Star Wars Battlefront II has seemingly been in flux since it’s 2017 release. With the most recent Scarif update being the last new content, Battlefront II will slowly burn out with mixed results.
The announcement trailer for Star Wars Battlefront II was full of promise to build on its 2015 predecessor. There were expectations for more heroes, more customization, and a new campaign that was noticeably absent from the last game. Instead, we got what felt like a half-finished product and microtransactions that left the fanbase feeling scammed.
Iconic visuals and a nostalgic score weren’t enough to hide the clunky mechanics, limited character pools, and an extremely flawed progression system that favored players who were willing to spend even more money in order to gain an edge in multiplayer. You even had to spend your in-game credits to unlock playable characters, which added a major barrier for one of the most exciting features.
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Fortunately, those setbacks didn’t last long.
EA has been fighting an uphill battle ever since to maintain Battlefront’s relevance in gaming while restoring goodwill with players. Slowly they began to dismantle the features make up that made it feel like a pay-to-play mobile game but were left with a vague outline and they spent the next two years trying to fill it in.
To this day, you can see remnants of Battlefront’s controversial past. The loot crates that were key to upgrading your character (a major problem) now sit empty. Three in-game currencies (crafting parts, credits, and crystals. I’m still not sure what crystals were actually for) that were used to obtain a variety of content have been rendered completely useless.
But we have to give them credit — they didn’t abandon the game for a full two years, despite a disastrous launch. It would have been extremely easy for EA to shrug its shoulders and move on to its next project while pretending Battlefront II never happened. The various teams continued to roll out events, rework characters and game modes, and add new free downloadable content including the occasional new characters and maps. The game became pretty fun and provided plenty for fans to look forward to, which seemed incredibly unlikely following its release.
Still, the game is far from perfect. Battlefront II still features noticeable bugs, inconsistent mechanics, and lacks certain customization options that were present in its predecessor. Despite certain evidence pointing to their eventual inclusion, characters like Ahsoka, Padme, and Ventress were never made available. Darth Maul and the Emperor didn’t get new appearances until the final update, although plenty of possibilities. And despite early assurances, players didn’t have access to new weapons to supplement two years of gameplay until very recently. With The Clone Wars coming to a close, there was a prime opportunity to add a new event with playable characters and maps.
But it’s not to be. Unfortunately, EA spent too much time correcting its previous mistakes and derailed its potential in the process.
Creating the ideal Star Wars multiplayer game has been a struggle since the beloved 2005 Battlefront II. It’s tough to determine where the fourth installment fits into the pantheon of Star Wars games. Even EA would be hard-pressed to call the game a significant success. But if you consider where the game started, its current state is remarkable. IGN reviewed Battlefront after its progress and gave the game favorable reviews. Still, we can’t help but wonder what could have been for the fan-favorite title, if only it jumped out to the strong start we anticipated.
How do you feel about support for Battlefront II finally coming to end? Let us know below.