There's no denying it; despite Star Wars: Hunters‘s initial controversies, the game is now a major hit! Boasting high review scores on Google Play and Apple Store, you're guaranteed an action-packed, fast-paced mobile shooter on your hands.
That being said, Star Wars: Hunters is quite a competitive game. There's no offline component to it, so if you're readying yourself to outmatch other players online, our beginner's guide here can definitely help you with that!
Galactic Mercenaries' Battle Arena
In Star Wars: Hunters, you can play as different Heroes boasting unique skills and backgrounds to oust enemies inside an arena-esque map. Depending on the game mode chosen, you'll be gunning or slashing foes to collect points or protect zones.
Each Hero offers a distinct playing style exclusive to their kit, such as the human Rebel, Zaina; a great squad healer you get fairly early on. For more in-your-face engagements, Heroes like the Wookie, Grozz, will be your cup of tea.
Every Hero feels perfectly balanced despite some having outrageous abilities on paper, such as those of the Sith mercenary, Rieve. So, everyone's relatively on the same playing field during combat, which is the game's main gameplay design that ties everything together.
Basic Gameplay & Mechanics
As shared earlier, everything revolves around combat in Star Wars: Hunters. You must consistently play in-game matches to progress your account or unlock new Heroes.
While this might seem repetitive, the game's non-stop action is exhilarating, added by the different game modes available. There's never a dull moment in Star Wars: Hunters because everyone plays for the win!
Combat
Star Wars: Hunters‘s battles are a simple 4v4 PvP arena instance where each team works together to win matches. Depending on the game mode, your team's victory conditions vary from achieving the most eliminations (defeating other players) to holding Control Points.
Unlike normal PvP shooters, Star Wars: Hunters adopts both ranged and melee combat depending on the character you're playing. Additionally, each Hero has exclusive abilities that benefit the entire team when used properly, differentiating new players from the more experienced ones.
The Bounty Hunter, Imara Vex, is an example; her Grapple lets you reach elevated platforms quickly, so skilled players will normally attack enemies from range while seeking advantageous spots above ground.
That being said, Star Wars: Hunters is still tied to a class system that groups Heroes into different specialized categories. These classes are:
 Damage | These Heroes excel at dealing the most hurt to enemies on the map. |
 Tank | These Heroes are prepped with abilities that make them nearly invincible. |
 Support | These Heroes can heal allies while providing other beneficial buffs. |
As you can see, these classes summarize Heroes according to their most effective roles in-game. However, if you want to diverge from the norm, you can still play every Hero however you wish, such as playing Charr as a PvP killer, who's actually a Tank that's suspiciously equipped with brawler-type skills!
Game Modes
No game can sustain itself without varied game modes to carry it. This is true for Star Wars: Hunters too, and since its release, there are currently six (6) game modes you can participate in:
| Casual | Training |
|---|---|
| Squad Brawl | Replay Tutorial |
| Dynamic Control | Training |
| Power Control | |
| Trophy Chase |
The Casual ones are the PvP online matches you play with and against other players. The Training section is where you re-learn the game's basics or test new Heroes you've just unlocked.
Here's a quick overview of each game mode:
Squad Brawl
Squad Brawl is Star Wars: Hunters‘s 4v4 deathmatch mode where two (2) teams duke it out on a map, defeating opponents to accumulate elimination points counted toward the win.
The first team to achieve twenty (20) eliminations will come out victorious, so it's all about those killing streaks!
Dynamic Control
In Dynamic Control, your team's objective is to secure random Control Points each time one is successfully captured.
This time, eliminations (players defeated) don't count toward a win, although deaths will restrict a squad's reinforcement because you'll be unavailable to support your team during a fight after being respawned somewhere else.
The first team to reach 100% Control Points or obtain the highest percentage after a match ends will be declared the winner!
Power Control
Power Control is your typical Call of Duty Domination mode; you capture and hold three (3) static Control Points to amass points counted toward a victory.
