Star Wars Battlefront II is a 2017 action shooter video game created by DICE and published by Electronic Arts. It is part of the Star Wars: Battlefront series and follows the 2015 version of the game. The game includes both single-player and multiplayer modes and offers more content than the previous game. The single-player story takes place between the movies Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. It follows a character named Iden Versio, who leads a special group called Inferno Squad. Most of the story happens in the fictional galaxy of Star Wars during the final year of the Galactic Civil War, before the Empire loses the Battle of Jakku.
The game was released on November 17, 2017, for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Microsoft Windows. Critics gave the game mixed reviews, praising the multiplayer, gameplay, visuals, and variety of content but criticizing the single-player story, microtransactions, and progression system. The game also faced criticism for its loot boxes, which allowed players to gain in-game advantages by spending real money. In response, Electronic Arts removed microtransactions from the game.
After its release, the game received many free updates to improve its quality and attract more players. These updates stopped on April 29, 2020, after Electronic Arts said the game had reached its goal of having enough players and had improved since its first release. A special version of the game, called the Celebration Edition, was released on December 5, 2019, and includes all available cosmetic items.
Gameplay
Star Wars Battlefront II is a game where players can see the action from different viewpoints and play alone or with others. Players can choose to fight on the ground as soldiers or in space as starfighters. The game includes three different time periods from the Star Wars story: the Clone Wars, where the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems battle; the Galactic Civil War, where the Rebel Alliance and the Galactic Empire fight; and a war between the Resistance and the First Order. Each group has different types of soldiers, such as clone troopers for the Republic, battle droids for the Confederacy, and stormtroopers for the Empire and First Order. Soldiers have the same controls but look different, while starfighters have special abilities that make gameplay more varied.
Battles take place on many maps that change depending on the time period. When the game first came out, it had 15 locations from the Star Wars universe, including Kamino, Kashyyyk, Naboo, Mos Eisley, Yavin IV, Hoth, Cloud City, Endor, the Death Star II, Jakku, Takodana, and Starkiller Base. Some maps are only in space, such as Ryloth, Fondor, and the Unknown Regions. Later, eight more maps were added: Crait, Jabba’s Palace, Kessel, Geonosis, Felucia, Ajan Kloss, Scarif, and a space-only map called D’Qar. Some maps are only available for certain game modes.
The game uses a class-based system. All groups have the same four soldier classes—Assault, Heavy, Officer, and Specialist—and three starfighter classes—Fighter, Interceptor, and Bomber (though the Resistance and First Order do not have the Bomber class). Ground battles also include special classes called Reinforcements, which are unlocked by earning "battle points" from defeating enemies and completing objectives. All groups have three soldier Reinforcements—Enforcer, Aerial, and Infiltrator—and two vehicle Reinforcements—Speeder and Armor. The four standard soldier classes do not need battle points. The Republic, Confederacy, Rebels, Empire, and First Order also have an extra Reinforcement class called Artillery, which is only available in specific maps for the Galactic Assault mode.
All classes can be leveled up except Artillery. When players reach a new level, they earn a Skill Point to unlock or improve a Star Card. Star Cards are the main way to improve in the game and can be equipped on a class to increase stats like health or damage, or to replace abilities. Some Star Cards require reaching a certain level before they can be used. Up to three Star Cards can be used at the same time for each class. Most Star Cards are only available for specific classes, except for a few basic ones, like extra health.
Players can change how their soldier classes look by buying new outfits or unlocking new weapons through achievements. While weapon customization is limited, each weapon is unique and offers a different way to play. Players can also unlock weapon attachments that change how weapons work, like range or fire rate. Reinforcement classes can be leveled up and customized, but their weapons and abilities cannot be changed.
