STAR WARS: Hunters (Switch): all the updates (latest: Final Content Update)

NEW HUNTER

Tuya

• Tuya is a Twi’lek anti-authority punk with a penchant for pranks. A former Medtech bioengineer, she left the corp when she discovered her research was being used to harm rather than heal. And she didn’t forget to take her Nanite Launcher prototype on the way out! Tuya has a droid-companion T-U8 who helps her grapple with complex issues, in more ways than one.
• In the Arena, she’s pals with Rieve and Zaina, but has an issue with Skora, who she sees as having a much more avant-garde approach to medicine than she believes is best for patients.
• Tuya focuses on supporting her Squad by using her Nanite Launcher to heal allies and harm enemies from a distance by firing projectiles in an arc. With her SUPERCHARGER ability she can modify her weapon to turn it into a long range blaster which charges passively over time, and deals greater damage depending on the amount of charge.
• Tuya also brings her trusty sidekick droid T-U8, or Tubs as she affectionately calls him, into the fight. She can use her GRAPPLE DROID ability to send T-U8 flying in a given direction and then quickly grapple to him.
• When she needs to give her Squad an extra bit of healing, Tuya can use her STIM SPIN ability to heal all allies and herself within a large radius and give them all a healing over time effect. If she needs a bigger boost, Tuya can use her OVERDRIVE ability to send pulses of Nanites in an area around her, damaging enemies and giving temporary health to allies and herself.

GAME MODES

Tuya Chase

• An all new Holo-Arcade Game Mode, Tuya Chase sees everyone playing as Tuya! Grab the trophy and grapple around the map with your droid sidekick Tubs to keep the trophy away from other players as long as you can! 

Take Aim

• In this Holo-Arcade Game Mode everyone plays as Zaina. Landing a headshot with her Custom DL-44 Blaster Pistol will instantly eliminate an enemy, but landing a shot anywhere else does minimal damage. This is a fast-paced mode that will truly put your aim to the test!  

IN-GAME PURCHASES DISABLED

• As this is our final update to the game, all in-game purchases have been disabled and many cosmetics, Hunters, and Mods are available to play with for free until the game goes offline on October 1st, 2025.

ROTATING MODES

• A series of rotating Game Modes will be available to play until the game goes offline on October 1st, 2025.

RANKED MODE

• Ranked Mode will also continue to be available to compete in until the game goes offline on October 1st, 2025. 

• Additional notes: this is the final Content Update for the game ahead of its shutdown, on October 1st, 2025
• Source: Zynga

NEW HUNTER

Glikkin

Whether he’s sneaking into vaults for his latest score, or stealthily approaching an enemy before an attack, he usually disappears before anyone knows what has happened!

Hailing from the dark underbelly of Coruscant, Glikkin has been surrounded by crime since an early age. He grew up in an orphanage where the owners noticed his unique athletic and mental abilities, and trained him to be a thief to score for their benefit.

While other Hunters might rely on brute strength or overwhelming firepower, Glikkin uses a cunning set of abilities to turn the tide of battle in his favor. Glikkin attacks enemies with his Dual Vibroblades in a 3-hit combo.

Glikkin’s first two attacks deal melee damage and the final attack deals increased combo damage. Glikkin can use his STEALTH Ability to render himself invisible to enemy Hunters for a duration of time, allowing him to get close and unleash fury with his Dual Vibroblades which deal high damage. He can also use his SLASH AND DASH Ability to jolt into battle, slicing any enemies in his path, before disappearing back into the shadows.

But Glikkin isn’t just deadly in close quarters – he can also switch to his BLADE LAUNCHER to fire blades which can hit enemy Hunters from range with deadly precision. Finally, when Glikkin needs to make a quick exit and slow down enemies, he can use CALTROPS FIELD to fire a field of repulsor tech enhanced spiky caltrops that slows down and damages enemies if they move within it.

 

BATTLEFIELD UPDATES

New Battlefield: Coruscant Underworld

Glikkin will feel right at home in the Arena’s newest battlefield, Coruscant Underworld. Fight through back alleys, through the glare of LAAT/le patrol gunship searchlights, and across the sprawling walkways of a battlefield inspired by Coruscant’s lower levels. Keen eyes will notice some interesting points throughout the battlefield including Glikkin graffiti, crime scenes and speeders that you might recognize.

 

Battlefield Rotation Changes

Mos Espa Podrace and Ewok Village are among the longest running battlefields in Hunters, debuting way back in the first soft launch release. In the interest of keeping our rotation of maps feeling fresh and exciting, we have decided to withdraw these maps from Casual and Ranked rotations. This will allow contemporary maps to see more play in the roster.

