Space, the final frontier. Until I set my S-foils to attack position and prepare to boldly go where no man has gone before! There’s a certain thrill to the dogfights of the Star Wars universe. That iconic attack on the first Death Star when Luke Skywalker and his cannon fodder buddies raced through a trench lined with more guns than a Texas church.
Or when Han Solo decided to play the ultimate game of chicken by dodging TIE Fighters in an asteroid field. As much as Jedi and midgets are a part of Star Wars, so are the vehicles and dogfights of that universe.
Hell, I can even get over Ewan MacGregor’s magnificent mullet from Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones thanks to that tense chase sequence in space which featured dubstep landmines being dropped from Jango Fett’s Slave-1 ship. And that’s part of the package in Star Wars Battlefront, which features a mode called Fighter Squadron.
Essentially a free for all in the skies, you’ll be piloting Imperial and Rebel ships as you rack up kills. But there’ll also be a chance to fly iconic hero ships. Pretty much the same idea as Hero pickups during ground assaults in Battlefront, Hero Vehicles will allow players to grab some air as either the Millennium Falcon or Boba Fett’s Slave-1.
“Should you spot the Millennium Falcon or Slave I as a regular starship pilot, your best bet is to stay behind them and try to team up with other players,” Senior Designer Björn Sundell said on the Star Wars Battlefront page.
Since the Rebel and Imperial standard ships are smaller than the Hero Vehicles, you can also dive against the planetary surface and use crevices to shake off Solo’s or Fett’s pursuit.
Slave I for instance, is described as “an arsenal-heavy craft”.
It’s equipped with Ion Cannons, Proton Torpedoes, and a jammer that can be activated to fly undetected on the mini-map and to avoid missile locks.
Hero ships naturally boast more armour and firepower, but can still be shot out of the sky if players get cocky. Not long to go now, before Battlefront is out on November 17. I’ll most likely be the only guy in the dogfight who winds up with the icon for the laser-magnet known as the Tantive IV.
Last Updated: October 27, 2015
Ottokie
October 27, 2015 at 08:13
I have tried to get into this game by watching some streams, 5 min is my limit until I get bored. The shooting is just some big circle you shoot “over there” somewhere. In my own opinion this is just an easy cash grab for the release of the movie.
Jonah Cash
October 27, 2015 at 08:15
I have not been interested to play or watch others play in the least bit! Watched that 10 minutes two weeks ago before the Beta where the one guy was killing everyone and never dying and I knew that this wasn’t for me. As you say, just shoot when the circle is red and hope for the best! This game is going the same way as Evolve. Everyone will get it and no one will be playing it a month after release.
Kromas untamed
October 27, 2015 at 08:32
Played the beta and absolutely loved it. Yes there are some issues that they need to work out (like spawning in front of a manned AT-AT) but I give this 10 stars for “Fun”. And that is just the thing. This game is meant to be fun drop in drop out game and not as overly complicated as more competitive titles out there.
Ottokie
October 27, 2015 at 08:38
Yea I understand your point, but for the money you have to fork out, this game just seems dodgy.
Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja
October 27, 2015 at 08:44
OH FOR FORK SAKE
Kromas untamed
October 27, 2015 at 09:01
The thing is. They payed a hell of a lot of attention to detail. this game is pretty much designed for people who already own a Sphero BB8 in anticipation for the movie. I mean the level of authenticity on the guns alone is astonishing. That sort of thing does bump up the cost of production. That being said this game for now does not warrant anything more than the standard edition at R599 (Standard AAA price and less than launch price of both CoD and BF4) I think. Don’t be fooled into buying any other edition. The deluxe edition is a rip off and the ultimate edition is a season pass and we should stay away from any season passes.
Jonah Cash
October 27, 2015 at 08:45
Will you still be playing it in a months time after launch? That is the most important thing in a multi player only game… If it had a story campaign 10 to 15 hours long then the multi player wouldn’t have to carry it, but this only have the multi player.
Kromas untamed
October 27, 2015 at 08:55
Yes I can definitely see myself playing this as my new replacement for BF4. Sure I will only occasionally play after 3 or 4 months due to other games getting bumped up in priority but just like BF4 I will get an invite to play a quick game with some friend and pop in for 2-3 hours. That is exactly what my expectations are for this game and pretty much how it is designed. People need to get this whole “It doesn’t have sp it must be crap” mentality out of their heads. I would rather have a dedicated sp or a dedicated mp game than this 2 hour CoD/BF4 piece of crap they call a “campaign”. You wan t a sp Star Wars game? Play KotoR. You wanna have a fun mp experience with friends? Play BF.
Jonah Cash
October 27, 2015 at 09:08
I played a lot of Destiny, have never played COD or BF. Destiny was worth the purchase cause I sank over 500 hours into it over a year and a month. I didn’t know it was going for R599.00. That isn’t a bad price point.
