Quick Look: Star Wars Battlefront II

I was just wondering when this might go up...

*buckles in*

Easy GOTY

Now that is an all encompassing video description. Noice!

Very good choice of screengrab.

Glad the East crew is taking a look at this after the pounding it got from Jeff this week, a more balanced look should help decide if I get this or not.

Considering how brilliant the visual presentation is of this game and how solidly it can play, it baffles me that Dice/EA have been able to fuck this up.

@mikerabsitch: I think Jeff was pretty lenient on it tbh

I just kinda feel bad for Janina for being associated with this game. I know nothing about her, other than her being in The League, and some GB stuff, but thats gotta not feel great.

This is what mobile games has rot to console games *SHAKES FIST*

The loot crate / currency walk-through at the beginning is making my head spin. And it's not the fault of GBE.

There's no balance to be found here. You'll be hard-pressed to find someone who'll defend this game and its anti-consumer grind.

Roger Roger

Abby’s first real industry challenge: how do you shit talk a game someone you personally know has worked really hard on and is proud of?

@humanity: Who says she is obliged to shit talk it? Maybe she doesn't feel as rabidly strong about it as others do? Plus people on average tend to be able to separate critical analysis from their personal feelings and relationships.

Really that card system is why people are pissed? It looked exactly like every other modern game.

And a 2 second cool down for an upgrade doesn't seem worth it, which is lame, but also so minimal why would anyone think that would give you a big advantage in mp.

Dan: I don't like playing support characters.

Vinny: You don't say...

At 38:30 or so, Vinny is saying he wants the original Battlefront 2's space battles. He should play that game.

Some of the upgrades you can get for ships increase it's damage output by 40%. Boba Fett's missile ability goes from dealing roughly a third of most heroes' health to one shotting every hero in the game with the right maxed out upgrades. This isn't as simple as 2 second cooldown reductions.

Because a lot of the cards just straight up increase damage. That's the definition of P2W.

@ripelivejam: considering no one in the industry has had a lot of positive things to say about it I dunno.. but sure maybe she’s the one person who thinks it’s awesome and the progression system is really ingenious and satisfying.

Vinny - The "pens" are essentially usb sticks in the Star Wars Universe, they are referred to as data or code cylinders. They are also used as two-factor security and an ID badge. This is explored in all the books.

re: Dan's question at 28:05

Scout Trooper

"Two Pens" Caravella Strikes Back

When did I ever voice my own opinion about this game? I'm simply recounting what I've read at large on the internet here. I'm sure plenty of people will still dig it despite the pervasive ton of pessimism surrounding this release from both the multiplayer as well as singleplayer side. No need for the passive aggressiveness here.

I actually can only say "delicious" if it's preceded by "cook" and "serve".

Maybe Battlefront 3 will let you actually get into vehicles...

You do you but I would implore you not to support these practices and the general strategy of "let's see how much shit we can get away with from the consumers" by getting this.

Metacritic user review 0.7 (out of 10) average across all platforms. I know it isn't the true indicator of game's inherent quality but... damn, there hasn't been anything that united all gamers on a consensus about anything of this scale.

You can work really hard on a project, you can do everything in your power to ensure a quality product, you can be proud of what work you put in. The foundation of the game looks really good. The devs that worked on the "game" aspect should be commended, the gameplay looks fun, the mocap for the campaign looks solid, and the voice acting is great.

However depressing it is, your boss is your boss. If your project manager says design a clusterfuck UI for loot boxes, this is what you're paid to do, or they'll find a replacement for you. You're told to make a terrible "Not so RNG" algorithm to keep enticing people to pull out the credit cards, either you do it, or another EA intern comes in.

You really are at the mercy of EA, and how deep they want to go into your bank account. I did not even bat a lash when the news of the micro-transaction fiasco came out. If anyone's been playing Star Wars Heroes on mobile, or SWTOR, all of the signs were there, this should have been a no brainer.

What I don't understand is why people are now up in arms about this game, when they've been doing it for years.

Everything about EA's Star Wars projects just screams "hey you dumb normies come buy this because it's Star Wars!!!!!".

Very little substance. Nothing more than trying to milk the license for all that it is worth.

I have never watched any Star Wars movie all the way through. Way too boring. I don't know how anyone cares about anything in Star Wars.

Which other major triple-A game have had game impacting progression locked behind loot boxes? Genuine question. I play overwatch and MOBA's where neither of which have progressions locked behind loot boxes so I'm not able to recall other ones off the top of my head. I do take umbrage with card games like Hearthstone, however.

@larmer: Because all human beings are different. We like different things. Shocking, I know.

@magusmaleficus: Sure, people are entitled to care passionately about boring fiction. I just don't know how anyone comes to the decision to do that.

20:50
Is Dan magic?

Wait... Dan chose *that* mission? Of all the boring hours of gameplay in this run-of-the-mill shooter story, Dan chose the single most spoilerific mission in the entire game! Oh, Dan.

If you don't want answered whether this game goes where you want it to go, in terms of story, DO NOT WATCH THE VIDEO. If you want to know whether to play this game, this video should easily tell you that, though.

@larmer: Again, funny thing, but not everyone thinks it's boring. And you can argue until you're blue in the face that those folks are wrong, but you'd be wasting your time. So maybe just...don't care and move on?

I honestly have been having a really enjoyable time with this game over the last few days and I had nothing good to say about the first one outside of its graphical prowess. I understand all the hate for the card system, but I have not felt at a disadvantage at all during the 10 hours I've put into the multiplayer and I haven't spent a real (when you could) or virtual penny on crates. The maps and their stages generally feel like hard fought all out war until the end even with only max 20v20 lobbies, most of the modes are solid and the time spent on making era accurate representations of all of generations of star wars feels lovingly there. I've been having fun regardless if I'm doing good or bad. If anything rent this or origin access it and see if it's for you, the immense shitstorm on this game could feel unwarranted for you as it does for me.

Just to say something about 'The friend of the site' back and forth, people can say whatever they want about the game, informed or otherwise. But it shouldn't, and I strongly feel, will not be personal by the professionals of this site. Not that the original commenter who brought this up even necessarily meant it that way. It's the game being critiqued, not Janina.

I like how this game looks, and I am really only in it for the campaign. Unless there are things I am not understanding, I will wait for that sale a year down the road. I'm rather casual with the whole Star Wars thing, and for me it would be fun, just as a bit of a jaunt.

BOSSK!

Still hate that their are no vehicles to jump into already on the map and no boarding ships in space missions. All the terrible progression stuff pretty much guaranteed I won't ever buy it anyway but yeah...still not on par with the original Battlfront 2.

This game will prove with it’s sales that all people actually care about are looks & that it’s Star Wars. All the yelling & negativity will amount to nothing in the end.

I hope I’m proven wrong but won’t be holding my breath.

57:21

"I had fun as I was playing that and then it goes out to [the progression] and it's like 'Oh, right.'"

Perfect summary.

Those are some paltry rewards for winning and doing well

@larmer: I can't speak for anyone else, but I personally enjoy Star Wars just so you can feel smug and superior about your own tastes by comparison. It's a free service I provide.

I don't know how some people come to the decision to be assholes on the Internet, and yet here we are. Perhaps this mysterious coincidence is a clue that a lot of things aren't decisions at all, they just happen to people. How did you decide what kind of music to enjoy? How do you rationalize that decision? You probably didn't, you probably just like some stuff and not other stuff, and maybe you'd prefer if people didn't get up in your grill about it.