Tips & Tricks

By Alex McLain

At long last, Star Wars Battlefront™ is upon us. This means that it’s time to stop daydreaming about it and time to get real about playing it, and playing it well. Full-auto blaster firing at anything that moves isn’t going to cut it and will probably get you kicked from your team, so let’s get gritty and dive into some battlefield … er … Battlefront tactics.

As you may have just caught, Star Wars Battlefront bears remarkable similarity to Electronic Art's Battlefield 1942. They’re both big team-on-team battle simulators, they both have several classes of soldiers to play, they both have a wide variety of vehicles, and they both feature remarkably fast and intuitive gameplay. Now, seeing as how Battlefield won numerous awards (including Game of the Year), this is not a bad template to follow. If you’re a Battlefield veteran, you’ll have no trouble picking up and immediately feeling at ease with Star Wars Battlefront. That said, Battlefront is definitely its own game with a lot of its own strategy.

The AT-ST, rarely a bad idea.

A Balanced Team
Each faction has five classes, though four of the five are mirrored in every faction. The remaining one class is occupied by a faction-specific class (for example, the Rebel Alliance boasts a Wookie Smuggler). When playing online, you want to make sure your team is well balanced. It will spell mass-disaster if everyone picks the pilot class and dashes for the nearest vehicle, leaving the bots to handle the bulk of the battle.

Let’s say you’re playing on an eight-man team. I suggest always having at least four people playing the standard “soldier” role. These guys all sport fully automatic blasters, a sidearm, and grenades. They’re easily the best equipped for standard combat. Use the other four slots to fill out your needs. Each map has different requirements. Dark Troopers (Imperial) or Jet Troopers (Republic) work great in Mos Eisley since they can jet over barricades or onto the tops of buildings if need be. Geonosis has a lot of vehicles, so two Vanguards (if you’re playing the Rebel Alliance) may be in order. Tipico City on Kamino, on the other hand, has no vehicles, so a few snipers on elevated platforms may work best. However, even if a map has no vehicles at all, I still recommend having at least one pilot. They’re the only class that can provide you with supplies (ammo and health), so they’re invaluable for a smooth operation.

Red reticule means bad guy.

Give Orders
Whether you’re online or off, chances are you’ll have a boatload of bots in your game. You’ve got to remember that you can give orders to these bots, or you’ll be handing your opponents a huge advantage. For example, you can order your automated comrades to hold a base after you take it over, or to follow you to the next checkpoint. If you don’t communicate with your bots you’ll end up wasting their use to you and your team.

The Rolling Dodge
Most online shooters end up being a hop-along festival as people leap about to avoid fire. Luckily, and realistically, leaping about will probably get you shot faster in Battlefront. However, if you press the jump button while strafing, you’ll find yourself performing a rolling dodge. Not only is this a more effective way to avoid fire, but, unlike the jump, you can aim (though you can’t shoot) while rolling, so you can line up your next shot. Mastering this technique is an important key to successful shootouts.

Hide behind that brush!

Thumbstick Sensitivity
Dual-analog control in first-person shooters has been a touch-and-go affair. Fortunately, Battlefront offers a very smooth analog experience. However, that doesn’t mean it can’t be better. Experiment with the thumbstick sensitivity in the Controls menu to find out what works best for you. Finding a sensitivity that you’re comfortable with can and will make you more effective.

Hold Fast!
It’s tempting to let loose a barrage of fire as soon as you see an enemy, but be patient. Wait until you're within effective range. Blaster fire becomes more erratic the further you are from your target, and since such fire can easily be tracked back to its source, firing too early will expose you quickly.

Name Recognition
Let’s face it, real people are going to become a lot more skilled and dangerous than their bot counterparts. On System Link or Xbox Live™, when your targeting reticule moves over an enemy (if they’re a real person), their Gamertag or profile name will show up. It’s an easy way to know who’s a bot and who’s not, and consequently who’s the most dangerous enemy out there.

Battlefront is the kind of title where you'll need to develop a lot of strategy on the fly, but the tips above should give you a quick boost to get you going. Be sure to check out deeper and more map-specific strategy as we bring you more Star Wars tactical goodness.