Randomly Mine: Hope

From the moment Star Wars Squadrons was announced, the vibe I saw from friends and comments was "don't give me hope," and it's easy to understand why. EA's list of Star Wars games since their dealings with Disney haven't been extensive. There was Battlefront! Then Battlefront II! Jedi Fallen Order and... that's it.

Quite a contrast to the endlessly varied collection of Star Wars games published by LucasArts. It seems that EA believed using the Star Wars license would help them turn an FPS into the biggest mainstream game, when in reality, Star Wars is mainstream, and by proxy, assist the sales of whatever game that's made regardless of genre.

Previously, many would mock that Star Wars was plastered onto anything, and while it didn't personally impact me growing up as someone who didn't much care for the license, I find myself respecting it today, as most franchises haven't branched out a quarter the amount Star Wars has. That EA would sit on that potential was disappointing, and emphasized how committed they were to not leaving their lane. Already we weren't getting a Burnout, SSX, C&C, Def Jam, or Mirror's Edge, and even with the Star Wars license, EA were locked into their all or nothing business model.

Which is why I've got a little bit, not a lot, but a little bit of hope for Star Wars Squadrons, and that hope came immediately upon hearing the price-tag.

$40 USD.

Not all mid-market or AA games are less than full-price, (Section 8, Velvet Assassin, etc), but $40's is a commitment to the middle market, while still featuring campaign, multiplayer, and full VR support.

I was told years ago by a developer that EA will only publish your game if they believe it can do two things. It can become a Billion dollar property, or it can help improve EA's image. Hence the company's pattern of "Originals" made for dirt cheap, or big budget ventures.

I'm not believe that Star Wars Squadrons will shake the industry's core, I even predict that they're going to use the Ubisoft Yearly Season Pass business model, or Apex's Battle Pass. What I know, is that this is the first middle-market game EA's released in over a decade.

And the significance of that, is what makes me hopeful.