Star Wars: Squadrons Update Adds New Map, PS5 And Xbox Series X|S Upgrades

EA has released the for the latest update for Star Wars: Squadrons. The update is currently live, adding a brand-new map and next-gen improvements for playing the game on Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5.

The new map is Fostar Haven, an area inspired by the opening prologue of Squadrons' campaign. You can play on Fostar Haven in both Fleet Battles and Dogfight, offering an arena that's composed of a wide open space and a more enclosed space station area.

Though Squadrons isn't available for Series X|S or PS5, both consoles can respectively play the Xbox One and PS4 versions of the game via backwards compatibility. Thanks to the latest update, you'll now have enhanced visuals and performance when playing on the new consoles. Squadrons now supports up to 120fps and up to 4K on Xbox Series X|S--there's an option to flip between enhanced visuals or enhanced performance. Meanwhile, you'll get improved visual quality and lighting on PS5.

The full patch notes for Update 3.0 are listed below. In December, Update 4.0 will add even more content to Squadrons, including two new starfighters: the New Republic B-Wing and Imperial Tie Defender.

Star Wars: Squadrons Update 3.0 Patch Notes

General

• Added Fostar Haven as a map to Dogfight and Fleet Battles (Solo/Co-Op vs AI and PvP)
• Added next gen improvements
  • The game now supports up to 120FPS and up to 4K on Xbox Series X|S
    • Added an option for players on the Xbox Series X|S to prioritize enhanced visuals or enhanced performance
  • Improved visual quality and lighting on PS5
  • Variable frame rate support added for TVs and monitors that allow it
• Fixed an issue where the game could crash while changing loadouts
• Improved support for matchmaking between players with highly divergent load times
  • Players who are not finished loading when the match begins will now have an additional window of time to join the match-in-progress rather than timing out on start
• Tweaked the brightness of light sources on PC so that they're no longer too bright in some instances
• Fixed issue where the sky color of Esseles would appear to change when entering/exiting the station
• Fixed an issue where the menu voice over accessibility feature could not play after entering a lobby
• Fixed issue where Steam players could fail to log in if their screen name included certain unicode characters or emojis
• Various stability improvements and minor bug fixes.

Controls

• HOTAS support now allows for devices with up to 128 buttons (up from 40 buttons per device)
• Fixed issue on the Xbox One where HOTAS controls would be disabled if the controller went to sleep
• HOTAS devices that don't have an X and Y axis, such as the Virpil throttle, are now properly recognized by the game
• Fixed issue on PC where a gamepad could become unresponsive if not paired as the primary controller when other input devices were plugged in.

Cosmetic Customization

• Added two new starfighter paint jobs: Typhoon Squadron for the New Republic and Interstellar for the Empire, the latter of which is inspired by the classic Kenner Products toys
• Added the Vandal TIE fighter paint job based on Sabine Wren’s iconic “handiwork”
• Added the Powerful Ally X-wing appearance based on Luke Skywalker’s swam-sunken X-wing from Dagobah
• Added the Zeltron Pilot head (Imperial)
• Added the Pantoran Pilot head (Imperial)
• Added the Venture set (jacket, pants, gloves) for the New Republic
• Added the Paladin set (flight suit, gloves, helmet) for the Empire
• Added the Navigator set (flight suit, gloves, helmet) for the Empire
• Marauder gloves will no longer cause the player's hands to disappear.

Dogfight

• Fixed an issue where starfighters wouldn't appear in the end-of-round transition screen.

Fleet Battles

• Reduced the Morale gain for AI kills while on defense from 4 to 3
• Morale gains and losses are no longer scaled based on the number of players present on the team
• Fixed an issue where match music would continue into the end-of-round screens after the match was over
• Corvettes and Raiders now spawn on a random side of the battlefield rather than in a fixed pattern
• Fixed an issue where the Nebulon-B could display the incorrect amount of shield strength it had in its objective UI.

