Star Wars Starfighter: Dandelion Squadron is a Star Wars Canon video game developed by Tachibana Games and published by Electronic Arts for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and for the Steam platform on Windows 10. The game is set during the Galactic Civil War.
The game's story follows an Alliance Starfighter Corps unit known as Dandelion Squadron that was formed by an unknown Alliance pilot which is later taken over by Yang Xiao Long and Blake Belladonna after the Battle of Bestine IV. After the battle, both women agree to leading the squadron as Dandelion Leader and Dandelion Two.
Gameplay
Much like 2001's Star Wars: Starfighter, players will be able to control and battle against starfighters in Starfighter: Dandelion Squadron. At launch, there are six available starfighters for the Rebel Alliance and Galactic Empire. There are also skins for the Starfighters. There are no ground-based missions in Starfighter.
With Frostbite 3.0, the developers were able to make the game look beautiful and able to run at a constant frame rate of 60. Several improvements were made to the engine in order to support any additions that Tachibana Games might add in the future for the game.
Hero Ships
Hero Ships are special Starfighters that are different than regular Starfighters. The difference being that Hero Ships have much more health and stronger shields. Although having similar abilities as regular Starfighters, Hero Ships have passive traits that differ from them such as Crimson Leader which his passive trait is that he is faster than both regular TIE Interceptors and the Royal Guard TIE Interceptor.
During matches, players will earn Battle Points which they can use to spawn in as Hero Ships.
Singleplayer
In the singleplayer campaign, players control Yang Xiao Long as she takes command of her customized Y-wing assault starfighter/bomber. In a prologue mission, players take control of her starfighter when an Imperial I-class Star Destroyer arrives in orbit above Bestine IV.
Battle over Bestine IV
- Main article: Battle over Bestine IV
The "Battle over Bestine IV" is the first mission that shows how Yang became the leader of Dandelion Squadron. As the Alliance conducts a mission to extract a valuable asset crucial to the Rebellion's fight against the Empire.
The Fallen Maiden
- Main article: The Fallen Maiden
"The Fallen Maiden" is the second mission which follows Dandelion Squadron's attack on an Imperial I-class Star Destroyer called the Fallen Maiden which was responsible for the destruction of Scarif Battalion on Tatooine.
Assault Under The Night
- Main article: Assault Under The Night
The "Assault Under The Night" is the third mission which depicts Dandelion Squadron's attack on the Midsummer Night which is commanded by Imperial Navy Admiral Annabelle Nakamura who was also known as the "Aggressive Admiral".
Raid on Solemn Penance
- Main article: Raid on Solemn Penance
The "Raid on Solemn Penance" is the fourth mission which depicts Dandelion Squadron's raid on the Imperial Star Destroyer Solemn Penance to rescue members of Rose Squadron, an Alliance Starfighter Corps unit whom were captured above Corellia and are being sent to the Mustafar Prison Facilities.
Imperial Eclipse
- Main article: Imperial Eclipse
The "Imperial Eclipse" is the fifth mission which depicts Dandelion Squadron as they raid the Imperial shipyards at Anaxes after learning that a prototype of a new class of Star Destroyer was being built at the yards. Realizing its potential danger to the Alliance, the Alliance Starfighter Command send Dandelion Squadron along with the Messenger to destroy it.
The Mark Xs
- Main article: The Mark Xs
"The Mark Xs" is the sixth mission which depicts Dandelion Squadron and Rose Squadron as they are sent to destroy an Imperial Advanced Weapons Research factory housing several completed AT-ST Mark X prototypes as well as their blueprints. However in an emergency response, an element of the Fleet of Imperial Justice is sent to the factory and defends the factory against the Alliance starfighters.