In addition to basic soldier and Reinforcement classes, players can play as heroes or villains based on famous Star Wars characters. Heroes are a special class that can be leveled up and customized. In multiplayer, heroes are only available in Galactic Assault and Supremacy modes and are unlocked by earning 4,000 battle points. In Galactic Assault, players can choose any hero, while in Supremacy, only heroes from the current time period are available. Each side can have up to two heroes in Supremacy and three in Galactic Assault. There are also game modes focused on heroes, such as Heroes Vs Villains and Hero Showdown, where only heroes can be used without the usual limits.
Synopsis
Iden Versio (Janina Gavankar), leader of the Galactic Empire's elite special forces unit, Inferno Squad, is captured aboard the Invincible Faith, a Rebel Alliance Star Cruiser. Iden orders her ID10 droid, Dio, to free her from her cell before she deletes an Imperial message about the Emperor's plan to attack the rebels on Endor. After escaping through the airlock into space, Iden is rescued by the Corvus, Inferno Squad's ship, where she reports the mission's success to her squadmates, Del Meeko (T. J. Ramini) and Gideon Hask (Paul Blackthorne).
During the Battle of Endor, Inferno Squad destroys a rebel patrol guarding the Death Star II's destroyed shield generator. They then witness the Death Star being destroyed above Endor. The squad escapes the moon before rebel forces surround them and lands on the Star Destroyer Eviscerator, commanded by Iden's father, Admiral Garrick Versio (Anthony Skordi). The Admiral tells Iden about the Emperor's death, while a messenger droid delivers the Emperor's final order to begin Operation: Cinder. Admiral Versio sends Iden and Hask to an Imperial shipyard near Fondor to protect the Star Destroyer Dauntless, which holds experimental satellites important to Operation: Cinder. Meanwhile, Del travels to Pillio to destroy one of the Emperor's hidden vaults, where he meets Luke Skywalker (Matthew Mercer). The two work together to defeat local wildlife and access the vault, which contains the Emperor's stolen treasures. Luke takes one item before they part ways, and Del begins to question the Empire's actions.
Inferno Squad's next mission is to travel to Vardos, Iden's home planet, to rescue Imperial Protectorate Gleb as Operation: Cinder begins. As Cinder's satellites damage Vardos with storms, Iden and Del, upset by the Empire's actions, abandon the mission to save civilians instead. This causes Hask to betray them. Iden and Del escape to the Corvus, now enemies of the Empire. They meet General Lando Calrissian (Billy Dee Williams), who offers them a choice: help stop Operation: Cinder or leave to start new lives. They choose to help and assist Princess Leia Organa (Misty Lee) in defending Naboo, destroying Cinder's satellites, and restoring the planet's defenses. After Naboo is saved, Iden and Del officially join the New Republic.
Months later, the new Inferno Squad—Iden, Del, and rebel agent Shriv Suurgav (Dan Donohue)—go to Takodana to find General Han Solo (John Armstrong), who disappeared during a mission to retrieve data from an Imperial defector. After Han and the defector escape a group of stormtroopers and reach the Millennium Falcon, Inferno Squad helps them leave the planet. The data reveals Admiral Versio is leading Imperial forces on Bespin and Sullust. On Bespin, Iden and Del try to capture Admiral Versio but are tricked by Hask. They escape, destroying a Star Destroyer fueling station. On Sullust, Lando and Shriv destroy a secret Imperial weapons factory. With these operations failing, the Imperial fleet fights a final battle at Jakku. During the battle, Iden shoots down Hask and boards the Eviscerator to rescue her father. Admiral Versio chooses to die with his ship, urging Iden to escape and live a new life. Iden takes an escape pod and reunites with Del and Shriv. Iden and Del share a kiss as the battle ends the Galactic Empire.
Thirty years later, Del is captured on Pillio by Gleb, who hands him over to Kylo Ren (Matthew Wood) and the First Order. Kylo questions Del about the location of Luke Skywalker before leaving him with Hask, now a First Order officer. Hask criticizes Del for choosing to start a family with Iden instead of staying a soldier, then kills him. Hask tells Gleb to leave the Corvus on Pillio as bait to lure Iden out of hiding.
