‘Star Wars: Battlefront’ Beta Extended, Plus Luke Skywalker Provides Best Moment So Far

The Star Wars: Battlefront beta test has generated positive buzz for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC multiplayer shooter. Electronic Arts and DICE still have some things they want to test out prior to the game’s November release though. That’s why a slight extension of the beta was announced Sunday.

The beta was originally scheduled to end on Monday, October 12, but players will get an extra day to tool around Hoth, Sullust, and Tatooine in the various game modes. The new beta end date has been set for Tuesday, October 13.

Good news, we’re extending the #StarWarsBattlefront Beta. Details —> http://t.co/vLtCZ1C8uN pic.twitter.com/kNnMLWttrc

— EAStarWars (@EAStarWars) October 11, 2015

“Hope you’re enjoying the Star Wars Battlefront beta and thank you for playing – every time you log on, it’s helping us ensure the experience is going to be great at launch. As we get into the late stages of the beta, we will begin conducting further technical tests on our infrastructure,” DICE Community Manager Sledgehammer70 wrote in the game’s community forums.

“These additional tests will start on Monday, October 12 and will run thru Tuesday, October 13th, which will add an additional day to the open Beta. These tests are to help us find some extreme scenarios, and that means some players may experience occasional issues such as being kicked from the game or losing connectivity. This is all being done in the name of shoring up our infrastructure before we launch on November 17th.”

The exact ending time of the Star Wars: Battlefront beta hasn’t been announced yet. The beta launched at 1 p.m. ET last Thursday, which is late in the evening for Swedish developer DICE. There’s no word if that will be the same end time or if it will run past that.

From DICE’s perspective, the five day beta has been a success. The infrastructure has held up relatively well for an open beta for such a high-interest title and there is obviously more that can be tested out. Additionally, various gameplay balance fixes have already been identified.

There have been some noticeable balance issues with spawn points on the Hoth map for Walker Assault that’s led to spawn camping. Perhaps the most notorious issue was a Rebel turret outside of the Rebel base that could be taken over by the Imperial side and fired into a narrow doorway into the base. Both these and other have been identified as fixes for the final release.

The beta has been enjoyable for players so far both from a gameplay perspective and funny moment perspective. The Battlefield betas were known for some unintentionally funny moments due to various bugs. There haven’t been as many of those thus far with Battlefront, but we have seen some great videos thus far including an ignominious death for Luke Skywalker.

YouTube user Zephs shared a video of Luke Skywalker bounding across the Hoth battlefield and chasing after Zephs. Despite seemingly having the upper hand, things took a turn for the worse for the Jedi hero when he was drawn into the path of an Imperial Walker.

This even caught the attention of the Luke Skywalker himself, Mark Hamill. He congratulated either the player, DICE, or both through his Twitter account.

Just watched myself get squashed like a bug by an Imperial Walker… good work! https://t.co/6UBRBvJdHF — Mark Hamill (@HamillHimself) October 10, 2015

If you are looking for funny glitches, the following video from MiniLadd has a good amount of the weird variety.

Star Wars: Battlefront will launch for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC on November 17. Pre-orders include the free DLC, Battle of Jakku, which ties into the Star Wars: The Force Awakens movie release later this year.

The Star Wars: Battlefront beta includes the Walker Assault mode on the Hoth map, the Drop Zone mode on Sullust, and single-player and co-op missions on Tatooine. How have you been enjoying the beta so far? Sound off in the comments below.

[Images via Star Wars: Battlefront]