Star Wars TIE Fighter: Collector's CD-ROM

"The Epic Battles of Star Wars are flawlessly captured in this masterpiece."

I've always loved Star Wars, and was an avid player of X-Wing and Dark Forces. But I had always yearned for the power of the Empire. My wish was granted in this superb space sim from Lucasarts. You play as a simple, yet loyal Imperial Fighter Pilot. Notice I did not say ''TIE Fighter Pilot''. You get to fly a huge array of ships, from your basic TIE Fighters and Interceptors, to the new and awesome Tie Advanced and Tie Interceptors.

Plot 9/10: The first Campaign starts right after the Battle of Hoth, where you clean up any runaway Rebel ships that are fleeing the planet. As you progress, the missions get more and more complex. One campaign is all about catching a defective officer, The first mission of which you are assigned to show off what a ''hotshot pilot'' can do to 2 new recruits. Things quickly turn awry when you find out the mission was a set up, and are ambushed by several of your own comrades. This is just an example of the twists and turns a mission can take.

Graphics 10/10: Amazing. When you think about when this game was made, you will be in awe of these graphics. Heck, they could even make a run for their money now. The plot is forwarded through short cut scenes that are expertly animated, with detail you'll drool over. Every ship is well modeled and detailed, and you can tell a lot of effort was put in to this section. The laser and missile effects are nice too, as well as the cockpit details.

Sound 10/10: The sound is well done as well, with many of John Williams's classics making appearances. The normal sound effects are good too, such as explosions and laser blasts.

Gameplay 10/10: I've never been a huge fan of Flying Sims, but in my opinion Lucasarts got the job done with a somewhat simple, yet intricate system of gameplay. Mission variety is good, with your usual escort and ''kill-everything-that-moves'' to some more difficult ones, like disabling a Rebel space station so that a shuttle carrying Vader can dock, and the Dark Lord of the Sith himself can open up a can of whoop@$$ on your foes.

Closing Thoughts: This is a great game well worth your money. I'm sure it's in a bargain bin somewhere for 5 dollars, so rummage up some spare dough and purchase this game. Trust me, you will not be disappointed.

OVERALL: 10/10

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 08/09/02, Updated 08/09/02