Also with regards to single player: If a game doesn’t have a decent single player then me personally won’t ever buy it. I miss the days where we got good story games. I’m playing Wolfenstein now and man that story has me hooked. Also bought Uncharted collection to play them as I miss story games. That is why I hate open world games, I don’t want to search or ride to a story point I want the story to hit me in the face every 5 minutes 🙂
Kromas untamed
October 27, 2015 at 09:21
Don’t get me wrong. I absolutely love story games. However this game was never intended to be a story game. It is like Street Fighter. A fun quick game to play with friends. I play BF4 occasionally and have about 400 hours sunk into it as well. I can’t really say I have finished the BF4 campaign as I have other things to do than power through a poorly written story.
Mossel
October 27, 2015 at 09:21
I tend to agree with you on the SP aspect. After Witcher 3 I’m tired of open world games. I have FalloutNV in my back log and I think it will stay there for a few months. Rather give me a Bioshock Infinite that is “kort en kragtig”.
Kromas untamed
October 27, 2015 at 09:23
Have you played Hatfall? One of the most powerful and emotional games I have played in years.
Mossel
October 27, 2015 at 09:25
Never even heard of it… is it on steam?
Kromas untamed
October 27, 2015 at 09:27
Mossel
October 27, 2015 at 09:29
Awesome! No YouTube at work for me…will check it once I get home!
Charl van der Merwe
October 27, 2015 at 10:45
how does having single player affect the games replay-ability a month after you bought it when you can destroy a 15 hour campaign over a weekend? What you say makes no sense.
Jonah Cash
October 27, 2015 at 13:10
Thank you Charl. I will take your kind words under advisement….
Oh and I am one of those very weird people who replay games. I bought Last of Us less than a year ago and have played and finished it 3 times. It is just that good to me.
And when I look at an online only game, I definitely want it to have me wanting to come back for more. I don’t get that feeling by just watching gameplay footage of this, let alone standing on a hilltop shooting at another hilltop when my circle is red… Maybe it is just me?
Charl van der Merwe
October 27, 2015 at 13:15
Yaa but the last of us was one of the best games made, I also played skyrim twice and dragon age twice ect, but no one plays the likes of call of duty campaigns twice or battlefield campaigns or halo, they have some serious multiplayer bolted on to them.
To this day I still don’t have that godamn magnum you get from finishing the battlefield campaign that everyone one shots me with , I refuse to play that game single player 😉
Hammersteyn
October 27, 2015 at 08:20
lol dat header
Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja
October 27, 2015 at 08:30
Janee, going to break some die-hards
The D
October 27, 2015 at 08:43
My work here is done.
Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja
October 27, 2015 at 08:44
At least I know you know the truth, and purposefully troll.
10 points I say!
Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja
October 27, 2015 at 08:31
Did you see the alt-text?
xD
Ottokie
October 27, 2015 at 08:57
Perfect description xD
Kromas untamed
October 27, 2015 at 08:28
But can you pilot a “fully operational” Death Star? 😛
Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja
October 27, 2015 at 08:32
TIE Advanced!
Mossel
October 27, 2015 at 09:18
Honestly I don’t get the hate for this game. If this is Battlefield with light sabers and x-wings then I’m sold. MP fo lyf!
Kromas untamed
October 27, 2015 at 09:21
This.
James Anderton
October 27, 2015 at 09:32
No SP (what a wasted opportunity). $110-120 for the full game experience. No details for the Season Pass. No server browser.
DICE clearly haven’t had enough time to develop (again, thanks EA) because this HAS to be released before the movie, apparently.
If it wasn’t Star Wars, it would be mediocre at best.
Daniel Hallinan
October 27, 2015 at 09:25
Man, I REALLY wish the Falcon could have several players crew it. I mean, I know this won’t be the case, but it could work great with the co-op buddy system they have in place (though you’d need three players, rather than just the two they had in the BETA). Would have been both great fun to fly with friends AND reminiscent of the films.
Would have also preferred to see the VT-49 Devestator over the Firespray-31, though I fully understand why they included it considering how iconic Bobba Fett and Slave 1 is.
Overall though… flight in Star-Wars battlefront is a bit middling for me, as expected. Would definitely have loved to see some more fleshed out mechanics, or more interesting contract between the faction’s ships.
Also, seriously, that header is offensive – the scale of that galactic federation ship is far too small. It should be DWARFING those TIEs. WHAT WERE YOU THINKING DARRYN!?
Kromas untamed
October 27, 2015 at 09:29
Most likely the same thing as when he decided to start this article with Star Trek references. 🙂
The D
October 27, 2015 at 10:20
I was taught perspective by the same guys who worked on Pacific Rim.
Alien Emperor Trevor
October 27, 2015 at 10:53
So you’re a Jaeger-off?
Charl van der Merwe
October 27, 2015 at 10:43
Played the Beta and I cannot wait to try all the other maps! It was really fun, but kudo’s to armchair critics foreseeing a failed game that haven’t even tried it.