Social

• Made messaging clearer for Xbox players when trying to join a party that's full
• Fixed issue where the social menu would lose functionality after exiting a PVP match as a spectator
• Fixed an issue where muting multiple players at a time could incorrectly mute additional players as well
• Fixed issue where laser sounds would fail to play when spectating a match in first-person
• Fixed an issue where UI and menu elements could overlap.
• Starfighters & Components
• Added four new components:
  • Boost Extension Kit has been added to the X-wing, Y-wing, TIE fighter, and TIE bomber
  • Prototype Piercing Torpedoes have been added to the X-wing, Y-wing, TIE fighter, and TIE bomber
  • Ion Rockets have been added to the X-wing, A-wing, TIE Fighter, and TIE Interceptor
  • Anti-Material Rocket Turrets have been added to the U-wing and TIE reaper
• Added 60% maneuverability (turn rate) reduction while firing the Rotary cannon and Auto-aim Rotary cannon
  • Does not apply during the charging stage before firing
• Using the Assault Shield component now reduces maneuverability to better balance its role as a capital ship assault or starfighter jousting tool rather than as an all-purpose component
• Fixed an issue where the Proton Bomb counter could display incorrectly after use
• Starfighters using the Overloaded Shield component now start will fully overcharged shields
• Fixed issue where ships from the wrong faction could appear in the hangar
• Increased audio volume for the player's Tractor Beam
• Guided Burst Cannon damage reduced to 28% of the unguided variant (down from 35%)
• Fixed issue where the Vanguard paint job for the A-wing could have an unintended New Republic decal appearing on it when inside the cockpit
• Removed incorrectly assigned auto-aim symbol from the icon for the Composite Beam
• Different torpedo types now have distinct names when targeted (Proton vs Ion vs Piercing)
• Reduced A-wing shield regeneration rate by approximately 1/3
• Fixed an issue where the Unstable Engine could deal no damage to nearby targets.

Story

• Fixed an issue where the player could have a black screen after redeploying from the hangar in Mission 13
• Fixed issue where Zerelda's voice over could start during the load screen before Mission 1, resulting in an animation desync
• Fixed issue where the corvette could clip through the station in Mission 6
• Fixed issue where the player couldn't complete the "Destroy Comm Array" objective if they died during the regroup-with-Gunny beat in Mission 6.

UI

• Your current Skill Rating is now shown as its value instead of as a percentage of tier progress after playing a ranked Fleet Battle
• UI message for being in the low priority matchmaking queue is now clearer on how to get out of the low priority status: by playing more matches
• UI messaging around forfeiting while in the lobby is now clearer
• Fixed an issue where squadmates icons would not turn green when readied up
• Fixed an issue where the menu overlay could not appear in the redeploy screenProvided additional UI support for long names so that they display correctly
• Fixed an issue where the player could be unable to open menu during a match if the match begin while they were in a customization menu
• Fixed issue where the missile lock UI could stay on the screen briefly after switching targets
• Fixed issue where text said "Examine your squadron" instead of "Examine enemy squadron" in Squad Loadout while hovering over "Add friend"
• Fixed issue where ship marker UI could appear during outro cinematics while playing Fleet Battles vs AI
• Fixed typo in the description of the Mythosaur decal
• Fixed an issue where the daily challenge timer could start counting upward after reaching 0:00
• Fixed issue where holding the button rather than tapping it would not open the scoreboard during the post-match sequence
• Fixed an issue where starfighters could get greyed out if the player rapidly shuffled between them.

VR

• Skyboxes now have increased resolution for high-rez VR headsets
• Added an option for PC players to adjust their VR resolution scaling
  • Players using high resolution headsets (such as the Valve Index) should be able to enjoy higher frame rates without requiring the most powerful GPUs
• Added an option for PC users to use forward rendering, potentially improving their VR performance
• The game now uses less intensive forward shading when using the "Low" lighting quality setting in the graphics options, allowing VR to be used on mid-tier and even some lower-tier PCs
• Fixed an issue where black bars would appear when transitioning out of a PvP match if the player died at the same time.