Revealed at the Star Wars 40th Anniversary celebrations, Star Wars Battlefront II will endeavour to fix the criticisms of the previous game, complete with an engaging campaign, dynamic space combat, and much more.
Here's the full run down on what we learned.
The campaign for Star Wars Battlefront II puts you in the role of Iden Versio of Inferno Squad, an elite special forces storm trooper unit of the Galactic Empire. The Inferno Squad's story will bridge the 30 year gap between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, and will be officially canonized in Star Wars lore.
The campaign for Star Wars Battlefront II was developed in close collusion between Motive Studios, led by Jade Raymond of Assassin's Creed fame, and Lucasfilm's story group who control the lore of the Star Wars franchise.
Game Director Mark Thompson hailed the partnership, emphasizing the decision to see the war from the Empire's side.
"We wanted to create a campaign that told a story we haven't seen before in Star Wars. It was important for us to tell a new authentic story, one that gives players a brand-new perspective. By putting players in the boots of an elite member of the Imperial forces, we can show them what the battle was like from the other side."
In addition to the campaign, those who felt Battlefront's 2015 reboot was lacking in the multiplayer department should be pleased to hear that it sounds like a ton of depth is being injected into proceedings. Yavin 4's jungles, Mos Eisley's spaceport, and Starkiller Base itself will all feature in the multiplayer, as it spans the prequel, classic, and new trilogies of the Star Wars universe. The trailer shows Yoda, Darth Maul, Luke Skywalker, and Kylo Ren, all as playable entities, and player progression will extend to regular soldiers, heroes, and starfighters.
Speaking of which, Criterion, famed for Burnout and Need For Speed are building Battlefront's vehicular combat, featuring galactic-scale space warfare. Battlefront 2015's overly simplistic space battles offered brief stints of satisfaction but were repetitive and shallow over longer periods of play.
Criterion has rebuilt the systems from the ground up. Starfighters will come with their own progression trees and customization in Battlefront II, with improved handling, weaponry, and combat options.
Matt Webster of Criterion said that they wanted to capture the essence of being a hero in the Star Wars universe with Battlefront II, focusing on every area of play.
"In Star Wars Battlefront II, we all wanted to really capture the essence of being heroic and how in Star Wars, anyone can become a hero. Whether that's playing as an iconic character like Rey or Luke, as a front-line trooper or fighter pilot in epic multiplayer battles, or playing through a new Star Wars story that bridges the gap between Star Wars: Return of the Jedi and Star Wars: The Force Awakens, you will become a hero in Star Wars Battlefront II."
Will Star Wars Battlefront II have a season pass?
It seems that Star Wars Battlefront II ditches EA's annoying season pass model, which fragments communities into tiny chunks every time a map pack is released (via Mashable).
Speaking at the Star Wars Celebration, Bernd Diemer of DICE confirmed that season passes were over, and that the company are revising how new maps would be delivered.
"We decided on that, and it's one of those difficult decisions because it has so many implications all around. When we looked at the way Battlefront had evolved over its lifetime, with the DLC and everything, we decided, 'You know what? For this type of game, season passes are not the best thing. We need to [take it apart] and come up with something better."
Pre-orders for Battlefront II are now live at Amazon and the Microsoft Store, ahead of a November 17th, 2017 launch date for PS4, PC, and Xbox One.
