'Star Wars: Battlefront Beta' a cinematic blast, content flop

"Star Wars: Battlefront" -- from Swedish video game developer DICE -- as experienced in the recent open beta (the official release date is in November), is a massive, gleaming chunk of pyrite in the gold mine of "Star Wars" games from the past decade -- not because it's a bad game or because it’s not fun, but because it’s just a boiled down, well-polished "Battlefield" (2002-present) mod pretending to be the next major iteration in one of the most-loved "Star Wars" video game series.

In reality, "Battlefront" bears as much similarity to the 2005 title "Star Wars: Battlefront 2" as the film "World War Z" (2013) did to the novel that inspired it. The "Battlefront" beta offers a limited view of three game modes: Drop Zone, a fast-paced king-of-the-hill mode on a small map where your team must capture pods in order to gain points; a cooperative Survival Mode in which players fight hordes of stormtroopers, along with stronger enemies like the bipedal mech units called AT-STs; and Walker Assault, the main multiplayer attraction that pits 20 against 20 on a vast, cold map, and that also contains aerial combat.

Walker Assault delivers the "Battlefield" experience with an excellent Star Wars reskin, as DICE, true to form, delivers a seamless union of graphical fidelity and futuristic combat audio. They craft a beautiful cinematic depiction of Hoth, with powdery snow that glistens in the afterglow of a flaming AT-ST, a serene polar landscape marred only by the clanking of the Empire’s mechanized quadrupeds and the mildly irritating orbital strikes that decimate the Rebels in their icy trenches. Backed by John Williams’ score, players run across the battlefield, dodging blaster fire and thermal imploders (imagine a tennis-court-sized flaming black hole that blasts dubstep). They get the sense of the utter bloodbath that occurred in the beginning of "The Empire Strikes Back" (1980), and of the overwhelming odds the rebels faced in their defense of their shield generators from Darth Vader’s invasion.

Actual combat is where the illusion starts to break down, revealing the "Battlefield" formula that forms the skeletal structure of the game. Blasters fire fairly accurately and quickly, and the light machine gun is insane in close-quarters. Recoil is minimal, ammo is unlimited and a single blaster shot does a ton of damage, meaning easy kills are often right around the corner -- as long as you get the drop on the adversary. This encourages the kind of “spray n’ pray” combat that is so prevalent in the "Call of Duty" series (2003 - present), and as much as players may enjoy this kind of casual gunplay, taking a formula designed for a game that represents the modern American military and applying it to a sci-fi universe feels out of place. 

Unlike other first-person shooters, customization options are limited to three “card slots” for your character. Players unlock cards by gaining experience, leveling up and purchasing the cards with in-game credits, all of which you earn by playing the game. Cards offer either a power-up or weapon that operates on a timer. There are no weapon attachments, vehicle modifications, perks or killstreaks; the three cards you select are the only difficult choices you have to make. With the personal shield in its current state, you only need to make two choices. More substantial power-ups like piloting a vehicle or taking control of Luke Skywalker or Darth Vader are found in the form of little power-up icons on the ground that have to be picked up, with the powerful ones tending to spawn deeper in enemy territory. The system is simple but effective in maintaining focus on the fight, though it will not offer players enough room for long-term creativity.

The user interface, with a huge weapon selection indicator in the bottom right and a large health bar in the center, are reminiscent of something you might expect on a game designed for tablets. The health bar numbers were large enough to bear resemblance to the numbers on the buttons of those home phones for senior citizens. These design choices are questionable, but not major issues.

"Star Wars" fans who have experienced the majesty of older titles such as "Star Wars: Battlefront 2" (2005) and "Knights of the Old Republic" (2003) probably won’t find enough depth to maintain their interest for the long term. Perhaps "Battlefront" hopes to introduce more gamers to the first-person shooter genre using the simple combat system as a casual gateway to the other DICE titles. Whatever the audience EA is hunting for with this game, this reviewer is not a part of it.