After heading down to an event in London, where I got to play through the Star Wars Battlefront II single-player prologue and first two chapters, I feel I’ve got a good understanding of what the developers are aiming for with this experience, and overall, I’m pretty damn happy with what I saw.
To give you my impressions in an easy-to-digest way, let’s go with a Top 5 structure. These are the top five reasons why Star Wars Battlefront II’s single-player is a must-play.
5 – Comprehensive Menu Settings
I know this is a very boring one to kick things off with, but I’ve got to give credit where it’s due. So many games allow you to extensively customize the multiplayer experience, while leaving the single-player locked into a very specific state.
As soon as I loaded up Battlefront II’s campaign, I dived into the menus. I changed the default view to third-person, and cranked up the FOV. And this is on a PlayStation 4 Pro! Imagine, a console with these settings in both single-player and multiplayer!
I could gush about the other options, but let’s move on!
4 – How Iden Measures Up
As the main character of such an important story, Iden Versio needs to be liked and embraced by fans. Star Wars heroes are a key part of the experience, and Iden needs to match up to some serious competition. The Force Awakens’ cast succeeded in winning our hearts, and from what I’ve seen from Iden, who is a very capable Imperial Commander stuck in the middle of some shady business, I think she’ll do well.
3 – Combat & Customization
Of course, it helps that Iden is a complete badass and very fun to play as. Star Cards that you earn in-game (and only in-game) help to shape her as a soldier. Combine these with the ability to swap out weapons and customize loadouts, and Iden becomes a very versatile character.
2 – Space Battles
Yep, I know it’s single-player space battles and you’re fighting bots, but my word, the presentation and gameplay just comes together to make for the definitive Star Wars space battle experience.
Even on PS4 Pro, it looked and sounded incredible. Of course, that’s nothing new, as 2015’s Battlefront reboot still holds up nicely, but now the gameplay has been revamped to match. Fighting in space was my highlight of the entire event.
1 – Filling in the Gap
Battlefront II has a huge responsibility: It must tell us what happened between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. The fact that this game follows and contributes to the movie canon is going to be reason enough for many fans to pick it up.
Thankfully, from what I’ve played, it’s holding up rather well. There’s even some subtle hints and references of past films and what else is happening in the universe. You can tell this was made by some hardcore Star Wars fans, backed up by the approval of LucasArts.
And so those are my five reasons why Battlefront II’s single-player campaign is a must-play. I’m actually more hyped for Iden’s story than I am for the multiplayer component.
Are you looking forward to Battlefront II? Will you be giving the campaign a go? Let me know in the comments below.
For more original video, podcasts, and the latest in game trailers, don’t forget to subscribe to Pixel Enemy!
Travel to and from the Star Wars Battlefront II preview event was paid for by EA.