Star Wars: Battlefront II

This page is for the original 2005 game. For the 2017 game, see Star Wars Battlefront II (2017).

Star Wars: Battlefront II

Developers
	Pandemic Studios
Publishers
	LucasArts
	Disney Interactive Studios
Engines
	Zero
Release dates
Windows	October 31, 2005
Reception
Metacritic	78
IGDB	76
Taxonomy
Monetization	One-time game purchase
Modes	Singleplayer, Multiplayer
Pacing	Real-time
Perspectives	First-person, Third-person
Controls	Direct control
Genres	Action, FPS, Shooter
Vehicles	Hovercraft, Robot, Space flight, Tank
Themes	Sci-fi, Space
Series	Star Wars: Battlefront

Star Wars: Battlefront
Subseries of Star Wars
Star Wars: Battlefront	2004
Star Wars: Battlefront II	2005
Star Wars Battlefront (2015)	2015
Star Wars Battlefront II (2017)	2017

Warnings

GameSpy online services have been shut down (see Network for solutions).

Key points

Titled Star Wars: Battlefront II (Classic, 2005) on digital stores to avoid confusion with the 2017 game with the same name.

DLC content from the Xbox version was never officially released on PC, but can be modded in. See Xbox DLC and Title Update Content for PC for details.

General information

GOG.com Community Discussions

GOG.com Support Page

Official LucasArts Battlefront II Forums

Steam Community Discussions

Availability

Source	DRM	Notes	Keys	OS
Retail		CD-ROM edition with 4 discs (NA) and a DVD-ROM version (EU/some NA). SecuROM 7 DRM.
GamersGate
GOG.com		Patch 1.1 Multiplayer Update 2. Offline installer is original 1.1; use Galaxy to update to multiplayer-compatible version.
Humble Store
Origin		Original 1.1 only. Included with EA Play Pro. Currently only visible in the EA App's Browse menu.
Steam		Can no longer be run without Steam as of a recent patch.

Steam serial keys work on retail version.

The Galaxy multiplayer update removed the original icon from the executable. A replacement can be found here.

Version differences

The GOG.com and Steam versions were updated with multiplayer support in October 2017. Crossplay between these versions is available through GOG Galaxy.

CD-ROM edition was released in North America with 4 discs and a DVD-ROM version was release in Europe, though some DVD copies exist in North America.

Essential improvements

Patches

Patch 1.1 – The GOG.com and Steam versions are patched past this. The retail version in the "Fan Favorites 1" collection already has this patch installed.

Unofficial v1.3 Patch – Fixes various bugs, makes text more easily readable, and includes multiple changes for improved moddability. Online compatible, for retail release see here.

Battlefront II Remastered – latest update based on Unofficial v1.3 Patch. Support higher resolutions for menu interface, new settings page, reworked HUD with new features, fixed hero healthbar in vehicles and more.

Game data

Configuration file(s) location

System	Location
Windows	<path-to-game>\GameData\SaveGames
Steam Play (Linux)	<Steam-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/6060/pfx/

Save game data location

System	Location
Windows	<path-to-game>\GameData\SaveGames
Steam Play (Linux)	<Steam-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/6060/pfx/

Save game cloud syncing

System	Native	Notes
GOG Galaxy
Origin
Steam Cloud

Video

General settings.

Video settings.

Graphics feature	State	WSGF	Notes
Widescreen resolution			Hor+. The HUD is stretched and crosshair misaligned in widescreen resolutions. The main menus and Galactic Conquest always output at 800x600; Higher resolutions can be forced, however this is not recommended due to tiny text.
Multi-monitor			See Widescreen resolution for retail version. HUD elements may not display correctly.
Ultra-widescreen			See Widescreen resolution for retail version. HUD elements may not display correctly.
4K Ultra HD			Some interface elements don't appear at this resolution. Text does not scale to higher resolutions. Resolutions higher than 1920x1200 are not recommended.
Field of view (FOV)		See Field of view (FOV).
Windowed		Launch with /win [citation needed]
Borderless fullscreen windowed		See the glossary page for potential workarounds.
Anisotropic filtering (AF)		Force in GPU control panel or use Shader Patch.
Anti-aliasing (AA)		Up to 8x MSAA. Nvidia users can force SGSSAA in Nvidia Profile Inspector.
Vertical sync (Vsync)
60 FPS
120+ FPS		Locked at 80 FPS by default, unlock by using /fixedrate [number]. Only works when VSync is enabled, otherwise just uncaps framerate entirely. Alternatively, you can use this mod that increases the framerate cap instead of messing with fixedrate (speed modifier) of the game.
High dynamic range display (HDR)		See the glossary page for potential alternatives.
Color blind mode		Distinction of enemy vs. allied colors may be difficult for users with achromatopsia. Users with deuteranopia, protanopia, and tritanopia should be fine.

• 

  In-game map as seen by a player without colorblindness.

• 

  In-game map as seen by a player with achromatopsia.

