Games nowadays have evolved quite a lot – particularly some genres, like racing games. They have reached the point where players can generally go through any kind of experience they wish, and any type of action scene can be experienced in extreme detail with the right modern title. And still, some possibilities haven’t been explored that thoroughly yet. For example, there still isn’t an online title with proper space to ground combat, and fans have been looking in the direction of “Star Wars: Battlefront 3” with hopeful eyes.
This isn’t the first time the idea has been tossed around in the game’s community, and fans of the “Battlefront” series have actually wanted to see space to ground combat for quite a while now. The second game in the series introduced space combat, although it still lacked the option to take the combat on the ground – it was exclusive to space, and the actual planets were inaccessible during space combat. Still, the quality of this aspect of the gameplay was praised significantly, and the game was remembered fondly for it.
Today, the situation is a bit different, and the possibility for a good space to ground combat game is starting to seem more likely. The recent revelation of “No Man’s Sky” has fueled fans’ hopes particularly strongly, and the game is currently seen as a good indicator that this type of gameplay is definitely possible with modern hardware and rendering technology.
Indeed, “Frostbite” has advanced quite a lot in the last few years – the engine that powers the “Battlefield” series will also be the main driving technology behind “Star Wars: Battlefront 3”, and it’s expected that the game will be nothing short of amazing in the graphics department. However, “Frostbite” is known for being capable of much more than rendering pretty scenes – the engine is also very advanced in its physics and gameplay capabilities, and if the developers use it properly, there are lots of interesting possibilities for the new game.
It might be a risk, and it might even not work out that well in the end – but it’s a risk worth taking, considering the possible benefits. If the new “Star Wars” game is developed with enough innovation and attention to the more interesting parts of its gameplay, it could easily become a phenomenon, not simply because of its name and legacy, but also for its gameplay alone. And from then on, any gameplay innovations could carry over to the “Battlefield” franchise very easily, resulting in a potentially more interesting sequel after “Hardline”, one that could attempt even more unusual gameplay changes than the last installment in the series did.