Battlefront III Concept Overview

**Executive Summary**

Star Wars Battlefront III explodes onto Next Generation consoles with the biggest and most complete *Star Wars* battles yet. For the first time you can fight on the ground, fly into space, fight your way onto an enemy ship – and come back again all in one seamless battle. Star Wars Battlefront III will add all-new features and improve on existing ones.

## Key Features

* The Vertical Battlefront will allow the player to play on ground and space in one epic battle
* A thrilling new story campaign
* Force-Powered combat abilities
* Melee combat for all classes
* Character driven A.I. that reacts intelligently and realistically to the battle situation
* Enhanced Galactic Conquest that blends the best aspects of BF1 and BF2
* Improved online experience that includes integration of the Vertical Battlefront
* Premium Downloadable Content for post-launch release

## Game Summary

Star Wars Battlefront III will take the highly successful franchise on to the next generation platforms for the very first time. Battlefront III will add innovative gameplay elements to the franchise as well as refine and improve many of the established gameplay elements expected in the Star Wars Battlefront series.

For the first time ever, the player will be able to experience the complete battle happening simultaneously on the planet surface and in space. This Vertical Battlefront will allow the player to experience the battle any way they want on a planet’s surface, flying a starfighter into space, or boarding a capital ship. The player can seamlessly move from one experience to another as the battle rages on. The player’s decision to engage a certain area of the battlefront will directly affect the battle in other areas. This large, complete Vertical Battlefront will give the player the absolute freedom to live out the Classic Star Wars battles any way they want.

Star Wars Battlefront III will also deliver on an exciting story driven campaign mode spanning all six Star Wars films through the eyes of a soldier secretly cloned from a Jedi Master. You begin your journey fighting for the Grand Army of the Republic in the Clone Wars. After learning of the true evil of the Emperor, reject your past and fight against the Empire with the Rebel Alliance. In the end, battle against an evil clone of yourself and his sinister army. Only then will you fulfill your destiny and become a Jedi in your own right.

This new story also helps deliver new game play elements to the Battlefront series. First, it will enable players to use Force powers in tandem with their conventional weapons. Combining these things together allows the player to do enhanced actions on the Battlefront such as sniping from long distances or sensing an incoming missile before it hits them. Secondly, the player will be able to have access to melee combat while playing any class. No longer tied to just lightsabers, players can now use weapons such as an electrostaff or even the butt of their blaster to take out an enemy at close range.

Along with these new features, Battlefront III will be drastically improving many of its core gameplay elements. The game will use a character-driven AI system that will allow all units in the game to act intelligently both as single entities and as a team using battle tactics that are appropriate for the situation on the battlefront. Galactic Conquest will be getting enhanced to blend together the best aspects of both Battlefront I and II plus add a few new elements to deliver an exciting gameplay experience.

Online, Battlefront III will be a highly refined and balanced experience that will have players excited to play the battles over and over again. Battlefront III will be incorporating the Vertical Battlefront into the online experience to deliver some truly epic online battles. Along with the multiplayer experience, Battlefront III will readily support and plan for downloadable content that will be available at launch that will be used to both keep Battlefront III fresh but also gain it access to additional revenue streams post-release.

## The Vertical Battlefront

Battlefront III takes the bold and highly anticipated step of allowing players to seamlessly explore an extended vertical battlefront encompassing combat on the ground and in space – finally realizing a fundamental element of the Star Wars Universe.

The vertical battlefront concept grants players the option of being able to move seamlessly from ground to space, from space into the interior decks of capital ships, and back out again.

The vertical battlefront will provide the player with a much larger battle experience and give them many more options on how they want to fight. The player will be able to win their battles in many different ways. They may choose to attack their main objective on the ground head-on, or they may choose to fly into space to take out the enemy’s hangar to prevent them from sending reinforcements. The vertical battlefront will give the player the ability to play the game any way they want like never before.

