I’m actually a big fan of Hero Shooters. I’m not nearly as sick of the genre as many other gamers out there seem to be. My only requirement is that the heroes in said shooter need to look cool and not like normal people they found in a Target or a bunch of cosplayers. Star Wars Hunters is a new Hero Shooter with some very cool characters and the game itself is fast and fun. The problem is that it is also free to play.
As soon as I am instructed by a game to navigate to some submenu so I can claim my reward, my brain starts screaming at me to get out. I said it before when I was talking about Wayfinder, but the mechanisms required to make a game function as a F2P title are cancer to games.
Certainly working on a Star Wars title is a dream come true for a lot of game devs and I can see that the people who made this game are indeed fans. There is so much heart in Hunters from the fucking Miraluka Sharpshooter to the X-wing and Tie Fighter that scream through the Death Star trench map this game oozes love for the setting.
Hunters is a mobile game first although you can also get it on the Switch. I have to say the Switch performance is terrible. My iPad Pro with an Xbox controller ended up being the best way to play. Because it’s focused on a mobile experience, the game is slightly stripped down. Characters only have a couple abilities, maps are small, and rounds are incredibly fast. The end result is a refreshingly fast paced shooter that’s actually a blast to play.
The problem is that the talented developers who built this awesome game work at Zynga and so it is a free to play hellscape.
The main screen is full of ads competing for my attention. I am constantly hit with pop ups for cosmetic packs.
I’m being directed to navigate a dozen different menus to claim rewards with currencies I don’t even understand.
I almost feel bad saying anything good about Star Wars Hunters because I think it could be legitimately dangerous for some people. Generally speaking, if I like a F2P game I’ll buy the battle pass as a way to support them. I dropped $10 on the pass for Hunters but a person could spend A LOT more and quickly. One of the coolest heroes, Mandalorian Aran Tal must be purchased with the battle pass but the rest can be unlocked by playing the game long enough. They will constantly let you know you can spend money to unlock them instantly though. Opening up Star Wars Hunters feels like walking into a Casino. I understand that I am the prey in this place and whatever fun I have here will come with a cost I might not even see. It's fun, but just know what you're getting into. It’s also hard not to imagine how amazing Star Wars Hunters could be as a full AAA title without all the microtransactions. Obviously that game would not siphon a million dollars a second from its players like their twisted masters demand, but man it would be cool.
-Gabe out
