Star Wars Galaxies: Jump to Lightspeed

"Great Addition!"

First, let me get my inherent bias out of the way: I love "Star Wars Galaxies". If you absolutely hate the game, this expansion pack will not make you happy. If you at least like "Star Wars Galaxies", you will have a lot of fun with the "Jump to Lightspeed" expansion pack. I was part of the "Jump to Lightspeed" beta group, and I knew right away that the devs did a very good job. But enough of my ranting, lets get to the breakdown:

Graphics: 8
-If you have a top of the line computer like me (and a fast connection), the graphics are great. Just like on the ground, you can adjust the level of detail for a smother game experience if you are running a bit slow. On their highest level, however, the graphics really shine. With every modification of your ship, the appearance changes. With the new paint kits, you can make your ship as colorful as a rainbow, or as dark as space itself.

Sound: 9
-One of my biggest complaints with "Galaxies" was the long periods of musical silence. Luckily, that isn't so in space. However, I will be honest: I do not know if there is more music or just more battles (which causes more music). Either way, the famous soundtracks will be blazing. Sound effects are dead on, (blaster fire, TIE engines, booster engines, hyperdrive, damage, etc) all sounds seem very realistic and close to the movies.

Playability: 7-9?
-Here's the thing: you can steer your ship with the mouse, or you can plug in a joystick. I can't seem to find my joystick, so I 've been using a mouse. With some modifications in your options menu, this works well. People with a joystick say it is much better. Also, your starter ship is a piece of junk and handles more poorly than ships crafted by players. So when you first get into space with your mouse as the controller, DON'T PANIC. You can mess around in options and make due until you can get a REAL ship. They are much better. You could just save up some money now and screw the starter ship :) So originally, controls are a 7. After some tweaking and the purchase of a good ship, an 8. With a joystick, maybe a 9.

Gameplay: 9.5
-This is where the expansion pack earns its $30 price tag. First, you get three e-mails, one from Imperial recruiters, one from Freelance recruiters, and one from Rebel recruiters. Each of these form the 3 pilot professions (Imperial Pilot, Freelance Pilot, Rebel Pilot, respectively). You can only have ONE of the three at a time. None of them take up any skill points. Each are similar, but unique enough to make it a cool choice. To my knowledge, anyone can become a freelance pilot, but covert/overt faction members cannot join their enemy (ex. An overt Imperial cannot become a Rebel pilot). Every part of your ship can be customized (note: your starting ship CANNOT be customized in any way, to my knowledge). As your skills advance, you can get faster engines, more dangerous blasters, stronger shields, etc. It is very cool. Often, you can get spare parts for ships from killing enemies. You can get credits, too. Just like on the ground. Plus, many ships allow for a gunner (another player) to be able to climb in and fight with you (you must have installed a separate pair of guns for this to work). Its VERY cool. Before I got good at flying, I would hop in with a friend and get experience points that way. I could talk forever about how cool all the little features are. Go buy the game, you could be flying the Millennium Falcon with friends firing the turrents at Imps by the time I finish talking :)

Enjoyment/Fun: 9.9 (I never give anything a 10. Live with it)
-I think I kinda covered how fun this game is in the last section. So let me give you a cool example of how fun this game is.

-Out of nowhere 20 enemy ships drop out of hyperspace. You knew this mission seemed too easy. You consider making a jump to hyperspace, but you realize there wouldn't be enough time. Your hands grow sweaty as you realize you don't have enough money to repair your ship again. You push those thoughts out of your mind. The battle begins. You frantically focus on one ship. You know your guns are a lot better than your shields. You open fire; bam! bam! boom! One down, you mumble. Uh, oh. MISSILE COMING! BOOM! You realize you just your rear shields. R5! Shift shield power to the rear! The battle continues. Somehow, you survive long enough to destroy all but one enemy: the flight leader. Since you shifted all emergency power to the shields, lasers and engines are only at 50%. Shields and armor at 0%! Half your systems have been vaporized. It ain't looking good. But you did not just defeat an armada to die now. Your enemy makes a turn for one last pass. You aim carefully, and fire all your remaining laser energy. The explosion of your enemy's starfighter signals your heart to start beating normally again. You call in a repair ship to fix you up. It looks like you will live to fly another day. Now, is there anything cooler than clawing back through the jaws of life on an adrenaline rush and shredding your attackers with shields down and armor gone?

No

Final Score: 9

The flaws melt away faster than butter in the microwave. Unless, of course, if you hate Star Wars, you hate any kind of flight simulator, you are a pacifist, and you can't figure out how to fire your guns. If all of these apply, spend your 30 bucks elsewhere. Otherwise, I highly recommend you buy this expansion pack.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/01/04, Updated 11/05/04