EA posted another pilot briefing for Star Wars: Squadrons, where they focused on ship components and their customisation, both functional and cosmetic.
Star Wars: Squadrons players will unlock new components as they play, and the choice of hardware very much dictates how a starfighter behaves. Ships usually have the following component slots:
- Primary Weapons
- Auxiliary (x2)
- Countermeasures
- Hull
- Shields (Note that some ships come without shields)
- Engines
Starfighters can have up to three passive and four active components. Active components here are the two auxiliary components, countermeasures and your primary weapon and best friend - the main cannon.
The dev listed several types of Star Wars: Squadrons primary weapons, some prioritising rate of fire over raw damage, some vice versa, etc. Ion cannons, for instance, let you tear through shields but inflict minimum hull damage, which sounds deadly with a bit of team play.
Auxiliary components are where Star Wars: Squadrons gets even more interesting. "The options here range from adding a repair astromech or tractor beams to a variety of torpedoes, bombs, and mines. For these two slots, you can only pick one of each component, meaning you can’t have two repair units or two of the same missiles and balancing out your starfighter’s kit should always be taken into account", EA wrote.
Countermeasures are the final active component in Star Wars: Squadrons in every sense of the word - it's your escape plan. Countermeasures range from dummy flares to lock-on missile jammers.
EA
Of course, passive ship are just as important, and these are the engines, hull and shields. Whereas shields will have different tolerance to different types of damage, a stronger hull may affect your manoeuvrability, and so on.
"Between power management, overcharging, shield balancing or emergency power conversion, boosting, drifting, throttle management, primary weapons, auxiliary abilities, and countermeasures, the combat piloting experience has significant depth. You can learn the ropes quickly, yet you can look forward to discovering new techniques and tactics for months to come. On top of that, there’s a wealth of customizable components to choose from. There’s a healthy selection to start with and more to unlock through gameplay as you progress.", James Clement, Star Wars: Squadrons lead gameplay designer.
EA also confirmed different cosmetic customisation options, which will be unlocked through gameplay. These range from your pilot's appearance to the look of your cockpit - regardless of the Force and your preferred flavour thereof.
Star Wars: Squadrons space combat sim by EA and Motive
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