Given no AAA wants to make a new Star Wars Battlefront game, you can be the one to create it with a new set of free tools provided by Epic Games. Officially licensed Star Wars content is coming to the Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN) and this will change how Star Wars games can be made.
We’ll be taking a look at everything Epic have revealed to be part of the toolbox creators can use to craft their very own Star Wars game. There’s even a classic Battlefront conquest mode that will open up access to trooper and vehicular warfare.
Fortnite Ecosystem v40.00 update brings Star Wars to both UEFN and Fortnite Creative according to a new set of documentation shared by Epic. Starting May 1st, anyone will be able to publish Star Wars Fortnite islands on the Creator Portal. It has been shifted a little but it will come just in time for Star Wars Day on May 4th.
Getting Started
There will be a nice starting point for budding creators. Star Wars-themed island templates will offer structured beginning points for building themed gameplay experiences. Each template will feature a different combination of assets and setup elements depending on its purpose. Below are the templates coming to the system:
Environmental Templates:
- Tatooine Inspired Starter Island: Follow the twin suns to the Tatooine-inspired town. Create your next desert theme game with this starter island.
- Nevarro Inspired Starter Island: Explore the Nevarro-inspired city. Use the volcanic landscape to start building your next adventure.
- Hoth Inspired Starter Island: Get started building with this Hoth-inspired starter island. Take in the icy vista landscape and hidden bases as inspiration for your next experience.
- Space Starter Island: Start the adventure in space to build out your galaxy. This template includes an example setup for a hyperspace effect.
Gameplay Templates:
- Lightsabers and Force Powers: Learn how to create custom lightsabers and Force powers using Scene Graph and Verse.
- Team Conquest: Learn how to build large-scale team combat experiences.
- Narrative and Roleplaying: Explore how to build narrative-driven and roleplaying experiences in the template.
Official Assets
All Star Wars characters will be available to use in this mode. This includes Anakin Skywalker, Clone Troopers, Ahsoka Tano, Rey Skywalker, Darth Jar Jar, Apprentice Evie, The Mandalorian and everyone else. Characters can also be hired too.
On top of that, over 100 NPCs can be used to populate your island. These include variations of 60 Galactic Civilians, 13 Mandalorians, 60 Moon Traders and 70 Rebel Troopers. Stormtroopers, Jawas and rideable Tauntauns can also be placed.
As for weapons, Epic say there will be full access to over 25 iconic Star Wars weapons and items such as the Amban Sniper Rifle, WESTAR-34 Blaster Pistols, IQA-11 Marksman Blaster Rifle and Mandalorian Jetpack. In terms of vehicles, you can use N-1 Starfighters, X-wings, TIE fighters, Lambda Shuttle, the AAT, DF.9 and Turbolaser Turrets.
A bonus is selections from John Williams’ iconic soundtracks can be used on your islands for a limited time. A datamine has revealed the list of tracks and it is a list packed full of some of the best from Star Wars:
- Battle Of The Heroes
- Cantina Band
- Leia’s News And Light Of The Force
- Love Theme
- ManS1_The Mandalorian
- March Of The Resistance
- Princess Leia’s Theme
- Rey’s Theme
- Star Wars Main Theme
- The Asteroid Field
- The Emperor
- The Imperial March
- The Jedi Steps And Finale
- Yoda’s Theme
There will also be many prefabs and galleries themed around the First Order Base, Nevarro City, Outpost Enclave, Resistance Base, Death Star interior, and Republic Outpost to use. Supported biomes at launch are desert, snow, and volcanic all with new assets available as part of the core UEFN and Creative toolset. D’Qar, Hoth, Nevarro, Tatooine, Ion Cannon, Star Destroyer in Space and Death Star horizon are all new backgrounds to use. HUDs can also be customised.
Devices
You can use the Hero device to transform into heroes and villains such as Darth Vader, The Mandalorian, Rey Skywalker, Chewbacca, Emperor Palpatine, and Leia Organa complete with their unique powers and abilities. To learn more, see Hero Device.
Lightsabers and Force Powers
Speaking of powers, new Force abilities have been added. These include making protective barriers, heal allies, mind-trick opponents, cast distractions, and enemy detection. Force powers are no longer tied to lightsabers, unlocking a new level of customization for Jedi, Sith, and everything in between.
On top of that, you will be able to create your own custom Lightsabers at a workbench much like in the beloved Jedi games. From from hilts and blade styles to blade colors, customisation is performed using Scene Graph and the experimental Custom Items and Inventory Overview system.
All of this and so much more can be found in the UEFN documentation provided by Epic Games here.
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