 

INTRODUCING MODS

Mods are a new item in Star Wars: Hunters. Mods can be earned from The Main Event and in the Arena Pass, but can also be bought with a new currency called Chips.

Mods will change a Hunter’s combat stats and can be used to power up your Hunter or encourage different ways to play.

• Mods come in 3 rarities: Rare, Epic, and Legendary
• All Hunters will launch with 9 unique Mods, 3 for each rarity
• Each Hunter can equip up to 3 Mods each

 

Mods can modify gameplay elements, such as a Hunters health, movement speed, reload duration, weapon spread, weapon recoil, damage and more.

• Rare Mods will add a single improvement to a specific stat
  • Health, Damage, Recoil, Stamina, Damage Fall off Distance and more
• Epic Mods can provide two smaller modifications to stats or they may provide a larger change but with an additional smaller tradeoff
  • Example: Your weapon deals more damage but has increased spread and recoil, making it harder to control and more suited to short range damage
• Legendary Mods can also provide multiple strong modifications to stats or they provide multiple larger changes with tradeoffs
  • Example: Sacrifice a portion of health for a large damage increase.

Each Mod Slot (3 for each Hunter) will unlock under different requirements.

• Mod Slot 1 = 10 matches played
• Mod Slot 2 = Roster Rating 30
• Mod Slot 3 = Roster Rating 150

From improving Rieve’s defenses during a match or doubling down on her damage, making Sentinels E-Web more accurate, or increasing his health at the sacrifice of speed; many different combinations and choices can be made for every Hunter. Improve their weaknesses or amplify their strengths, the choice is yours! We look forward to listening to your feedback on Mods!

Additional Mods will be added in future updates. As with Hunter balance, existing Mods will also be balanced from season to season.

 

INTRODUCING CHIPS

Chips are a new currency introduced for the Mods system. Chips are earned in multiple areas of the game: The Arena Pass, Events, and more.

If the same Mod is earned a second time it will automatically convert into Chips.

Chips can be used to purchase Mods from the Mods screen.

 

INTRODUCING ROSTER RATING

The previous player level system (capped at 50) has been replaced with an uncapped symbol of your Hunter’s skill and experience! Roster Rating is the sum of all your unlocked Hunters’ levels. Unlock and level up your Hunters to boost your Roster Rating and show that you have the ultimate roster of Hunter champions!

 

GAME MODES

Grandstand

This Season sees the introduction of a new way to play: Grandstand.

Players will join each other to form Squads as usual to battle for victory in a new PVE experience. Players can choose their difficulty: Easy, Medium, or Hard. In higher difficulties, the enemies will get some behavioral improvements as well as some balance changes to ensure they challenge even the best players and most modded Hunter!

Play Grandstand during the Main Event which will be available as part of Chain Events in which higher difficulties will yield greater event progress.

 

Snipe & Sneak

Glikkin and Diago square off in this Season’s new addition to the Holo-Arcade: Snipe & Sneak!

Our two Hunters fill out opposing teams with slightly rebalanced kits, battling it out in Squad Brawl. Will Glikkin’s vibroblades prevail in a gunfight, or will Diago’s Heightened Senses see Glikkin coming?

 

Trophy Chase

Players will now be able to use ziplines whilst carrying TR0-F33.

This wasn’t previously the case as we kept behavior in line with Huttball, where ziplines serve primarily as ways for players to get back into the action. In Trophy Chase, ziplines are used to provide interesting navigational options in various battlefields, including our most recent addition, Coruscant Underworld. This meant that carriers were left in dead ends or funnelled down corridors in various locations and we’ve chosen to decouple the behavior between modes in favour of richer navigation.

 

BALANCE UPDATE

Like last Season, we have a list of balance changes we’d like to call out, and our thinking as to why we’ve made these changes.

 

Imara Vex

Fire Rate

• Faster Fire Rate: Decreased from 0.19s to 0.15s

Weapon Spread and Recoil

• Weapon Spread has been decreased on the first set of shots but has increased overall
• Weapon Recoil has increased by 10%

Missile Launcher

• Explosion Damage: Level 1-6 – Increased from 20 to 40. Maximum Damage stays the same

Developer Note: Imara Vex deals solid consistent damage for long engagements but her overall burst potential can be improved. Vex’s weapon has been given a sizable fire rate buff but is slightly harder to control if all ammunition is fired in a single set of shots. This makes her weapon more focused towards control, with quick bursts of fire being the key to success. Alongside this, we have increased the splash damage of Imara’s rocket, now making it more effective when attacking a group of opponents.