In Star Wars: Hunters, Power Control is similar to Dynamic Control but without the randomized Control Points to worry about. Hence, you can coordinate your team's offense and defense better, and the team with the most points accumulated from holding those Control Points will be declared the winner once the game ends.
Trophy Chase
Trophy Chase is Star Wars: Hunters‘s Capture The Flag rendition; two (2) teams will face off to capture and possess a TR0-F33 droid for as long as possible on a random map.
Whenever a player holding the droid is defeated, TR0-F33 will be dropped for someone else to collect it, changing hands depending on which team member gets to it first.
Points will be given to the squad holding TR0-F33 for every second it's protected. The first to reach 100% points for securing TR0-F33 will then be recognized as the winner.
Replay Tutorial
If you ever need a refresher about Star Wars: Hunters‘s basics, you can opt for the Replay Tutorial option to re-learn all the necessary details about playing the game.
Training
In Training, you can safely try different Heroes to understand their unique mechanics, strengths, and even weaknesses. It's highly recommended that you visit the Training mode after unlocking a new character, every time.
Heroes Management
Having multiple characters isn't fun if you can't customize them. Thankfully, every Hero in Star Wars: Hunters can be changed aesthetically.
Besides that, their abilities can also be empowered as you continuously play them, making them stronger as time goes on. This is thanks to the Hunter Fame system that rewards you for the time spent mastering your preferred Heroes.
Regarding customizations, let's explore the options you have at the moment:
Costumes
If you find Star Wars: Hunters‘s default character skins uninspiring, you can immediately change them by visiting the respective Hero's details screen.
There, click the Customize tab before opening Costumes on the right. You'll see a list of all the Hero's skins/ costumes you can change them to, as long as they're already unlocked or purchased via in-game currency.
Stickers
Stickers are in-game emotes you can use to communicate your feelings or intentions to other players during a match. To change your Stickers' choices, revisit the Hero's Customize page before exploring the Stickers section on the right.
Victory Poses
Of course, Victory Poses should also be in Star Wars: Hunters given that it's a PvP game. They're more of a personalized touch for every player, so if you want to change how your Hero acts/ poses after winning, do so under Victory Poses in the character's Customize screen.
Weapon Wraps
The last part you can customize your Heroes with are Weapon Wraps, diversifying the looks of your characters' armaments. Since every Hero is locked to their chosen weapons, changing their skins is the least we can do to express ourselves here.
Simply click the Weapon Wraps option under a Hero's Customize screen to change your character's weapon skin.
Miscellaneous
Let's touch on Star Wars: Hunters‘s other systems in place. There are multiple things you need to take note of outside of gameplay, but they're mainly restricted to your overall game account.
Account Progression
Like many other free-to-play (F2P) mobile games, Star Wars: Hunters adopts its own Battle Pass system. It's divided into two (2) categories, which are:
Hunter's Path
The Hunter's Path is your profile's main leveling grind. It automatically progresses every time you finish a match in Star Wars: Hunters, accumulating the XP.
The Hunter's Path is your go-to point to unlock new Heroes, cosmetics, and other cool freebies!
Arena Pass
The Arena Pass is Star Wars: Hunters‘s paid Battle Pass; it rewards you with even more exclusive skins, emotes, and even in-game currencies (Credits and Crystals) for your ‘contribution', on top of the Hunter's Path's goodies!
Events
Under the Events tab on the left side of Star Wars: Hunters‘s home screen, you can find additional in-game content to be achieved and unlocked via gameplay.
Events
Events are time-limited instances where you can get special rewards comparable to the Arena Pass just by completing challenges!
Multiple Events may be up at once, but many share similar account-wide challenges that allow you to complete a couple of them at the same time. For F2P players, these are the best means to acquire rare Hero cosmetics and weapon skins!
Quests
Quests are the lifetime objectives you can do to get more F2P content, such as currency, cosmetics, and emotes.
Quest challenges are broken down into different sections, primarily nudging you toward learning more about every aspect of the game, including mastering all the Heroes available.
