Han Solo, Princess Leia and Emperor Palpatine join other iconic playable characters in Star Wars Battlefront according to announcements by EA earlier today. These three beloved characters join Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader and Boba Fett as powerful Heroes and Villains that each possess their own special abilities and perks.
Han Solo is identified as a lone-wolf gunslinger with a boosted arsenal focused on offensive propensity. His three perks include Rapid Fire, Shoulder Charge and Lucky Shot. While the first two function as you would expect, Lucky Shot is described as a power shot that can heavily damage vehicles, infantry and villains.
Princess Leia seems to be more of a defensive and supportive character, as her three perks include Trooper Bane, Enhanced Squad Shield and Supply Drop. Trooper Bane is a one-shot kill blast on stormtroopers and an ability that will stun Villains while also heavily damaging them. Enhanced Squad Shield is great for holding down a particular area of the map. The Supply Drop gives power ups to rebel troops and health boosts to other Hero characters. Leia also has an additional benefit in which troops that spawn near her will be upgraded to Alderaan Honor Guards.
The only additional Villain announced today for Battlefront is Emperor Palpatine and will include the abilities of Force Dash, Imperial Resources and Force Lightening. Force Dash seems to be a movement boost for the character. Imperial Resources acts similarly to Leia’s Supply Drop, by providing Palpatine with the opportunity to support teammates and boost Villain health. From the description, Force Lightening looks to be an AOE (area of effect) attack in which nearby enemies will be damaged. It can also be used as a chain attack.
New modes were also announced. The first mode titled “Heroes vs Villains,” allows for a 6v6 round-based combat scenario in which three players from each team will randomly spawn as a Hero or Villain to fight one another as iconic good and evil characters from the Star Wars universe. The post explains that the goal of the mode is to defeat the opposing Heroes and Villains to end the round.
The second mode is called “Battles,” in which players can choose to play against another in a 1v1 match or along with AI characters. The primary objective is to collect 100 tokens dropped by the enemy. Hero Battles appears to be the same concept, but with Heroes and Villains thrown into the mix. EA emphasized that these modes will be available both for online and local split-screen.
Star Wars Battlefront will release November 19 in the UK and November 17 in the US on PS4, Xbox One and PC.