The following is an early concept for the Battle of Hoth detailing the expanded gameplay that the Vertical Battlefront provides:

The battle begins as the Imperial fleet drops out of hyperspace above the frozen planet. The Rebels deploy troops to the trenches to protect the shield generator, which is defending Echo Base from a full-scale attack. The Empire begins landing its heavy walkers at the edge of the shield, with the goal of destroying the generator.

In previous Battlefront games the player could fight on foot, ride a tauntaun, or pilot a snow speeder. But now with the vertical battlefront all new options are available. The player can blast off into space and destroy the AT-AT landing craft before they even reach ground. They can try to take over an enemy Star Destroyer and support the rebels on the ground with orbital bombardments, or sabotage the enemy’s vehicles in the hangar. They can take control of the Ion Cannon and fire shots into space, disabling the Imperial Star Destroyers. And when the order comes down to evacuate, the player can even fly alongside the Rebel transports providing cover.

And of course, the player will still be free to tow cable an AT-AT, ride a tauntaun, hijack an AT-ST, or fight on foot, just like they could in Battlefront I and II.

While the player has a great deal of freedom, the game still provides structure and supports the tactical fiction of the movies. Certain in-game events, like the destruction of the shield generator or Darth Vader’s arrival, will trigger new objectives which keep the player focused and move the action forward.

## Story

Eighteen years before the invasion of Naboo in Episode 1, a Jedi Master and his padawan are forced to make an emergency landing on Kamino. The padawan, a young man named Duron Iza, is badly injured. The Kaminoans offer him treatment, and then send the Jedi on their way.

In secret, the Kaminoans create two clones using Duron Iza’s genetic material. The prime clone, EX-101, and the backup, EX-102, are extensively trained in a number of different combat disciplines. To the disappointment of the Kaminoans however, neither clone demonstrates any skill with the Force during their training.

Of the two, EX-101 grows more arrogant as a result of his belief that he is the more important primary clone. Although they are genetically identical, EX-101 is a few fleeting seconds older than EX-102 and always refers to him as “Little Brother” to remind him of his secondary status.

When Sifo-Dyas commissions the Kaminoans to create a the Grand Army of the Republic, EX-101 and EX-102 serve as instructors for the Jango Fett clones. When the Clone Wars break out, EX-101 and EX-102 are called into battle under the leadership of Jedi Master Ferroda.

In battle alongside the Jedi, the two clone brothers’ latent Force powers begin to develop. But, because they had no formal Jedi training, they draw on the Force to enhance their combat abilities rather than using traditional Force powers.

When Order 66 is issued, EX-102 is forced to kill his friend and mentor, Master Ferroda. EX-102 is extremely remorseful and begins to doubt his purpose.

Having established themselves as Jedi killers during the Clone Wars, Darth Vader sends EX-101 and EX-102 to hunt down a surviving Jedi Master on Dantooine. EX-102 finds the Jedi first. They battle, but EX-102 is no match for the Jedi’s skill. The Jedi has an opportunity to kill EX-102, but instead shows him mercy.

EX-102 discovers that this Jedi Master he was sent to kill is Duron Iza, the man that he and EX-101 had been cloned from. Duron explains to EX-102 how Palpatine had manipulated both sides of the Clone Wars in order to seize unlimited power. EX-102 is devastated to learn that the scheming of the Emperor was the cause of all the suffering of the Clone Wars and the murder of the Jedi. EX-102 turns his back on the Empire and takes a new name, Carso Iza.

Carso tries to help Duron escape from Dantooine, but EX-101 and his troops ambush the Jedi. EX-101 battles against Duron Iza, and like his brother before him, he is defeated. Duron shows EX-101 mercy, but unlike his brother, EX-101 uses this moment of compassion to murder the Jedi.

Following Duron’s death, Carso refuses to return to the Empire with EX-101. EX-101 leaves his brother in exile on Dantooine, taking Duron Iza’s lightsaber with him as a trophy.

