âStar Wars: Battlefrontâ unleashed at fan convention
The Force isnât merely awakening on the big screen. Itâs also returning to the video game realm.
âStar Wars: Battlefrontâ publisher Electronic Arts and Swedish developer DICE showcased their next-generation rendition of the âStar Warsâ multiplayer shooter Friday at Star Wars Celebration, the annual fan extravaganza celebrating the sci-fi franchise.
The new iteration of âBattlefrontâ takes place amid the conflicts of the original film trilogy and is scheduled for release Nov. 17 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC.
âBattlefrontâ will focus on frenzied shoot-outs between up to 40 players portraying Rebel Alliance and Galactic Empire forces. In a demonstration of the gameâs multiplayer mode, a team of jetpack-equipped rebels were shown carving their way through the woodsy Endorwhile Stormtroopers charged at them on foot, on speeders and within walkers, including a hulking AT-AT war machine.
Other locales teased in game footage included the snowy Hoth, sandy Tatooine and gooey Sullust, a lava-spewing planet referenced in 1983âs âReturn of the Jedi,â as well as many âStar Warsâ games and novels, but rarely ever seen. âBattlefrontâ wonât solely be centered on expendable ground troops. The game will reward sharpshooters with the ability to embody such iconic characters as bounty hunter Boba Fett and Sith baddie Darth Vader on the battlefield.
âYou can storm in as the Dark Lord himself,â said âBattlefrontâ design director Niklas Fegraeus. âYou can wield a lightsaber. You can Force choke the rebel scum, which is fun. Basically, you are the boss of the battle. This means that you, as Vader, can lead your team to victory â if you play well.â
The action will also take to the skies with players engaging in dogfights with TIE Fighters, X-wings and the Millennium Falcon, though the developers were coy about how battles would alternate between ground and air combat.
âWe wanted it to feel authentic to this universe,â said âBattlefrontâ executive producer Patrick Bach. âYou can get into these vehicles, from speeder bikes to X-wings, TIE fighters, AT-STs, AT-ATs. Thereâs a wide range of vehicles that we wanted to realize. The difficulty with a game is that they need to be balanced with the troops on the ground.â
âBattlefrontâ will also include a free downloadable level available two weeks before âStar Wars: The Force Awakensâ opens in theaters Dec. 18. Itâs set on Jakku, the battle-scarred desert planet glimpsed in âForce Awakensâ teasers. The expansion, dubbed âBattle of Jakku,â will explore the moment following âReturn of the Jediâ when the New Republic confronted Imperial holdouts on the previously unseen Outer Rim enclave.
âYou never get to see it in the new movie, so it was this brilliant opportunity to recreate the Battle of Jakku, which you only see the remnants of in the movie,â said Bach. âIn the game, you actually get to play the Battle of Jakku. Itâs the same place from the new movie but 30 years earlier.â
The original âBattlefrontâ was released in 2005 by publisher LucasArts and developer Pandemic Studios. It dispatched with traditional âStar Warsâ storytelling in favor of shoot-'em-up action.
The forthcoming âBattlefront,â which was first teased at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in 2013, marks the first title in a 10-year deal between the Walt Disney Co. and Electronic Arts Inc. to create new âStar Warsâ games.
âWe didnât want this to be a normal licensing relationship,â said LucasArts digital business vice president Ada Duan at Celebration. âWe didnât want them to just make movie games. We wanted a deep partnership to create brand-new experiences.â
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