It’s been over a decade since EA and DICE tried to capture lightning in a bottle. When they first announced they were reviving the Star Wars Battlefront franchise back at E3 2013, the room basically exploded. People wanted that classic Pandemic Studios magic but with the high-octane destruction of the Frostbite engine. What we actually got across two games was a wild, messy, and eventually beautiful rollercoaster that changed how the industry thinks about microtransactions and live service games forever.
The 2015 Star Wars EA Battlefront was a beautiful, empty shell
Honestly, the first game was a visual masterpiece that lacked any real meat on its bones. DICE went to the Lucasfilm archives. They used photogrammetry to scan actual props from the original trilogy. You could see the individual scratches on a Stormtrooper’s helmet and the way the light hit the snow on Hoth was just... perfect. It felt like stepping into a movie. But then you started playing.
The mechanics were stripped back. Way back. There were no classes. Instead, you had "Star Cards" that determined your loadout. It felt more like an arcade shooter than a tactical battlefield game. Most gamers were pretty annoyed that there was no single-player campaign at all. EA’s Patrick Söderlund later admitted they rushed the game to launch alongside The Force Awakens. It showed. You had four planets at launch. Four. For a full-priced $60 game, that was a tough pill to swallow, especially when the Season Pass cost another $50 just to get the "full" experience.
If you go back and play it now, it’s still fun in short bursts. The sound design is top-tier. Hearing a thermal imploder go off for the first time is a core memory for a lot of us. That "dubstep" bass drop sound? Incredible. But the game basically died because it didn't have the depth to keep people around once the initial "wow" factor of the graphics wore off.
That 2017 sequel changed the world (for the wrong reasons)
When Star Wars Battlefront II was announced, it felt like DICE had listened to every single complaint. They added a campaign. They added all three eras—Prequels, Originals, and Sequels. They promised free DLC. It sounded too good to be true.
It was.
The loot box controversy is legendary now. Before the game even launched, Reddit went into a full-scale meltdown. I’m talking about the "Pride and Accomplishment" comment from EA. It’s still one of the most downvoted comments in the history of the internet. They had designed the entire progression system around random crates. You could literally pay for a statistical advantage in combat. It wasn't just cosmetic; it was "pay-to-win" in its purest, ugliest form.
The backlash was so intense that Disney supposedly stepped in. Rumor has it that Bob Iger himself wasn't thrilled about the Star Wars brand being associated with gambling-lite mechanics. EA turned off the microtransactions hours before the official launch, but the damage was done. The game’s reputation was in the dirt. It’s a shame, really, because beneath all that corporate greed was the best Star Wars multiplayer game ever made.
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The redemption arc nobody expected
Most companies would have abandoned ship. They would have moved on to the next project. But DICE stuck with it. Over the next three years, they completely gutted the progression system. They made it so you actually had to play a class to level it up. Imagine that!
They added General Grievous, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, and Count Dooku. They gave us the Capital Supremacy mode, which finally brought back that non-linear, command-post-capturing gameplay from the original 2004 game. By the time they stopped support in 2020 with the "Battle of Scarif" update, the game was genuinely great. It’s one of the few times a "live service" game actually fixed its soul after a disastrous start.
Why we never got Battlefront III
This is where things get a bit depressing for fans. Around 2020-2021, reports started surfacing that DICE had pitched a third entry. According to industry insider Tom Henderson, the pitch was rejected by EA. The reasoning? Licensing costs.
Basically, because it’s a Disney-owned IP, EA has to pay a significant chunk of the revenue back to Lucasfilm. When you combine that with the massive development costs of a modern AAA shooter, the math just didn't work for EA’s accountants. They decided to pivot DICE back to Battlefield, which is an IP they own 100%. No licensing fees. No shared profits.
It’s a cold business reality. Even though Battlefront II eventually sold millions of copies and had a massive player base, it wasn't profitable enough compared to their internal projects or something like Apex Legends.
What the community is doing now
If you’re looking to scratch that itch today, you've basically got two options. The official servers for the EA games are still live, though you’ll find the most players on PC and PlayStation. Xbox is a bit hit-or-miss depending on the time of day.
- The Modding Scene: On PC, the modding community for Battlefront II is carrying the torch. There are mods that add Ahsoka Tano, Mace Windu, and even characters from The Mandalorian. Some of these mods are so high-quality they look like official developer assets.
- The Classic Collection: Recently, Aspyr released the Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection. It was a bit of a disaster at launch with server issues, but it’s the only way to play the original 2000s games on modern consoles with high-resolution textures.
- Kyber Servers: For the hardcore EA Battlefront II fans, the "Kyber" private servers are the way to go. They offer better anticheat and custom content that the official servers just can't match.
Looking ahead at the Star Wars gaming landscape
EA no longer has the exclusive license to Star Wars. This is huge. We’re seeing Ubisoft’s Star Wars Outlaws, Quantic Dream’s Star Wars Eclipse, and even Respawn working on a strategy game and the Jedi series.
While a direct sequel to the EA Battlefront series isn't on the horizon for 2026, the DNA of those games is everywhere. The focus has shifted toward single-player narratives and smaller, more focused multiplayer experiences. The era of the massive, all-encompassing Star Wars shooter is currently in a "Great Hibernation," much like Han Solo in carbonite.
Actionable insights for fans
If you are still playing or looking to jump back into the EA titles, here is what you need to know. First, don't bother buying the "Celebration Edition" unless it’s on a deep sale; it only unlocks cosmetics you can earn through gameplay anyway. Second, if you're on PC, you absolutely must check out the "Kyber V2" project for a safer multiplayer experience. Finally, keep an eye on the fan-led projects like Project Resurrection—the community is currently more active in preserving this era of gaming than the publishers are.
The most important takeaway is that while the EA Battlefront era was defined by corporate mistakes, the games themselves—specifically the second one—ended up being a heartfelt tribute to the franchise. It’s worth playing today just to see what the Frostbite engine can do with a Lightsaber.