• 

  In-game map as seen by a player with dueteranopia.

• 

  In-game map as seen by a player with protanopia.

• 

  In-game map as seen by a player with tritanopia.

Widescreen resolution

Command line parameter[citation needed]

See Command line arguments. Set the values to the desired resolution. For example, use -resolution 1920 1080 or /resolution 1920 1080. This does not appear to work for resolutions past 16:9 and 16:10. Edit "vidmode.ini". See this post. Notes The Multiplayer Update will always list all supported resolutions. The custom resolution will always take precedence and as such it cannot be overridden from the options menu. The menus may become messed up or unusable after forcing them to certain resolutions; this can be repaired with Star Wars Battlefront II Remastered.

Field of view (FOV)

Set FOV[citation needed]
Download and install the Unofficial v1.3 Patch. When you start playing, pause the game and choose Fake Console. Set your FOV value and confirm. This will result in incomplete first-person models on higher FOV settings.

Input

Only two bindings can be assigned to a single command.

Keyboard and mouse	State	Notes
Remapping
Mouse acceleration
Mouse sensitivity
Mouse input in menus
Mouse Y-axis inversion		Used by both the mouse and the controller.
Controller
Controller support		See Incorrectly bound controller movement if movement is incorrectly bound.
Full controller support		Menu can only be brought up with the "Esc" key.
Controller remapping
Controller sensitivity
Controller Y-axis inversion

Additional information
Controller hotplugging
Haptic feedback
Simultaneous controller+KB/M

Audio

Audio feature	State	Notes
Separate volume controls
Surround sound		Mono, Stereo, Headphone, Surround (Dolby Pro Logic II), Quadrophonic, 5.1, 7.1
Subtitles		Subtitles are only for in-game movies.
Closed captions
Mute on focus lost
EAX support		EAX 4.0. Disable Bass Management if using DSOAL.
Royalty free audio

Localizations

Language	UI	Audio	Sub	Notes
English				Accessible through these steps for the Steam version.
French				Accessible through these steps for the Steam version.
German				Accessible through these steps for the Steam version.
Italian				Accessible through these steps for the Steam version.
Spanish				Accessible through these steps for the Steam version.

Network

Use the Join or Create buttons in order to skip the main GameSpy login prompt.

Multiplayer types

Type	Native	Players	Notes
Local play		Use Nucleus Co-op.
LAN play		64
Online play		64	The official GameSpy service has been shut down; GOG.com and Steam versions have been updated with Galaxy support.

Connection types

Type	Native	Notes
Matchmaking
Peer-to-peer
Dedicated
Self-hosting		Dedicated Server software is available.
Direct IP		Use the +connect parameter followed by the IP and the port. Not available on Galaxy multiplayer update.

Ports

Protocol	Port(s) and/or port range(s)
TCP	3658-3659, 6500, 27900
UDP	3658-3659, 6500, 27900

Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) support status is unknown.

Issues fixed

Audio looping and stuttering

Command line argument
See Command line arguments. Use /audiomixbuffer 50

Incorrectly bound controller movement

Correctly binding the controller's movement axis[citation needed]
Set the Left and Right movement stick to the X+ axis. Set the Up and Down visuals stick to the Y- axis.

Crash to desktop after loading a map

Enable stereo mix[citation needed]
Open Control panel and select Sound. Change to Recording tab. Right click and select "Show Disabled Devices" and enable stereo mix.

Connect an audio device[citation needed]
Either connect a pair of Headphones, a Webcam, a microphone or any other audio device with 3.5mm jack.

Run the game in a windowed mode[citation needed]

Set CPU core affinity[citation needed]
Open Task Manager and go to Battlefront's executable. Set Affinity to use only one or two cores to improve overall stability.

Low frame rate and long loading times

Run the game in a windowed mode[citation needed]

Glitchy textures on AMD graphics cards

Fixed with Crimson ReLive Edition version 17.2.1 WHQL.

Download WineD3D[citation needed]
Download the 1.7.52 version or newer. Extract its contents to <path-to-game>\GameData

Download old AMD DLLs
Download the 15.10 version. Extract its contents to <path-to-game>\GameData Notes Better performance than the first solution.

Lights visible through walls

Disable FXAA in the graphics card control panel.

Random black screens

Issue commonly found during the tutorial when objective messages pop up.

Disable Discord overlay

Game output is offset from the screen/renders outside the screen

The game's video output is offset downward and to the right. It renders outside the lower-right of the screen, with black bars on the top and left.

Instructions
Disable screen scaling on your primary monitor

Other information

API

Technical specs	Supported	Notes
Direct3D	9.0c
Shader Model support	1.1

Executable	32-bit	64-bit	Notes
Windows

Middleware

	Middleware	Notes
Cutscenes	Bink Video	1.8.2.0
Multiplayer	GameSpy, GOG Galaxy	GameSpy is used in Retail version, both GOG.com and Steam use the Galaxy API

Mods

A collection of mods can be found here. For more general mods, go here.

