EA has announced that Star Wars: Battlefront will contain 12 multiplayer maps. Plus: new images of the planet Sullust...
NewsPublisher EA is banging the marketing drum for Star Wars: Battlefront, knowing full well that anticipation for this autumn's The Force Awakens, mixed with fan affection for the Battlefront name, is likely to make its forthcoming shooter one of the biggest games of the year.
In a recent blog post, EA DICE has revealed that Battlefront will feature 12 multiplayer maps, some of which, the studio says, will "support our epic modes like Walker Assault", while others will be "tailored to more intimate close quarters combat."
Alongside familiar locations like Endor and Hoth, the new Battlefrontwill also introduce a previously unseen planet - Sullust, perhaps best known as the home world of the familiar character, Nien Numb.
EA provides a new, detailed glimpse at Sullust in the same post. Imperial TIE Fighters swoop over the planet's surface - a contrasting vista of grey rock and spewing crimson lava.
The setting, DICE reveals, is based on Iceland, a country the team visited in order to gather a bit of geological inspiration:
"It was in this moment that they knew this was what players need to feel when trudging through the cold, dark, and unstable terrain of a previously unexplored planet and bringing this to Star Wars Battlefront would be one of their biggest challenges yet."
Amid the rock and lava, we can expect to find the marks of the Empire's presence, too:
"We wanted to build on the existing lore that the planet Sullust had an Imperial presence. And this idea proved to become a major influence in the design of the planet for the game. We studied the Death Star's architecture and material to inspire ways in which we could incorporate the structures, almost as if the same architect who designed the Death Star left their mark on the structures that stand across the surface of Sullust in Star Wars Battlefront."
EA's concept art doesn't show off much of the imperial architecture, but the red of the lava against the blue sky and grey volcanic rock certainly looks dramatic. You can read a bit more about the creation of Sullust in EA's post, where you'll also find some high-res images to download, print out, and stick on your fridge.
Oh, and if you're reading this, EA DICE, we've come up with a nice little rhyme you might be able to use in the game:
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, come shoot your friends on planet Sullust.
It's good, isn't it? Wait, come back.
Star Wars: Battlefront is out on the Nov. 17 for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
