Star Wars: Squadrons: what it’s like to fly every ship

Flying spaceships in Electronic Arts games for the past decade has been a mixed bag. In Star Wars BattlefrontLaunched in 2015, starfighters felt stiff and uncomfortable, like plastic models glued to pegs and held in front of the camera. With Star Wars Battlefront 2, the flight model was a little more nuanced. But the environments still lacked the scale and grandeur to really let the virtual pilots break free.

After spending time inside the cabin of each starfighter in Star Wars: SquadronsIt is clear that this new space combat simulation is much more in tune.

The difference begins with the maps themselves. During a four-hour press event on Monday, I played SquadronThe new Dogfight mode, pitting two teams of five against each other. The map we played on was called Esseles, which in Star Wars history is a powerful imperial listening post hidden in a forgotten corner of the galaxy. In SquadronsIt feels more like a playground.

Image: Motive Studios, Lucasfilm / Electronic Arts

The facility at Esseles is large and flat, as is the imperial base orbiting Scarif in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. The combat theater is divided in half, with fur balls happening both on top and below the massive disk-shaped installation. In the middle is a labyrinthine network of tunnels and small pieces of superstructure. It’s easy to get lost inside the starbase, and expert pilots will be able to use these passageways to cover and hide while maneuvering around the enemy.

Flying inside Esseles is a far cry from the narrow, claustrophobic spaces in Battlefront 2. I was able to get the throttle wide, run down long hallways, or lean into curved sections. I was able to put on the brakes just as easily, pull the stick, and change direction without hitting the wall. I can see these interior spaces being used as choke points, somewhat similar to the common narrow aisles in competitive first-person shooters like Counter Strike global offensive.

The great differentiator for SquadronsHowever, it is the diversity of its ships. Each side, Imperials and Rebels, has four unique spaceships to choose from. Although they are grouped into four classes: fighter, interceptor, bomber and support, their capabilities are not the same within each class.

My least favorite spacecraft to fly was the New Republic X-Wing. Compared to the nimble Imperial TIEs, it felt slow and awkward. However, it is a multi-functional ship and works well in a dogfight and as a fast-moving bomber, but it lacked the speed and maneuverability of the TIE.

My favorite ships were the TIE Interceptor and the A-Wing. Both were lightly armored, but incredibly fast. Overcoming enemy missiles or confusing their tracking by slipping behind cover was very easy. It will take me longer to get under my feet as an attacker inside these ships, but on the defensive it is so much fun to fly.

Meanwhile, the Y-Wing and TIE bombers feel like more attack ships specifically designed for a single game mode. Neither of them holds up well in a dogfight, mainly because they lack speed and maneuverability. They both have quite powerful front cannons, but lining up a shot on smaller, faster ships is nearly impossible. Look them up to excel in SquadronFleet Battles mode, but only when supported by fighters manned by vigilant pilots.

The most curious ships are the support class ships, which include the New Republic U-Wing and the TIE Reaper. Both are relatively new ships featured in Rogue One, and both were used in that movie to transport troops to ground combat. In Squadrons They take a very different role, providing fire support to block certain sections of the map and helping to repair friendly ships. They feel vital to the cooperative nature of the game, but only time will tell if they are really fun to play.

That brings me to the game controls. I played using an Xbox One controller exclusively, and overall I quite liked the basic buttonmap. Puts and yaws on the right stick, with the throttle and roller on the left stick. EA promises that the controls will be fully customizable, so fans of different input methods will be able to adjust the game to suit their needs.

Image: Motive Studios, Lucasfilm / Electronic Arts

Image: Motive Studios, Lucasfilm / Electronic Arts

Image: Motive Studios, Lucasfilm / Electronic Arts

Image: Motive Studios, Lucasfilm / Electronic Arts

A key to being a good pilot, regardless of the boat you are in, is to operate the accelerator. Pushing it forward limits your turning radius, while pulling it back limits your speed. However setting it in the middle gives you the best balance of speed and maneuverability. Looking at the accelerator on the dashboard takes you away from the enemy. That means players who use a practical throttle and lever setting (HOTAS) should have an advantage, as they will be able to know exactly where their throttle is set simply by feeling alone. Anyone wearing a virtual reality headset should also have an advantage, as situational awareness and visibility are key to piloting. There are many things flying in Squadrons, and the boats are very small at a distance. That means bigger monitors will be key, not just higher-resolution displays.

Unfortunately neither HOTAS controls nor VR systems were functional during my demo.

Star Wars: Squadrons It is slated to launch for PlayStation 4, Windows PC, and Xbox One on October 2. It will be compatible with PlayStation VR head-mounted displays on the console and with PC-based virtual reality systems. The game is fully cross-game compatible, and developers tell Polygon that there will be no restrictions on game classified by platform or input method.

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