We’re recapping all the biggest moments and releases for Star Wars gaming in 2020.
2020 may have lacked the blockbuster game in the Star Wars universe akin to the brilliant Jedi: Fallen Order or beloved Battlefront franchise. But it did have many smaller moments that showed signs of the gaming world moving in a positive direction.
A new game did in fact release, Star Wars Squadrons, and there were notable updates to the two aforementioned ones. The mobile gaming world continues to grow, alongside the deepest dive into virtual reality yet. There continues to be a craving for more Star Wars games as EA states its intentions to double-down on the license. However, those promises have not yet surfaced, and canceled games continue to riddle the galaxy’s plans.
But beyond that lone mark, it was a largely successful year for Star Wars gaming in 2020. Let’s highlight some of the very best moments.
5. Content packs and partnerships
Electronic Arts (EA) may hold exclusive rights to the Star Wars gaming license, but that doesn’t mean that partnerships cannot happen in other places. 2020 was a big year for that. Transitioning into the new year amid the release of The Rise of Skywalker was the first content pack for the popular battle royale video game, Fortnite. The event ran until January 7th and featured cosmetic items for Rey, Finn and the Sith Troopers, as well as a TIE Whisper Glider.
Outside of the sequel trilogy, the update also allowed players to wield some famous lightsabers, such as Mace Windu’s and Luke Skywalker’s. The release was so successful that Star Wars partnered up with the folks at Epic Games once more for May 4 and again just this month, as the Mandalorian and Baby Yoda enter the game as well.
Beyond Fortnite, Star Wars forayed into other games as well. One includes a new pack for a popular EA title, Sims 4, entitled Journey to Batuu — home to the Galaxy’s Edge theme park. The expansion of the role-playing game enabled players to fulfill their biggest dreams on Batuu, fighting for either the First Order or Resistance, though with some mixed responses.
And for one more way to continue the fight, head into Mojang’s Minecraft which added a massive Star Wars DLC in November. For a slow year in new releases, Star Wars had a significant presence in more galaxies than its own.
4. Jedi Fallen Order and Battlefront content updates
It was a positive year for two of EA’s biggest Star Wars releases yet, Jedi: Fallen Order and Battlefront: II. The former, along with being the second best-selling game in the US in 2020, delivered a surprise content update during the year as well. The single-player story did not go any further, but developers Respawn delivered on meditation training, New Journey+ and fresh cosmetics, headlined by the inclusion of Cal’s inquisitor outfit. It wasn’t anything major, but enough to make me hop back in again. The game’s success also sets up the inevitable sequel bound to arrive in the coming years.
Battlefront II had a whirlwind of a year as well. The story of the multiplayer shooter’s rocky release and incredible comeback sadly culminated in 2020. Despite the game’s resounding success and strong player base, support reached its end after 25 content updates with the Battle of Scarif addition this past April.
Earlier in the year, DICE finished off its Rise of Skywalker content update with the addition of heroes BB-8 and BB-9E. The Age of Rebellion update also released in February, introducing new reinforcements, including the beloved Ewoks, and the popular co-op game mode to the original trilogy.
It was a large mass of content and a journey that I enjoyed every step of the way, but it was disappointing to see it come to an end just as the game was reaching its peak. Hopefully, we get to step on new Battlefronts again in the years ahead.
3. Galaxy of Heroes continues to grow
Perhaps the biggest cash cow of EA’s Star Wars array has been the longstanding mobile app Galaxy of Heroes. While many mobile projects have come and gone, this one has stood the test of time, and 2020 was another big year for it.
I tried a hand at this game a few times but never quite stuck to it. Regardless, the amount of content is simply impressive. 2020 was of course the year of The Mandalorian, with all of the show’s key fixtures such as Din Djarin, Cara Dune and Greef Karga making their appearance, as well as more recently IG-11 and Kuiil.