Many years later, Jan Dodonna arrives on Dantooine seeking Duron Iza’s aid in the newly formed Rebel Alliance. Carso informs Dodonna that Duron Iza is dead, but offers to join the Rebellion in his place.

As a Rebel soldier, Carso fights in many of the key battles of the Galactic Civil War: a raid on the Death Star construction yard, the evacuation of Yavin, the battle of Hoth, and ultimately the battle of Endor. Along the way he learns that EX-101 has become a high ranking officer in the Imperial military.

Following the destruction of the second Death Star and the death of the Emperor, Luke Skywalker completes Carso’s Jedi training. Carso constructs a lightsaber and learns many of the traditional Jedi Force powers. Although Luke has taught Carso well, his training will not truly be complete until he confronts his brother, EX-101.

Though the Empire has been defeated, a powerful Imperial Remnant continues to fight on. In Carso’s battles against the Imperials he learns that EX-101 has begun work on a deadly Force-powered clone army. With this army at his disposal, EX-101 could plunge the Galaxy back into the darkness of the Imperial rule.

As the final battle to bring EX-101 to justice begins on Kashyyyk, Luke Skywalker is forced to surrender himself to EX-101 in order to save his captured comrades. Carso Iza leads his army to Kashyyyk to liberate Luke before EX-101 can use him as a template for his clone army. Carso confronts his brother in the heart of the cloning facility.

Since his last encounter with Carso, EX-101 has grown as powerful in the dark side of the Force as Carso has in the light side. In the years following the fall of the Empire, he has constructed his own lightsaber and mastered his dark side powers.

The two brothers fight to the death in an ultimate showdown between good and evil. They are evenly matched, both strong with the Force and expert swordsmen. In the end, Carso defeats his brother, liberating Skywalker and helping ensure the future of the New Republic and the Jedi Order.

## Space

Battlefront II introduced space combat to the series – a feature which excited the fans but there are a number of shortcomings with space combat in Battlefront II. Battlefront III will focus on improving every aspect of the flight experience in order to achieve the following main goals: make it accessible to everyone to better support the Vertical Battlefront experience; and make space so fun that it could be a standalone experience.

**Basic Controls**

We will be looking closely at the control scheme from Battlefront II to identify any areas that will make the experience more natural for the player. This will include looking at ways to assist in hangar landings, find better ways to portray the sense of speed in space, look at auto-balancing to make flight easier, and give better and more interactive flight tutorials.

**Dogfighting/Special Maneuvers**

Dogfighting in Battlefront II was very difficult. Battlefront III is going to improve this experience by attacking this from many fronts. Refining some of the game mechanics by making special moves easier and more effective and adding a new head tracking camera system that will always show where the targeted enemy is.

**Difficulty**

Battlefront II space combat was a very difficult and sometimes frustrating experience. Many times the player would die and they’d have no clue as to how and why they died. Battlefront III will resolve these issues by giving clear danger communication to the player, effective countermeasures, and always-present achievable targets.

**Environment**

Battlefront III will make sure that the Space Environment will be visually interesting and feel alive. AI will support the player by forming a wing for attacks and assist in chasing off enemies on your tail. Audio will support the immersion by incorporating meaningful radio chatter, tactical battlefield overviews and, of course, keeping the player informed regarding the state of the mission (objectives, status, congratulation, reprimand). Battlefront III will also incorporate many more objects in the world to avoid space feeling empty and sterile. Space maps will be distinctive wherever possible by including environmental elements like asteroids, volumetric gas clouds, shipyards, space stations, orbital defenses, debris, and maneuvering capital ships to add dynamic excitement to the space environment.

**Proposed New Mechanic - Skimming**

In Star Wars films ‘surface skimming’ vast ships in starfighters is extremely cool. It generates an awesome sense of speed and scale and demonstrates the skill and mastery of the pilots – players should experience this in the game!

