Information about the season 2 Battle Pass character, plus new events and location have dropped (along with a hefty update):

> K-A0S arrives in the Arena. Her enhanced armaments take the brutality of the Empire's KX-series security droid to a whole new level. K-A0S can use the Bulwark ability, connecting her shields to protect herself and allies while also providing ranged support with her blaster. Don't let K-A0S get too close otherwise she will close the gap with her Lunged Uppercut before Backhanding enemies away. Her Ultimate ability, Aftershock, damages and knocks upwards all enemies around her, making them easy targets for allies to eliminate. As a formidable Tank, K-A0S can push her team forward to victory. > > ... > > Our new Hunter K-A0S is preparing to exact revenge on Grozz in THE POWER PARADOX event, this season’s Pinnacle Clash! You will be randomly assigned to K-A0S’ or Grozz’s team, and will need to complete challenges to earn unique rewards, including an epic K-A0S costume and weapon wrap. Complete challenges to score points for your team. All players will receive a special avatar for the winning team at the end of this event! > >Learn about the new friendship between Sentinel and K-A0S in the new A GROWING EMPIRE multI-part Event. Complete all 3 parts to earn new Avatars, Stickers, and more! Check back often to see if new parts have started! > > ... > > New Map > > Introducing Vader's Castle! Arena fans are familiar with many of the Empire’s most iconic locations, but this is a rare opportunity to explore a battlefield inspired by the mysterious stronghold of one of the Empire’s most notorious leaders. This map embodies the legend of Lord Vader - flowing pools of lava, reproductions of ancient Sith artifacts, holocrons, and even holograms of Lord Vader himself!

> Picture the scenario: You’re playing Star Wars: Hunters on mobile with a controller. Isn’t that better than those fiddly touchscreen controls where your thumbs take up most of the screen? > > Fortunately, you can live out this wild fantasy thanks to Star Wars: Hunters controller support. > > Zynga has confirmed that Star Wars: Hunters features controller support, but it is limited to a set of official console controllers - and you can’t do everything using a controller. > > Don’t worry, you can use a controller to actually play the game, it just doesn’t work on all menus

> Announced three years ago at a Nintendo Direct livestream, Star Wars: Hunters is one of those games that you can’t imagine suffered a long and difficult pitch process. Someone just had to say “It’s Overwatch but in Star Wars” and the development budget was in their account that afternoon. It is a no-brainer, and of all the entertainment projects the Star Wars brand has been slathered on to over the past three years, it’s certainly among the most understandable and well crafted. > > ... > > The fact that I’ve genuinely wanted to grind this game for upgrades is a good indication that it’s a fun way to spend a few hours. When you’re on a skilled team that actually functions as a unit, the fights are tense and exciting – there’s great, well-balanced interplay between the hero abilities, allowing you to really boss areas of the map, which is helpful when you move on from Deathmatch-style basic option to familiar online shooter modes such as Control, where you fight to overtake and keep three control points, and Trophy Chase where the sides fight to keep hold of a marauding droid. There are also little attempts to bring in the feel of the movie’s action sequences – such as when control points are suddenly opened to passing vehicles and if you don’t move out of the way, you’ll be splattered on the windscreen of a hover truck. > > Hunters is not quite as much fun as playing Overwatch … or watching Star Wars. It could have done with some truly original features, or more movie content tied in with the gameplay. Instead, it is a decent team shooter that you can play on Switch or mobile, and swap your progress between the two, so you never have to go more than a few moments without levelling up a wookiee. Yes, it tries to bamboozle you with many quests, challenges and blinking icons on the menu screen so that you inevitably fold and buy a £10 season pass, but you can definitely defeat the game’s Jedi mind tricks and have a blast without paying. The force is strong in this one, but not that strong.

It's been freely available for nearly a week now - what are your thoughts?

