Star Wars: Shatterpoint is the next tabletop game set in a galaxy far, far away, and although it allows you to battle through the Clone Wars with a customizable squad of familiar faces, its inspiration was a little less obvious.
Developed by Atomic Mass Games (the team behind other Star Wars board games like Legion and X-Wing), Star Wars: Shatterpoint was directly inspired by the Saturday-morning cartoons of the 1980s and 1990s.
In the press release, the studio's director of product development Will Shick noted that "the design and development of the Star Wars: Shatterpoint miniatures game is really our love letter to the excitement and energy of being a kid on Saturday mornings. We wanted to take all the great things about Star Wars - the action, the adventure, and the iconic characters - to create a Star Wars miniatures game experience that felt like it had come straight out of the animated lineups of the ’80s and ’90s. To say it was a dream come true to work with such a talented group of artists, sculptors, and our awesome team at Lucasfilm to create new versions of the iconic Star Wars cast in this style would be a complete understatement."
In contrast to previous Star Wars wargames, Shatterpoint will be a more focused entry that features smaller squads drawn from across the Clone Wars animated series. This means you can choose canon strike teams like Ahsoka Tano, Anakin Skywalker, Captain Rex, and the 501st, or mix things up by combining your favorite characters into one band. Each fighter has their own unique abilities, and you'll use them in tandem to complete "dynamically evolving mission objectives".
Judging by that last part, it sounds as if this will be the Star Wars version of Warhammer Underworlds.
Star Wars: Shatterpoint is due to launch in June 2023, which means it sadly won't be on offer alongside the best board games for this year's Black Friday board game deals.
Plenty of cool games will be on offer throughout the Black Friday gaming deals, but did you know you can also get some cracking Black Friday Lego deals? Black Friday Star Wars deals and D&D Black Friday deals are also available, so check in with our guides to save yourself some money.