Currently this is hard to do because it demands genuine piloting skill and reactions which are either beyond the current control system or just too hardcore. Battlefront III will add a game mechanic to promote skimming. When the player gets a certain distance from a capital ship they will skim across the ship similar to grinding a rail in a skateboard game. This mechanic will deliver a better payoff on the experience of strafing capital ships and taking out their many guns.

## Jedi

Star Wars Battlefront II gave people the taste of playing as a Jedi without overshadowing or unbalancing the greater combat experience. Battlefront III will improve upon many of the Jedi mechanics from Battlefront II and add many new features. It will also be adding many new features to the experience including new Force abilities as well as a true Jedi vs. Jedi combat experience. Lastly, the player will be able to use their Jedi skills while flying in space or boarding an enemy ship

Battlefront III is striving to deliver an authentic and fun Jedi experience that is accessible to everyone. It will also incorporate a layer of depth and skill that will give people the opportunity to become more skilled at playing a Jedi as opposed to just a straight up button mashing experience where the fastest “masher” wins.

**Jedi vs. Non-Jedi**

This had a very gratifying result in Battlefront II. The player felt very powerful and almost invincible while battling non-Jedi foes. Battlefront III will be building upon this by adding a better targeting system, additional Force powers, and the ability to apply the Force to weapons in addition to the lightsaber.

**Jedi vs. Jedi Combat**

Battlefront II was never designed to support a Jedi vs. Jedi experience. Battlefront III will deliver a gratifying Jedi vs. Jedi experience while also making it fit into the overall battle that will be going on around the player. It will have intense focused battles that pay off on the Jedi experience. This will be accomplished by incorporating a simple Parry/Attack system, the ability to lock sabers, and a Jedi “Sense” that tells the player if another unit is about to attack. An updated targeting system and a better interconnection of animations between various moves will also help strengthen the Jedi vs. Jedi combat experience.

**Force Powers**

Not only will Battlefront III include many of the Force powers from Battlefront II, but will also incorporate many new automatic (e.g. such as threat warnings and morale boost) and actively used Force Powers (Force Blast and Force Possession) in both Ground and Space.

## Galactic Conquest

Galactic Conquest adds a strategic component to the normal Battlefront experience while also giving the player the opportunity to play a single player experience using any of the four player factions. The player’s ultimate goal is to take over the galaxy and it is up to them how they do it. They choose which planets to attack. They are also given the opportunity to upgrade their army, obtain special bonuses by conquering planets and using these bonuses during battle to give their faction an edge. Your opponent, either the A.I. or another player, will be trying to do the same.

Battlefront III looks to take the simplicity of Battlefront I’s Galactic Conquest and the depth Battlefront II’s design to deliver a stronger yet easily understood Galactic Conquest. As we’ve seen in the Battlefront II post purchase survey, Galactic Conquest (76%) is the most frequently played game mode, followed by Instant Action (60%), and Rise of the Empire Campaign (54%). We want to make sure we deliver a solid experience to this popular game mode.

Battlefront III will return to a more simplistic strategic gameplay style where the player can attack the planets they want to at any time, rather than having to work their way towards them over the course of a number of turns and battles. This will both make the Galactic Map interface much easier to understand and encourages continued play as interim goals seem more attainable.

Battlefront III will be expanding the game bonuses into two different categories. There will be one set of bonuses which are assigned to a specific planet (as in Battlefront I). The player will have access to bonuses assigned to planets the player currently controls. These bonuses can be chosen prior to the start of a battle and will be mostly automatic bonuses such as increased fire power and health regeneration. The second set of bonuses can be used DURING the battle by spending credits earned throughout the game. These bonuses can be called at any time during the battle to add some decision-making concepts during the intensity of the battle experience. These type of bonuses will include bringing down additional reinforcements and access to a playable Jedi character.