Shriv, now a Resistance agent, finds the abandoned Corvus and tells Iden and her daughter Zay (Brittany Volcy) that Del had been helping the Resistance investigate rumors of mass disappearances linked to "Project Resurrection." They travel to Athulla, where Del was last seen, and are attacked by a Jinata Security fleet, which they destroy. Survivors admit Jinata Security kidnapped children for the First Order and that Project Resurrection was moved to Vardos.
Iden and Shriv investigate the ruins of Vardos, leaving Zay on the Corvus, and are captured by Hask, who reveals he killed Gleb and Del and that the First Order used Starkiller Base to destroy the New Republic. Hask orders his ship, the Retribution, to destroy the Corvus, though Zay survives by escaping in an escape pod. Meanwhile, Jinata Security attacks Hask's forces, and Iden and Shriv rescue Zay through the chaos.
Deciding to help the Resistance, Iden, Shriv, and Zay steal TIE fighters to board the Retribution. They search the ship and discover Project Resurrection involves the First Order kidnapping children to train them as stormtroopers. They also learn the First Order has built a massive fleet to retake the galaxy and steal plans for a First Order Dreadnought. While Shriv finds a ship for escape, Iden and Zay destroy the Retribution's hyperspace generators, forcing it to exit hyperspace near Starkiller Base, where the Resistance destroys it. Hask ambushes them and shoots Iden before she pushes him to his death. Iden dies from her injury, telling Zay to escape with the Dreadnought plans. Zay reunites with Shriv, and they leave the Retribution to join the Resistance. They send the plans to General Leia Organa, who offers her condolences, then orders them to travel to the Outer Rim to find more allies.
Post-launch content
During EA Play 2017, it was announced that Star Wars: Battlefront II would not include a Season Pass. Instead, all downloadable content was released through free title updates, divided into multiple "seasons."
As of April 29, 2020, Electronic Arts (EA) decided that the game had reached its target number of players and had improved significantly since its initial release. Because of this, the game no longer receives updates for new content.
The first season, based on the 2017 film Star Wars: The Last Jedi, was released on December 5, 2017, ten days before the film’s release. It included content from the movie, such as a space map over D'Qar, a new Galactic Assault map on the planet Crait, and new heroes for the Resistance and First Order: Finn and Captain Phasma. It also added Tallie Lintra’s RZ-2 A-Wing as a hero ship. This season also included a continuation of the single-player campaign titled Battlefront II: Resurrection, which was released on December 13.
On May 3, 2018, EA Star Wars announced on Twitter that the second season would be based on the film Solo: A Star Wars Story. The first part of the season was released on May 16 and included a new game mode called Hero Showdown, starfighters in the Arcade, and a returning map from Star Wars Battlefront (2015): Jabba’s Palace. It also added skins for Leia Organa and Lando Calrissian based on their disguises in Return of the Jedi. The second part of the season was released on June 12 and included a new map set in the mines of Kessel, a new variation of the Millennium Falcon based on its appearance in Solo, and a return of the Extraction game mode on the two new maps. New skins for Han Solo, Lando Calrissian, and Chewbacca based on their appearances in Solo were also added.
In February 2018, the game’s design director, Dennis Brännvall, hinted that content based on the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series would be released in the future. At EA Play 2018, it was confirmed that this content would be released in the fall of 2018. It would include a new Galactic Assault map set on Geonosis, new clone trooper skins, and playable heroes: Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, General Grievous, and Count Dooku. Voice lines for these characters, recorded by the actors who voiced them in The Clone Wars, were also added. On October 30, General Grievous was introduced as a new villain for the Separatists, along with an alternative skin. On November 28, the Geonosis map and Obi-Wan Kenobi were added, along with new reinforcement classes, 212th Attack Battalion clone skins, and new skins for Grievous and Obi-Wan.
