STAR WARS™: Squadrons Review Summary

Stunning graphics and visuals: The game is widely praised for its gorgeous graphics, visual fidelity, and stunning visuals. Players appreciate the detailed and realistic graphics, which are adjustable and remain impressive despite the game's age.

Exceptional VR experience: The game offers an amazing VR experience with high immersion. Players appreciate the great optimization and engaging gameplay in VR, making it a standout feature.

Engaging and fun gameplay: Players find the gameplay to be very fun and engaging. The game mechanics are enjoyable, and both the campaign and multiplayer modes provide exciting experiences.

Enjoyable and intriguing story: The story mode is praised for being enjoyable, fun, and intriguing. Players find the storyline interesting and satisfying, with a decent narrative that keeps them engaged.

Authentic Star Wars experience: The game provides an authentic Star Wars experience, with detailed ships and immersive gameplay. It is considered one of the best Star Wars flight games and a must-play for fans.

Multiplayer mode is dead: The multiplayer aspect of the game is largely inactive, with players struggling to find matches or connect with friends due to a lack of support and a dwindling player base.

Lack of developer support: The game is perceived as abandoned by the developers and EA, with no updates or support, leading to a lack of content and unresolved issues.

Poor control scheme: Players report that the controls are difficult to use and poorly optimized for both keyboard/mouse and controller, making the game frustrating to play.

VR functionality issues: The game has significant problems with VR support, including crashes, lack of controller support, and poor optimization leading to a subpar VR experience.

Game launch problems: Many users experience issues with launching the game, including crashes on startup and problems with the game launcher.

Immersive space combat mechanics: The game features a detailed and immersive space combat system that balances accessible arcade controls with simulation nuances. Players enjoy the depth and realism of space dogfighting and combat mechanics.

VR and controller support: The game offers extensive VR support and is compatible with various controllers, including flight sticks. This enhances the immersive experience, especially in VR engagements.

Complex control schemes: The game offers complex control mechanics, including keyboard controls and HOTAS input support, which can be challenging but rewarding for players seeking a realistic experience.

Diverse ship types and missions: The game includes a variety of ships for both Imperial and Resistance factions, each with unique characteristics. Missions involve different objectives like destroying opponents and damaging cruisers.

Story and campaign modes: Players appreciate the story-driven gameplay and single-player campaign modes. These modes provide a rich narrative experience within the Star Wars universe.

Game launch issues: Many players report that the game fails to launch or crashes immediately upon startup. This includes problems with the game not opening at all or crashing right after launch.

Optimization and performance: The game is reported to be well-optimized by some players, running smoothly on various hardware configurations. However, others report performance issues, including lag and frame rate drops.

VR mode problems: Several users experience issues with the game in VR mode, including crashes, long loading times, and general instability. Some users also report that VR mode does not work properly or at all.

Various workarounds: Players have tried various workarounds to get the game to work, including changing permissions, performing clean boots, verifying files, and other technical fixes.

Freezing and technical issues: Players encounter freezing issues during gameplay, particularly during combat, and other technical issues such as animation problems.

Buy on sale for value: Many reviewers suggest purchasing the game only when it is on sale to get the best value for money. This sentiment is echoed frequently, indicating that the game's worth is highly tied to its discounted price.

Recommended for Star Wars fans: The game is highly recommended for Star Wars fans, particularly for those who want to experience the single-player campaign. It is seen as an excellent choice for passionate fans of the franchise.

VR headset enhances experience: The game is best appreciated with a VR headset, as it significantly enhances the gaming experience. Reviewers recommend using VR for a more immersive experience, especially for those who enjoy space battles and serious flying.

Mixed recommendations based on interest: The game receives mixed recommendations based on specific interests, such as space combat, single-player features, and VR compatibility. Some reviewers recommend it for these niche interests while others do not.

Not recommended without discounts: Several reviewers advise against buying the game at full price, suggesting that it is only worth purchasing during significant sales or discounts.

Community fair range: $5.00 - $10.00.

Story completion: 10.0h.

Session length: 5.0h.

Players generally find the game fun within the first few hours of gameplay, particularly enjoying the campaign mode. However, the multiplayer experience and steep learning curve can be significant friction points.

Reported time to anchor: 2h.

Friction: Steep learning curve; Forced into boring support ship roles; Overwhelming multiplayer experience.

Unlock drivers: Enjoying the campaign mode; Getting past the initial learning curve.

Story-First Explorer: Focused on campaign and story missions, often using VR for immersion. Motivation: Immersive single-player experience and nostalgia. Stance: sale.

Competitive Dogfighter: Focused on multiplayer modes, particularly dogfighting and Fleet Battles. Motivation: Competitive multiplayer and strategic gameplay. Stance: deep sale.

VR Pilot Enthusiast: Focused on VR gameplay, often troubleshooting technical issues. Motivation: Immersive VR experience and piloting Star Wars ships. Stance: sale.

Performance varies significantly across different hardware cohorts, with lower VRAM configurations struggling the most. Higher VRAM setups show a mix of positive and negative experiences.

Windows <8GB VRAM: positive. The game runs well with minor issues reported.

Windows 12-15GB VRAM: mixed. Some users report excellent performance while others experience significant issues like freezing and GPU overuse.

Windows 8-11GB VRAM: negative. The game frequently crashes and has poor performance.

Steam Deck: The game faces significant issues related to the Easy Anti-Cheat software and EA app integration, which prevent it from launching or cause crashes. Users also report problems with small text, multiple crashes, and control issues, particularly with specific hardware. Despite these issues, the game is noted to work well on the Steam Deck platform.

Linux and Proton: The game has significant compatibility issues with Linux due to the presence of kernel-level anti-cheat software, which is a major concern for Linux users. However, some users have reported success running the game on Linux using Proton, suggesting that while there are hurdles, it is not entirely unplayable on Linux.

Monetization: The game is generally perceived positively in terms of monetization, with explicit statements indicating no microtransactions or pay-to-win elements. However, some users express skepticism based on EA's history with other games, though this does not directly affect the current game's monetization.

Linux compatibility issues: Players have reported issues with the game's compatibility on Linux systems.