I may be doing this title a bit of a disservice, but that's because I'm only a filthy casual when it comes to Star Wars fandom. But this Star Wars: Squadrons CG short is too good to let slide. Typically cinematics don't do much for me, but the film direction and snippets of character building, again, are too good to not spread.
If I'm being honest, the Empire doesn't do it for me. I like the Rebels whole aesthetic a lot more: their ships, their uniforms, the way they do business—everything. But this short film flips it, building empathy for the evil Empire. These are just pilots, doing their job to the best of their ability, and both might be feeling like they're on the wrong side of the war.
Especially here, where it looks like two pilots, one from each side of the war, are stuck playing cat and mouse through a debris field. The zen-like TIE Fighter pilot is maneuvering to beat the band, even turning himself into a meteor as he burns through the atmosphere of a nearby planet. The X-Wing fighter pilot holds the advantage through the cloud layer, but the TIE Fighter gives him a run for his money.
Star Wars: Squadrons launches in less than three weeks, on October 2, on PS4, Xbox One, and PC.
