Genre: FPS
Publisher: LucasArts
Developer: Pandemic
Release Date: November 1, 2005
Buy 'SW BATTLEFRONT II':
Xbox | PC CD-ROM | PC DVD-ROM | PSP | PlayStation 2
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"Sequel The Best Selling Star Wars Game of All Time." That's what the back panel of Star Wars: Battlefront II proclaims. Best selling? Of all time? This seems off tto me, yet NPD numbers seem to prove it true, at least across all platforms. But it seems strange, with so many classic Star Wars games that have popped up over the years. X-Wing;Tie Fighter, which of course begat X-Wing Vs. Tie Fighter; the classic Super Star Wars series for the SNES; Shadows of the Empire, one of the few good Nintendo 64 games for the first dry months of the console's lifespan – even budget classics like Yoda Stories (not the Gameboy version!) should have sold quite a few copies to curious fans.
Alas, these all had a major selling point taken out: online play. Sure, it didn't help Star Wars Galaxies much, but that game was a car wreck of an MMORPG. Battlefront had a great mix of Star Wars vehicles and characters and allowed players to bring them all against their friends, head-to-head. While offline games were a bit of a bore and basic gameplay flaws abounded, providing Star Wars nerds with the opportunity to play around with the stuff they've dreamed about for the majority of their lives was a good selling point.
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Battlefront II has that selling point, too, coupled with the "Rise of the Empire" single-player mode.
The PSP version lacks both of these, as well as a second analog stick. Can you say "quick and dirty port?" Good.
Now, as usual, this is not to say that this is a terrible port. It has its good features too, notably massive map sizes with little compromise for the PSP hardware. Yes, there is more slowdown, but it's not as if it wasn't present in the PS2 version; besides, that's a small price to pay for the huge locales. Also, every foot soldier and vehicle from the PC and console versions is available here, along with a few important additions not available in those editions: hero characters. Many are faceless Jedi, but, as the back panel touts, Yoda is playable. More importantly, Darth Vader himself (!) can be unlocked.
The lack of compromise in these areas is still a large price to pay for what is missing. Shoddy animation is the icing on the cake; something had to be eliminated, graphically. The PSP isn't a handheld PS2, as close to it as it sometimes may seem. No, it's the aforementioned missing modes that suck most of the fun straight out of the game.
Let's start with the campaign mode. There are no story-based moments outside of small mission statements. No coherent narrative. Just battles. While it is nice to avoid the unnecessarily lengthy cut scenes that seems to dominate so many modern games, those in Battlefront II weren't always so obtrusive in the first place (this is Star Wars, after all). And, honestly, they could have fit on the UMD with a bit more work. There is no real excuse to remove this mode, unless this game really was designed as a supplemental version for console or PC Battlefront fiends.
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No online play is the worst of it. The same servers could have been used for this game, even if cross-platform compatibility couldn't have been worked out. SOCOM: Fire Team Bravo has already shown how easy that is, going as far as allowing previous SOCOM players to use the same usernames and passwords. So why wasn't Battlefront II handled in this way, considering the online play is a major reason why the games sell as well as they do?
The answer could only be laziness.
It's a continuing trend with portable games that scream out at developers to be online: Wipeout Pure, Coded Arms, Stand Alone Complex, Ridge Racer, Street Fighter Alpha 3 MAX, Guilty Gear X2: #Relaod (unless online is added for the U.S. version), etc. I am aware that some of these are launch games. My answer to that is a finger pointed at Twisted Metal: Head-On.
Without online play, Battlefront II requires multiple PSPs and copies of the game, something that most people cannot organize. This means that the best feature of the title – the fantastic team-based assaults, on ground and in space – is inaccessible for most prospective buyers. That is inexcusable. This game should have been online, contained at least eight-player games, and supported voice chat. It doesn't, and that hurts it quite a bit.
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What's left is a single-player team-based deathmatch experience, reforming and all. Players capture points, which become their new respawn points, and aim to complete the ordained mission. It plays out somewhat like the popular Unreal Tournament mode Assault, albeit without the precise control of that series. The PSP version is even worse off, left without a second analog stick. The game is just as unforgiving as before, so players are forced to get good with the limitations. Quick. That means learning how to throw circle-strafing out the window, wrestle with simple acts like tossing grenades, and have an all-around tough time aiming properly. While this is a major issue, I'm going to downplay it slightly because this is such a direct port of the gameplay. It would have to become a different game – like Fire Team Bravo – to accommodate for the limitations. People buying this title are probably looking for a port, and should, via common sense, understand what they are getting themselves into.
Hopefully.
In the end, I cannot recommend Star Wars Battlefront II for those without the console or PC versions. The PC version is the best way to go, as it allows for the most flexible control and best multiplayer experience. Otherwise, the Live-enabled Xbox version is the way to go. The PSP version is a definite second stringer. Again, it seems aimed at players so obsessed with the game that they also need a portable fix, because it is not nearly the complete product its bigger brothers are. What's frustrating is all that it could have been. Look at almost any review for this game, and that's the sentiment it will express. It should and could have been better than this, irreparable control issues aside. Perhaps Battlefront III will fare better, if the developers have a bit more time to get things running. Let's hope, because these games could be a great portable experience with some heavy tweaking to the current concept.
Score: 6.0/10
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