 

Pilbush

Health

• Reduced from 225 to 200

Weapon

• Reload Time: Increased from 1.25s to 1.35s

Overload Ability

• Duration: Decreased from 5s to 4.5s for Levels 3-6
• Fire Rate: Levels 1-5 – decreased from 15% to 10% fire rate increase
• Fire Rate: Level 6 – Decreased from 25% to 20%

Wistie Throw

• Slow: Level 1-2 – Decreased from 50% to 40%
• Slow: Level 3-6 – Decreased from 60% to 50%

Developer Note: Pilbush brings a lot of high octane fun and chaos to the Arena with her mobility and explosive damage. Her ability to fight up close and at a distance makes her extremely powerful, especially in combination with her Overload Ability. We have reduced several minor aspects of her kit to bring her closer to other Hunters from the same Class.

 

Nox

Poisoned Spread Shot

• Cooldown – Reduced from 8s to 6s
• Draw Time: Level 1-2 – Reduced from 1.4s to 0.9s
• Draw Time: Level 1-2 – Reduced from 1.3s to 0.8s
• Draw Time: Level 6 – Reduced from 1.2s to 0.7s
• Damage – Reduced by 10 damage per arrow across all levels (30 Damage per Arrow to 20 Damage Per Arrow at Level 6)

Developer Note: These changes allow for Nox to use her Poisoned Spread Shot in ability combinations more frequently. It should be a vital part of her kit but the draw time and cooldown impact its effectiveness. While the overall damage has been lowered, the ability itself should be more viable in the Arena.

 

J-3DI

Deflect Stamina

• With Stamina now being used by Mods the max level Stamina stats for this ability are now the base stats. Stamina will not be increased through ability levels, only deflected damage.
• Stamina: Level 6 – 230 at Level 6 is now Level 1
• Deflect Multiplier – 30% at Level 6 is now Level 1 and can be improved to 55% at Level 6

Developer Note: With the introduction of Mods in Season 5, with Stamina playing a key role in their design for J-3DI, we have revisited his Deflect Ability Upgrade path. To that end all of J-3DI’s Level 6 Stamina attributes will now become his base. In its place, J-3DI will begin with a 30% Deflected Damage increase and this will increase by 5% each ability level, finishing with 55% increased deflected damage.

 

Rieve

Deflect Stamina

• With Stamina now being used by Mods the max level Stamina stats for this ability are now the base stats. Stamina will not be increased through ability levels, only deflected damage.
• Stamina Regeneration Speed: Level 6 – 80/s at Level 6 is now Level 1
• Stamina Regeneration Delay: Level 6 – 2s at Level 6 is now Level 1
• Deflect Multiplier – 30% at Level 6 is now Level 1 and can be improved to 55% at Level 6

Developer Note: With the introduction of Mods in Season 5, with Stamina playing a key role in their design for Rieve, we have revisited her Deflect Ability Upgrade path. To that end, all of Rieve’s Level 6 Stamina attributes will now become her base. In its place, Rieve will begin with a 30% Deflected Damage increase and this will increase by 5% each ability level, finishing with 55% increased deflected damage.

Slingshot

Scatterboom

• Damage: Level 1-2 – Damage per rocket decreased from 15 to 14
• Damage: Level 3-4 – Damage per rocket decreased from 16 to 15
• Damage: Level 5-6 – Damage per rocket decreased from 17 to 16

Explosive Shield

• Damage: Level 1-2 – Explosion damage decreased from 40 to 30
• Damage: Level 3-4 – Explosion damage decreased from 45 to 35
• Damage: Level 5-6 – Explosion damage decreased from 50 to 40

Trickshot

• Cooldown – Reduced from 6s to 5s
• Minimum Damage – Now begins at 40 and eventually level up to 50 (50% of maximum damage)
• Duration for Maximum Damage: Level 1-5 – Increased from 1.5s to 2.0s
• Duration for Maximum Damage: Level 6 – Increased from 1s to 1.5s

Developer Note: Slingshot is a very effective Tank with mobility, survivability and strong burst damage with Scatterboom and Trickshot. All these abilities can be activated near instantaneously and can out burst a lot of Damage Hunters. These changes should bring Slingshot more inline with other Tanks while also allowing his Trickshot Ability to be used more frequently for mobility purposes.

