Battlefront Beta Review

This week, I'm going to make a departure from unpopular opinions and talk about the beta release of the highly anticipated reboot of Star Wars Battlefront.  The beta was released yesterday in the late morning, and I spent a good portion of my day replaying every mission type available and trying each weapon and gadget possible.

In summary, Battlefront is awesome.

Innit purdy??

The first thing that springs to mind is how well this game is optimized (at least on PC, it's what I've got).  I don't have an amazing machine by any stretch, but it runs perfectly smooth at 60 frames per second on the highest graphics, even in the 20 v 20 battles with spacecraft, vehicles, and an unholy amount of gunfire.

The environments are exceptionally well done, and are more interesting than those I've seen in other comparable games.  The environments are also very three dimensional, meaning that you can be creative in your approaches and takedowns.

The gadgets are flashy and cool!

I also really like the in-game powerups.  As you wander about the map, you can come across random varieties of items that can help you tip the balance of a firefight, or allow you to secure an objective.  This ranges from thermal explosives, shield generators, orbital strikes, and hero upgrades.  Use the right one in the right situation, and you can be a hero.

Along with these comes your "hand," which is made up of three cards that give you additional abilities.  Cards are unlocked and equipped before a match, and depending on the terrain, scenario, or your personal play style, each can lend an advantage.  These include personal shield generators, jump packs, grenades, the dreaded cycler rifle, and many others.

I've given each of these gizmos a fair run, and I think they all have some decent utility, but could also use some balancing.  The cycler rifle, for example, can fire through shields, and kills in a single shot to the head, or does 90% damage anywhere else.  While the shot can often be difficult to get off, it's usually what kills me about two out of three times on the walker assault mission.  The seven second cooldown it has is what makes it unbalanced, if you ask me.

Some people also say the personal shield generator is also overpowered, but I would counter that by pointing out how difficult it is to find power charges in the battlefield, and that cycler rifles and grenades can still make short work of you.

FWOOOSSH

In summary, I'm going to buy this game.  Where before I sat the fence as a cynic and skeptic, I now know that this game is striving to be as "Star Warsy" as possible, and I love that.  It's what being a fan is all about; enjoying any and all Star Wars because it is Star Wars.

Good luck with the release next month EA, and may the Force be with you!

Unpopular Opinion #4: Not Hatin' Christiansen

Did you see what I did there?  That's one heck of a pun!

In case it's not obvious, the topic of this opinion is Hayden Christensen.  When people cite their hate for the prequel movies, this son-of-a-sith comes up almost as frequently as Jar Jar Binks.  Often people say that his romantic scenes were uncomfortable and all around difficult to handle, and that in general he was a lackluster actor.  It's difficult to disagree, considering that those statements are generally true.

I'm going to play the role of devil's advocate once again and point out that Christensen's performance ought to be placed in comparison to other characters in the star wars universe, and in particular, against the leading characters of the classic trilogy.

Like father like son, I guess...

My first observation is that if Anakin and Luke were in the same room together, it wouldn't take long before it became painfully obvious that they are kin.  Anakin often had the same sort of pealing whine to many of his lines that Luke did.  Luke, in the first film in particular, it's unceasingly helpless, mopey, and all around new to the galaxy.  Anakin follows the same sort of personality, though for some reason garners much more hatred from fans.

I think I need to go to the bathroom, at least til this scene is over...

Fans often say that the awkward romance scenes were a painful cause for the Christensen hate.  I would agree myself that those scenes are difficult to watch, and I often do the adult thing and browse the internet on my phone when re-watching those scenes.  I would propose, however, that we imagine what it would be like if we had to watch a Luke romance scene on the big screen.  I can't think that the romances would be any less awkward, considering Luke's almost comparable demeanor.  Thankfully, those scenes are left in books where they could be scripted to perfection, rather than stumbled over by the whims and interpretations of an actor.

Even a mother would struggle to love this face.

Another reason that I don't mind Hayden Christensen so much is that it makes the watcher like Darth Vader less.  Seriously, why do people love him so much?  He's iconic, but he's also evil. I don't mean evil in the "plays obnoxious pranks on coworkers" sort of way, but the "I'll murder scores of children and other good people to have a crack at saving my wife from death."  How flipping romantic.

Darth Vader is supposed to be a villain, and I think the original trilogy shrouds his deeds too much for people to really understand how wicked he truly was.  The prequels show the side of Darth Vader that nobody wanted to see:  The dark side.  Darth Vader never really killed anyone on screen in the original trilogy, so it's very for viewers to miss his sinister side.  I imagine that watching someone murder children makes you like them less.

I still have a career after Star Wars.  U mad br0?

In conclusion, Hayden Christensen wasn't great, but that doesn't matter.  Star Wars is Star Wars, and a fan loves every bit of it that they can eat up.  He wasn't my favorite, and like most of the Star Wars cast in years past, Christensen hasn't found himself any other starring roles.  Harrison Ford seems to be the only person to have broken that spell, and are we surprised?

Unpopular Opinion #3: The "Crossguard" Lightsaber is awesome

People hate this for some reason.

When the first teaser trailer debuted for the Force Awakens, two camps quickly formed around the perhaps inappropriately dubbed "crossguard" lightsaber.  Many people saw it as an impractical weapon because the "crossguard" could assumedly be sliced through by an enemies lightsaber, and because the risk of slicing yourself would naturally be higher than with a standard lightsaber

Before you go judging the "new" lightsaber from the Star Wars VII teaser, read this:

The first iteration of the "crossguard" saber

The "crossguard lightsaber" is nothing new, although it is incredibly rare. Those that have dubbed it the "lightsaber claymore" aren't far off in describing it's function. These have existed in Star Wars Expanded Universe, and are not some new gimmick. They are typically wielded with both hands, however the lightweight nature of lightsabers enable the wielder to add variety to their fighting style.