The Vertical Battlefront will play a significant role in Galactic Conquest. Each planet battle will include a Vertical Battlefront. Although not necessary to actually fight in space, it can be advantageous to the player to achieve victory. However, we will be incorporating bonuses and upgrades that can be applied during the game that increases the AI and strength of the player’s Space component for those who prefer to battle on ground and allow the AI to handle the Space portion.

For the first time Galactic Conquest will also have a narrative component to it, putting the actions of each faction into a story context that sets up the overall game. As the player progresses through Galactic Conquest, voice over will give related feedback on how they are doing based on the story outline. Given Galactic Conquest’s completely open gameplay, we think this will at least add a stronger element of immersion into the experience and provide the player with a stronger feeling of accomplishment when it is over.

## Multiplayer

Battlefront III’s online presence will look to be a highly refined and fun experience for all maps that are played. This will mean less meaningless map permutations. This will help ensure that whenever a player jumps online to play a game, they will be playing an exciting and well balanced map every time.

Battlefront III’s biggest addition to multiplayer will be the Vertical Battlefront experience. The online maps will incorporate the Vertical Battlefront into the conquest (i.e. capturing command posts) style of gameplay as well as some new additions such as an objective-based mode. Here one team’s objective may be to get on board an enemy ship, steal the plans, and return it to the planet’s home base.

Battlefront III will support many of the common online features including splitscreen, matchmaking, friend’s lists, clans and downloadable content. The downloadable content will be developed and ready to launch prior to the actual release of the game. This new content will be teed up to be released at the appropriate time.

## Technology

The core game technology is FRD’s proprietary engine, which has been developed from scratch to support and effectively utilize the high runtime performance and advanced rendering techniques expected from the next generation of consoles and PCs.

The VERTICAL BATTLEFRONT presents a unique challenge which will be addressed through engine development and data handling tailored specifically to seamlessly accommodate the change in scale and reference frame involved in the transition from ground based combat as a foot soldier to epic space battles.

AI will use CONSPIRE, a proprietary goal-oriented planning system developed in-house at FRD. CONSPIRE represents a bold step away from the rigid state-based AI behavior of previous generation games. The principle advantages of a planning system are that it is geared toward generating AI plans which take account of dynamic game world properties, may be multi-step and may involve multiple entities. This becomes apparent to the player as more believable ‘thinking’ AI behavior – dynamic, challenging and, most importantly, more entertaining.

The AGEIA PhysX SDK will be used to routinely handle physics objects and collisions. Custom physics code will be used to achieve specific vehicle handling and enhance gameplay.

Runtime technology is supported by offline tools and pipelines which are heavily geared toward WYSIWYG editing of game data and automated tracking of assets and build states. The design goal here is to shape the design workflow to spend as much development time in-game as possible.

The in-house EDITOR is built on top of the game engine and serves as an authoring, placement, manipulation and visual scripting tool.

Artists can sculpt terrain mesh geometry and integrate polygonal components created in Maya (e.g buildings, trees, rocks) within this terrain. Painting tools allow the addition of procedural details such as vegetation. Particle effects can be interactively designed, tested and placed.

The editor allows designers to set up prop situations, objectives, AI, control points and visual scripting in a manner that can be quickly tested. There is no need to exit the editor to test a section of a level, which encourages experimentation and facilitates iterative improvements to gameplay.

The engine itself features many visual DEBUGGING aids, including an in-game profiler which measures time in functions and branches of the hierarchy as the game is played. Performance stats and volatile game data such as AI intrinsics and prop data may all be interrogated and displayed at runtime.

The STAGE is the main preview tool used during game development. It provides a simple way to preview an art asset in the game engine directly from Maya. Textures can be changed dynamically from Maya or Photoshop and will automatically update in the stage, allowing instant appraisal of changes.

## Art

Next generation art techniques will create scenes with the visual impact of the movies, without compromising performance – the goal is a more authentic Star Wars universe than ever seen before in a game.

