Star Wars Battlefront 2 unlocks every hero in update overhauling progression

Star Wars Battlefront 2’s latest update, which arrived yesterday, doesn’t just overhaul the game’s progression and wall off loot crates from affecting it. The game’s heroes — Boba Fett, Han Solo and the like — have also all been unlocked, in another concession to players upset by the original grind of unlocking them.

This was not explicitly mentioned when Electronic Arts announced the progression revamp last week. The publisher did say that the game’s heroes would now advance through experience points that can then be exchanged for skill points, the same as the game’s five generic classes.

At any rate, those who log into the game after applying the 4 GB update patch will be greeted by a fully stocked collection of heroes and their special vehicles, plus a set of seven crates containing emotes and victory poses and 500 Credits (the in-game currency) thrown in. Players who already have the emote or pose in question will get 1,000 credits. Should Battlefront 2 add new heroes in the future, they will be unlocked with that currency.

Players still keep anything they acquired before this major change went into effect. In explaining the change, DICE community manager Mat Everett said “With all characters now having a Unit Level, we don’t want to limit anyone’s chance to progress as we change the way you interact with these characters.”

When it launched in November, the “prices” to unlock heroes were one of the main aggravators in the backlash against loot crates in the game. Their initial steep costs, and the initially paltry currency payouts in multiplayer and other modes, translated to a lot of in-game time to acquire Darth Vader, for example.

Further, by placing Star Cards in loot crates, players felt forced to choose between buffing their regular classes and saving up for a big hero purchase. EA later lowered the in-game cost of these characters, which could never be bought for real money.

Loot crates are now not purchasable by any means; they’re only awarded for completing in-game milestones or timed challenges, and they only contain Credits or cosmetic items. Crystals, the secondary currency only bought for real money, will return in April and may be used (along with in-game Credits) to directly purchase cosmetics, including new looks for heroes, but not performance items.

Other than the remodeled progression, the hero unlocks (and the crates containing their emotes) is the biggest change players will notice in update 2.0, which went live early this morning, for the PlayStation 4, Windows PC and Xbox One game. Two other features not mentioned in last week’s announcement should be welcome changes for players, too.

• In Arcade, the single-player (or split-screen local multiplayer mode) all Star Cards and weapons are unlocked at Epic Card level, giving players access to every boost and gun. Everett said that this was done “so that Arcade can be more freely used as a sandbox to try out new combinations.” Additionally, it’s an accommodation for those who prefer to play in single-player modes.
• Bespin, a fan-favorite map from the premium DLC in 2015’s Star Wars Battlefront, joins the multiplayer rotation of maps in Blast (10-on-10 team deathmatch), in Heroes vs. Villains (where all characters have always been available) and, for a limited time in Jetpack Cargo (a variant of the Cargo mode in which everyone plays as their faction’s aerial unit). Jetpack Cargo had been added to the game in mid-February and was taken out about two weeks later. Patch notes say it has been polished further.

The remainder of the patch notes have a lot more for those deep into Battlefront 2. In particular, most of the heroes got some kind of adjustment, with Iden Versio (a new character and the protagonist of Battlefront 2’s campaign) getting a health boost and significant offensive buffs. Boba Fett and Han Solo also got a dose of more health.