Over the decades, Star Wars games have been in abundance. In fact, there have probably been enough to actually create a separate genre for them all. Well, as that is unlikely to happen anytime soon, Star Wars: Battlefront falls nicely into the ‘shooter’ genre, offering the option of either a first person perspective or third person over-the-shoulder view (my preference).
The action in the Star Wars films has always been exciting, and many a fan has often wondered what it would be like to participate in the legendary battles witnessed on a movie screen.
Cease wondering, my young Padawan, for Battlefront will put you right in the heart of some incredible action from two eras: The Clone Wars and the Galactic Empire.
Gameplay
Although the concept of the game is simple (shoot your way to victory), Battlefront is more than just a regular shoot ‘em up. With over 30 vehicles to pilot (including AT-ATs, Tie Fighters and Speeder-bikes) the action is virtually non-stop from beginning to end.
When the numbers from both sides have dwindled to maybe ten or so, it then becomes a battle for survival and the hectic action is replaced with mounting tension.
Victory is determined on either of two conditions: the enemy forces are eliminated (yes, all 250 units!) or you capture all the enemy command posts. Capturing a command post is not as simple as it appears, as the enemy will naturally try to recapture it from you. Leaving a garrison of troops to guard a post is often a successful way of ensuring it remains under your control.
Unfortunately, the reward for victory is something of an anti-climax; just some original footage from the Star Wars films. This is no bad thing, however, as you get to see the awesome Death Star in action if you choose to fight for the Empire.
Battles take place over ten planets, all of them instantly recognisable such as Tatooine and Hoth. Hoth? That’s right, get ready for some classic “The Empire Strikes Back” action involving AT-ATs and snow troopers!
A nice feature included in the game is “Jedi Hero” which sees Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, Mace Windu and Count Dooku (depending on the era and your allegiance) entering the battle to fight alongside you. These Jedi don’t fall under your command like your regular squad members and are impossible to kill, so trying to fight them will only lead to death and a hail of blaster-fire as it ricochets off their lightsabers.
While the “Jedi Hero” option is a nice feature, I would have preferred a planet-specific hero, for example, Jango Fett on Kamino and Chewbacca on Kashyyk. As it stands, fighting alongside Lord Vader in the cantina of Mos Eisley is good enough for me.
There are two single player modes to work through if “Instant Action” is a little, well, too instant for you:
Historical Campaign puts you in the heart of the action from either the Clone Wars or the Galactic Civil War. You choose the era then work your way through the missions in chronological order.
In Galactic Conquest, strategy is used to establish control of planets. First, choose a map formation based on clashes from both eras of Star Wars history. Some levels begin with both sides balanced, others favour one of the factions. You then choose your faction.
The game is then played in turns, and you have the initiative. With the initiative, you can decide which planet to attack. If you are victorious, the initiative is maintained and you select another planet to attack. If you lose a battle, you also lose the initiative and thus the enemy decides which planet to attack.
Once you’ve got past the attractive presentation, piloted every vehicle and either rebelled on or conquered all ten planets in the two campaign modes, you will realise there is little else to do, and possibly be left feeling unsatisfied… well you would be justified in feeling this way. Despite the sheer number of units and intensity of the battles, they are just that… battles. The single player aspect is quite lacking in the depth department and I quickly realised that playing repeatedly was simply practice against AI controlled bots. However, there is a reason for this practice that I will move onto shortly…
Control
With infantry, vehicles and starfighters at your disposal, there are plenty of controls to familiarise yourself with. The following provides the default for infantry, transport/vehicles and starfighters.
Infantry
Left thumbstick = Run forward/backward; strafe left/right.
Right thumbstick = Free look/aim; click to zoom.
A = Jump (press again in the air to activate jetpack).
B = Single tap to crouch; quick double tap to go prone.
Y = Action/enter vehicle.
X = Reload.
Left trigger = Secondary fire.
White button = Switch secondary weapon.
Right trigger = Primary fire.
Black button = Switch primary weapon.
Back = Toggle map.
Start = Pause.
D-Pad = Squad commands:
Up = Move out.
Left = At ease.
Right = Follow me.
Down = Hold position.
Vehicle/Transport
Left thumbstick = Throttle; strafe left/right.
Right thumbstick = Pitch/turn; click to zoom.
A = Take off/land for gunship and MAF.
B = No function.
Y = Exit vehicle.
X = No function.
Left trigger = Secondary weapon.
White button = No function.
Right trigger = Primary weapon.
Black button = Switch position (inside vehicle).
Back = Toggle maps.
Start = Pause.
D-Pad = Squad commands:
Up = Lets go.
Left = Everyone out.
Right = Pile in.
Down = Hold position.
Starfighter
Left thumbstick = Pitch turn.
Right thumbstick = Throttle.