Dailies
Of course, Dailies are your everyday tasks set, providing you with small currency rewards to kick-start your new day's login. They're easy to complete, so don't forget to check them out every time you launch Star Wars: Hunters!
Shop
The developer, Zynga, has to maximize their revenue one way or another. Apart from the Arena Pass, you can support them by visiting the in-game Shop as well, where numerous Hero customizations can be purchased on the spot.
Two (2) in-game currencies are utilized here, each being:
| Currency | Use(s) |
|---|---|
 Credits (Basic Currency) | Certain Hero cosmetics and Weapon Wraps |
 Crystals (Premium Currency) | Hero bundles, loads of Credits, Arena Pass unlocks, etc. |
Tips & Tricks
There's actually a lot to be learned from Star Wars: Hunters‘s combat and mechanics, but to keep things simple for newcomers, here are five (5) nifty tips & tricks that might prove game-changing:
#1 Conquer the high ground
Combat positioning is important in Star Wars: Hunters. Depending on the Hero you pick, some become extremely dangerous when you know where to place yourself on a map.
For ranged characters (almost everyone in the game), getting the height advantage becomes a massive boon. You can instantly recon an area, lock down entryways, and get a few hits on unsuspecting victims!
#2 Different game mode, different Hero class
While you can play every Hero however you want, their kits still work the best when you play them according to their respective roles, differing across game modes (and even maps, to a degree).
Damage | Have numerous tricks to take down opponents quickly, but they're also quite vulnerable against oncoming attacks, meaning they're better suited to guerilla tactics or assassination strategies. Superb for Squad Brawl and Trophy Chase. |
Tank | Incredible at soaking damage to protect allies, so playing them defensively can improve a team's chances of winning, particularly in Power Control and Dynamic Control modes. |
Support | Keep everyone alive as much as possible but usually lack amazing offensive capabilities, meaning one (1) Support should already suffice for any given squad. Versatile for all maps & game modes depending on team composition but should limit to one (1) per team. |
#3 Master a specific Hero for each class
By playing your favorite Heroes consistently in Star Wars: Hunters, the game's Hunter Fame system guarantees automatic character progression, leading to more powerful abilities. This can prove decisive when you're matched against seasoned players, meaning their Heroes might be stronger than yours if you haven't leveled them enough, despite the Heroes being the same.
Besides that, make sure you have AT LEAST one (1) Hero specialized for EACH class (leveled up and proficient at playing them). As shared earlier, each class seems to have its strengths according to game mode and map, so having decked-out Heroes for each of them can diversify your options and improve winning chances.
#4 Prioritize important on-screen icons
During a match, icons play a massive part in Star Wars: Hunters. Still, when you're constantly engaged in combat, the screen can get pretty cluttered with visual effects, Hero abilities, and the UI simultaneously.
To this end, focus on specific icons or visual queues instead. Here's a good list of things to prioritize:
| Game Mode | Icon(s) |
|---|---|
| Squad Brawl | Opponent Heroes' silhouette |
| Power Control | Control Points: A, B, C |
| Dynamic Control | Control Point (changes frequently) |
| Trophy Chase | TR0-F33 |
#5 Always on the move!
You might be tempted to camp at a preferred spot to snipe or ambush foes. In Star Wars: Hunters, that won't work!
For balancing purposes, there's no such thing as an instakill here, meaning everyone's at a leveled playing field during combat even if you take them by surprise. Plus, every map is designed to be ‘open-ended' with multiple entry points and side paths present, letting everyone get the jump on each other all the time.
Instead, always be on the move, sweeping objectives or hunting enemies. Every match is short and can be finished in less than five (5) minutes, so idling at a single location won't bring much good to you or the team.
Conclusion
It's safe to say that Star Wars: Hunters has proven itself to be among the best Android games released this year! You're sure to have countless hours of fun with this one, but if you're up for another great multiplayer mobile game, consider checking out Supercell‘s Squad Busters too!
