Battlefront 2 Made Star Wars’ Worst Gimmicks Cool
Star Wars is full of characters designed as marketing gimmicks, but having them in Battlefront 2 elevates them into something more tangible.
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Star Wars has been much maligned for its habit of adding characters to its films for nothing more than marketing reasons. The Ewoks are the oft-cited historic example of this trend, though it has certainly carried over into the new trilogy as well. From new droids who serve little-to-no story purpose, to new aliens who are just as important, the new trilogy is chock-full of gimmicks clearly meant to increase marketability. “The Knights of Ren” were featured heavily in the early trailers and ads for the films – only to be revealed to have no significance whatsoever. This bait-and-switch is an unfortunate habit for the franchise (though probably a commercially successful one). Luckily, the expanded universe is around to pick up the slack. Star Wars: Battlefront 2 takes those otherwise abandoned marketing gimmicks and turns them into some very cool characters.
“The Rise of Skywalker Update” was added to Battlefront 2 near the release of the final movie in the Skywalker Saga, and brought with it a whole host of new content. It added a new map, several new troop types, and appearances for hero units based on that film. Finn, for example, got the “Resistance Hero” appearance that reflected his new look. He looks cool, and doesn’t have to spend all his time yelling Rey’s name for no apparent reason. But that’s just one way the game improved upon the movie. In that update, Battlefront 2 drastically built upon those commercial ideas introduced within the film, and turned them into legitimately cool characters.
Sith Troopers became, quite literally, the face of the game. The current logo for the game, and the one that most players probably see after the hugely successful Epic Games giveaway, features the blood-red helmet of a Sith Trooper front and center. It’s a striking and compelling design, which is probably exactly why this new form of First Order Trooper was circulated as advertisement for The Rise of Skywalker. In the film, they’re instantly forgettable. In the game, they’re a menacing presence. The Sith Trooper has powers based on quickly stalking about the battlefield. They can activate an ability that reveals the locations of enemies, another that increases their mobility, and one called “Oppression Grenade.” That name alone is miles more characterization than they received in the film.
Star Wars: Battlefront 2 Makes Movie Marketing Cool
Similarly, the First Order Jet Trooper was introduced in “The Rise of Skywalker Update” and goes from comic-relief villain to a genuinely worthy adversary. The film uses these flying enemies as mere cannon-fodder for the heroes (not that Stormtroopers should expect anything else in Star Wars) but were shown again and again in the marketing. In the movie, they don’t get much more screen time than what was shown in trailers. In-game, they’re a very viable choice when competing for air superiority. Interestingly, the First Order faction did not have an airborne units prior to the introduction of the Jet Trooper.
It wasn’t only the bad guys who got some much needed love in that update. BB-8 was turned into an absolute monster, and The Resistance side had two troop types added – the Ovissian Gunner, and the Caphex Spy – who were both created for The Rise of Skywalker. The Ovissian is the big horned alien who gives information to Poe at the beginning of the film. It’s a step above a full-blown marketing-only role, but the game still boosts its existence into ‘neat’ territory. Instead of having only a single line of dialogue, the Ovissian in game has a huge minigun – that’s a definite improvement. The Caphex are the pale, cat-ish aliens who appear simply as set-dressing in the movie, but they’re a stealthy force to be reckoned with in-game. The film may introduce the aliens as marketing, but Star Wars: Battlefront 2 turns them from background ‘action figures’ into characters who have impact on the world around them.
Link Source : https://screenrant.com/battlefront-2-star-wars-marketing-gimmicks-better-story/