Normal maps (generated either from detailed high-poly models or hand authored) will be extensively used to achieve realistic representation of high detail surfaces. Parallax mapping will be used to further simulate surface displacement, while surface reflectivity will be simulated through static and dynamic cube maps.

The environments will be heavy on atmosphere and will reflect the diverse range of environments found in the movies, making full use of screen filters to control palettes and dynamically alter the atmosphere of the scene for big events, for example the dust cloud which sweeps over the battle field on Geonosis in Episode II.

Detailing will be accurate and correct for all space craft, vehicles, weapons and characters, which will be reproduced faithfully from film reference. Flyable ships and drivable vehicles will have modelled cockpit interiors, to heighten the immersion of the piloting experience. Capital ships such as the Star Destroyer will have detailed interiors allowing foot access to parts seen in the movies. For example, the player will be able to land in the docking bay and fight on foot all the way to the bridge.

Environments will feature vast playable areas with terrain sculpted in the terrain editor. These will be further populated with unique models and textures, with scenery extending beyond the playable area to convey the illusion of a complete world. Wherever possible, recognisable landmarks will be faithfully reproduced and integrated into the battlefield. For instance, the corridors and detention centre seen in the movie Death Star in will appear in the game’s Death Star level. Landmarks will be appropriately aged if the world is to appear at a time other than the movies.

Characters will be photorealistic with normal and specular maps, and facial animation. Part-switching can be done on characters to allow removable sections, changeable heads and modular parts increase the variety in characters.

## Appendix A: Brand and Gameplay Filters

### Star Wars Brand

#### Human Struggle

At the heart of the Battlefront concept is the external struggle between factions on the battlefield. The CAMPAIGN mode builds upon this foundation by chronicling the story of an internal struggle within a clone trooper (who was secretly cloned from a Jedi) as he battles to reconcile his conscience with his orders. After initially fighting for Republic and Empire, the murder of his Jedi father at the hands of his brother leads him to join the Rebels in an attempt to undo the evil that the Empire has sown throughout the galaxy.

Over the years the two brothers follow very different paths, each growing powerful in the Force. Upon reaching their full potential the two confront one another in a climactic emotionally-charged battle.

The story of the Battlefront III CAMPAIGN mode charts the classic struggle between good and evil. It examines the challenge of understanding the difference between arrogance and self-belief. Furthermore, pitting two brothers against each other over the death of their father is naturally rich with emotion.

#### Exceptional Story

The narrative told through the CAMPAIGN mode of Battlefront III is built upon many themes that together constitute an exceptional story. Firstly it tells of a single characters journey from a unique soldier within the Republic army to a powerful Jedi Knight working under Luke Skywalker. Within this story all characters are given a great depth, in particular the central character who is struggling to accept the newly formed reign of the Empire, and the loss of his clone father so soon after finding him.

By their nature the Battlefront series are built upon a series of big themes in the form of large-scale conflicts. The CAMPAIGN mode of Battlefront III continues this tradition but expands upon it by giving characters persistent personalities. In war many soldiers die, but it’s the death of those that are known which causes the greatest loss.

Finally the CAMPAIGN mode of Battlefront III tells a story that is epic in scope. Beginning during the Clone Wars just prior to the events of Episode III, the narrative spans a period of roughly 30 years to encapsulate all key moments from Episode III and the original trilogy before finally offering a teasing glimpse of what lies beyond the conclusion of Episode VI. Thematically, the narrative covers issues relative to all people across the world in one form or another: friendship, remorse, guilt, and fulfilling our destiny.

Storytelling also pervades the other modes of Battlefront III. In GALACTIC CONQUEST a variety of scenarios will place the player in command of factions at key moments the campaigns of the Clone Wars and the Galactic Civil War. Within the actual battles, an unfolding tactical fiction will follow the ebb and flow of the action with exciting objectives which will expand on the existing command post mechanism – every battle will truly tell a story.

