras within the single game.
Much like Episode 4, fans were given A New Hope for the future of the Battlefront franchise, and all eyes turned to E3 2017 for more excitement. Suffice it to say, EA’s gameplay presentation of Star Wars Battlefront II helped win the publisher a lot more respect. A four-minute feature on Battlefront II’s “Game Changers” confirmed that DICE had indeed been listening to the fans and critics who had made their Battlefront opinions known, and that the team was bringing a lot more to the table this time around. The video showed that the developers had brought on several popular gaming personalities for playtesting purposes, providing feedback throughout the process.
When it came down to showing off the gameplay itself, things were nothing short of spectacular, and looking arguably more life-like than even Star Wars Battlefront dared to be. Most of the action was set within Star Wars’ Clone Wars era, showing off the droid army’s assault on Theed, while also featuring an appearance from alternate-era character Boba Fett. The action seemed to be intense enough on the planet’s surface, let alone the epic starship combat that was simultaneously happening just above the city’s structures.
This footage also featured a breakdown of several new gameplay features, including the ability to earn and spend Battle Points while in combat in order to access certain classes, playable characters and vehicles. While this new system doesn’t entirely mirror that of the original Star Wars: Battlefront II, it certainly looks to amend the 2015 token system, and will likely give players further incentive to play towards completing objectives and seeking out opposing players for kills. It also means that there’ll be very little competition between players as to what players can pick up, where players can choose what rewards they’d like to pursue after getting themselves more involved.
To give fans yet another reason to smile, EA confirmed that Battlefront II will not feature a Season Pass, opting to instead provide seasonal downloadable content for free. While this doesn’t necessarily guarantee that the game is going to be packed with content at launch, it does provide a little more incentive for everyone to stick around a little while longer, especially given that no one’s wallets are going to be broken any further after buying the initial game — an exception given to those who wish to purchase more Battle Points.
There are plenty of questions about the game that simply cannot be answered until it is released on November 14, but the calling cards of a more successful sequel have already been dealt. Instinctively, Battlefront II is looking like more of a product for gamers than it is simply for Star Wars fans, whereas 2015’s Battlefront was notably the opposite. With that in mind, there should be no shortage of appeal to fans who have longed to see the franchise’s multiple eras merge as smoothly as they appeared to at E3.
Obviously there’s still a level of risk involved with Battlefront II, given how spectacular EA’s first Battlefront game appeared in trailers, only to then fail to deliver such a fulfilling experience. Despite such doubts, it’s feeling a lot less likely that fans are going to be burned this time around; or, at least, less of us are likely to feel that way. The fate of the galaxy far, far away truly is at stake this November, and fans surprisingly have a lot of reasons to hope for the best.
This article was originally published on Doublejump. To see more top-quality content, feel free to support us:
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