Star Wars Battlefront update makes the partner system way more worthwhile

DICE has given Star Wars Battlefront its usual DLC-adjacent update alongside the Bespin expansion, and there's never been a better time to practice the buddy system. Among many other changes, DICE has given Star Wars Battlefront's two-person squad alternative a bunch of improvements to make it easier to use and way more useful.

First and most significantly, sticking close to your partner will now reduce all the cooldowns for your Star Cards. This means your little duo will be tossing out grenades and cycler rounds like a couple of sci-fi Rambos, as long as you don't get separated: you'll now see a check mark over your partner's head if you're close enough to receive the boost, an exclamation mark if you're too far away, or a cross if they're dead (they can't give you bonuses if they're dead).

But punishing the bastard who took away your Star Card boost will be much easier, since the enemy who killed your partner will be briefly outlined in red on your screen. Before the patch you couldn't spawn on a partner if there was an enemy within 20 meters, but that distance has now been reduced to 2 meters, so your partner be able to rejoin you closer to the action. And if it still doesn't work, a message will now pop up explaining why you can't spawn on your buddy: they're "in danger", "in a vehicle", "dead", etc.

And just in case you lose your partner in the middle of a match, Battlefront will now alert you when the bond is broken and automatically try to assign you a new one. For all the other Star Wars Battlefront tweaks, check out the official patch notes.

Seen something newsworthy? Tell us!

Connor Sheridan

I got a BA in journalism from Central Michigan University - though the best education I received there was from CM Life, its student-run newspaper. Long before that, I started pursuing my degree in video games by bugging my older brother to let me play Zelda on the Super Nintendo. I've previously been a news intern for GameSpot, a news writer for CVG, and now I'm a staff writer here at GamesRadar.

Latest in Action
Tomb Raider
5 years after Avengers, 2 years after its last layoffs, and who knows how long before Perfect Dark and Tomb Raider return, Crystal Dynamics announces another round of layoffs
Naoe looks over at a dense, lush, green forest in Assassin's Creed Shadows from a viewpoint
Getting Assassin's Creed Shadows on PS5 and Xbox Series X was all about adding "dynamism" to the open world, but the devs seem most proud about the trees
Naoe and Yasuke walk in the sunset in a screenshot from Assassin's Creed Shadows
Following Assassin's Creed Shadows controversy, Baldur's Gate 3 publishing director says "every big AAA game could be better," but players shouldn't be mad "just because some dude told you to"
Assassin's Creed Shadows Wanted Status
How to remove Wanted status in Assassin's Creed Shadows
Naoe kills a target with a black and white filter over the camera highlighting the red of blood spray in Assassin's Creed Shadows, with an On The Radar orange frame
Assassin's Creed Shadows "has a little bit of Tarantino flavor", but its real secret ingredient is intrigue: "It's almost like you're watching an episode of Shogun"
God of War
20 years later, God of War's original monster art has been revealed: behold this army of stick figures slapped on a whiteboard, no clue Kratos is coming for them
Latest in News
Astro Bot
Astro Bot went through 23 pitch iterations before its director promised PlayStation "happy gameplay" and "overflowing charm," though it did once end with robot decapitation that made "some people really upset"
Tomb Raider
5 years after Avengers, 2 years after its last layoffs, and who knows how long before Perfect Dark and Tomb Raider return, Crystal Dynamics announces another round of layoffs
AI Limit
"AI is not as effective as it might appear": Dev of AI-focused Soulslike RPG says they didn't use any AI-generated content and it can't match "genuine creativity"
Fantastic Four: 1234 #2 cover excerpt
Sue Storm and Namor are officially both in Avengers: Doomsday, and fans are wondering if Reed Richards has something to worry about
The First Berserker: Khazan protagonist
The First Berserker: Khazan isn't even out yet, but the new Soulslike RPG already has over 1,300 94% positive reviews on Steam from early buyers
fool me once
Harlan Coben’s new novel is set to be "more of a sequel" to the hit Netflix series Fool Me Once: "I don’t know any time that’s ever happened"