> Overwatch was murdered by Blizzard and nothing replaced it. Overwatch 2? Never heard of it. Other hero shooters tried to keep the lights on, like Paladins, and one of them is even came back from the dead, albeit only for three days [Correction: It's actually back for real now]. But there's no way around it: the hero shooter is largely a thing of the past. Sure, Valorant is still doing its thing, but it lacks the playfulness and fun that made the early hero shooters such a joy to play. It's Overwatch for Counter-Strike nuts, and I can think of few things less appealing. > > So when Star Wars: Hunters launched on Switch and mobile, I felt compelled to check it out. I'm exhausted by Star Wars, but still ultimately love it. So Star Wars x Overwatch? Yeah, of course I was going to download it. Not one part of me was surprised, however, to discover that it's basic junk food, wrapped up in a grotty free-to-play mobile business model. > > It's constantly trying to sell me shite, and reminding me how many more funky skins or characters I'd have instant access to if I shelled out a few bucks. The battle pass and slew of challenges are gussied up grinds, and navigating the menu just depresses me with its endless mix of tasks and appeals to my wallet. > > But when I'm in a match, it's undeniably fun in short bursts. The map and character designs—both visually and mechanically—are quite a bit simpler than anything Overwatch gave us, but that's less of an issue in what is ultimately a mobile game (though I'm playing it on Switch because I despise playing anything on my phone, unless it's Teamfight Tactics). > > What it nails, like the best hero shooters, is creating a roster of distinct heroes. You've got a huge wookie who can charge at enemies Reinhardt-style, as well as chucking boulders and smashing the ground to stun; a bounty hunter who can use her grappling hook to quickly escape foes or spit out a barrage of missiles to wipe out teams; there's even a wee lad hiding inside a droideka, blasting players from behind his protective shield. > > ... > > So I ended up playing Hunters into the wee hours of the morning after launch, even though it can't hold a candle to the greats that came before it. But I really don't want to play it on my Switch. There are a lot of games that Nintendo's magical console is perfect for, but PvP shooters aren't among them. I mean, it's fine? It looks OK, there aren't any performance issues, but it just feels wrong to use a controller. I want my mouse and keyboard. But it does seem like Zynga is aiming for a more casual crowd. > > Hunters is light, compact and MTX heavy, so it doesn't scream "PC shooter". The expectations would be different if it launched on other platforms. A visual upgrade would also likely be called for. On small screens, it looks fine, with a bog standard cartoon aesthetic making it easy to ignore the lack of bells and whistles. What it's lacking would be a lot more noticeable on PC. So I don't see it making the move, or Zynga being up for overhauling it when there are so many more whales playing it on phones. > > But there's got to be more people like me, who became absolutely smitten with hero shooters years ago, and now have few outlets. Maybe you've begrudgingly moved over to battle royales, but you know you'd come back at the drop of a hat if you could. You don't want to spend 20 minutes just picking up weapons in the same map over and over again. You want over-the-top characters with ridiculous powers, and fast-paced shootouts in tightly-designed maps.

Ahnald gives it 6/10.

> Star Wars: Hunters has just released, and as Zynga's big pitch into the arena of Star Wars games made for mobile and Nintendo Switch, it's already making waves. One way they've been promoting the game is with a massive set of murals in London & Los Angeles. > > It's no surprise they're eager to show off either. Star Wars: Hunters, which is a 4v4 class-based shooter, pits you in battles against other players with characters inspired by the wide Star Wars universe. These latest murals show off the characters in huge resolution on the side of buildings in two of the world's biggest cities. > > You can check out the murals for both London and Los Angeles on Zynga's official social media channels, and play Star Wars: Hunters now on iOS and Android!

> Games giant Zynga, known for its extended catalogue of mobile games, are no stranger to working with big IP names, from the wizarding world of Harry Potter to Game of Thrones' Westeros. > > So, in 2018, news broke that Zynga had entered a partnership with Disney to create a mobile Star Wars game, it seemed that a hit was cards. And when Zynga charged its subsidiary NaturalMotion, which it acquired back in 2014 for $527 million, with developing the game, it felt like success was in the bag. > > ... > > Zynga’s executive vice president Yaron Leyvand picks up the story. > > “Star Wars: Hunters was and is a labour of love by an international team across our studios in Brighton, London, and Austin. During development, the team evolved as they continued to add and expand content in the game," he says. > > At one point the company had as many as 300 staff working on the game, PocketGamer.biz understands. > > It was ready to break cover at Nintendo Direct in 2021, where the first official teaser was shown. The reveal made Star Wars: Hunters the first game from Zynga to be developed for Nintendo Switch alongside mobile. > > ... > > However, while the game was expected to launch later that same year; a global launch didn’t happen. > > Instead, Hunters was soft launched across Android devices in New Zealand, Australia, Malaysia, Taiwan, India, Indonesia, and the Philippines, and Zynga announced in 2022 that the full release would be delayed until 2023. > > Many wondered if the game would make it to a global launch, but as Leyvand told us, "we’ve always been committed to bringing this game to Star Wars fans around the globe". > > With years in soft launch, the team was able to expand the game significantly from its initial announcement. > > “We saw great engagement and input from players in our soft launch phase and worked to incorporate that into the version you see now”, says Leyvand. > > He adds that soft launch phase proved invaluable for the NaturalMotion team to “introduce new gameplay modes, characters, and mechanics that truly make Star Wars: Hunters a best-in-class competitive arena shooter". > > And it’s finally here. Despite fan fears, Star Wars: Hunters launched globally yesterday, on June 4th, 2024. > > ... > > However, the Nintendo Switch was released back in 2017, meaning it's coming toward the end of its cycle, with rumours already floating that a new Switch could be on the market as early as Q1 2025. > > Then there’s the mobile market, which moves incredibly fast and has faced numerous challenges for the last couple of years. Has Star Wars: Hunters - like Dawn of Titans before it - spent too long in gestation? > > Leyvand teases that the team has "a tremendous amount of exciting updates that we want to bring to players and fans in the future". > > So, could there be a possibility that the team will bring the game over to the next-generation Switch and other formats whenever they land?