Charr

Regen Booster

• Duration: Level 1-2 – Reduced from 2s to 1.75s
• Duration: Level 3-4 – Reduced from 2.25s to 2s
• Duration: Level 5-6 – Reduced from 2.5s to 2.25s
• Damage to Healing Cap: Reduced from 200 to 175
• Damage to Healing Cap: Level 6 – Reduced from 225 to 200

Snare Trap

• Damage: Level 1-2 – Increased from 10 to 20
• Damage: Level 3-4 – Increased from 10 to 25
• Damage: Level 5-6 – Increased from 10 to 30
• Trap Duration: Duration – Now scales from 2s > 3s to 1.75s > 2.25s over the 6 levels

Tether

• Damage: Level 1-6 – Previously this ability had no tick damage but now deals 4 damage per tick when an enemy is tethered

Developer Note: Charr is a strong frontline Tank, able to shrug off most hits with his Regen Booster – this balance change still keeps it effective when engaging in combat. While the overall damage-to-healing duration has decreased, this in turn means the self healing this ability grants is applied quicker, placing more emphasis on skill to use this ability at the right moment. As for his Snare Trap, we felt upping its damage was a fair trade off for a shorter duration. We felt this duration could be quite punishing and on most occasions ended up in a guaranteed elimination for Charr or his teammates.

K-A0S

Shoulder Mounted Blaster

• Time between each shot within a burst – Increased from 0.1s to 0.13s
• Reload Duration – Increased from 1.56s to 1.78s

Developer Note: Since her release, we have seen K-A0S be able to deal high damage to her enemies, from the fast burst rate of her Shoulder Mounted Blaster, coupled with the weapons damage. By reducing the time between bursts, it’ll take more skill for K-A0S players to land all 5 bursts on their target, and the longer reload duration gives the weapon more downtime.

SPROCKET REWORK

 Learning all he can about his fellow Hunters over the last few Seasons, Sprocket reinvents himself in the Arena! Still the wide-eyes inventor he has always been, but now packing much more firepower.

New Sprocket Ability Kit

Weapon: Blaster Remotes

• Sprocket controls a pair of fast firing, medium range blaster remotes.

Talent: Turbocharged

• Sprocket gains increased movement speed when placed onto critical health.

Ability 1: Healing Droids

• Sprocket releases droids to heal an ally and himself, granting a burst of healing to the target & Heal over Time to both.

Ability 2: Turret

• Sprocket deploys a turret which automatically targets the nearest enemy.

Ultimate: Ultra Turret

• Sprocket assembles a huge turret which fires explosive blaster bolts at enemies.

Sprocket’s Targeting Droid, Drone Defense, and Med Beacon abilities have been replaced with an improved Healing Droid ability. Sprocket can now distribute two separate droids to allies who need healing from a much greater distance, which also heals himself!

Sprocket can now place a smaller compact Turret as an ability that fires at his enemies, allowing Sprocket to play from vantage points and the high ground, able to heal and damage from distance.

Sprockets Ultimate Turret has now been improved, swapping out the blaster bolts for high powered Explosive Bolts! Able to damage multiple enemies within its radius.

This change pushes Sprocket to be more powerful at distance. Taking advantage of high grounds and strong sightlines supporting his team with blaster fire, turret fire and long range healing.

GAMEPLAY IMPROVEMENTS

Numerous Hunter updates have been made to improve the responsiveness and readability of gameplay:

• The reduction in jump height and distance when jumping multiple times consecutively has been updated to activate sooner. After 3 consecutive jumps the jump button can not be interacted with for 1.25 seconds.
• Diago can now act sooner after using his Ultimate.
• Diago can now act sooner after using Heightened Senses.
• Imara Vex’s Grapple now occurs instantly on button down.
• Imara Vex now stands up more quickly upon finishing her Ultimate.
• Improved camera behavior when using J-3DI’s Faux Pull.
• J-3DI can now jump during his Ultimate.
• Nox can now jump whilst charging a bow shot, without interrupting the bow charge.
• Nox can now clamber, zipline, double jump or ultimate whilst charging a bow shot. These actions will interrupt the bow charge.
• Fixed issue with Nox not being able to smoothly chain shots.
• Sentinel’s Barrel Slam now occurs instantly on button down.
• Zaina’s Bacta Bomb now occurs instantly on button down.
• Zaina’s Bacta Bomb can now be used whilst combat rolling.
• Zaina’s Bacta Bomb is now thrown much faster.
• Slingshot’s Scatterboom is now more responsive when tapped quickly.
• Various Hunter movement animations tweaked to reduce jitter.
• Hunters now have a subtle lean animation when turning.

This also includes some audio changes:

• Utooni’s Surprise! Passive Ability now has beeping warning audio, letting you know it is time to run away!
• Incoming damage hit marker audio has been added, to better inform you that you are being attacked.
• Added a critical health sting and loop, so you know when you are in danger and should probably get to cover.
• Increased audibility of combat sounds at long distances.
• Reduced volume of environmental sounds, as well as ally footsteps, weapon fire and abilities, to improve audibility of enemies.

Additionally:

• Deactivating a shield (K-A0S, Sentinel, Slingshot) no longer cancels poison damage from Skora and Nox.
• Repeatedly toggling K-A0S’ Bulwark no longer allows her to melee attack faster than intended.