Additionally, one of the most enjoyable aspects to an open-ended battlefront experience is the ‘war stories’ that result from exchanges on the battlefield – a narrow escape; a foolhardy assault; an unlikely victory snatched from the jaws of defeat. So, with that in mind, the more options and additional features we can provide for players in combat, as outlined throughout this document, the greater the number of possible war stories in any given battle.

#### Relatable Characters

In the modern world there are times when we can all feel like we pale into obscurity – surrounded by people, all told to step in the same direction. Yet, somewhere inside us, we have a nagging feeling that we are meant for something better – something more important. We long for the rush of breaking out, the brisk wind of individuality on our faces. The CAMPAIGN mode of Battlefront III delivers that sensation.

In addition, in the CAMPAIGN mode the player’s character is surrounded by a cast of original supporting characters. These characters are diverse in nature, have their own stories to tell, and also persistent throughout the duration of the narrative.

#### Innovation

New technical standards are facilitated by new technology – particularly in terms of visual quality and the new vertical battlefront system. More than that, the integration of a genuinely involving story will be a fantastic innovation for the Battlefront series.

New technology is the key that can finally unlock the door to a real-life Star Wars experience. Finally, players can do battle without restriction; attack a single commander on the ground, or go straight to the source and take down the command ship instead. In Battlefront III, you are really in the Star Wars world for the first time – because worlds do not have boundaries, and they are destructible. The freedom to win the battle as you see fit makes the victory all-the-sweeter. *You* did it, *your* way.

#### Key Star Wars Symbols and Icons

Being set primarily within the films themselves, Battlefront III will feature all the favourite elements including Jedi, lightsabers, X-Wings, and famous battles such as Hoth and the Death Star assault.

Next generation graphical techniques and a high fidelity to the movie reference material will deliver these key Star Wars symbols and icons with an exciting freshness.

### LucasArts Game Filters

#### Sense of Freedom

One of the design aims with Star Wars Battlefront III is to immerse the player fully into the experience. To do this it is essential that there are no artificial barriers preventing players doing what they feel should be possible.

By nature the Battlefront concept presents players with a great deal of freedom. Depending upon the game mode and the number of points amassed during a battle, players are free to choose how they approach a conflict through their choice of character class and also which COMMAND POSTS they opt to attack or defend. Each faction also has a range of vehicles that the player can use freely providing one is available.

Battlefront III aims to expand on the freedom of previous iterations by including the vertical battlefront system. This grants the player the ability to, at any time during a battle, jump into a fighter and fly from a planets surface into the depths of space, and from space to the decks of a Capital Ship (providing the shields have been disabled). Battlefields are also larger in Battlefront III than in previous titles, providing the player with additional freedom and larger areas to pilot vehicles. In the story-based CAMPAIGN mode certain missions will present the player with a range of objectives, and allow those objectives to be approached and completed in any order.

In Galactic Conquest, the player will have direct influence over the content and strategy of their army. For instance, occupying Kashyyyk will ensure that Wookiee units are available to fight on their side. However, if the Empire take control, then the Wookiees will be enslaved, and thus be unavailable for combat.

In addition, players will be able to make tactical decisions in-game, having a direct effect on where and when vehicles, gun placements, and special units are placed. Thus, they can build specific defensive or offensive tactical layouts for their army as and when they need them.

Employing these kinds of variable tactics will be invaluable to the player ensuring their victory, helping them to achieve self-set objectives. For instance, taking the time to plan and annihilate a Star Destroyer will mean that the Empire is unable to deploy any more AT-ATs to your base on the ground.

An ultimate symbol for the player liberation that Battlefront III aims to deliver will be the first unforgettable moment when a player scrambles a starfighter from a surface base and powers upward through the atmosphere. Then, as they literally watch the horizon broaden and finally fall away below as a planetary disc, like the young Luke Skywalker leaving Tatooine, they will fully realize the emancipating freedom of Star Wars Battlefront III.

