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Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron

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Developer(s)Rebellion Developments
Publisher(s)LucasArts
SeriesStar Wars: Battlefront
Platform(s)PlayStation Portable
Genre(s)Third Person Shooter
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer online

Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron is the third Star Wars Battlefront video game, first released in North America on October 9, 2007[1] and later in Australia and Europe. The game was designed as a PlayStation Portable exclusive[2] and features the eponymous Rebel Alliance covert ops unit Renegade Squadron, previously unmentioned in Star Wars canon. Renegade Squadron was one of the first games available in a bundle pack with the newly released PSP redesign.[2][3][4]

The single-player campaign follows the exploits of Renegade Squadron from their inception by Han Solo throughout their operational history, until their dissolution after the Battle of Endor. The Renegades participated in several famous battles, including Yavin and Hoth. Players are allowed to build their character as they see fit and then fight in both space and ground battles.

Renegade Squadron received a mixed reaction from the video gaming community. Generally considered superior to its predecessor (the PSP version of Star Wars Battlefront II), it was praised for its customization options and online play, but the single-player campaign was criticized for being brief and shallow. Opinions on the graphics were mixed, but the controls were generally cited as inadequate due to the lack of a second analog nub, which is a common criticism for the PSP.[5][6][7]

Gameplay

The overall structure of Renegade Squadron is similar to other games in the Battlefront series in that it is a war game played primarily with a third-person view. Battles take place on the ground and in space and generally require the player to capture "command posts," specific areas of territory represented by a floating icon. Each map has a set number of command posts, and it is beneficial for the player to occupy as many as possible (space battles use a modified command post system). Each side has a set number of reinforcement "tickets" at the beginning of the battle - any time a soldier dies, that team loses one ticket when that soldier respawns. During the single-player campaign, the player generally starts a mission with 5 or 10 tickets and earns more whenever an objective is completed.

At the beginning of each mission, every time the character respawns, and when at a command post, it's possible for the player to adjust their character’s weapons, appearance, and other traits to their liking.[8] The player gets 100 "credits" to purchase weapons and equipment for their character, a change from the class-based system of previous games in the series. Before the game's release, LucasArts stated that the game's customization engine would allow millions of different character combinations.[9] Another new feature allows players to enter asteroid bases on some space maps.[2] In addition, players can earn "medals" by achieving set in-game objectives, like destroying a certain number of spaceships or playing a multiplayer game on "Wookiee Life Day" (December 25).[10]

Single Player

There are three options for single play: the campaign, instant action, and galactic conquest. The in-game menu provides several narrated video tutorials that explain the game in-depth.[11]

Campaign

During the story campaign, the player takes control of Renegade Squadron, under the command of Col Serra (and occasionally Han Solo). Serra describes the formation of Renegade Squadron in the beginning cutscene of the campaign; the player then starts a series of missions with a range of different objectives, with voiced cutscenes in static, graphic novel-style[2] in between the missions to provide background information and move the story along. The final mission includes the Battle of Endor, in which the objectives are similar to the corresponding footage in Return of the Jedi.

Screenshot depicting in-game footage.

Instant Action

With instant action, players are able to take part in battles alongside AI-controlled teammates against AI opponents. There are four types of missions. Conquest is the Battlefront standard and pits two opposing forces against each other on a space or ground map, with the objective of controlling all of the command posts on the map, or defeating every member of the opposing force. There are also three variants of capture the flag, one being a standard flag match where each side has a flag in their base, and the other team is required to capture the flag and return it to their own base for a point. In 1-flag mode, there is only one flag, placed in the middle of the map, and forces fight each other to capture the flag and return it to their base for points. The third and final type is a new mode called "Hero flag"[2] whereby players are permitted to control iconic Star Wars characters during standard flag battles by physically carrying their team's flag. These heroes span the Clone Wars and Civil War periods and include Asajj Ventress, Boba Fett, Ki-Adi-Mundi, and others. In all instant action maps, the player chooses which faction to control at the beginning of the battle. Depending on the map, Alliance, Imperial, Old Republic, or Confederate forces may be controlled.

Galactic Conquest

Present in previous Battlefront games,[12] galactic conquest is played as a type of turn-based board game with segmented turns, similar to a customizable card game.[13] The board is a simplified representation of the Star Wars galaxy, with four quadrants containing several planets each. The goal of the player is to control every planet on the board. The player and the AI opponent each start with just a few planets (including a headquarters planet which has more reinforcements), which generate revenue each turn in the form of galactic credits. Credits are used to purchase reinforcements and hire special commanders, who are iconic Star Wars leaders like Mon Mothma and Tarkin.[14] Commanders are only available to a player if they are able to control all of the planets in a quadrant. During each turn, a player is allowed to move reinforcements around their controlled planets and attack opponent-controlled planets. Attacking a planet initiates either a ground or space battle, which can be fought manually or automatically. The player wins when they conquer their opponent's final planet (generally the headquarters) after both a space and ground battle.[10]

Multiplayer

In addition to the single-player story missions, Renegade Squadron allows up to 16 players to compete via infrastructure mode (eight-person support for ad-hoc).[9] The multiplayer game types are limited to conquest and capture the flag. A GameSpy network account is required to play using infrastructure, and offers players a rankings system so they can track their performance.[10]

Plot

"Like I said, they may not have been the most noble bunch ever to fight for the Alliance, or its most famous squadron, but I can't think of anyone else I'd rather have beside me when the thermal detonators are flying and I'm down to my last clip."

