The release of Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection has been met with criticism due to numerous bugs and a severe lack of preparation for online multiplayer.
The collection, which launched today for Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation, and Xbox, includes both the original Star Wars: Battlefront and its sequel, Star Wars: Battlefront 2, from 2004 and 2005 respectively, along with all bonus content released for each game.
Despite being beloved classics, the re-release of these titles has encountered significant issues. Players across all platforms have reported encountering numerous bugs, leading many to seek refunds. Another major issue is the limited availability of servers for online multiplayer.
At launch, players reported that there were only three servers for Battlefront 2 on PC, each capable of accommodating 64 players. Given the high number of concurrent players on Steam, where the collection peaked at 9232, many were unable to join multiplayer matches. Similar server limitations were experienced on other platforms. Additionally, players found that they were unable to create their own servers, despite the option being enabled in the game.
Even apart from the server issues, players have expressed dissatisfaction with various other aspects, including bugs, crashes, and missing cutscenes. On Steam, the collection has received Mostly Negative reviews overall, with only 21 percent of 1525 reviews recommending the game.
Developer Aspyr has faced similar challenges with its recent re-releases of older titles. For instance, Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Starring Lara Croft caused confusion among players when they discovered that the Epic Games Store version was more polished than others. Aspyr clarified that the Epic version was a “development build with incomplete assets.”
Moreover, the Restored Content DLC for Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2 on Switch was canceled despite initial plans to add it post-launch. This decision led to a class-action lawsuit against Aspyr, with proceedings later revealing that the DLC was canceled due to objections from a third party.
Aspyr was initially leading the development of the KOTOR remake before development was transferred to Saber Interactive. Aspyr will continue under the parent company Embracer, which announced earlier today that it has sold some of its Saber assets for $247 million.
