In addition to the much-hyped Star Wars Episode VII trailer that debuted this past week at the Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim, California, EA and DICE also took the opportunity to share the first trailer for Star Wars Battlefront, which is coming to PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows on November 17.
Although the action is obviously scripted, Game Informer’s write-up of a gameplay demo from Anaheim reveals that it sticks closely to how the game actually plays. The trailer is mostly set in the forest of Endor. A group of green-clad Rebel soldiers — human and otherwise — holds a position against invading Imperial forces of increasing scale, starting with storm troopers and speeder bikes, but rapidly escalating to an AT-ST and a towering AT-AT walker. The soldiers are armed with laser rifles, thermal detonators, and a deployable energy shield. In one particularly badass shot, a leaping rebel soldier nails an AT-ST from mid-air with a perfectly placed rocket. The dense trees and sloping forest landscape complicate sight lines, making the battle simultaneously expansive and intimate. Players will be able to seamlessly switch between both first- and third-person perspective, embracing both gameplay modes that have been used in the series previously.
Toward the end of the trailer, it cuts to other classic locations like the ice fields of Hoth and an aerial fight through a dessert canyon. X-wings and tie fighters will be playable within the game, alongside land-based vehicles like Imperial walkers and speeder bikes, but the action will be limited to in-atmosphere dogfighting. Classic characters such as Darth Vader, Boba Fett, and Han Solo will also be playable, along with iconic ships like the Millennium Falcon. Developer DICE spent an unprecedented amount of time in the LucasFilm archives, photographing props and costumes, ensuring a high level of fidelity to the look and feel of the original films.
According to Game Informer’s report, the demonstration was indicative of a 40-player mode called Walker Assault. Star Wars Battlefront is primarily a multiplayer experience, and will not feature a traditional single-player campaign as such. Instead there will be a mode called Battlefront Missions, which are similar to the multiplayer experience, but with an additional layer of objectives to complete. There will also be the option for two players to play cooperatively through splitscreen, which has become an increasingly rare feature in online-focused shooters.
We look forward to learning more about the game in the coming months, and hope to get some hands-on time for you when we report from E3 in June.