Imperial Justice
- Main article: Imperial Justice
The "Imperial Justice" is the seventh mission which depicts the aftermath of the attack on the Advanced Weapons Research factory, which Dandelion and Rose Squadrons were successful in destroying, however the Fleet of Imperial Justice, commanded by the Aggressive Admiral, tracked them to the Alliance Fleet and are attacked. The starfighter squadrons are then ordered to defend the fleet from the Imperial Star Destroyers long enough for them to calculate their jumps to light-speed and disappear.
Evacuation of Yavin IV
- Main article: Evacuation of Yavin IV
The "Evacuation of Yavin IV" is the eighth and final mission which depicts the Alliance to Restore the Republic's efforts to evacuate their hidden headquarters on Yavin IV following their successful attack on the Death Star, the Empire's powerful planet-killing battle station.
Multiplayer
The multiplayer mode allows up to 30 players to partake in two modes; Starfighter Assault and Fighter Squadron on various maps set during the Galactic Civil War. In these modes, players are able to take control of various types of Wing type starfighters and TIE series fighters in both space and atmospheric battles.
There are only two modes available in Starfighter: Dandelion Squadron, Starfighter Assault and Fighter Squadron. For maps, there are several that players can play on which are set at different planets within the galaxy.
Starfighter Assault is a 30 player game mode with an additional forty AI bots, and each map having unique objectives tailored to its design. The mode is also taken from EA's Star Wars Battlefront II. The mode Fighter Squadron is an ariel team deathmatch where players dogfight each other for points that they would need to win the game. In this mode, there are no other objectives but eliminating the other team.
With the Rose Squadron DLC pack, Starfighter Variants are introduced which are variations of existing starfighters in the game. According to design director Anakin Nakamura, all future Starfighter Variants will be free for all players.
StarfightersRebel Alliance
Galactic Empire |
HeroesRebel AllianceGalactic Empire |
Starfighter Skins
In Starfighter: Dandelion Squadron, there are several starfighter skins which only change the decals and appearance of starfighters. At launch, these are only available for Rebel Alliance starfighters.
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Gamemodes
- Starfighter Assault
- Fighter Squadron
Maps
An (FS) indicates a Fighter Squadron map.
An (SA) indicates a Starfighter Assault map.
- Bestine IV (SA, FS)
- Fallen Maiden (SA, FS)
- Midsummer Night (SA, FS)
- Solemn Penance (SA, FS)
- Anaxes (SA, FS)
- Advanced Weapons Research factory (SA, FS)
- Alliance Fleet (SA, FS)
- Yavin IV Airspace (SA)
- Fondor (SA)
- Death Star II (SA)
Downloadable content
Downloadable content were confirmed for the game by Electronic Arts during their E3 press conference, and they would be solely developed by Tachibana Games, and not by any EA members. All future DLC content will be free for all players post-launch which includes new starfighters, starfighter variants, hero ships, and maps.
The Rose Squadron pack is available for $7.99 on the store, which will grant players access to the content included.
Star Wars Starfighter: Fleet of Imperial Justice
- Main article: Star Wars Starfighter: Fleet of Imperial Justice
Star Wars Starfighter: Fleet of Imperial Justice is the game's first expansion which includes a new campaign set during the cold war between the New Republic and the First Order. The expansion will also include new maps, Hero Ships, Starfighters and cosmetics including Starfighter Variants and Squadron Skins.
The expansion will revolve around the Fleet of Imperial Justice and the New Republic's discovery of the First Order, and the protagonist being a member of Rose Squadron within the New Republic Starfighter Corps.
Editions
Standard Edition
The standard edition of Star Wars Starfighter: Dandelion Squadron only includes the base game.
Star Wars Starfighter: Rose Squadron
Star Wars Starfighter: Rose Squadron is a special edition of the game that includes the base game and the Rose Squadron pack which contains two hero ships; Crescent Rose and Myrtenaster; a variant of the T-65B X-wing, and also includes Rose Squadron skins going from Three to Twelve.
Trivia
- This is the first game a subsidiary of Morningwood Arts developed using a different game engine not owned by them.