Five things we want to see in Star Wars: Squadrons

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Third Person Camera

This is more of a personal request than anything, but an important one nonetheless. In Battlefront and Battlefront II, vehicle combat offered both a first and third person camera option. A third person camera, for me, at least, is more comfortable and enjoyable. Everything feels less chaotic and more manageable. As has now been confirmed, Star Wars: Squadrons will not offer a third person camera option outside of “spectator mode”.

There appears to be a legitimate reason behind this decision, mind. In an interview with GameSpot, the games Creative Director, Ian Frazier, said:

"“The whole game is designed from the ground up to be first-person all the way through. Now if you’re in spectator mode, you’re observing, there’s a third-person perspective there. You are the pilot. All the diegetic information is built into the hud, so you could turn off all the game layer UI if you want and rely entirely on your instruments. We want that to be the core experience.”"

While I do appreciate that the game is designed with the first person viewpoint in mind, not having the ability to play with the camera behind your ship is a must. It’s a silly point to bring up, but EA previously pointed to the feeling of “pride and accomplishment” of unlocking certain characters and outfits. There is an element to that, especially in a scenario where you are essentially owning and maintaining your own X-Wing. It would be strange to allow the players to spend time on customizing their own ship, only to not let them actually see it in action.

Secondly, Frazier alludes to the idea that having a third person camera could provide the players who use that option. In a sense, I don’t disagree here. Seeing the space outside of your cockpit would, in most cases, give you a better understanding of where your opposition is.

With that in mind, it absolutely would give you an unfair advantage against someone who is playing in first person. Why not, then, add a mode that only lets you play in third person? There’d be no competitive edge gained by anyone, and those of us who prefer that camera angle would likely be inclined to play more games in one sitting than we usually might.

Star Wars: Squadrons is set to launch worldwide on October 2, 2020.