Star Wars Squadrons – Everything we know so far about cosmic combat, ships and more

It has been (checks My Little Pony watch)…too damn long since Star Wars took to the skies in a dedicated starfighter game. Forget about being a Jedi, because the coolest part of that franchise has always been a pitched dogfight in the unforgiving vacuum of space while the entire fate of the galaxy hangs in the balance.

Star Wars Squadrons looks set to finally scratch that itch, and the end result looks more beautiful than a village of dead Gungans who have recently been introduced to the business end of a lightsaber. In case you missed the reveal last night, here’s everything that we know about the game so far.

Single-player

The second Death Star has been turned into a smouldering pile of plot device for the third terrible film in an upcoming sequel trilogy. Even with the Emperor out for the count and Darth Vader a distant memory, there’s still a galaxy to fight over! Set between the decades of Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, you’ll be suiting up and hopping into a starfighter for either the Rebel Alliance or the remnants of the Galactic Empire’s Imperial fleet.

The choice is up to you: On the Rebel side is the plucky gang of ace misfits known as Vanguard Squadron, while on the infinitely cooler and more awesome Imperial side is Titan Squadron. It’ll be up to you to shift the balance of power, and finally finish the war that will allow your chosen side to emerge victorious once and for all.

Can I choose my pilot?

Yup! You’ll be able to customise your pilot’s overall appearance, ranging from human to that one alien species that looks like it has a sloppy hamburger for a mouth.

Can I play Star Wars Squadrons in VR?

Oh yes, the entire game can be played from that perspective if you have the kit for it.

Will I need a chuck bucket for the VR option when I do one too many loop-de-loops?

Probably!

How does it play?

So far, it looks like Squadrons is entirely cockpit-focused. There’s no third-person option that was shown off, but you’ll need the more visceral view as your cockpit containts information on your shields, sensors, power management and more. There’s a lot of info to take notice of, but it doesn’t seem to be too overwhelming.

Multiplayer

Why fly solo when you can have wingmen at your back? Multiplayer will focus on 5v5 battles, with the following modes available:

• Dogfight mode: Team deathmatch 5v5 but in space and with extra pew pew
• Fleet Battles: Multi-stage conflicts, with the main goal being the destruction of a faction flaship. You’ll be able to play solo with an AI squadron behind you as well.

Ships

There’ll be eight ships available in the game, each one belonging to its class and faction. So far these include:

• Fighter – Imperial TIE Fighter and Rebel Alliance X-Wing, attack-happy Jack of all trades fighters
• Interceptor – TIE Interceptor and Rebel Alliance A-Wing, highly fast and agile
• Support – TIE Reaper and Rebel Alliance U-Wing, keep your allies safe and disrupt enemy fighters
• Bombers – TIE Bomber and Rebel Alliance Y-Wing, heavyweight ships designed to take down flagships

Maps

You’ll be able to explore the usual iconic haunts of Star Wars, plus a few new locations!

• Yavin Prime
• Esseles
• Nadiri Dockyards
• Sissubo
• Galitan
• Zavian Abyss

Customisation

EA says all customisation options for your pilot and starfighter can be unlocked from inside the game, although EA hasn’t mentioned any premium DLC packages yet.

Is that an Ewok bobble-head?

Yes and it’s the worst I hate those little bastards.

Ship loadouts

THERE SO MANY! So instead of going on about how I hate Ewoks, here’s the full list of components that alter how your ships fly and perform in combat:

• Laser cannon
• Rotary cannon
• Burst cannon
• Rapid-fire cannon
• Plasburst cannon
• Auto-aim cannon
• Guided rotary cannon
• Guided quad cannon
• Beam cannon
• Ion cannon
• Concussion missile
• Turret mine
• Seeker mine
• Quick-lock missile
• Goliath missile
• Rockets
• Ion Missile
• Ion torpedo
• Multi-lock missile
• Cluster missile
• Proton torpedo
• Proton bomb
• Ion bomb
• Automatic Ion cannon
• Baradium torpedo
• Repair droid
• Repair system
• Tractor beam
• Assault shield
• Mimic Beacon
• Tactical shield
• Targeting jammer
• Targeting beacons
• Supply droid
• Squadron mask
• Seeker warheads
• Chaff particles
• Sensor jammer
• Sensor inverter
• Ferrocermaic hull
• Reinforced hull
• Light hull
• Laminasteel hull
• Dampener hull
• Defelctor hull
• Reflector hull
• Deflector shield
• Resonant shield
• Nimble deflector
• Fortified deflector
• Ray shield
• Scrambler shield
• Conversion shield
• Overloaded shield
• Sublight engine
• Propulsion engine
• Thrust engine
• Microthrust engine
• Ion jet engine
• Slam engine

Platforms

You’ll be able to hop in on Xbox One, PS4 and PC. On the PC side, the game will be available on Steam, Epic Games Store and EA Origin.

What are the PC requirements?

For non-VR, these are the minimum specs:

• OS: Windows 10
• Processor (AMD): Ryzen 3 1300X
• Processor (Intel): Intel I5-7600
• Memory: 8GB
• Graphics Card (AMD): Radeon HD 7850 or Equivalent
• Graphics Card (Nvidia): GeForce GTX 660 or Equivalent
• DirectX: 11
• Multiplayer Online Connection Requirements: 512 KBPS or faster Internet connection
• Hard Drive Space: 30GB

Although EA recommends you fly into battle with this type of PC:

• OS: Windows 10
• Processor (AMD): Ryzen 3 3200G
• Processor (Intel): Intel I7-7700
• Memory: 16GB
• Graphics Card (AMD): Radeon RX 480 or Equivalent
• Graphics Card (Nvidia): GeForce GTX 1060 or Equivalent
• DirectX: 11
• Multiplayer Online Connection Requirements: 512 KBPS or faster Internet connection
• Hard Drive Space: 30GB

If you’re planning to play the game in VR, here’s what you’ll need:

• OS: Windows 10
• Processor (AMD): Ryzen 3 3200G
• Processor (Intel): Intel I7-7700
• Memory: 16GB
• Graphics Card (AMD): Radeon RX 570 or Equivalent
• Graphics Card (Nvidia): GeForce GTX 1070 or Equivalent
• DirectX: 11
• Multiplayer Online Connection Requirements: 512 KBPS or faster Internet connection
• Hard Drive Space: 30GB

Release date

Soon! Star Wars Squadrons will drop out of orbit on October 2.

Last Updated: June 19, 2020