Aside from the usual events and challenges, some fan-favorite characters entered the game as well, including Jedi Knight and Master Luke Skywalker, Admiral Piett and a special Episode IX version of the Emperor.
It may not be significant news to many, especially considering criticisms of the micro-transaction model of mobile games, but Galaxy of Heroes remains one of the longest-standing Star Wars games to date with five years under its belt.
Trying to build off that success, major publisher Zynga has begun work on a new mobile game itself as part of a multi-year deal with Disney. And the vintage Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II will be making the shift to mobile in the near future as well.
So get ready, mobile games are here to stay and are only going to grow.
2. Virtual reality became a bigger focus
One of the more intriguing gaming spaces has been virtual reality. The site of great anticipation has struggled to really take off the ground due to unwieldy design and limited play options. However, the opportunity has not been ignored, with 2020 representing a big step forward for virtual reality gaming.
Star Wars was a part of it, delivering an entirely new experience in Tales from Galaxy’s Edge and the expansion of a familiar one, Vader: Immortal.
Released on Facebook’s Oculus platform, the first took us to Batuu to pair up alongside the likes of R2-D2 and C-3PO for what seemed to be a fun foray around the Black Spire Outpost. However, it turned out to have a deeper story than just that, delivering a satisfying open-world Star Wars experience, albeit a small one. But with another entry confirmed for the coming years, it represents a solid first step for ILM x LAB.
Speaking of ILM x LAB, the studio built upon its narrative-driven Vader: Immortal series, not in terms of content, but availability. The episodes were brought to the PlayStation VR platform while the company plans to add pop-up gaming experiences across the globe as well. It certainly isn’t anything major, but another step forward for virtual reality.
Undoubtedly, though, the biggest story, both in virtual reality and on the year as a whole, came from EA’s lone new release of the year, Star Wars Squadrons…
1. Star Wars Squadrons
Released in October by Motive, who delivered the campaign for Battlefront II, Star Wars Squadrons is a very different kind of Star Wars game. With a much smaller development team and scope and price tag of just $40 that quickly dropped to $20, Squadrons was a bite-sized game published largely so EA could keep one on the shelves. In that sense, it was successful.
Delivering an entertaining yet short single-player campaign and very solid gameplay across its two multiplayer modes, Squadrons is a welcomed addition to the gaming library that filled the gap in the flying genre and evoked the memories of Rogue Squadron for some. And the virtual reality mode seems to be the best way to experience it.
Yet, I am writing all this as someone who has not yet bought the game myself, which should tell you all you need to know. Squadrons seems to be a fun game but just not a worthy investment with the lack of post-launch commitment. Yes, new content from The Mandalorian and the much-requested B-Wing and TIE Defender were recently added, but it just isn’t enough to convince me, likely not the casual fan either.
I’m interested to see where the sales numbers sit for this one, and it may have the potential to resonate with committed pilots for the years to come. Though, it certainly leaves us wanting something more, which we can only hope will come in 2021.
How should we assess Star Wars gaming in 2020?
With all things considered, was 2020 a good or bad year for Star Wars gaming? My answer has to be good, not solely in what was released, but what was said. Seeing the license grow into new games and publishers is a welcome sight. At the same time, EA continues to make noticeable strides with Star Wars themselves, building on an already great game in Fallen Order and delivering a solid new one in Squadrons. They have also expressed their commitment to delve deeper into the Star Wars license in the years to come.
It still feels like something is missing — that one big, open-world adventure that fans have been craving and has been canceled many times before, be it 1313 or Visceral’s latest project. Yet neither of those two things were expected in 2020.
Instead, this year delivered some more niche experiences, be it for fans of flying, virtual reality or battle royales. It wasn’t the big blockbuster year like we had a year ago, but it speaks to the multi-layered power that Star Wars continues to be.
I’ll keep waiting for that massive experience fans have been desiring, but 2020 was a great distraction until then. At the very least, we have LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga to look forward to in 2021!
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