Here's how Star Wars Battlefront 2's progression will work: levels, loot crates, and Star Cards

Star Wars Battlefront 2 has much more to its progression and customization systems than its predecessor. If you were worried that (re)introducing the class system would reduce how much you could grow and personalize your character, don't worry; aptly named YouTuber BattlefrontUpdates shared a trio of new videos from the game's alpha and they go deep on many of the new advancement options DICE is working on.

If you can't watch the videos right now (or just don't wanna) I've also pulled out the key points for each area of progression and customization they cover.

Star Wars Battlefront 2 progression and customization

• Every match completed will earn you XP and credits based on your performance.
• XP increases your player level and credits can be spent to buy loot crates.
• Loot crates have a semi-random assortment of contents, including Star Cards (more on those in a bit), crafting materials (ditto), and credits to buy more crates.
• Most customization and progression is done by collecting and upgrading Star Cards.
• You'll also be able to customize individual weapons and vehicles, though that isn't in the alpha yet.

Star Wars Battlefront 2 loot crates are full of stars… cards. Star Cards.

• The main way to get crates is to buy them with earned credits, but they can also be awarded as a login bonus and through other means.
• Yes, those "other means" will probably include microtransactions at some point.
• Any duplicate items you find in crates will be converted into crafting materials.

Star Wars Battlefront 2 Star Cards work a bit differently

• In Star Wars Battlefront (2015), Star Cards gave you new abilities and weapons. They do that and more now.
• Each class will have four star card slots: three that modify or replace your base abilities, and one that provides an overall passive bonus.
• Heroes have two Star Cards slots that modify their standard abilities (so if you see a Rey or a Darth Maul, you always know roughly what they're capable of).
• Star Cards come in color-coded rarity variations: common, uncommon, rare, epic, and legendary.
• The rarer the card, the more powerful its effects. Legendary cards even add an extra modifier, such as reducing damage received for the Heavy class's machine-gun toting Sentry mode.

Star Wars Battlefront 2 crafting gives you some flexibility

• No, this doesn't mean putting together your own lightsaber. Crafting is used to upgrade Star Cards.
• Spending materials will let you bump cards up from common to uncommon and so on, with the price increasing each time.
• However, you won't be able to upgrade a card from epic into legendary. You'll just have to hope for a good loot box pull to get the best cards in the game.

Read our full Star Wars Battlefront 2 info article for more details on the online shooter and its Imperial-side campaign mode.