— Col Serra[15]

The single-player campaign begins with Tionne Solusar, the New Jedi Order's chief historian, researching the forces of the Rebel Alliance during the Galactic Civil War. Tionne finds several vague references to a "Renegade Squadron" and its commander, Col Serra, who were apparently involved in several covert ops missions during the war. Tionne manages to track down Serra and he candidly relates the entire history of the unit.

File:ColSerra.jpg
The evolution of Col Serra, as depicted by the development staff. The image on the far right was the one eventually used for the game.

Renegade Squadron was formed shortly before the Battle of Yavin, at the request of Han Solo[9] (in an apparent plot hole, the first mission of the game features the new unit assisting in the battle, despite Solo not being an active member of the Alliance during that time). Serra and Solo knew each other from Solo's smuggling days. Serra agreed to Solo's request and put together a unit of mercenaries, bounty hunters, smugglers, and other Fringe types that would work behind-the-scenes to further the goals of the Alliance. All of the members of the aptly named Renegade Squadron were wanted by the Empire and generally harbored an intense hatred for it, ensuring that they would remain loyal to the Alliance.

Under Serra's command, the unit was responsible for several operations undertaken for the Alliance throughout the war. The unit operated in secrecy and was able to work anonymously at several major incidents, including the battles of Yavin, Hoth, and Endor. The unit was made up of skilled pilots in addition to ground operatives, and so was able to assist in missions both in-space and planetside. The single-player campaign follows the major exploits of Renegade Squadron throughout the war, as told in flashbacks by Serra to Tionne. The unit was considered elite by the Alliance and, despite its anonymity, took part in several high-profile battles against Imperial luminaries, including IG-88 and Darth Vader.

After the Battle of Endor, the squadron was disbanded, its purpose fulfilled. Its surviving members disappeared, many of them returning to their former criminal roots.[16]

Development

"First off, we all know about the fact that the game is built from the ground up for the PSP. From this we crafted a twofold mission statement, or main goal for the project: 1) Deliver a fun, compelling game with all the features and highlights of a traditional Battlefront experience that the millions of fans out there have come to expect.
2) Consider the PSP audience that likes to play games on the go and sometimes for shorter periods of time compared to the consoles."

—K.C. Coleman, assistant producer at LucasArts[2]

LucasArts announced Renegade Squadron by way of a press release in May 2007. The press release mentioned that the game would be the only original Battlefront game of 2007.[9] In July of that year, LucasArts and the game's developer, Rebellion Developments, started a developer blog at the gaming website IGN.[2] Despite having never worked on a Star Wars game, Rebellion had prior development experience with other PSP titles.

The blog was updated frequently until the game's North American launch and featured comments by the game's artists, designers, and producers. The development staff answered questions from the public periodically and released details regarding the game's customization, PSP-exclusivity, and gameplay features. The staff explained that the game was being built from the ground up with portability and the PSP's capabilities in mind. The storyboarded cutscenes were modeled after 2000 AD, a Rebellion property,[2] and voice actors included Andrew Chaikin, Dan Riordan, and other veteran Star Wars gaming actors.[17][18]

At Comic-Con 2007, Renegade Squadron was featured as a playable demo at the LucasArts booth, the only time a demo was made available to the public.[2]

Release

File:RenegadeBundle.jpg
The Star Wars Battlefront PSP Entertainment Pack.

The game was released on October 9, 2007 in North America.[1] LucasArt's official launch event was at the Sony PlayStation Store at the Metreon in San Francisco. Star Wars fans attended in costume, including the 501st Squadron, a large Star Wars cosplaying fanclub. Attendees were eligible to win several prizes. In addition, the first 200 customers to purchase Sony's new Star Wars PSP bundle were given a Han Solo-in-carbonite case for their PSP.[2]

The bundle was announced in July 2007 as the second available PSP-2000 bundle (after Daxter) and titled the Star Wars Battlefront PSP Entertainment Pack.[4] Bundled PSPs are presented in a white case ("ceramic white")[4] with a black silkscreen of Darth Vader on the battery cover, in addition to the copy of Renegade Squadron.

The game was released on October 10, 2007 in Australia and October 12, 2007 in Europe.

