The original Battlefront titles are beloved for their immersive Star Wars experiences, allowing you to participate in iconic battles from the franchise’s history. While the second title introduced Heroes and Villains, the focus remained on large-scale combat similar to the Battlefield series. The Classic Collection aimed to revive this experience with new multiplayer servers, offering players a nostalgic trip. However, the launch didn't go as planned.
The launch of the highly anticipated Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection disappointed many players. After its recent release, it is facing a wave of negative reviews on Steam, indicating a review-bombing situation. This collection combines the original two games into one modern package, but players are encountering significant issues with the release.
Players immediately expressed their disappointment on Steam reviews, resulting in an “Overwhelmingly Negative” rating for the game. Overall, it has been a rough start for the Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection.
Star Wars: Battlefront Only Launched With Three Servers
According to CultureCrave on X, the launch night of Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection saw over 10,000 players attempting to join the game. However, only three servers, each accommodating up to 64 players, were available, totaling just 192 spots. This limited capacity is reflective of 2004 standards. It did not live up to the expectations of contemporary gaming and Aspyr ought to have fixed it before release.
Fortunately, Aspyr resolved the server issue within an hour by adding more official servers and enabling community servers to appear in the browser. Similar server overload problems were seen with Helldivers 2 recently.
Despite multiplayer setbacks, the single-player modes of Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection remain unaffected and offer engaging experiences covering iconic moments from the original and prequel trilogies. Aspyr has already increased server capacity and fans hope for further upgrades to meet modern standards.
The Classic Collection, priced at $34.99 and comprising the original two Star Wars: Battlefront games, debuted on March 14, with a ‘mostly negative” rating on Steam, garnering only 21% positive reviews. Many complaints, particularly centered on connectivity problems, have flooded in from Steam and social media users. One user stated, “Was only able to join one Heroes versus Villains match, and the Heroes’ side was completely broken. No one could join the Heroes team which resulted in no one to fight against. I figured this may have been just a Battlefront 2 issue so I hopped on over to play Battlefront 1 multiplayer. There's zero servers up for Battlefield 1. Wow.”
Impact of Server Issues on Gameplay
Early reports from users indicated that there were only three servers available for Battlefront 2 on PC. Each server was capable of accommodating 64 players, resulting in a total capacity of 192 players. With Steam reporting 9,232 players at a given moment, it suggests that hundreds, if not thousands, of players were unable to join servers due to the limited capacity.
Players on other platforms also experienced similar issues, including difficulties joining multiplayer matches or setting up their own servers. In addition to server problems, players encountered other bugs such as game crashes and missing cutscenes.
Within less than a day of its release on Steam, the reviews for the game were deemed “Mostly Negative,” with 1,972 reviews already submitted as of March 14.
This isn’t the first time that developer Aspyr has faced such issues. When releasing Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered, players on the Epic Games Store encountered a “development build with incomplete assets.” Aspyr also faced a class-action lawsuit after canceling the Restored Content DLC for Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2 on Switch.
The Star Wars gaming community has been facing challenges recently. The cancellation of a first-person shooter based on The Mandalorian also adds to the frustration.
A Mixed Collection
The primary reason for the overwhelmingly negative review status of the Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection on Steam is its problematic online play. Initially, only three servers were available, which was inadequate for such a highly anticipated release. Players also encountered poor connection issues, rendering a significant portion of the games nearly unplayable.
According to a message posted on Aspyr’s support site shortly after the collection’s release, critical errors with the network infrastructure led to high ping, matchmaking errors, crashes, and servers not appearing in the browser. Aspyr acknowledged these issues and stated that efforts were underway to stabilize the network infrastructure.
While some of the initial online play issues have been resolved a couple of days after release, users have noticed additional problems such as the inability to invert controls, poorly remastered or missing cutscenes, and limitations on local play to just two players. Given the $35 price tag, the abundance of issues makes it difficult to recommend the collection until it undergoes substantial patching and discounts.
However, there are still positive aspects to the collection. Having both Battlefront games bundled together in a single launcher is appreciated, as is their availability on Nintendo Switch and PlayStation platforms for the first time. Despite the setbacks, the core gameplay of both shooters remains appealing, and some players have enjoyed experiencing online multiplayer for the first time—when it functions properly. Nevertheless, many feel that Aspyr missed a significant opportunity to deliver a better experience with this revival
Aspyr Reply To ‘Overwhelmingly Negative’ Reviews
With the Steam user reviews now firmly in the “Overwhelmingly Negative” category, it's evident that the launch of the Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection has been a catastrophe. Described by players as “Probably one of the worst launches of all time” within hours of release, the collection has been a major setback for Aspyr following the recent well-received Tomb Raider remasters.
In response to the backlash, Aspyr has issued a notably brief statement acknowledging the issues. They express gratitude for the “overwhelming support and feedback” from the Battlefront community while admitting to "critical errors with our network infrastructure" resulting in various problems like high ping, matchmaking errors, crashes, and server visibility issues.
Interestingly, Aspyr suggests that the problem wasn’t necessarily the lack of servers but rather their visibility due to glitches or other issues. This aligns with players’ experiences of encountering only a few servers despite the high demand.
While Aspyr promises to address these issues and improve network stability, the statement may not be enough to satisfy disappointed players. Many complaints, such as audio glitches and poor controller support, remain unaddressed. Moreover, there's curiosity about the substantial increase in download size compared to the original games, without apparent graphical improvements.
There's hope that Aspyr can rectify the situation. The Battlefront community and the nostalgia for these classic games deserve a better experience, and it's still possible for Aspyr to salvage the situation.
Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection Review Bombing
Despite the current challenges faced by the Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection, there's reason for optimism. Reflecting on the launch of DICE's Star Wars Battlefront 2 in 2017, which initially faced controversy over microtransactions but has since seen a resurgence in players, there's hope for improvement. DICE's dedication to updates and improvements turned the situation around, offering a valuable lesson for Aspyr.
Aspyr can learn from DICE’s experience and prioritize addressing the ongoing issues with the Classic Collection. While the future remains uncertain, there's potential for the game to meet players' expectations with the right efforts and resources. With recent disappointing news about the cancellation of Respawn's Star Wars FPS, fans are eager for positive developments within the franchise. Hopefully, Aspyr remains committed to improving the Classic Collection and unlocking its full potential.