A = Land/take off.
B = No function.
Y = Exit vehicle.
X = No function.
Left trigger = Secondary weapon.
White button = No function.
Right trigger = Primary weapon.
Black button = Switch positions (inside vehicle).
Back = Toggle map.
Start = Pause.
D-Pad = Squad commands:
Up = Let’s go.
Left = Everyone out.
Right = Pile in.
Down = Hold position.
As with most good games, the controller functions can be completely re-mapped to a more suitable configuration, plus you can set a free button (e.g. clicking the left thumbstick) to switch between first and third person view during the game. This saves the hassle of going through the options screen each time.
Overall, control of your infantry is smooth and intuitive and takes minimal time to get used to. Starfighter controls, however, often feel unusual (at the time of writing this, I have yet to become the perfect rebel pilot). The interior views from the vehicles do give a vague sense of simulation, but the obstructions created by the cockpit will no doubt force many people to stick with the third person view for better peripheral vision.
Graphics
With ten accurately rendered planets, there is plenty to feast your eyes on and you may even feel like doing some sightseeing from above at the controls of an X-Wing fighter!
Back on the ground, the environments are excellently designed and there are plenty of locations for rooftop snipers.
All the characters are faithfully recreated from both sets of films and feature Storm Troopers, Clone Troopers, Battle Droids and rebel scum! These are well animated and best viewed from the third person perspective. First Person lovers will enjoy the ability to see their weapon and make better use of the zoom feature.
Rag doll physics naturally create some hilarious death scenes. Getting blasted off a Bespin (City in the clouds) platform is the funniest moment so far!
Audio
There isn’t a lot to be said about the in-game music except it is taken directly from the films. Hearing the cantina band playing on Mos Eisley is nice touch though and shows good attention to detail.
In game Dolby® Digital is a highly desirable feature for many games, and an absolute must for combat oriented games like Battlefront. You won’t be disappointed with blaster fire filling air and Tie Fighters soaring past you in totally immersive surround sound.
Xbox Live
Welcome the heart of Star Wars: Battlefront, my apprentice! As you may remember from earlier, I was somewhat disappointed with the lack of depth to the single player aspect of this game. Well, this is the reason; Battlefront is all about the multiplayer and is a groundbreaker as far as Xbox Live is concerned.
With dedicated servers available, the option to engage in squad based combat with up to 24 players (and AI support) is a first for Microsoft’s online gaming service.
The online play does suffer from a couple of faults. The first (and worst) is lag. Obviously this will be experienced when sessions include players or hosts with low connection speeds. At times, lag can make the game unplayable but find a smooth server and you’re in for one hell of a ride!
Hosts offering up servers larger than their connections can handle is another irritation as it can lead to several attempts to find a game that doesn’t greet you with the message “Network conditions may affect…” yep, that old gem!
Find a smooth game, however, and with good communication and teamwork, you can form an unstoppable squad of soldiers (or droids), pilots and gunners as you attempt to eliminate the enemy by whatever means possible.
The planet Geonosis stands out as a superb multiplayer battleground due to its sheer size… and this size results in a vast array of vehicles at your disposal include Spider Walkers, Jedi Starfighters and Republic Gunships. Essentially, this is a recreation of the battle witnessed in Attack of the Clones!
Surprisingly, there are no online scoreboards, which often feature heavily in shooters. While this doesn’t bother me to any great extent it’s always nice to take a look it how many kills you’ve racked up and check the accuracy of your blasters..
Don’t expect any downloadable content either, although there will be an update or two to perform when you first sign into Live.
Replay Value
With the exception of practicing against AI controlled opponents, reply value is almost non-existent for the single player campaigns as there is nothing new on offer. But if you are blessed with Xbox Live or access to LAN play, you will have many hours of Star Wars fun!
Overall Score
8.0/10 [better than average]
Additional Comments
Star Wars: Battlefront is a shooter with a couple edges that are unique. 24 players via Xbox Live and system link affords the opportunity for very good socialising while trying to annihilate massive armies.
Vehicle combat is also a welcome addition to a genre that is currently saturating the market and I enjoyed having the option of an over-the-shoulder view.
System Link gaming is truly wonderful, especially if you can get together with eight or more friends (i.e. four Xboxes). There are no problems such as lag and I would say that, with the exception of Halo, this is the best multiplayer game currently available on the Xbox.
I did find that only 2 players pre Xbox made it difficult getting together with a lot of friends, however, those bots are a godsend if you only have a small number of players available.
Overall, Battlefront is a game that can get old quite quickly if you don’t have Xbox Live, but at least you will have the opportunity to kill some of those annoying Gungans if you venture to the plains of Naboo!
My thanks also go to
Shizen Tai for his contribution to this review.
But the over all gameplay and online experience make up for it.
Linear Mode