NEW COSMETICS

There are 192 new pieces of Cosmetic content going out in Season 5!

 These include Costumes and Weapon Wraps, Stickers, Avatars, Victory Poses, and Emotes.

 Not all of this content will be available immediately and will be released throughout the Season via the Arena Pass, Arena Vaults, Bundles, and Events.

• 34 Costumes
• 34 Weapons Wraps
• 38 Avatars
• 50 Stickers
• 15 Victory Poses
• 21 Emotes

RANKED MODE, EVENT SHOP, AND EVENTS

Introducing “The Main Event”

• THE MAIN EVENT: Welcome to the Main Event, the biggest, baddest, most brutal competition to come to the Arena. These events challenge players to compete against increasingly harder opponents in Easy, Medium and Hard Mode! Earn Mods and other rewards!

Pilbush added to Hunter’s Path

Pilbush has been officially added to the Hunter’s Path as of Season 5! You can unlock her by earning Hunter Tokens through gameplay, or play with her now by purchasing her on the Hunters’ Path with Crystals or in the Pilbush Starter Pack .

 

New Ranked Season

An all new Ranked Season has arrived! Reach Kyber I to earn the Ferocious Fighter  Legendary Costume for Grozz! Compete with players from around the world for a spot on the leaderboards! Keep an eye out for our Ranked events throughout the Season to earn additional rewards for participating in Ranked Mode.

Clash Event

• KINGS OF CRIME: Season 5’s new Hunter, Glikkin, will battle Utooni in this Season’s Clash Events! Players will be randomly assigned to Glikkin or Utooni’s team, and will need to complete challenges to earn unique rewards. Complete challenges to score points for your team. All players will receive a special Avatar for the winning teams at the end of each of these events!

Chain Event

• DARK SIDE DETECTIVE: Someone snuck into Rieve’s prep pod and stole her most prized possession – her datatape diary! In it are her private confessions and she would be absolutely mortified if they got out. Help her solve the mystery of who stole it in this event!

Seasonal  Event

• BATTLEFIELD CRUSH: Diago knows that the battlefield is a place where love can bloom and he wants to show his devotion to his fans by putting his whole heart into every match! Complete challenges to earn rewards in this heart pounding event!

Other Events

 

• JOIN THE CREW: The Hunters have been sharing pirate stories from around the galaxy, including tales about Vane the Nikto pirate, Hondo Ohnaka, Gorian Shard, and even Pirate Queen Maz Kanata. Inspired by these tales, Grozz and Zaina decide to have a pirate adventure of their own! Join them in this new Event! Check out the store for more pirate inspired cosmetics for your favorite Hunters!
• MASTERY EVENTS: new training events for specific Hunters will run throughout season 5. Every player will get a different Hunter version each time this event runs, and the event they get will relate to that Hunter’s current Fame Level. Increase your Hunter Fame Levels to maximize rewards in these events!

Event Shop

Our Event Shop has been refreshed with new cosmetics for players to spend their Credits on! Check in regularly throughout the week to make sure you don’t miss out on any of our exciting cosmetics!

 

NEW QUESTS

Hunters are getting new “introductory quests”, which focus on mastering each of the Hunter’s gameplay and abilities. Whether you are a new player or already a master, these quests are a great way to get back to basics and show off what each Hunter can do.

 

HUNTER FAME GRANT UPDATE

Currently when applying a Fame Grant you have two options:

• 800 Fame (or any amount under 800)
• All Fame
  • In Season 5 we are introducing a quality of life update which should make levelling specific Hunters easier to apply. The two new options will be:
• The exact fame required to level up (or any amount under the required amount)
• All Fame

We hope this update improves your experience for applying fame across your Roster!

 

HUNTER FAME SCORING UPDATE

Hunter Fame tuning has been updated for Season 5.

For Hunter Fame the majority of the Fame rewarded is based on win/loss and additional scoring is granted for player performance (a mixture of Badges and Action Based Scoring). While winning and losing should have an impact on the overall Hunter Fame reward, we believe it is too punishing for players who engage and perform on the losing side. While on average the amount of Fame awarded per match should keep within a similar distribution, it will better award those players who engage and perform (eliminating, healing, playing the objective, supporting your team).

RANKED SCORING UPDATE

Ranked Scoring has been updated for Season 5.

Ranked is an important mode for players to show off their ability in matches against other opponents, working up the leagues to earn rewards. 

In the lower leagues we want losses to be less punishing. Instead of losses reducing overall progression, it will instead slow down progression. The table below shows the differences between the current tuning and updated tuning for Season 5.

