I grew up playing the Battlefront series on my PS2 and later on the PC with hundreds of hours in each entry. It’s some of the most fun I’ve had in a Star Wars game, and I enjoyed DICE’s take on the franchise as well, especially Battlefront 2. There’s nothing better than dropping into iconic locations from the films and taking part in intense firefights in both single and multiplayer matches. With the Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection, Aspyr has brought the series to modern consoles and PC, and in my review, I’ll see if it’s as good as I remember.
This Is the Way
In a nutshell, if you have never played the series before, this collection is the way to go. It collects both entries in a single package, has dedicated servers for multiplayer, added DLC content that was previously exclusive to Xbox, controller support on PC, and even runs on the Steam Deck. This isn’t a remaster, or remake, and there aren’t many graphical improvements that I could find.
I downloaded the original PC releases to compare, and there are some improvements here and there. Some of the textures are sharper, there’s improved aliasing in some scenes, and the skybox is of a higher resolution, but the minor visual improvements aren’t the real appeal here. Instead, being able to play the games again with an active community, with better servers is.
One interesting change I did note is that the menus in Battlefront 2 now look like the ones from consoles. The original PC release of Battlefront 2 had a very different, and honestly frustrating menu design that wasn’t that appealing. Thankfully, this release now brings it in line with the console releases.
One thing I really appreciate is that Hero Assault is now available on every map in Battlefront 2. It never made much sense to me why it was locked to a few maps before. I couldn’t find enough populated servers to test out multiplayer during the review period, so my experience is solely based on trying out the campaign, galactic conquest, and instant action.
Campaigns, and Galactic Conquest
As mentioned before, these are the same games as you remember them. The PC versions are the closest releases to compare the collection to in terms of features and visuals, but apart from that, you still have the same single-player modes. In both games, the Campaign mode allows you to revisit iconic scenes from the series in large and small-scale battles, going through different planets.
In the first one, there aren’t any cutscenes or focused objectives, and you’ll essentially just capture objectives, or take out a complete opposing army. Battlefront 2, however, will often have specific objectives as part of these large battles, and with the addition of heroes, you’ll get to play as different Jedi, Sith, and other iconic characters from the series.
I think the campaigns hold up simply because the moment-to-moment gameplay, level design, and presentation still come together well. If you’re looking for something to blast your way through without having to worry about a complex story, then the campaigns do a great job of jumping between different planets and putting you right in the middle of iconic battles.
Similarly, Galactic Conquest is still as addictive as it was in the original, and I had fun conquering the galaxy, one planet at a time. Both games have this mode, and there’s a lot of content to get through.
Does the Gunplay Hold Up?
I think the reason these games are so timeless is because of how simple yet satisfying the combat is. It still holds up to this day, and despite the modern releases, going back to the original Battlefront games isn’t just a nostalgia trip. The weapons feel great to use, and the animation work on the characters is surprisingly varied, and the vehicles are a blast to move around in.
The Battle Droids for instance move like they did in the movies with multiple movement forms and stationary positions. You can crouch to improve your sniper aim, and even prone to avoid direct gunfire. The first game doesn’t have sprint, which is honestly my only major issue with it. Battlefront 2 includes sprinting which makes traversal a lot faster. You can roll to avoid incoming shots in both games and jump around too.
Switching between different attack types with weapons ranging from pistols, rocket launchers, sniper rifles, and even laser weapons ensures there’s always enough variety for you to engage with in each match. Personally, I prefer playing in the third-person, and that’s aged much better than the first-person mode. You have more view of the battle, and doing rolls, and jumps feels more intuitive.
Instant action is still my most played mode, and that isn’t any different here. I just love adding a bunch of maps with different goals to the list and switching sides to wipe out Rebel scum, and then become part of them in the next one.
Room for Improvement
If you’re on PC, the only real benefit you’re getting here is the addition of dedicated servers, and some extra maps. Frankly, I think these additions are substantial enough to warrant getting the collection, however, there is room for improvement. First, cross-play is missing on all consoles, and I think that’s something that can increase the longevity of this release substantially.
In addition, some of the UI can be cleaned up a bit. It’s still funny to me how the prompt of the Hero availability is just a small white text at the bottom of the screen that you can easily miss, especially on a map like Hoth.
Closing Thoughts
Overall, this is largely the same classic Battlefront experience bundled for a new era. There aren’t many significant improvements or additions here for the PC version, but dedicated servers will hopefully go a long way to ensure a healthy player base. Some of the features like XL mode previously exclusive to PC are now available on consoles too, and Xbox exclusive content is now available everywhere. This is the definitive way to enjoy these games whether you’re here for single-player or multiplayer content.
I still think the addition of crossplay would help a great deal to ensure more people keep playing for years to come, but that probably comes down to how much interest there is in this release.
What did you think of our review of Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection? Share what you think about it in the comments below.
This review is based on the PC version of Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection. The key was provided by Aspyr.