Reception

Critical reception of the game was mixed, and it currently holds a score of 73% on media aggregator site Metacritic, which indicates "mixed or average reviews."[26] Reviewers praised the game's customization options and multiplayer, and it was generally accepted as marginally superior to Battlefront II on PSP. The game won the Reader's PSP Game of the Month Award from IGN for October 2007, with one fan stating that the game was more "Star Wars-like" than its predecessor.[27] It was the second best-selling PSP game the week of its release[28] and was still among the list of GameFly's most-rented PSP games in December 2007.[29]

Comments about Renegade Squadron's controls were generally negative, and they were typically described as clumsy or awkward.[23] GameZone referred to the space dogfights as "unplayable"[21] and Eurogamer went as far as calling the lock-on feature "a waste of time."[20] Many publications complained about the PSP's lack of a second analog nub. Despite the criticism, a few reviewers were more favorable towards the controls, with GameSpot noting that they were an improvement over Battlefront II.[22]

Reviewers were polarized on the game's graphics. The cutscenes during the single-player campaign were accepted positively,[24][23][22] but reception of the in-game visuals was less glowing. GamingExcellence praised the graphics as "detailed,"[30] but other comments described them as "blah" and "substandard."[24][31]

Though the single-player campaign was criticized for being short,[32][24][30] Renegade Squadron's multiplayer was widely praised. GameSpot noted that the game included an infrastructure mode, a feature which Battlefront II did not have,[22] and GameZone commented that the game runs smoothly in multiplayer even when handling the maximum number of players.[21] GameSpy described the multiplayer as "fantastic,"[32] and GamesRadar said that it promised hours of satisfaction.[33] Many reviewers said that the multiplayer was the most important part of the game,[23][31] with some of the less positive reviews advising players to play the game primarily for the multiplayer experience.[34][35][36][37]

References

  1. ^ a b "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron Now Available". LucasArts. October 9, 2007. Retrieved 2009-02-06.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron Official Team Blog". IGN. July 06, 2007. Retrieved 2009-02-05. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ^ Arendt, Susan (October 8, 2007). "Renegade Squadron Bundle Features Darth Vader PSP". Wired. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
  4. ^ a b c "Star Wars Battlefront PSP Entertainment Pack news release". LucasArts. July 11, 2007. Retrieved 2009-02-06.
  5. ^ Yoon, Andrew. "Most Wanted Feature in Next PSP". Joystiq. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
  6. ^ Wright, Rob. "God of War: Chains of Olympus Review". RTE Entertainment. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
  7. ^ Wilson, Mark. "Six Ways the PSP could make the PS3 Infinitely Better". Gizmodo. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
  8. ^ Sinclair, Brendan (May 10, 2007). "Star Wars opens new PSP Battlefront". Gamespot. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
  9. ^ a b c d "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron Sends PSP System Owners to the Front". LucasArts. May 10, 2007. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
  10. ^ a b c LucasArts/Rebellion Developments (10-09-2007). Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron Game Manual. LucasArts. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |sectionurl= (help)
  11. ^ "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron tutorial video". Youtube. August 17, 2007. Retrieved 2009-02-06.
  12. ^ "Star Wars Battlefront official site". LucasArts. Retrieved 2009-02-06.
  13. ^ "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron official site". LucasArts. Retrieved 2009-02-06.
  14. ^ "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron Galactic Conquest tutorial video". Youtube. September 6, 2007. Retrieved 2009-02-06.
  15. ^ Rebellion Developments (10-09-2007). Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron (PSP). LucasArts. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  16. ^ Rebellion Developments (10-09-2007). Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron (PSP). LucasArts. Tionne: And Renegade Squadron was disbanded after that? / Col Serra: We disbanded ourselves, faded back into the shadows again. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  17. ^ "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron credits". Allgame. Retrieved 2009-02-06.
  18. ^ "David W. Collins". Wookieepedia. Retrieved 2009-02-06.
  19. ^ Hsu, Dan (2007-10-09). "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron". 1UP. Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  20. ^ a b Whitehead, Dan (2007-10-12). "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron review". Eurogamer. Retrieved 2009-10-30.
  21. ^ a b c Sandoval, Angelina (2007-10-15). "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron Review". GameZone. Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  22. ^ a b c d VanOrd, Kevin (2007-10-09). "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron for PSP review". GameSpot. Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  23. ^ a b c d "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron". GameTrailers. 2007-10-09. Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  24. ^ a b c d Miller, Greg (2007-11-05). "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron Review". IGN. Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  25. ^ Workman, Robert (2007-10-11). "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron on PSP review". GameDaily. Retrieved 2008-12-14.
  26. ^ a b "Metacritic composite score". Metacritic. Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  27. ^ IGN PlayStation Team (2007-10-31). "IGN: Game of the Month: October 2007". IGN. Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  28. ^ "Gamasutra cross-platform US sales". Gamasutra. Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  29. ^ "Assassin's Creed, Mass Effect unshakeable". Gamasutra. Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  30. ^ a b Ewert, James (2007-11-14). "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron review". GamingExcellence. Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  31. ^ a b Erickson, Tracy (2007-10-11). "PSP review, Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron". Pocket Gamer (UK). Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  32. ^ a b Theobald, Phil (2007-10-10). "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron review". GameSpy. Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  33. ^ Antista, Chris. "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron". GamesRadar. Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  34. ^ Yin-Poole, Wesley (2007-10-15). "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron review". Videogamer.com. Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  35. ^ Gulliver, Adam. "Review: Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron". Gamestyle. Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  36. ^ Pikover, James (2007-10-27). "Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron". Filefactory. Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  37. ^ Scullion, Chris (2007-10-12). "PSP Review: Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron". Computerandvideogames.com. Retrieved 2009-02-16.

External links

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