Star Wars Battlefront is a 2015 action shooter video game created by DICE and published by Electronic Arts. The game is set in the fictional Star Wars universe and is the third main game in the Star Wars: Battlefront series. However, it is considered a new version of the series rather than a direct follow-up to previous games. This change reflects the updated official Star Wars story established by Lucasfilm after Disney acquired the company, which replaced the older Star Wars expanded universe. The game was released in November 2015 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Microsoft Windows.

Critics gave the game mixed to positive reviews, praising its gameplay, visuals, music, technical quality, and overall production value. However, some criticized the limited content available at launch for both single-player and multiplayer modes, as well as the use of a season pass model. Despite these issues, the game was a commercial success, selling more than 14 million copies worldwide. A sequel, Star Wars Battlefront II, was released on November 17, 2017.

Gameplay

Star Wars Battlefront is an action game that can be played from a first-person or third-person perspective. Players can switch between these views at any time, except when controlling "hero" characters or their personal guards. The game takes place on planets from the original Star Wars trilogy, such as Endor, Hoth, Tatooine, Bespin, and Sullust, as well as Jakku from the sequel trilogy. To move across the game's maps, players use vehicles like speeder bikes and AT-STs, which can be unlocked by finding randomly placed tokens during matches. Battles occur on planets, and players cannot explore space unless using maps added through downloadable content (DLC). These space-based maps include the Death Star (from the "Death Star" DLC, released in September 2016) and Scarif (from the "Rogue One" DLC, released in December 2016). Players can customize weapons, characters, gear, and abilities. New weapons can be shared with teammates during matches. The game does not include iron sights, except for one blaster, but players can zoom in for better accuracy.

Players can choose to control a Rebel Alliance soldier or an Imperial Stormtrooper. They can also play as iconic characters from the Star Wars films, who act as "heroes." These heroes are unlocked by finding specific tokens on the map. At launch, the hero list included Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader, Han Solo, Emperor Palpatine, Leia Organa, and Boba Fett. Additional heroes like Nien Nunb, Greedo, and Jyn Erso were later added through DLC. Non-playable characters such as C-3PO, Admiral Ackbar, and Jabba the Hutt appear in minor roles. The game includes cooperative missions that can be played offline, but it does not have a campaign mode. Missions can be completed alone, with bots, or with another player, and split-screen play is supported on consoles. Online multiplayer matches can include up to 40 players and feature 16 maps. These maps are set on five locations from the Star Wars universe: Hoth, Tatooine, Endor, Sullust, and Jakku. Three additional locations—Cloud City on Bespin, the Death Star, and Scarif—were added through DLC.

Multiplayer is the main focus of the game. The following modes are available:

• A 40-player mode where two teams, the Rebels and the Imperials, compete. The Rebels must destroy the Empire's AT-AT walkers by keeping their uplink stations online so Y-Wing bombers can attack. The Empire must prevent the uplinks from staying online.

• A starship-only mode where players engage in a team deathmatch in the sky. Each team starts in a transport ship, which the opposing team must destroy. The first team to reach 200 points wins.

• A team deathmatch with 20 players. The team that reaches 100 kills first wins.

• A 40-player mode where teams compete to capture the most control points. The team with the most control points at the end wins.

• A "Cat-and-Mouse" mode where one hero faces seven opponents. The hero must survive as long as possible and kill pursuers. If the hero is killed, the player who dealt the most damage becomes the next hero. The player with the most kills or the first to reach 50 kills wins.

• A round-based mode where teams of six compete to keep their three heroes or villains (or four in Outer Rim maps) alive while destroying the enemy's heroes or villains. Heroes and villains are supported by infantry. Heroes with bodyguards can only spawn twice. The first team to win five rounds wins the match.

• A mode where two teams of six players try to steal each other's cargo while defending their own. This is similar to a capture-the-flag game.

Development and release

In May 2013, the publisher Electronic Arts received exclusive rights to create Star Wars games for gaming consoles. Its subsidiaries, DICE, Visceral Games, and BioWare, began working on Star Wars games after LucasArts closed. DICE first announced the game during Electronic Arts' E3 2013 press conference, along with a teaser trailer. The game was built using the Frostbite 3 engine. DICE's studio head, Patrick Söderlund, said the game would be "DICE's interpretation of what Battlefront should be," while including elements from previous games. DICE did not call the new game a sequel to Battlefront II but instead a reboot of the franchise. Söderlund noted that the project almost did not happen, but DICE employees pushed for it, calling the collaboration "a match made in heaven." Instead of traditional modeling, developers used photogrammetry to create game assets. Small artist teams selected assets for level designers to build maps. DICE said creating these assets took half the time compared to using traditional methods for Battlefield 4.

In June 2014, Electronic Arts revealed at its E3 2014 press conference that the ice planet Hoth and the forest moon of Endor would be playable maps. In late October 2014, the game was set for a Christmas 2015 release, aligning with the movie Star Wars: The Force Awakens. To meet the deadline, the team removed the single-player campaign mode. In early March 2015, the first gameplay footage was shown at a private event and received a standing ovation. At Star Wars Celebration 2015 in April 2015, gameplay details and a second trailer were released, along with the announcement of the first downloadable content, Battle of Jakku.

