It’s been relatively quiet on the Star Wars: Battlefront II… battlefront. The controversial, mostly multiplayer game has rebounded from a microtransaction-filled 2017 launch with a stream of continuous updates that included some amazing Clone Wars battles. The latest roadmap, revealed today, shows some fresh love for single player fans and adds dangerous Clone Commandos.
Battlefront II started threadbare. Its story mode was disjointed and couldn’t be fixed with a DLC epilogue, and unlocking hero character took way too much grinding.
It’s taken a lot of time and quiet effort to build the game up, with silly game modes like Ewok Hunting or massive forays into iconic battles like Attack of the Clones’ Battle of Geonosis. Most of these updates have been focused on the game’s multiplayer. If you’re someone who likes to play solo, you were limited to some bare-bones arcade modes. Implementation of a solo starfighter mode softened the blow, but there weren’t many options for huge battles. That’s going to change.
The roadmap outlining the rest of the year outlines two new modes. There’s online co-op and Instant Action, a mode that had been in earlier Battlefront games. Co-op allows a squad of up to four players to complete missions on Clone War era maps. It’s a small scale mode that’s meant for groups of friends. Instant Action, a mode allowing one player to participate in massive, control-point laden battles is coming as well.
Instant Action drops players into matches entirely populated by AI companions and enemies including computer-controlled hero characters, granting access to the huge battles the series is known for without needing to go online. Both modes launch in September.
In addition to these modes, Battlefront II will receive a handful of additional updates. The freaky botanical world of Felucia will be added in September and there will be a crossover event with the upcoming Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, in December.
There will also be a brand new special unit coming to the game: Clone Commandos. Fans have been asking for them for a while. Popularised in LucasArts’ 2005 first-person shooter Star Wars: Republic Commando and later on in the Clone Wars television series, clone commandos are badass troops known for taking difficult missions. In Battlefront II, you’ll unlock them in matches by spending hero points earned through gameplay. Their big gimmick is a transforming blaster rifle with multiple firing modes including a grenade launcher.
The roadmap also outlines a few tiny changes like customisable appearances for battle droids and a “contextual spawning” feature that will allow players the ability to spawn on control points a la Battlefield. Battlefront II continues to grow with quality of life fixes and new modes that reward long-time fans.
Cool clone commandos and improved single player are another example of how the game is shifting to meet player demands, and might offer incentive for once-exiled players to return.
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