Players criticise Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection for bugs, server woes at launch
UPDATE: Aspyr acknowledges issues.
UPDATE 15/03/24: Aspyr has provided an update on Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection, blaming online issues on "critical errors".
"At launch, we experienced critical errors with our network infrastructure," Aspyr stated on its website. This resulted in "incredibly high ping, matchmaking errors, crashes, and servers not appearing in the browser".
The developer said it is now working to "increase network stability", and encouraged players to continue to report bugs, errors, or "unexpected behaviours" in the game through its support site.
The original story continues below.
ORIGINAL STORY 14/03/24: Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection has received negative reception thanks to numerous bugs and severe lack of preparation for online multiplayer.
The bundle launched earlier today for Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation, and Xbox. It contains both the original Star Wars: Battlefront and its sequel, Star Wars: Battlefront 2, from 2004 and 2005 respectively, as well as all bonus content released for each.
The re-release of these beloved classics hasn't gone well, however, with players reporting numerous bugs on all platforms, as well as seeking refunds. Another major issue players have encountered is the limited servers for each platform.
Initial reports from players at launch stated there were only 3 servers for Battlefront 2 on PC, each able to accomodate 64 players. Given the Steam version of the collection peaked at 9232 concurrent players (thanks SteamDB), lots of people were unable to join multiplayer matches. The situation was similar on other platforms. Players also reported they were unable to create their own servers, despite the option being enabled in the game.
Even without the server issues currently plaguing Battlefront Classic Collection, players are unhappy with numerous other issues including bugs, crashes, and missing cutscenes. On Steam, the collection has an overall rating of Mostly Negative reviews, with only 21 percent of 1525 reviews recommending the game.
Developer Aspyr has had similar fumbles with its recent re-releases of older titles. Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Starring Lara Croft garnered confusion when players found its Epic Games Store version was more polished than others. Aspyr responded, stating the Epic version was a "development build with incomplete assets".
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2 on Switch cancelled the Restored Content DLC despite initial plans to add it post-launch. A class-action lawsuit was filed against Aspyr, and the proceedings later revealed the developer cancelled the DLC after a "third-party objected".
Aspyr was originally at the helm of the KOTOR remake, before development was moved to Saber Interactive. Aspyr will remain under parent company Embracer, which earlier today announced it has sold some of its Saber assets for $247m.