A history of the with child Star Wars game we ’ll never get to play
On Star Wars Day , I personally enjoy cerebrate back to my favorite past videogame experiences in “ a galaxy far , far away ” through the years . From my early gaming memories ofJedi Power Battles , to the present day with the newly releasedJedi Survivor , Star Wars has always played a major role in my lifespan as a gamer . However , as I hark back my premature risky venture in the Star Wars universe on this twenty-four hour period of jubilation , I ca n’t help but mean of one biz that continues to haunt me , as well as the millions of gamers who also wonder what could have been . I ’m talking about none other thanStar Wars Battlefront III , the chef-d’oeuvre that never was , and never will be . Let ’s take a perambulation down memory lane , as we depend at the history of Battlefront III , the cursed game that has scarred two generations of Star Wars gamers ( and counting ) .
The Rise of Battlefront – The Classics
In 2004 and 2005 , Pandemic Studios explicate and give up two of the enceinte Star Wars claim ever made , Battlefront and Battlefront II . The games rebuilt the iconic fight from the original and prequel Star Wars trilogies , allowing gamers to play as infantry , heroes / villains , and even pilot the unique vehicle of the Republic , CIS , Rebellion and Empire in single - histrion , on-line multiplayer , or couch Colorado - op . Both game were vital and commercial achiever , sell millions of copy , gain decisive acclaim , and made “ Battlefront ” the go - to videogame dealership in Star Wars . Just as the second Battlefront game surpassed the first , histrion thirstily awaited the third entry in the series , Star Wars Battlefront III , which was coif to be the keen Star Wars experience to particular date . Nothing could stop this inevitable Star Wars Jagganath , right ?
Related : The Best Star Wars Games of All - Time , According to Critics
The Curse Awakens
Unfortunately , Star Wars Battlefront III never come to happen , and to this day , it is still difficult to sympathize exactly what go haywire . The game reportedly began development in 2006 , just a year after Battlefront II ’s launch , but this time at Free Radical Design instead of Pandemic Studios ( which would shut down three year later in 2009 ) . While there has been a great good deal of speculation surrounding Star Wars Battlefront III , there are two self-contradictory horizon held by the developers Free Radical Design vs. the publishing company , LucasArts .
Arecent viral tweetfrom Michael Barclay , the current lead architect at Naughty Dog , who work on as a floor designer at Free Radical during the development of Star Wars Battlefront III slough some illumination on the cancellation of the plot , as he wrote :
“ I feel like it ’s been long enough now to amount out and say Star Wars Battlefront III was gonnae [ sic ] be legit unbelievable and the fact it got cancelled 2 yards from the finish line is an absolute crime . Gamers do n’t have it away what they were robbed of . ”
This thought was repeat antecedently by other Free Radical Design members , including the studio apartment ’s cofounder , Steve Ellis , who once claimed that the Star Wars Battlefront III was between 97 - 99 % complete in various assertion .
However , as highlighted in a decade oldGameSpot clause , LucasArts had some rough Holy Writ for the developers of the Star Wars sequel , with an anonymous employee call the unreleased Battlefront “ 75 % of a mediocre game ” even charge Free Radical of being “ akin to a Ponzi scheme . ”
In the ending it does n’t really matter who was to blame between Free Radical Design or LucasArts , because the biggest loser of the cancellation were the Star Wars gamers . We either miss out on a Star Wars chef-d’oeuvre that we will never get to play , or have spent many age pining for a game that may have been a mediocre disappointment . Whichever it was , we deserve to eff , dammit !
A New Hope – Star Wars Battlefront DICE Reboot
From the ashes of the magnificent Pandemic eld of Battlefront ( and abruptly - lived Free Radical Design earned run average ) , arose the next adept thing to a sequel : a Star Wars Battlefront reboot!In 2013 , DICE began development on an original Battlefront series bring out by Electronic Arts , releasing Star Wars Battlefront in 2015 , followed by its infamous continuation two years afterward in 2017 . Unlike the classic Battlefront game , DICE ’s Star Wars serial received mixed reviews from critic , but likewise to its predecessors , generated monolithic salesto the tune of 14 million written matter sold for Battlefront ( 2015 ) and 10.5 million unit of Battlefront II ( 2017 ) . However , both games were plague with scandal of variegate degrees , such the first Battlefront reboot ’s lack of single player depicted object / story musical mode , and the notable microtransaction fiasco of Battlefront II that sullied the series ’ salutary name .
However , despite their flaw , there is more than meets the eye when it fall to Star Wars Battlefront ( 2015 ) and Star Wars Battlefront II ( 2017 ) . As someone who thoroughly play both of DICE ’s Battlefront game extensively , including earning every PlayStation trophy for Battlefront and Battlefront II , even though they did not quite meet the standard lay by Pandemic , after update , plot of land ( murder “ pay - to - win ” microtransactions ) , and DLC , both titles became worthy of the Battlefront mantle , even after their jolting starts . Surely DICE would be able to give us the Star Wars plot we always dreamed of , when they finally release Battlefront III , right ?
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Return of the Jinx
To spoof the well - known byword , horse around me with Battlefront III once , dishonor on you ; fool me with Battlefront III twice , pity on me . In an eerily similar twist of fate to the first biz of the same name , DICE ’s Star Wars Battlefront IIIwill not be pass off . Although there has n’t been an official cancellation , with composition of arejected pitch by EA , exit of primal die developers , including Battlefront ’s Creative Director , as well as an increase single - role player Star Wars vehemence at EA , it seems the writing is on the wall . All signs aim to the end of Battlefront as we get laid it ( and I do n’t sense okay ) .
Will We Ever Get Star Wars Battlefront III?
As I have highlight consistently in this cursed story lesson , I remain a big fan of Star Wars Battlefront and would probably be the first in line to buy a new game in the franchise , whether from die or another developer . However , despite my fervent loyalty to the serial , it ’s metre for my fellow Battlefront fans and I to move on from the name nostalgia . Someday down the line , there will probably be another Star Wars Battlefront reboot , perchance even one that break the “ execration ” and releases a third game finally , but ultimately the name matters less than its sight .
alternatively of hoping for Star Wars Battlefront III , we should look ahead for new , original secret plan ( deep down and outside of Star Wars ) that continue the custom and emotional state of Pandemic and DICE ’s Battlefront series , and might even build something greater . Rather than feeling disappointed by what Battlefront III could have been and enquire “ what if , ” we should conceive back in gratefulness for the splendid Battlefront title of the past , and look ahead to the future of Star Wars gaming , asking , “ what ’s next ? ”
