It wasn’t that long ago that EA deemed spacecraft combat unnecessary, opting to cut all space flight when they rebooted Battlefront. Of course, the internet did what it always does and EA got a lot of flack for cutting out the much-loved feature. But in a rare example of successful internet nagging, EA would right this wrong with the Starfighter Assault update in Battlefront II.
Recently, EA dropped a Star Wars Squadrons trailer on us. It’s a whole game dedicated to laser-filled dogfights in space. As fans of the original TIE Fighter and X-Wing games from the 90’s, our expectations are high for a real, honest-to-goodness flight simulator where you pilot iconic spacecraft from the Star Wars series. Also, it’s going to have support for VR! The force is literally tingling within us right now.
We’ve still got a few long months of waiting ahead of us, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get a little fun practice in before Squadrons launches in October. Here’s a list of some of the Star Wars games you should play before Star Wars Squadrons releases.
Star Wars: Battlefront II
Let’s kick this list off with the most obvious entry. If you’re looking to rack up some flying hours before you hop into Squadrons, look no further than Battlefront II. The flight mechanics it launched with are clunky and unintuitive, but the 2017 Starfighter Assault update finally gave us something akin to what Star Wars Squadrons will apparently give us. Based on the trailers, piloting a spacecraft is going to handle a lot like what we’ve seen in the DICE-developed shooter.
Of course, getting into an actual Starfighter Assault match is another issue altogether. It’s one of the least played game modes in Battlefront II, so you’re out of luck if you were hoping to get some real pilot-on-pilot combat experience under your belt. Luckily, you can always fire up your own Arcade match and fly solo.The game is currently available on various platforms and if you’re playing on the PS4, you might want to get a PSN Gift Card to purchase it online.
LEGO Star Wars – The Complete Saga
The Star Wars franchise is one that is decades old and spans every medium there is. Things fall in and out of canon all the time seemingly at random. If you haven’t watched the first six films in a while, playing LEGO Star Wars – The Complete Saga is the quickest and most enjoyable way to get a quick refresher of the going-ons in a galaxy far, far away.
If this were a list about the greatest Star Wars games, LEGO Star Wars – The Complete Saga would sit comfortably at the top. Don’t let the childish visuals and goofy presentation fool you, LEGO Star Wars offers a surprisingly good retelling of the major plot points in the first six Star Wars films. And it works in spite of the lack of actual dialogue! Star Wars Squadrons takes place directly after Episode 6 so if you can’t find the time to work your way through the prequels and original trilogy films, this is a fun way to get caught up.
Star Wars: Rogue Squadron
This one will be a bit harder to get your hands on because, unlike the other titles on this list, it’s not available on a modern platform. The first Rogue Squadron released on the Nintendo 64 way back in 1998 and was the last Star Wars title entirely dedicated to piloting starfighters. Space combat has appeared in subsequent Star Wars adventures, typically as one-off, isolated missions, but Rogue Squadron was the last to make it the primary mode of play.
Playing through it now, more than 20 years later, you wonder why there haven’t been more! It plays a bit like a Star Fox 64 clone with a Star Wars skin, meaning it’s fantastic. It also performed much better than its publishers expected, making the lack of recent starfighter simulations even more puzzling. If you’ve got an N64 and can score a copy of Star Wars: Rogue Squadron, it’s definitely worth your time and money.
Star Wars: Battlefront Rogue One – X-Wing Fighter VR Mission
Okay, this game’s name is a mess of subtitles and heading but you get the general gist of it — it’s a VR starfighter simulator that takes place between Episodes 3 and 4, and it’s glorious. The starfighter battles in Battlefront II, as fun as they can be, pales in comparison. It takes excellent advantage of VR technology to really immerse you in the universe, ultimately offering a pilot experience that truly feels like you’re in the movies.
The attention to detail is excellent. Swivel around in your seat and you can see your R2 unit hard at work. The panels before you are filled with a myriad of pressable buttons and switches. And, of course, there’s the constant radio chit-chat and one-liner banter from the films.
It’s too bad it’s such a short experience – clocking in at about 20 minutes it’s certainly the shortest game on this list. It’s easily one of the best VR demos on the PS4 today, and a great, bite-sized production that will have you salivating for more. Treat it as something of a demo for Star Wars Squadrons, which will also support VR when it releases.
X-Wing/TIE Fighter
This is going to be a tough sell considering how old these games are, but I’ll give it a shot! Back in the 90’s, TIE Fighter and X-Wing gave kids who dreamed of intergalactic hijinks the opportunity to live out their wildest, space-themed fantasies.
Even playing them now, it’s easy to appreciate how responsive combat feels and how satisfying it is to watch bogies explode with a well-placed laser blast. Of course the graphics are terrible — they’re more than two decades old! If anything, X-Wing and TIE Fighter are testaments to the endless capacity of a child’s imagination to translate pixels the size of rocks into a whole super pilot galaxy experience.
And you know what? They’re important parts of Star Wars video game history. If anything, pushing your way through X-Wing and TIE Fighter will give you a greater appreciation of just how far we’ve come.
Conclusion
That’s the list of games you should play before Star Wars Squadrons releases on October 2nd. Give them a go and you’ll be all caught up with everything that you need, lore-wise and gameplay-wise, to hit the ground running. What Star Wars titles do you think are required for fans of the franchise?
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I am a junior content outreach writer for OffGamers. I foster relationships between gaming enthusiasts and gaming developers to create relevant content for gamers worldwide. I also happen to be a passionate writer and a certified night owl.