An update on January 23, 2019, added Count Dooku to the game and made the Geonosis map available for other game modes. On February 27, Anakin Skywalker was added, along with new skins for him, Dooku, and clone troopers, voice lines for all heroes, and a rework of emotes. On March 26, the Capital Supremacy mode was released, along with the Infiltrator class and a major gameplay overhaul. On April 24, a new Kashyyyk map for Capital Supremacy was added, along with challenges and a new skin for Leia Organa to celebrate Star Wars Day. On May 22, a new Kamino map for Capital Supremacy was added. On June 21, a new Naboo map for Capital Supremacy was added, along with new skins for Anakin Skywalker and clone troopers, the Droideka as a new variation of the Enforcer class for the Separatists, and the TX-130 assault tank as a new variation of the Armor class for the Republic.
An update on August 28, 2019, added new skins for battle droids, maps from Capital Supremacy to the Heroes vs. Villains mode, and new Star Cards to replace the Health on Kill ones. Health on Kill became a passive ability for all heroes. On September 25, a new Felucia map for Capital Supremacy was added, along with Clone Commandos as a new variation of the Enforcer class for the Republic, a new skin for Luke Skywalker, and two new game modes: an offline mode called Instant Action and a PvE mode called Co-Op, both including all Capital Supremacy maps released so far. The Daily Crates and Extraction mode were removed (Extraction was merged with Strike). On October 23, the Ewok Hunt and Co-Op modes received major overhauls, and a Felucia map for Heroes vs. Villains was added, along with new skins for the Jet Trooper, Luke Skywalker, and Han Solo.
On December 5, 2019, a Celebration Edition of the game was released, including all cosmetic options available at the time. It could be purchased separately or as an upgrade to the original version. This update also included new skins for the Infiltrator and Enforcer classes and a gameplay overhaul. On December 17, an update added content based on the film Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, including a new Ajan Kloss map, Co-Op mode for the sequel trilogy era, new skins for Rey, Finn, and Kylo Ren, and new reinforcement classes for the sequel trilogy era (Ovissian Gunner as the Enforcer and Caphex Spy as the Infiltrator for the Resistance, and Sith Trooper as the Infiltrator and Jet Trooper as the Aerial for the First Order). On February 3, 2020, an update added BB-8 and BB-9E as new heroes for the Resistance and First Order, respectively, and brought Capital Supremacy and Instant Action to the sequel trilogy era, along with gameplay changes. On December 19, 2024, the complete edition of the game became available on the Xbox Game Pass subscription service for no extra cost, temporarily.
On February 26, 2020, a major update added content based on the original Star Wars trilogy, including the Co-Op mode, four new weapons (three returning from Star Wars: Battlefront in 2015), and the Infiltrator class, along with new skins for existing reinforcement classes from that era. It also added a new Geonosis map to Heroes vs. Villains and brought maps from the prequel era’s Capital Supremacy to Co-Op, along with gameplay changes. The next update, originally planned for late March, was delayed twice: once to mid-April and again to late April. It was released on April 29 and included content based on the film Rogue One, such as a Scarif map and new skins for Rebel soldiers and Imperial stormtroopers. It also added a new offline game mode called Instant Action
Development and marketing
On May 10, 2016, the development of Star Wars Battlefront II was announced. DICE led the project, while Motive Studios created the single-player campaign and Criterion Games designed the starfighter gameplay and mechanics. During an earnings call, EA’s chief financial officer, Blake Jorgensen, said the game would include content from the sequel trilogy of Star Wars films. Creative director Bernd Diemer explained that the company replaced the Season Pass system, which allowed players to buy additional content, because the system had "fragmented" the player community of the 2015 game. The new system was created to let all players "play longer." Executive producer Matthew Webster announced on April 15, 2017, at Star Wars Celebration that the game would be released worldwide on November 17, 2017. The Battlefront II beta test began on October 4, 2017, for players who pre-ordered the game. It expanded to an open beta on October 6 and ran until October 11. A 10-hour trial version was available to EA Access and Origin Access subscribers on November 9, 2017.