• Additional notes: none
• Source: Zynga

NEW HUNTER

Nox

Get ready to take aim at the competition. The new Damage Hunter, Nox, has entered the Arena! The former Night Wind assassin hails from a remote village on Iridonia, and has joined the Arena to use the spotlight to generate leads about her long lost sister. 

She’s able to hit opponents from a distance with her bow, and charging the Composite Bow increases damage output.  Nox has a special Poisoned Spread Shot Ability that allows her to pull 5 poison-tipped arrows from her quiver and fire them all at once. This ability can be used to hit multiple opponents or, if charged, it can fire all the arrows in a smaller group which can help hitting single targets.

Nox is a highly mobile Hunter, with a passive ability called Jump Boost which allows her to use jet boots to jump a second-time mid air. Nox also has an Aeriel Dodge Ability, which allows her to dash sideways midair. During the dash, if Nox uses her bow or the Poisoned Spread Shot Ability she will hover in place for a short duration, allowing her to aim at a target mid-flight.

NEW BATTLEFIELD

Endor Aftermath

Introducing Endor Aftermath, a battlefield inspired by the legendary Forest Moon of Endor. Hunters battle their way through an abandoned Imperial base which has been overgrown by the surrounding forest. They’ll encounter collapsed bridges, decrepit AT-ST’s, and even a crashed X-wing replica that’s landed in the center of the battlefield!

GAME MODES

Scrap Salvage

Season 4 sees the introduction of a new game mode: Scrap Salvage! In Scrap Salvage, to score points players must deposit Scrap to a few Anzellans that have taken up residence in the Arena and are working on building something! How do players get Scrap? By eliminating their opponents! Any time a player is defeated, they’ll drop some Scrap in addition to all the Scrap which they were carrying.

Quick-thinking Hunters can also take advantage of intermittent Supply Caches which will occasionally activate throughout the match and offer up a glut of Scrap!

Scrap Salvage will appear in Event queues this Season.

Arrow Assault

It’s time for a new Holo-Arcade Mode paying tribute to our newest Hunter, Nox. Arrow Assault sees all eight players take to the Arena as Nox  with a restricted and rebalanced ability kit in this twist on Squad Brawl.

Nox can use Aerial Dodge to avoid incoming fire, while relying on the increased damage of her Composite Bow to eliminate opponents. Critical eliminations deal increased damage and can eliminate opponents with one hit!

Huttball

Historically in Huttball, using a traversal ability (such as Rieve’s Ruthless Pursuit or Imara Vex’s Grapple) forced the Huttball carrier to drop the ball. This behavior has been updated so players can  now use their traversal abilities without dropping the Huttball.

Movement is a hugely important part of Hunters gameplay, and we believe this change makes matches more fun and dynamic. It will also allow more Hunters to shine in this game mode, unlocking mobile Hunters as strong carriers, rather than the current design which favors tankier Hunters.

BALANCE UPDATE

Vex:

• Maximum Overheat
  • Increased from 26 to 30
• Missile Launcher Homing
  • Homing increased by 15%

Developer Note: Vex’s heat capacity has been increased to allow her to engage in combat for a longer period of time, dealing more damage between reloads. This will increase Vex’s capability in eliminating opponents in the Arena before the weapon requires venting.

The reliability of Vex’s Missile Launcher has been improved

Sentinel:

• Suppressing Shot
  • Slingshot and K-A0S will not be knocked down by Suppressing Shot as long as their shields are active (K-A0S will only block this from the front)

Developer Note: Sentinel is a powerful Tank, in large part due to his Suppressing Shot ability. With the ability to knock down any Hunter this hits (except for a deflecting J-3DI or Rieve), this ability excels at making a single target vulnerable for follow up damage, which from Sentinel’s E-Web can be devastating. This ability knocks down all front line Tanks which makes it difficult to counter.

This change should allow for more counter play and greater diversity of team compositions.

Charr:

• Dig In
  • Knockback reduction reduced from 50% to 30%

Developer Note: Charr’s knock back reduction has been reduced. The current balance makes all knockback effects have little to no impact on Charr, making him very hard to displace.

We are implementing this change to allow other Hunters with strong crowd control effects to feel more effective when engaging Charr, while staying close to his Trandoshan roots and keeping him an effective Tank Hunter.

Rieve:

• Lightsaber Throw Damage
  • Level 1-2: 60 to 55
  • Level 3: 65 to 60
  • Level 4: 70 to 65
  • Level 5-6: 75 to 70

Developer Note: Lightsaber Throw damage has been reduced by 5 across all levels. It is a very powerful ability, especially when used against opponents next to walls or thrown at their feet, able to deal a near instant 150 damage (at Levels 5-6).

We will always continue to monitor balance across all Hunters, Maps and Modes to see how these changes impact their performance.

