Across the frozen plains and icy mountains of Hoth, I waged war against rebel scum in a 20 vs. 20 game of Walker Assault. It's one the largest-scale modes, in which three AT-ATs trample across the map from one side to the other. As a member of the Empire, you have prevent the Rebels from seizing control of Uplinks which they’ll use to send Y-Wings on bombing raids, protect the AT-ATs, and escort them safely to their target.
It’s a large-scale scenario, and I spent nearly as much time gazing at the environment as I did fulfilling those objectives. Battlefront is a seriously good-looking game (and it appeared to be running on a PS4). The snow on Hoth crunches and cracks as you run through it. Cold air can be seen drifting over the network of trenches that scar the map. This sense of scale is weighted by the playable environment seamlessly blending with the vistas that envelop it. Like in Destiny, it made me feel like I was fighting on the surface of a planet, rather than confined to just a small section of it. Music and sound design intensify that feeling of scale and grandeur further. It feels like Star Wars.
In the E3 build there’s just a handful of weapons and perks to play around with. Guns are split between regular and heavy blasters – the DH-17, DLT-19, E-11, and A280C, if you’re interested. All weapons carry  four attributes – damage, rate of fire, range, and cooling power. The last is more a bit more unique, since  blasters don’t run out of ammo but they can overheat. When a blaster overheats it’s temporarily put out of action, but if you nail a the active reload it cools down much sooner. Blasters are a joy to fire – precise, responsive – and the sound they make is spot-on.
Weapons are complemented by ‘Hands’, which are basically a set of three perks. The E3 multiplayer build had two Hands from which to choose. The first contains Barrage (a grenade launcher-style alternate fire), Ion Shot, and a Jump Pack. The second load out contains a Thermal Detonator, Personal Shield, and Ion Torpedo. All items are on a cool down with the Ion Shot and Personal Shield limited to just five uses per life. The cool down time didn’t feel like a drag, but it was long enough to prevent the higher powered items upsetting the balance.
Fulfilling objectives, like taking back control of Uplink terminals, spews out one-use items represented by holographic Empire or Rebel Alliance insignia. These include a rocket launcher capable of taking down an AT-ST to the ability to hop into the cockpit of a TIE Fighter. Controlling a TIE was much easier than I expected – it was fast, agile, but also responsive.
But what I liked most was the overall tempo and rhythm of the fight. I felt like I was inching my way across a battlefield, pushing forward with AT-ATs and TIE Fighters by my side. It’s easy to feel small, as you run between the legs of an AT-AT. As the match unfolded, we marched closer and closer to a Rebel base carved into the side of a mountain. And we continued forward, pushing them back once again. As the battle entered its final act, more and more ships began to fill the battlefield. TIE Fighters screeched above me, but unfortunately more and more Snowspeeders appeared low on the horizon. Soon those majestic, unstoppable AT-ATs – machines by which I’d proudly marched – were face-planting unceremoniously in the snow.
Great. Now I know what it really feels like to be a Snowtrooper.