Game Review: Star Wars Battlefront II

Star Wars has been given a breath of fresh air in the movie realm, with the new trilogy bringing a new era into play but what about the video game arena? EA bought the right’s years ago and began work on reviving a buried franchise in Star Wars: Battlefront II. It released alongside Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) bringing a new version of the classic series. Despite mixed reception, fans enjoyed the vivid take on the source material: and being able to play out childhood fantasies.

It was confirmed earlier this year a sequel was in development, as DICE have taking sides in adding more content from all Star Wars eras. But does the sequel Star Wars: Battlefront ll deliver? Or fail in following up the original.

Star Wars: Battlefront II Review 

Credit: EA Games

 I grew up with the Star Wars games on the PS2, Gamecube bringing together robust experiences in the universe without actually being there. The spin-off titles allow the user to visit landscapes from the movies, which brought audiences closer to the iconic locales seen in the Star Wars mythos. But after the prequels happened, video games in the George Lucas world became a limited event. As the franchise weighed in popularity a game released titled Battlefront on the aging hardware, bringing the childhood toy sessions into reality.

EA pulled out the stops in delivering a decent recreation of classic movies, I for one spent hours in the video game and was in awe as the air battles captured the iconic feeling. But the franchise went on limbo for years and was relaunched in 2015's Star Wars: Battlefront on current generation hardware to varied results: the reliance on the original trilogy landscapes annoyed fans due to a smaller amount of content than the predecessor.

I went into Star Wars: Battlefront II in hesitation, after the loot box system controversy on the internet and general lack of information on the new release. After pouring hours into the version, I came out disappointed with the unbalanced multiplayer gameplay and progression system. But renowned for the decent campaign which serves as connections between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. DICE have pulled out stops to deliver more content for the fans

The game is set out to bring all eras together, but the lacking substance and doesn’t set my soul on fire especially with the terrible unlock system. Meaning hours of in-game time are needed to cover each addition to the game, reaching unmanageable levels. Who locks Darth Vader behind a paywall? Star Wars iconic villain is sidelined for a near point lock. I enjoyed the gameplay additions with the class-based system, adding layers on competitive modes, DICE put the effort in making each player different: with various blasters exclusive to classes. The over-complicated progression is the most significant gripe in the competitive arenas, with the good unlocks being hidden with player levels.

Despite obvious balancing issues, I believe audiences will have fun in the expansive multiplayer just don’t expect to be blown away. Map selection provides content from across the series 30-year history, despite lousy rotation in game modes: fans will be happy with the plentiful locations.

Credit: EA Games

The campaign is based on a new character named Iden Versio, leading a unit of Empire Soldiers named the inferno squad. It takes place after the events of Return of The Jedi, as the remaining Stormtroopers deal with the fallout of the Death Star's destruction. EA create a fantastic single player campaign with an Empire focused storyline, but significant flaw’s lie within the need to push away from the new protagonist for the well-known lightsaber and blaster users.

A few neat ideas a sprinkled throughout the latter half of Star Wars: Battlefront II with the story being competent in going through famous areas in the universe. The game is stable at the core, with fantastic firefights and air combat but the needless microtransactions complicate a decent experience. I usually have no problems with cosmetic in-game purchases, but EA's push for locking content is not acceptable in a game meant to celebrate 30 year's of Star Wars content.

I wanted to love Star Wars: Battlefront II but left used and abused despite fun times had. Perhaps a stronger focus on the right things? Instead of aggressive attempts at forcing me to purchase shards. Game design is the most important aspects of user enjoyment, and focusing it on wallets is a terrible idea.