It’s a Great VR Experience
Reasons to Play Star Wars: Squadrons
We’ll start off with this one solely because there’s a good chance that it won’t apply to a few of you, so we’ll get it out the way! Star Wars: Squadrons is completely compatible with VR, meaning you can enjoy the campaign, multiplayer and menus in a polished VR experience.
Playing in VR should be at the very top of your list if you’re lucky enough to own a headset. It’s the full-fat, no half-measures immersive Star Wars aerial combat experience you’ve been waiting for. Remember having those daydreams as a kid about actually piloting an X-Wing? Of course you did! Well, this is the closest you’re going to get to doing just that.
From my own time playing Squadrons in VR, motion sickness wasn’t an issue, even after a few hours. But it’s truly difficult to describe just how good Squadrons feels in VR. Just take the time to give it a try, and you’ll see what I mean.
The game is compatible with PSVR for PS4 users, and Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Valve Index and Windows Mixed Reality. Though EA Motive does claim that the game is only optimized for PSVR and Oculus Rift, so the quality of your experience on the others might not be quite as polished.
Anyway, what I’m trying to say is, play Star Wars: Squadrons in VR!
It’s the Most Immersive Starfighter Experience Out There
Reasons to Play Star Wars: Squadrons
Welcome back non-VR owning readers! We were just gushing about how incredibly immersive playing Star Wars: Squadrons is in VR. But fear not, as having spent most of my time not playing in VR for the review, I can assure you the game’s just as great playing on your TV.
With almost all of your HUD instruments actually being a part of the interior detailing of your starfighter’s cockpit, you find yourself quickly flickering your eyes around the screen in a panic to check you’ve diverted power to your engines, your boost gauge to begin filling, and your health gauge on the other side as you take hits from behind.
It’s a sensory overload to the eyes when all of these dials begin flashing and the cockpit chaotically beeps and chirps as you manage all of the various ship controls.
It makes escaping death feel even more epic than you’d expect flying a starfighter through space at high-speed while getting blasted from behind by lasers to feel. Yeah, pretty epic.
If you were a fan of the old Star Wars Starfighter games back in the day, then this is essentially their spiritual successor. While Battlefront had its aerial combat game modes, it never felt quite like this.
What You See Is What You Get – No Microtransactions or DLC
Reasons to Play Star Wars: Squadrons
A bit of a double-edged sword, but we’re seeing this as a positive for the most part. When it comes to Star Wars: Squadrons, there are no season passes. No paid DLC and no microtransactions to shortcut the grind of getting that hologram you want to make that TIE Fighter feel your own. The multiplayer game modes and maps you see now are the only ones you’ll (likely) ever play.
While that does make the six maps and two multiplayer modes seem rather lackluster, the core gameplay is compelling enough to make Squadrons a game you’ll keep coming back to regardless, even if it’s only a few times every other month.
But without any paid DLC or season passes, players don’t have to worry about being left behind or blocked out of playing with a portion of the player base because they don’t want to buy DLC.
While there are no plans for Star Wars: Squadrons to get any post-launch content, at the moment, there’s always a possibility things might change dependent on the scale of the game’s success.
If the Campaign Doesn’t Grab You, the Multiplayer Will Get You Hooked
Reasons to Play Star Wars: Squadrons
After taking a peek over at Metacritic, it appears as though Star Wars: Squadrons’ campaign is a bit of a love-it-or-hate-it experience.
Whether you end up a fan of the story or not, it’s worth playing through simply to get to grips with controlling the various starfighters and getting to know their strengths and weaknesses.
The campaign uses various scenarios to teach you their unique attributes and abilities, and how to use them for the most devastating results.
But if you come away from the campaign a little underwhelmed, sit down and play some multiplayer and you’ll feel a whole lot better in no time. Personally, I’ve found Fleet Battles to be the more enjoyable of the two modes, which sees players trying to destroy the opponents’ flagship in a tug-of-war-style, objectives-based game mode.
Get a group of friends together and work together to tactically dismantle the enemy fleet and turn their flagship into a million pieces floating through space. Then do it again, and again, and again.
The more you play, the more starfighter components and cosmetics you’ll unlock, allowing you to approach the demolition of enemy ships from a different angle.
It’s this experimentation — particularly with a coordinated group of fellow pilots — where Star Wars: Squadrons really shines, and will be the cause of many lost hours for players.
About the author
