If you are a millennial or were born in the late 90s or early 2000s, you probably have fond memories of or have heard stories about the golden era of Star Wars games. During that time, Star Wars fans had the opportunity to enjoy Star Wars The Forced Unleased, Lego Star Wars, Star Wars: Dark Forces, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Republic Commando, and the Star Wars Battlefront franchise. Nostalgia for the golden era of Star Wars games has left many gamers from that time yearning for the old days. Because of this nostalgia, gaming companies have looked to profit and fulfill the needs of those gamers. With this in mind, is Aspyr’s Star Wars Battlefront Collection a cash grab or a worthwhile fulfillment? Read our review to find out!
Star Wars Battlefront Classic Collection
Developer: Aspyr
Publisher: Aspyr
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PC (Steam), PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S (Reviewed)
Release Date: March 14th, 2024
Players: 1 to 64
Price: Base: $34.99 USD
With Star Wars Battlefront, prepare to fight the AI in more ways than one. With the updated version of the Star Wars Battlefront Collection, players can expect to play as a Higher texture version of the old character models.
The original maps plus the DLC maps have been brought back in the classic collection. If you are trying to live out the glory days thought, we recommend sticking to the originals.
Rather than going the route of updating the graphics, controls, and gameplay, Aspyr has decided to bring a retextured version of the game to the modern era. The major problem with this is that these updated HD textures can run into issues when trying to play the game.
The amount of invisible walls and barriers we got stuck on while playing the game was insane; in fact, this is probably the worst experience we’ve had with these issues in any game we have played or reviewed.
On top of the HD Texture and barrier issues, we came across a variety of obstacles that tarnished the beloved experience. The AI in the game feels like it has been programmed to be smarter for the opposing team and incompetent for your team.
Prepare to fight for your life in more ways than one. The game’s aim assist will try to be helpful by pulling your reticle toward the nearest enemy; this can make the game feel like a nightmare when you are shooting an enemy further away and it pulls you to one nearby.
When you have a fond love for a game, it hurts to see it in a way that tarnishes your memory. This is sadly what Star Wars Battlefront Classic Collection does.
Rather than updating the game with improved visuals and gameplay, the developers went the route of applying an HD texture pack and slapping it with a $35 label. In fact, you can boot up the original games on Steam and play it with the HD Texture mods and have a better experience.
While playing on the Xbox Series X, we did not have an issue finding a match on the original Star Wars Battlefront, however trying to find a match on Battlefront 2 was next to impossible. When we finally did find a match on BF2, it was one of the laggiest experiences we have ever had in a game.
Each command that we issued whether turning, throwing our lightsaber, or shooting at the enemy took at least six seconds to be responsive. This made playing online almost next to impossible. When trying to host, the experience wasn’t much better.
While playing through on Single Player, it felt like some of the content was missing. Playing through the campaigns felt more like a chore than a fun trip down memory lane. You have to carry each match like you are a one-man army in order to succeed.
During one mission, we had 70 kills and still lost due to the inadequacies of the game’s AI. You can lower the difficulty but doing so feels like you are cheating. We ended up replaying that mission 4 times before we were able to complete it.
The repeat of the mission was partially due to a lack of consistency within the game. There were times when we jumped off the tower into the water and we were able to fight the enemy and other times when we would die upon impact. Changing the solider type did not determine whether we died from fall damage or not.
In Rise of the Empire, players play as the 501st and go through their story from the beginning of the Clone Wars to taking down the Jedi Order and becoming the Empire. In Galactic Conquest, the player can play through either side from the Clone Wars Trilogy to the Galactic Civil War Trilogy.
As you move your ship, you will compete against the AI to take planets and command posts. As you conquer new territories, you can unlock additional units and bonuses to help you with your Galactic Conquest. Playing through Galactic Conquest filled us with nostalgia but still felt like something was missing.
Finally, players can enjoy Instant Action where they can create a playlist based on Planet, Era, and game mode. Players can search out for a specific made and create a playlist entirely based on a single mode. Playing Hero Assault on Mos Eisley was a nice trip down memory lane.
At the end of the day, the Star Wars Battlefront Classic Collection is an attempt by Aspyr for an easy nostalgia-driven cash grab. The gameplay really hasn’t improved with the porting or update. In fact, we were curious which would provide a better experience, playing the original on PC or playing the Classic Collection.
The answer was clear, playing Star Wars Battlefront 1 or 2 on PC over Xbox. The love the fans have put into maintaining and constantly improving the game on PC shows compared to the capitalistic greed of Aspyr.
Star Wars Battlefront Classic Collection deserved a full remaster or remake compared to the garbage that Aspyr put out. It is heartbreaking to see how little effort they put into bringing an experience worthy of the series to the modern era. The game’s controls are extremely stiff and you will have to battle aim assist on top of it. If you are looking for a fun trip down memory lane, just buy the games on Steam or when they are on sale.
Do better next time Aspyr!
Star Wars Battlefront Classic Collection was reviewed on an Xbox Series X using a copy provided by Aspyr. You can find additional information about Niche Gamer’s review/ethics policy here. Star Wars Battlefront Classic Collection is now available on Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.