 

NEW COSMETICS

There are 228 new pieces of cosmetic content going out in Season 4.

These include Costumes, Weapon Wraps, Stickers, Avatars, Victory Poses, and Emotes.

Not all of this content will be available immediately, but will instead be released periodically through the Arena Pass, Arena Vault, Bundles, and Events.

• 45 Costumes
• 45 Weapons Wraps
• 35 Avatars
• 53 Stickers
• 28 Victory Poses
• 22 Emotes

 

RANKED MODE, EVENT SHOP, AND EVENTS

Season Length

Season 4 will run until late January giving the team some extra time to deliver more updates and engaging gameplay experiences. This also means you’ll have more time to explore everything the season has to offer, from unlocking tiers on the Arena Pass to mastering Ranked Mode.

We’re confident this shift will create an even more rewarding experience for everyone, and we can’t wait to show you what’s coming next!

K-A0S added to Hunter’s Path

K-A0S has been officially added to the Hunter’s Path as of the start of Season 4! You can unlock her by earning Hunter Tokens through gameplay, or start playing with her now by purchasing her on the Path with Crystals or in the K-A0S STARTER PACK.

Hunter’s Path Tuning

In order to give players more time to master Hunters before unlocking new ones and improve the unlock experience overall, the number of Hunter Tokens needed to unlock each Hunter has increased for all Hunters, with the exception of the first 4 to be unlocked (Imara Vex, Sentinel, Grozz and Zaina). 

New Ranked Season

An all-new Ranked Season has arrived! Reach Kyber I to earn the Legendary AURODIUM MARKSMAN Costume for Diago! Compete with players from around the world for a spot on the leaderboards! Keep an eye out for our Ranked events throughout the Season to earn additional rewards for participating in Ranked Season 4.

Event Shop

Our Event Shop has been refreshed with new cosmetics for players to spend their Credits on! Check in regularly throughout the week to make sure you don’t miss out on any of our exciting cosmetics!

Clash Event

Season 4’s new Hunter, Nox, will battle both Rieve and Diago in two separate Clash Events! Players will be randomly assigned to Nox’s or her opponent’s team, and will need to complete challenges to earn unique rewards, including an Epic Costume and Weapon Wrap for Nox. Complete challenges to score points for your team. All players will receive a special Avatar for the winning teams at the end of each of these events!

Chain Event

Play this Season’s chain event, HONOR THE OLD WAYS! The Arena is once again putting on its High Republic showcase, and Aran Tal, K-A0S, and Rieve are gearing up for it! Finish the event to earn a unique Aran Tal Emote!

Feast of Prosperity Event

Celebrate the FEAST OF PROSPERITY this November with a brand new event! Play Scrap Salvage to earn unique Seasonal cosmetics, and play in a Squad to earn double challenge progress!

TREE OF LIFE Event

It’s almost Life Day and Grozz, feeling homesick, decides to bring this Wookiee holiday of joy and harmony to the Arena. But that’s not all, we’ll be celebrating Life Day with a special bundle which will be available in the shop!

• Additional notes: none
• Source: Zynga

S3 Balance Update

The changes listed below are for this Season’s Star Wars: Hunters balance update:

Venting and Reloading Movement Speed

• • Venting and Reloading will not restrict movement speed

Aran Tal

• • Tal’s Breath Damage
    • +5 Damage to Tal’s Breath across all levels

Charr

• Tether Duration
  • Decreased by 0.25 seconds across all Ability Levels

Diago

• Ammo Amount
  • Increased from 8 to 9

Vex

• Maximum Heat
  • Increased from 25 to 26

J-3DI:

• Ultimate damage
  • Increased from 40 to 45 per hit

Faux Pull

• Lock on targeting has been increased to make the ability easier to land
  • Faux Pull launch and pull speed increased by 10%

Sentinel:

• Barrel Slam
  • Cooldown increased from 1.5 seconds to 4 seconds
• Suppressing Shot
  • Damage reduced from 40-50 to 10-20 across all levels

Slingshot

• Weapon damage
  • Reduced from 9 to 8

Skora:

• Weapon
  • Recoil increased
  • Spread increased
• Ultimate
  • Duration reduced from 10 seconds to 8 seconds

Sprocket:

• Weapon
  • Damage Increased from 9 to 10
  • Weapon Recoil increased
• Med Beacon
  • Cooldown reduced from 14 seconds to 12 seconds

Fight for glory in a brand-new Ranked Season! Battle with players around the world for a spot on the leaderboards, and reach Kyber I to unlock an exclusive Legendary Sentinel Costume. There are plenty more rewards to unlock on your Season 3 Ranked journey, and participating in special events will boost your progress. 