The crossguard blades allow for both offensive and defensive surprise maneuvers. Critics of the blade say that the guard blades are useless because the hilt portion of the guard can be sliced by an opponent's lightsaber. That would only be true if the crossguard blade was NOT made of any one of many lightsaber-resistant alloys, including, but not exhaustively enumerated, phrik alloy, cortosis, and Mandalorian Iron. You can safely bet your money that this Sith constructed the crossguard with one of those alloys.

As far as the USEFULNESS of the crossguard is concerned, it's use expands just beyond protecting the wielder's hands. The blades could also be used for surprise, and incredibly lethal guard strikes. Sith are widely known to employ more exotic light weapons because of the nature of surprise. The standard lightsaber is typically understood to be the best, most versatile option, but an inexperienced opponent would be easily bested by a double blade, shoto, shoto guard, pike, light whip, or dual phase lightsaber simply because they are unfamiliar with the weapon. The same can be said of the crossguard saber, and this foreignness falls right in line with Sith proclivity.

The wavy, or unstable blade is always bad news

Analyzing one step further, the blade itself is more interesting to me than the hilt. If you pay attention to the blade, you can see that it has a wavy, almost fiery effect. That, and the sound it makes when activated, indicate that the lightsaber was assembled using an imperfect synthetic red crystal. This particular variant of the synthetic crystal emits an "unstable" blade, which allows a stronger blade, but surrenders mobility and flexibility that compact or compressed imperfect blades offer.

... Not sure why I made this...

In summary: This Sith is a brawler, a dark-side Aragorn. His style will employ savage two-handed strikes, an aggressive style that will require to keep his opponents on the retreat. While this particular lightsaber is indisputably inferior to other alternatives, this one will provide an immense element of surprise for our antagonists who will have to face him.

May the Force be with them.

Unpopular Opinion #2: The Prequels are Awesome

If this doesn't get me some hate, I don't know what will.

Feel free to cast stones

I'll start first with looking at why people hated the Star Wars prequels to the degree that they do.

Jar Jar Binks... Nobody's favorite.

Public enemy number one is Jar Jar Binks.  He's ubiquitously hated by nearly every Star Wars fan in existence.  He's annoying, and his entire species is possibly a racially insensitive portrayal of Jamaicans.  Sure, I can agree that the story arc would have been improved by his removal, but I'm compelled to counter with this:

Yep, Ewoks.  Tiny people in bear costumes.

Ewoks are a nearly equally ridiculous concept.  I don't have much more to say about them, other than to draw the point that the prequels and the original trilogy both have some issues when it comes with devising compelling species at times.

Okay, next reason why people hate the prequels:

Hayden Christensen as Anakin/Darth Vader

This is a hatred I totally understand.  His acting wasn't particularly noteworthy, and much of his dialogue felt superficially contrived.  The main failing was that his character failed to live up to the towering standards set by the Darth Vader of the previous films.  Everyone watched eagerly in anticipation for the penultimate fall of who would be one of the most popular villain of all time, only to be disappointed with lackluster storytelling and painfully awkward romance.

While there is little that can be said in defense of these shortcomings, I would simply note that none of the events surrounding Anakin Skywalker come as a particular surprise to anyone.  Because the story of Darth Vader was told in the classic trilogy, people knew his ultimate fate, detracting from any sort of peril or climax that could be written.  In short, the "origin story" of Darth Vader was doomed to fall short of fan expectations from the beginning.

Boy, sure didn't see THIS coming...

Enough negativity about the prequels... I felt like I should at least field the elephants in the room, so to speak.  So here's what absolutely ROCKS about the prequels:

Simply this.

In George Lucas' original iteration of the lightsaber, his intention was that the weapon would be too heavy or unwieldy to be used in any other way than with both hands, and with only a single blade.  With Return of the Jedi, the coolest thing we see with a lightsaber is that it can be hurled at an opponent.  However, with the prequels, it (officially) introduced a whole new world of saber combat.  Saber forms, stances, styles, colors, and everything else were all wildly expanded to include everything that we now see today.  Without the prequels, we might still be watching the inflexible, muted fighting style we saw in A New Hope.

The Jedi Code, a mantra to live by.

The prequels also introduced us to the wider Star Wars universe for the first time.  For instance, the Jedi and Sith orders were explained and explored in ways nobody had ever seen before.  It was an exciting time for expanded universe enthusiasts because it gave us a critical insight into the daily workings of these archaic orders.  Beyond that, the worlds and races were also vastly expanded to such painfully structured detail that it gave the impression that the Star Wars galaxy is simply limitless in possibilities.

Darkness... The likes of which never before seen.

One of the final reasons I enjoy the prequels and what they have done for the Star Wars universe is development into an appeal for an older generation.  The original had decent family appeal, with some moments of peril and excitement.  Episodes 1 and 2 were exactly TOO family friendly, with the extremely goofy antics of the Gungans and the unbearably unconvincing love story.  With Revenge of the Sith, the tone changed.  It wasn't as "safe" from evil as the previous movies.  The first scenes in the movie depict cold-blooded murder, and eventually the massacre of children and Jedi everywhere.

I'm no fan of murder, but the story grew up, at roughly the same rate I've grown up myself.  This blew open the doors in the Star Wars universe to allow for more perilous, dangerous, and compelling stories.  Nobody is safe, and sometimes the darkness can take temporary victory over good.  It makes for better storytelling, and a better medium overall.