Optimistic article from November 2021:

> In the final issue of Star Wars: War of the Bounty Hunters, the bounty hunter Imara Vex makes her debut in the comics before the upcoming release of the Star Wars: Hunters video game. While the massive crossover event saw the entire galaxy going to war over the still-carbonized Han Solo after Empire Strikes Back, it's been revealed that the resurgent Crimson Dawn was using the conflict to further their own goals, led by the Lady Qi'ra. Furthermore, Qi'ra has assembled a collection of impressive warriors and agents to join her organization for the upcoming Crimson Reign event, and Imara Vex is among their ranks, serving as her first official appearance in the Star Wars canon. > > While not much is known about Imara Vex, the website for the upcoming Star Wars: Hunters game has confirmed that she's a highly-skilled bounty hunter who never loses. Furthermore, she's also seen in the game's trailer claiming that she has the highest score in the arena-style tournament of battles featuring fighters of shapes and sizes. However, Star Wars: War of the Bounty Hunters from writer Charles Soule with artists Luke Ross and David Messina reveals that she has ties to Crimson Dawn, the organization first founded by Darth Maul which has since evolved under the command of Lady Qi'ra.

You can also see her in this preview for Star Wars: Hidden Empire #3.

She has appeared in seven comics and a novel before the game finally launched.

> There are 12 different characters to choose from in Star Wars: Hunters at launch. > > They are all originally designed but some are reminiscent of fan favourites already featured in the franchise, such as Zaina, who is a Rebel war hero not unlike Han Solo. > > Players will also have three character classes to choose from, including Tank, Support and Damage, which all have different perks and abilities. > > A Mandalorian called Aran Tal is also coming to the game eventually, once an Arena Pass has been released, but at launch he is unavailable. We’ll update you once more information has been published. > > Our Gaming Editor, Rob Leane, went along to a Star Wars: Hunters event recently, and here are his thoughts on the best characters in the game. > > From my time playing all the different modes across multiple matches at the preview event, regularly switching between characters while the other players also mixed it up, I would argue that Sentinel is the most consistently reliable character. > > His shield ability comes in handy at any time you need to defend or protect anything, while his Ultimate move (which calls in temporary support from multiple other stormtroopers) is arguably unbeatable. > > That being said, the character Slingshot was quite overpowered in the Rocket League-like Hutt Ball mode, as its round shape comes in useful when trying to traverse the pitch. > > This will change over time (Rob Leane writes), but based on my time in the preview event, I’d say this tier list is fair: > > * S Tier - Sentinel > * A Tier - Slingshot, Imara Vex, Aran Tal > * B Tier - Utooni, J-3DI, Rieve, Grozz, Diago > * C Tier - Skora, Charr > * D Tier - Sprocket, Zaina

cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/12885194

> > In Star Wars: Hunters, you can play as two Jawas in a trench coat, a precariously balanced sibling duo that slings scrap metal. It’s the kind of wacky, creative premise that should tell you all you need to know about the newest Star Wars video game — this time from gaming behemoth Take-Two (the parent company behind everything from Grand Theft Auto to NBA 2K). The new game, available now on Nintendo Switch and mobile (with cross-platform saves), combines the hero-shooter genre with the familiar locales of everyone’s favorite galaxy far, far away. > > > > “We have to make that something that is approachable to people, so that it’s not too unusual where they can’t pick up and play those things,” design director Scott Warner tells Inverse. Warner cites games like Overwatch and Apex Legends as influences on Star Wars: Hunter. > > > > Traipsing through the world of Hunters, I was struck by how similar it felt to taking a tour of Galaxy’s Edge, the immersive Star Wars attractions at Disney parks in California and Florida. I’ve shared cocktails with friends at a Star Wars cantina in real life, and now my hero was being blown to bits across nearly identical terrain > > > > “The maps are like Disneyland,” art director Dominic Estephane tells Inverse. “You are immersed, but then you look up and you see the crowd, and that’s something you notice. It’s a set. It’s a TV show. There was a big influence from Disneyland to make it feel like you’re in this setting.”

