But as boss fights go, what's on offer is poor, and there's a lack of creativity in the encounters and set pieces in general. I think back to Baldur's Gate III, which would have these incredibly grand and unique stages for combat, that really made you think about the movement and placement of units, and the bosses, of course, would show up with various sizes, phases and abilities to grapple with.

Zero squadron is somewhat one-dimensional in comparison, with the same set of repeating enemy types running around the same compound-like environments. They might come with different planet variety, but can feel like reskins, and there are no unique hazards or strategic pieces to exploit beyond a weak explosive barrel here and there. The AI is also pretty poor at times, pointing their overwatch at nothing, or running back and forth behind distant crates if I get too far. You don't ever feel like your mistakes will be recognized or punished, which definitely should be on harder difficulties.

The story also is disappointing, given the potential of this universe. It actually does a great job at making you know and care about the growing squad you build - even if they themselves didn't offer a single mention or flying fuck when someone dies - because each company member is unique, has believable motivations, and comes with nice backstories that respect the source material. The voice acting is also strong, and there is a cinematic essence to the experience.

But it's all very uninspired. We essentially get the recycled hive mind trope, and a Baldur's Gate III parasite and cult copy, but far less developed, with plenty of cheesy names like 'The Shadow Plague', 'The Coil' and, of course, 'Fathom', who is really generic. She lacks compelling motivations, and her acting and dialogue has zero charisma. There are a few good small twists and turns to be found in other parts of the story, and the overall pacing feels good, but there's nothing standout or exceptional to note. In fact, I'm baffled at the positive nods the story has been receiving, as it's clearly the game's weakest part.

Even the cycle-to-cycle events are rudimentary. Crack a crate open here, blow up a console there. It works at the start, but the lack of ambition for something more original is felt. I could have been fighting under the legs of a moving AT-AT, kicking people into Sarlacc pits, moving through towering Endor forests, or getting some payback against some slobbering Hutt. Remember how epic the prison escape and Aldhani heist were in the Andor series? We get nothing of this vision or coolness here - something that draws on the greatest parts of the world, not just serving up one more droid rush at a cookie-cutter base.

Also, despite my absence from Star Wars games over the years, I've still found myself watching many of the incredible cutscenes that have come out of that content. These are some of the coolest scenes of the franchise, for example, X and X were unreal, as was X and X, but Zero Company has none of this. Nothing truly remarkable or dynamic happens in any of the connective tissue in between the combat.

So the Star Wars backdrop and storytelling is underutilized, but the graphics, when they perform, are simply lovely. Characters look great, and sites like The Ring of Kafrene were glorious. But again, I have to hold back the high praise because of how glitchy everything was. I didn't have any of the crashes some reported, but even on a high-end PC I experienced plenty of flickering, delayed texture rendering, weird camera bugs and enemies that just got stuck in combat during turns. Definitely immersion-killing and not something you expect on a game of this IP and price.

I'll end on the sound and music, which is well done. The battle soundscapes are excellent and the score is big, classical and cinematic, feeling Star Wars without just redoing its most obvious themes. I actually felt a bit of Matrix influence come through with all the horns, but overall this OST is lacking some variety so does begin to grate. Every score piece feels the same, like it's been designed for the most intense and epic boss fight imaginable, and could have perhaps introduced something more restrained, even dreamy or magical, to evoke additional feelings in some of the lesser fights and moments.