A tie-in novel, Star Wars Battlefront II: Inferno Squad, was released on July 25, 2017. Written by Christie Golden, it serves as a direct prelude to the game and follows the Galactic Empire’s Inferno Squad as they attempt to destroy what remained of Saw Gerrera’s rebel cell after the events of the 2016 film Rogue One. On November 10, 2017, Electronic Arts announced the first free downloadable content for the game. This content included the planets D’Qar and Crait, as well as playable hero characters Finn and Captain Phasma, as a tie-in to Star Wars: The Last Jedi.
A small LEGO set based on Inferno Squad, called the "Inferno Squad Battle Pack," was released in early 2019. Iden Versio was added as a playable character to the mobile free-to-play turn-based role-playing game Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes in January 2022, ahead of the game’s fifth anniversary.
Microtransactions controversy
During early testing before the game was officially released, the game's publisher, EA, faced criticism from players and gaming news outlets for using a system called loot boxes. This system allowed players to spend real money to get in-game items that gave them advantages in the game. In response to the criticism, the game's developers changed how many in-game items players could earn by playing the game. However, after the game was made available for pre-release testing, some players and journalists who had early access reported problems with the game's features. These included rewards that did not depend on how well a player performed in the game. A weak system for tracking player activity also allowed some players to tie their game controllers tightly with rubber bands, letting them automatically earn points during multiplayer matches, which upset other players who were actively playing.
On November 12, 2017, a user on Reddit said they spent $80 to buy the Deluxe Edition of the game but could not play as Darth Vader, a character in the game. To use this character, players needed 60,000 in-game credits. Players estimated it would take about 40 hours of repeated tasks to earn enough credits to unlock a hero. EA's team responded to complaints by saying they wanted players to feel a sense of achievement after unlocking characters. This explanation upset many Reddit users, who left hundreds of negative comments. One comment received a score of -660,000 (as of December 2025), making it the most downvoted comment in Reddit's history. In 2019, this comment was added to the Guinness World Records. EA later reduced the cost of credits needed to unlock heroes by 75%, but also lowered the number of credits players earned for completing the game's story.
On the day before the game's release, EA removed all microtransactions, which are purchases made within the game, because players worried they gave unfair advantages. EA said they would reintroduce them later after making changes. The controversy over microtransactions and poor reviews affected EA's stock price, which dropped by 2.5% on the game's release day. Analysts on Wall Street also lowered their predictions for the game's financial success. A Wall Street analyst noted that even with microtransactions, playing the game was still cheaper than watching a movie in theaters. By November 2017, EA had lost $3 billion in stock value since the game was released. On March 16, 2018, the game's developer, DICE, announced major changes to the game's system. Loot boxes will now only give in-game currency and cosmetic items, while another type of currency can only be used to buy cosmetic items. Players can now unlock abilities in a step-by-step way by playing specific characters or heroes. The first update, released on March 21, permanently unlocked all heroes and vehicles for all players, and a second update was released in April.
On November 15, two days before the game's release, a Belgian gambling regulator announced it was investigating the game, along with Overwatch, to determine if loot boxes were a form of unlicensed gambling. EA said loot boxes in Battlefront II were not gambling. The Belgian Gaming Commission later ruled that loot boxes are illegal under gambling laws but found that Battlefront II was not in violation because EA had temporarily removed microtransactions. Belgium's Justice Minister, Koen Geens, said if loot boxes were found to break gambling laws, he would work to ban them in all future video games sold in the European Union.
After the Belgian investigation, the head of the Dutch Gambling Commission started its own investigation into Battlefront II and the issue of loot boxes. They also asked parents to monitor the games their children play. A member of the Hawaii House of Representatives called Battlefront II "an online casino designed to trap children" and said he would try to ban such practices in Hawaii. Another representative compared playing the game to smoking cigarettes, saying, "We didn't allow Joe Camel to encourage kids to smoke, and we shouldn't allow Star Wars to encourage kids to gamble." Singapore's National Council on Problem Gambling is watching the situation, as loot boxes are not covered by their gambling laws. Authorities in Australia are also investigating. The UK Parliament looked into whether loot boxes are gambling and was told by EA that they are "ethical and fun," like Kinder Eggs. However, the UK Parliament later said loot boxes are gambling and should be regulated like other forms of gambling.