The official Mod Tools SDK, with some essential fan patches, can be found here.

Battlefront ll: SAGA EDITION

Successor to "Star Wars Battlefront 2: Ultimate Pack".

The modification requires the game to be installed, however, when installed, the modification generates its own executable independent of the game's native executable.

A modification that adds more than 10 maps, a facelift to the interface and more.

The "Ultimate Pack" version featured significantly more content.

The "Ultimate Pack" version supported multiplayer mode, however, as this version generates its own space in the game's destination folder, it does not allow multiplayer from its executable.

Battlefront ll: Ultimate Pack

Although this version has been replaced by SAGA EDITION, it is still possible to get the latest version of this modification here.

A modification that adds more than 100 maps, more than 10 new eras, a facelift to the interface and more.

Predecessor of "SAGA EDITION", whose content is significantly superior to its successor.

It is not required to have the base game installed, unless you want to play multiplayer.

Compatible with Steam version.

Battlefront 2 Remaster

A total conversion mod that overhauls the maps, units, vehicles, weapons, effects and sounds of Battlefront II, while preserving online compatibility and the integrity of the vanilla gameplay.

Can be very demanding hardware-wise.

AI Heroes

Allows AI opponents to use Heroes and Villains in Instant Action mode.

• A.I. Hero Script for the Unofficial v1.3 patch r129+ or greater
• A.I. Hero Support (wanilla maps only) - unmodded original base game version.

Conversion Pack

Adds 25 new maps (including the ones from Battlefront I and the Xbox-exclusive DLC maps) and 5 new game modes.

Ensure the 1.3 revision patch is installed to prevent unreadable text and bugs.

May not be compatible with vanilla multiplayer servers.

The Battlefront I Maps can also be found separately here.

Battlefront: Evolved

Improves the models, textures, and particle effects for the ALL, CIS, IMP, and REP factions' units and vehicles.

Installation requires overwriting existing vanilla files, making a backup of the <path-to-game>\GameData\data\_lvl_pc\side is recommended before installing.

Harrisonfog's HD Graphics Mod

Standalone ReShade preset that normalizes color saturation, improves game lighting, sharpens the image, and uses a more subtle bloom.

Can be modified to fit the player's taste by editing MasterEffect.h in a text editor.

Rezzed and Realistic Maps

Improved maps with HD textures and general re-design.

Designed for the HD Graphics Mod. May not look correct without it.

The realistic maps are not online compatible.

Installation requires overwriting existing vanilla files, making a backup of the original map files is recommended before installing.

Improved Sides

Replaces the character models with higher quality models and textures.

Designed for the HD Graphics Mod, but still looks great without it.

The increased detail can result in significantly more prominent texture aliasing. The HD Graphics Mod can help, and forcing SGSSAA will reduce this even further.

Installation requires overwriting existing vanilla files, making a backup of the <path-to-game>\GameData\data\_lvl_pc\side and <path-to-game>\GameData\data\_lvl_pc\fmp is recommended before installing.

Shader Patch

Adds several subtle visual enhancements, such as a smoother bloom, more realistic shadows, and a higher quality droideka shield.

Allows map mod authors to enable additional visual effects. An modded version of the vanilla Mygeeto map that demonstrates what can be accomplished with this patch is available.

The 1.0 release is not compatible with the HD Graphics Mod, as it uses a DirectX 9-11 wrapper. If combining with that mod, use 0.9.1 or earlier. Doing so may result in undesired effects, depending on user preference.

Star Wars Battlefront II Remastered (HD interface mod)

Fixes menu display when forced to a higher resolution than 800x600.

Includes AI Heroes and Unofficial v1.3 Patch.

New font designed for higher resolutions and reworked HUD with new features.

Xbox DLC and Title Update Content for PC

Converts Xbox Exclusive DLC maps (Bespin, Rhen Var, Rhen Var Harbor, Yavin Arena) and the additional Hero Assaults+Heroes (Kit Fisto, Asajj Ventress) including the Xbox Title Update's Kashyyyk Hero Assault.

Better conversion quality than Marvel4's Conversion Pack.

Bespin: Platforms, Geonosis: Spire, Kamino: Tipoca, Kashyyyk: Docks, Kashyyyk: Islands, Naboo: Plains and Tatooine: Dune Sea maps are not included as they were never officially converted for SWBF2. For those maps download Marvel4's Conversion Pack.

System requirements

Windows
	Minimum	Recommended
Operating system (OS)	98, ME (retail)	2000, XP
Processor (CPU)	AMD Athlon XP 1500+ Intel Pentium 4 1.5 GHz	AMD Athlon XP 2400+ Intel Pentium 4 2.4 GHz
System memory (RAM)	256 MB	512 MB
Hard disk drive (HDD)	8.1 GB
Video card (GPU)	Hardware T&L capable 64 MB of VRAM DirectX 9.0c compatible	Hardware VS/PS capable 128 MB of VRAM