The tie-in novel landed over a year ago:

> With all the hype for Jedi: Battle Scars, it was easy to miss another video game tie-in novel that was released on the same day — Star Wars Hunters: Battle for the Arena. And while the game it’s based on has yet to come out, the middle-grade novel penned by Mark Oshiro has just as much action and thrills as it does world-building. > > Hunters: Battle for the Arena is set some years after the Battle of Endor and the end of the Empire, following an orphaned Force-sensitive young woman named Rieve. Originally from Corellia, Rieve has bounced around because of some trauma in her past and ends up on Vespaara, where she trains to become a Hunter. > > ... > > Some of the best parts of this middle-grade novel come when Rieve finally realizes it’s possible and important to open yourself up and let others have your back. Your family — found or otherwise — is there for you on your best days and your worst. Though not a Jedi, Rieve also learns the crucial lesson of embracing, not trying to control, her emotions. > > Beyond the sweet morals of the story, the other bright spots in Battle for the Arena pertain to gonkrock, basically the Star Wars version of heavy thrasher metal music. It’s Rieve’s favorite, and we need a playlist ASAP. > > Then there’s J-3DI, the lightsaber-wielding droid who really does think he’s a Jedi. But for all his Jedi programming, he struggles to properly say “may the Force be with you.” Instead, we get gems like “may the Forces be around you” and “may the Force be on or around you.” > > ... > > Without the game, there’s been little to no promotion of Battle for the Arena since the book’s announcement and cover reveal over a year ago. Despite setbacks with the game’s release, Battle for the Arena still shines as a lively and fast-paced Star Wars story — perfect for new and younger readers.

> Yes, Star Wars: Hunters is canon to the overall Star Wars universe! > > The main arena of the game exists on an Outer Rim planet and the action is beamed over the HoloNet like a TV show to entertainment fans around the galaxy. Turns out what the people want in this universe is deathmatches, who knew? > > The whole operation is run by one of the Hutts (not that one). Each battle arena is an elaborate set that has been put together to look like famous things from Star Wars, such as the Death Star and the Battle of Endor. > > It’s all fake, though, and the biggest Star Wars fans will notice the purposefully unconvincing nature of the arenas. > > Inspiration for the whole thing was taken from pro wrestling, with the development team explaining that the characters – all larger-than-life archetypal heroes and villains when the cameras are rolling – are normal citizens of the galaxy the rest of the time. > > Rieve, for example, plays the role of a Sith when they’re in the arena, but in reality, she’s a young Force-sensitive person just trying to find her way in the galaxy. > > As for when the game is set in the Star Wars films timeline? Between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens – after the fall of the Galactic Empire. > > In an exclusive interview with the Star Wars: Hunters developers at an official preview event for the game, we here at RadioTimes.com asked them about the game’s ties to Star Wars canon. > > Here’s what the developers had to say. > > Rich Kemp, senior art director, told us at the preview event that: "Having a game that exists in canon in the universe is a massive privilege. We just want to keep expanding the universe of Star Wars as best we can, introducing new exciting characters. > > "And if they make their way into [TV] shows or if they make their way into books, comics, that's awesome. It just makes our characters feel all the more alive. And yeah, we already think of them as alive. So hopefully other people will too." > > He added, "There's already a Rieve short novel out there, about Rieve and how she came to take part in the arena." > > Imara Vex, too, has appeared in the official Star Wars comics, and even fought legendary big bad Darth Vader.

> Three years in the making, Star Wars: Hunters has seen multiple delays that set it back from a 2021 release date to 2022 and finally 2024. Star Wars fans have had some hands-on experience with the title in the interim - playing in soft launch in select regions so that Zynga subsidiary NaturalMotion could collect data and improve the game. > > But today, June 4th, 2024, marks the first time everyone on the planet is able to play, whether on Android, iOS, or Nintendo Switch and it’s a landmark moment for Zynga and for Star Wars. > > Hunters was Zynga’s first game in development for Nintendo Switch, broadening the company’s horizons; meanwhile, for Star Wars, Hunters was the brand's second game revealed after EA’s exclusivity deal came to an end. > > Hunters is also canon to the wider Star Wars universe and further broadens the series’ transmedia reach, with NaturalMotion having worked with Lucasfilm to ensure the game stays true to the films and other media. The game iteself is set after Episode Six taking place in a location where characters from across the galaxy pay a visit for entertainment and combat. > > As for its gameplay, Star Wars: Hunters offers chaotic 4v4 multiplayer battles in iconic series locales, with plenty of characters to choose from and roles like Support, Tank, and Damage classes. > > There are multiple game modes with different objectives like taking and maintaining control over certain areas, or capture-the-flag type challenges. Trophy Chase tasks squads with holding the TR0-F33 droid, while Squad Brawl challenges teams to make 20 eliminations.