In April 2015, Electronic Arts announced the game would release in North America on November 17, Europe on November 20, and Australia on November 18. The European release date was previously set for November 19. The game would not use the Battlelog system but instead a new system developed by Uprise, a subsidiary of Electronic Arts. On June 15, 2015, gameplay footage showed the Walker Assault mode on Hoth from the perspectives of the Rebel Alliance and Galactic Empire, featuring weapons, vehicles, and playable characters like Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader. A cooperative mission trailer was also shown. An open beta for the game was released on October 8 for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, including Walker Assault, Drop Zone, and Survival modes. The beta was extended to October 13 and played by over nine and a half million players, the largest beta in Electronic Arts history.

Fellow Electronic Arts developer Criterion Games, known for racing games, helped DICE create the speeder bikes for the game. Visceral Games also contributed in an undisclosed way.

Star Wars Battlefront includes downloadable content (DLC). A season pass, announced on October 12, 2015, includes four DLC packs. The Ultimate Edition includes the Deluxe Edition and the season pass. Additional content, such as new maps and star cards, was released for free.

The first DLC, Battle of Jakku, was revealed at Star Wars Celebration 2015 and released for free on December 8, 2015. Pre-orderers received it earlier, on December 1, 2015. It features two maps on planet Jakku. Outer Rim, the second DLC, released on March 22, 2016, adds maps set in Jabba the Hutt’s palace on Tatooine and a factory in Sullust. It includes characters Nien Nunb and Greedo and is available to Season Pass owners. Bespin, the third DLC, released on June 21, 2016, introduces Cloud City and allows players to use Lando Calrissian and Dengar. Death Star, the fourth DLC, released on September 20, 2016, features the Death Star, Chewbacca, and Bossk. The final DLC, Rogue One: Scarif, released on December 20, 2016, is based on the film Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and includes the planet Scarif and characters Director Orson Krennic and Jyn Erso.

Criterion Games developed a PlayStation VR mission titled Rogue One: X-Wing VR Mission, released for free in December 2016 with the PlayStation 4 version of the game. It requires a PlayStation VR headset and camera.

Base Command, a companion app available on the App Store and Google Play, allows players to defend a Rebel base using Star Cards. It can be played with or without owning Star Wars Battlefront. Players earn virtual credits to unlock items in the main game.

A novel titled Star Wars Battlefront: Twilight Company, written by Alexander Freed, a former BioWare developer, was released. It is Freed’s debut novel and received a positive review from IGN.

Reception

Leon Hurley from GamesRadar liked the Star Wars Battlefront beta. He said the game's gunplay was strong and looked great. However, he pointed out that the Walker Assault mode was very hard for Rebel players to win. He compared the game's visuals to the realistic action in the Star Wars films. He also said the Stormtroopers looked exactly like those in the movies, and called wave-one soldiers "exceptionally special." He noted that the game had an uneven mix of heroes and villains. For example, Darth Vader could be easily defeated by a passing ship, while Luke Skywalker had more chances to look heroic, like destroying an AT-ST alone. He also said the timing of the ending scenes was confusing and frustrating.

Critics said the game did not have a single-player story mode. Steven Storm from Ars Technica praised the game's visuals, saying DICE made the game look and feel like the Star Wars movies better than any other game with the license. He compared the gameplay to the "standard Battlefield formula of walking, getting shot, respawning, and repeating."

Star Wars Battlefront got mixed reviews on PC and PlayStation 4, but received positive reviews on Xbox One, according to Metacritic. Mizuho Securities analyst Neil Doshi said the negative reviews did not stop the game from being a financial success. Mike Mahardy from GameSpot said the combat was too repetitive. Dan Ryckert from Giant Bomb praised the game for capturing the Star Wars feel. Blake Jorgensen, Electronic Arts' chief financial officer, said the game was intentionally designed to be easy for new players and families, not for hardcore fans of the 2004 Star Wars: Battlefront game.

Many critics agreed that the game's visuals were well done. Mitch Dyer from IGN called it one of the best-looking games of its generation.

Critics noticed the game had little content at launch. Andrew Reiner from Game Informer said the Season Pass had too little content at launch, making him feel cheated.

The Official UK PlayStation Magazine listed the X-Wing mission as the fifth best PS VR game.

Electronic Arts expected to sell between 9 to 10 million copies by March 31, 2016. After the beta, the company hoped to sell 13 million copies by March 2016. Star Wars Battlefront was the top-selling non-digital game in the UK during its first week. It became the fourth fastest-selling title in 2015 and the biggest launch for a Star Wars game. It sold 117% more copies than the previous record holder, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. It was also the fastest-selling online PlayStation 4 game in the UK.

In December 2015, GameStop's president said some November games sold fewer copies than expected, including Star Wars Battlefront. Peter Moore defended the game's sales, saying EA still believed in selling 13 million copies by March 2016. By the end of 2015, 12 million copies had been sold. EA met its goal of selling 13 million copies by early 2016, reaching 14 million by May 2016. Even though it came out in 2

Sequel

A sequel developed by EA DICE, Motive Studios, and Criterion Games was released on November 17, 2017.