Walker Assault has Imperial forces defend their AT-AT walking tanks, while Rebel players must work to incapacitate and destroy them. Walker Assault and Supremacy are the big draw, as they feature two teams of 20 engaging in a large-scale battle. In both cases, the power up respawns quickly after the weapon is used or the vehicle/hero is defeated.īattlefront has several game modes to play. Weapon power ups are numerous, while vehicle and Heroes/Villains are usually limited to one per map. Naturally, your prowess balances out the generous number of perks available on the map: bad players will quickly die and lose their perks faster than good ones, giving other players the chance to pick them up. As a result, combat is very accessible, as even a bad player can be Emperor Sheev Palpatine or pilot a TIE-fighter for a turn. Orbital strikes, rocket launchers, vehicles, proximity mines, gun turrets, and Hero/Villain Units such as Darth Vader are strewn throughout the map, so less-than-efficient players can acquire and enjoy these perks as well, provided they memorize the spawn points for these power-ups. Power-ups are found on the map rather than being tied to player kill streaks, as is often the case in shooters. Large-scale modes like Walker Assault and Supremacy use the entire map to accommodate 40 players, while smaller game modes contain the action in specific sections of the map. There are essentially four major maps, with specific areas cordoned off depending on the game mode you're playing. Maps, Modes, and Power ups Star Wars: Battlefront takes the galactic warfare to four major planets: the frozen Hoth, the desert planet Tatooine, the heavily forested Endor, and the volcanic Sullust. The liberal use of John Williams's iconic music and the Wilhelm scream only add to Battlefront's movie-like vibe. The escalated beeping and mechanical whirring of a proximity mine sounds amazing, and is trumped only by the thunderous, bass-heavy explosion that blows your teammates hilariously across the room.
That said, everything in Battlefront hits hard and feels great to use. Because of this, you rarely need or want a long-range weapon. Every area is filled with caverns, tunnels, trenches, and more, so it is very easy to sneak up on other players or get ambushed. Battlefront maps are surprisingly claustrophobic, despite how large they can be. In practice, however, the gunplay falls short. You get a variety of Star Wars blasters to unlock and use, from pistol-style single-shot arms to beefy fully automatic energy-spewing death machines. The bulk of your time is spent staring down the barrel of your blaster as you hunt down other players. The plasma cannon Star Card, for example, lets you fire a potent green energy blast with sniper-like accuracy, but will enter a thirty-second cooldown when used. Star Cards can be used instantly, as the situation demands, but they go into a cooldown afterwards, to prevent overuse. The bonuses include temporary attack buffs and jump packs. You unlock Star Cards as you increase your rank through fighting. The 1, 2, and 3 keys let you use special abilities, called Star Cards.