#### Series of Interesting Decisions

Battlefront III continually provides the player with interesting choices. During conflicts, every time the player spawns they must decide on a weapons load out and which COMMAND POST to spawn at, based upon the current standing of their faction in that battle. If an Armoured Tank Droid is attacking one of the players COMMAND POSTS, that player could choose to be a Heavy Weapons soldier and spawn at the post, ready to attack, or avoid that confrontation entirely by spawning at a distant post.

Throughout the CAMPAIGN mode scenarios will be designed with often multiple solutions in mind. This in turn requires the player to make interesting decisions during play: Do they destroy a Capital Ship by gaining access to the guns onboard another, or by flying down to the planet’s surface and using a Rebel Ion Cannon?
Such decisions also extend to the online multiplayer experience. Additionally, using the vertical battlefront system, players will be able to choose how and where to support their faction’s quest for victory in any part of the battle occurring on the ground, in the air, in the space above a planet and within the very heart of the capital ships orbiting it.

#### Allow the Player to have an Impact on the Game World

The power of the Next-Generation machines allows for far greater background interactivity than ever before. Subsequently the battlefields of Battlefront III will be littered with destructible scenery and physics-based objects that allow players to really tear up the environment. For the first time in the series battles will really take their toll on the game world.

#### Provide Payoff for Everything the Player Does

In terms of gameplay the player is always rewarded for their positive actions in Battlefront III. Killing an enemy unit or destroying an enemy vehicle provides the player with a set number of points. These points are used to unlock additional character classes during play including special HERO characters. Capturing enemy COMMAND POSTS not only provides the player with points, but also rewards the team with a new spawn location.

The CAMPAIGN mode of Battlefront III has been designed from the ground up to provide the player with a great sense of character progression. The central character starts as a clone soldier within the Republic and, through early missions, learns skills such as sniping and repairing machinery. As the story progresses the character will learns the ways of the Force before ultimately becoming a Jedi. With the rank of Jedi comes incredible powers and also the ability to wield a lightsaber.

In the GALACTIC CONQUEST mode the player is awarded points for winning that can be used to buy power-ups and additional fleets to help the war effort.

The game will track your overall progress in minute detail, giving them an insight into how you play. From headshots to play-time, AT-ATs tripped, Ewoks slapped and Force Powers employed, Battlefront III will award the player medals directly related to their performance.

#### Create Emotional Investment

By their very nature the Star Wars Battlefront games contain numerous elements that players around the world are instantly emotionally invested in. For some it may be the ability to pilot an X-Wing, for others the ability to wield a lightsaber. Some players become emotionally invested in a certain class of character over others, or a particular faction such as the Empire or CIS.

Battlefront III also aims to create a sense of emotion through the narrative and central characters of the CAMPAIGN mode. Players will become emotionally attached to their character as he struggles with the death of friends, comrades, and mentors, and the burden of his own destiny.

To date, Battlefront’s multi-player maps have been simple battles in an open area, without any real emotive importance. So, Battlefront III will revolutionize these levels, by ensuring that they are both objective-driven and narrative-based. This ensures that every action the player takes in multiplayer combat actually *means* something – by completing an objective, they will be taking a step in telling the *story* of that battle.

#### Be Judged as Fun by Others

An example: In the movies, flying an X-Wing looked like serious fun! However, to date, flying in Battlefront has been something best avoided. The player needed to be an exceptional pilot to achieve the things they have seen in the films – Simply, it’s been too difficult to have fun. With our new control system, these kinds of skills will be accessible to everyone. For instance, the ‘ship skimming’ technique outlined above will close the gap between watching Luke Skywalker, and *being* Luke Skywalker. This attention to detail and ambition to improve the experience wherever possible will touch every aspect of the game.

The content of Battlefront III will be continually assessed and evaluated throughout production – we aim to produce the most entertaining experience possible and most importantly, at Free Radical, we pride ourselves on only ever making fun games.

## References

* SWBF3\_Concept\_Overview\_060526.doc (26/05/2006)