Rebel superfan and our newest Hunter, Pilbush, is gearing up to take on Sentinel in this Season’s Clash Event, REBEL WAR MACHINE! You will be randomly assigned to Pilbush or Sentinel’s Squad, and will need to complete challenges to score points for your Squad. The winning Squad will earn a special Avatar at the end of the event. Explore High-Republic history in J-3DI LOGS, a new multi-part event. Complete all three parts to earn new Avatars, Stickers, and more! Be sure to visit the Events page and follow our socials to see if new parts have started.

Later in the Season, participate in the all-new SHADOW NIGHT FESTIVAL by playing through two terrifying events: CRUSHING GORAX and SNEAKING DULOK. Claim a free Avatar from the Shop during the festival, and complete the events to earn Fame, Credits, and Arena Pass XP!

New Map

Step onto the snowy Hoth-inspired battlefield of Hoth Frontline! Replicating one of the galaxy’s greatest battles, Hoth Frontline plunges you into the middle of the action. Navigate treacherous ice trenches, fight through Rebel Alliance hangars, and battle on the ground as snowspeeders race overhead and towering AT-AT walker replicas fire on the surrounded ion cannon. Don’t stray too far from the battlefield – you wouldn’t want to find yourself in a wampa lair!

New Cosmetic Content

There are hundreds of new pieces of cosmetic content coming in Season 3! These include Costumes, Weapon Wraps, Stickers, Avatars, Victory Poses, and introducing… Emotes!

Emotes Emotes will be released throughout the duration of the Season as rewards through the Arena Pass, Bundles, Shop, events and Arena Vault! All Hunters will also gain one Emote as a default for players to use as soon as they unlock them, with a second available for free for each Hunter on their Hunter Fame track.

To use Emotes, players can equip them in the Hunter customization screen to add them to the Expression Wheel. Players can then trigger Emotes in match the same way as they would use Stickers – via the Expression Wheel.

During the SHADOW NIGHT FESTIVAL, check out the in-game Shop for special themed content including the ferocious like Sentinel’s GORAX FURY bundle! 

Feature Updates

Aran Tal Joining Hunter’s Path

 

Aran Tal has been officially added to the Hunter’s Path as of the start of Season 3! You can unlock him by earning Hunter Tokens through gameplay, or start playing with him now by purchasing him on the Path with crystals or buying the Aran Tal Starter Pack.

Arena Vault

 

We are introducing Arena Vault, a new way to purchase new and exclusive cosmetic content! The first draw for all Arena Vaults in Season 3 will be free. Each time a draw is played, the entry cost will increase. Once a reward is earned, it is removed from the overall prize pool. Probability of receiving items can be viewed within the Arena Vault menu. Players will also receive a bonus reward for making enough progress within the Arena Vault to fill the bonus reward meter. 

Hunters Mastery

 

Show off your skill playing as individual Hunters with the new Hunters Mastery feature! Play as a Hunter to level them up to Level 26 and you’ll unlock their Mastery Tiers. Earning Mastery Tiers will upgrade a Hunters’ portrait art to Mastery Portraits and you will also earn additional reward chests as you level them up.

 

There are three types of Mastery Tiers: Champion, Legend, and Master. Champion Tier unlocks at Level 26 to display a purple Mastery Portrait. Legend Tier unlocks at Level 40 to display an orange Mastery Portrait. Master Tier unlocks at Level 55 to display a red Mastery Portrait, which includes a special pose where the Hunter appears to be breaking out of their portrait frame.

Mastery Portraits for Hunters will appear in the following screens: Hunter Roster Screen, Hunter Fame Screen, Pre-Match Vs Screen, Post Match Flow Results Screen. The background color of portraits in the Hunters Selection Screen also changes to show Mastery Tier of each Hunter. Once you’ve reached Mastery Tiers, you’ll also receive a reward chest each time your Hunter levels up. These reward chests pull from a pool of possible rewards which include Credits, Crystals, and cosmetics. Unlock Mastery Tiers for all of your Hunters to show off your mastery of the game!

Unlocking Friends & Parties Earlier

 

We have made updates so that Friends & Parties will be unlocked after your third match, so you can send or accept invites from your friends and start playing with them faster! You will also be granted the minimum number of Hunters in your roster if needed to be ready for battle and be able to play with your friends immediately! You will also be able to accept invites from friends before the third match if you receive them even earlier.

Game Mode Unlock Updates

 

Game Modes will no longer be unlocked on the Player Level Track. Instead, you will now unlock new modes as you play more matches. You will continue to see modes in the Game Mode selection screen and, now, you will also see how many matches it will take to unlock the next mode at the bottom. 

Age Rating Change:

 

The Age Rating has been updated for some countries and platforms.

• Additional notes: none
• Source: Zynga