Reception
Star Wars Battlefront II received "mixed or average" reviews, according to the review aggregator website Metacritic.
In a 4 out of 5-star review for GamesRadar+, Andy Hartup praised the multiplayer mode but criticized the single-player story, stating the game has "a strong multiplayer experience ruined by a complicated character progression system and a story campaign that is beautiful but lacks depth." Game Revolution noted that the campaign started well but became weaker over time, praising the multiplayer gameplay while criticizing the microtransactions, loot box system, and the restriction of certain characters.
In EGM’s review, Nick Plessas highlighted the multiplayer combat, balance, and variety but criticized the focus on loot crates. Andrew Reiner of Game Informer gave the game a 6.5 out of 10, writing that while the game includes a full campaign and plenty of multiplayer content, the experience is "lowered by microtransactions." IGN’s Tom Marks also gave the game a 6.5 out of 10, stating that the game has "good shooting mechanics, but the progression system makes playing the game feel unsatisfying."
The game was nominated for "Best Shooter," "Best Graphics," and "Best Multiplayer" in IGN’s Best of 2017 Awards. It was also a runner-up for "Most Disappointing Game" in Giant Bomb’s 2017 Game of the Year Awards. In Game Informer’s Reader’s Choice Best of 2017 Awards, fewer readers voted for the game in the "Best Co-Op Multiplayer" category. The website also awarded the game for "Best Graphics," "Best Audio," and "Biggest Disappointment" in their 2017 Shooter of the Year Awards.
In 2019, IGN’s David Jagneaux reviewed the game and gave it an 8.8 out of 10 (compared to the original review’s 6.5 out of 10), stating that after two years of updates, the game was "improved and turned into one of the best multiplayer versions of the Star Wars universe." Jagneaux noted that the main improvements were to the multiplayer mode, while the single-player story remained "too safe, short, and disappointing."
In the U.S., Star Wars Battlefront II was the second best-selling title in November, behind Call of Duty: WWII. Within its first week on sale in Japan, the PlayStation 4 version sold 38,769 copies, ranking fourth in sales. By December 2017, the game had sold 9 million copies worldwide. In January 2018, EA announced that the game did not meet its sales goal of 10 million copies and blamed the controversy over loot crates.
Community
Star Wars Battlefront II has a strong modding community, where fans add new content, such as heroes and villains like Ahsoka Tano, the Mandalorian, and Cal Kestis (from Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order), among others. In early 2020, a mod was released that replaced BB-8 with Grogu. In October 2021, reports showed hackers were causing problems on Battlefront II’s multiplayer servers. To address this, developers fixed common hacking methods in February 2022. Additional updates were made in January 2026. In December 2025, a custom server called Kyber was released in open beta for the Windows version of the game. Before this, the Windows version’s multiplayer servers had been frequently hacked, and no action was taken by Electronic Arts and DICE. Kyber includes a server browser feature similar to Battlelog, which was not available in DICE’s previous Battlefront games, which used automatic matchmaking instead. Kyber became open source in January 2026.
In May 2025, the number of players and popularity of Star Wars Battlefront II increased rapidly on Windows and Xbox platforms. This growth was linked to the game’s full version being added to the Xbox Game Pass subscription service, the final season of the Andor TV series, the twentieth-anniversary re-release of Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, and a new Fortnite season with a Star Wars theme. A community-wide call to play the game on May 24 caused the number of players on Steam to reach nearly 19,000, surpassing the previous record of 10,000 concurrent players. Demand for a new Battlefront 3 game also increased. This resurgence was noticed by former developers and actors involved with Battlefront II and the Star Wars franchise, including actor Muhannad Ben Amor, who played Wilmon Paak in Andor. In June 2025, a sale event by EA further increased Steam’s player count to almost 36,000, breaking the previous record again.