Star Wars: Battlefront

"I Think I'm A Clone Now....."

It's fun to think of what it would be like if you were a hero. If you were able to single handedly defeat a horde of enemies and lay waste to their faction. When a young boy goes to bed he has dreams of being a super hero or scoring that last second goal to win the game. No one ever dreams of being just another grunt. No one dreams of grinding it out and allowing others to take the glory. If that is so, then why is Star Wars: Battlegrounds such a blast?

Star Wars: Battlegrounds is just the latest in a very long line of games based upon the movies. Usually in the games you are a Jedi with huge powers called The Force. You are the hero and you lay waste to all those whom oppose you, Battlegrounds is completely different. What Battlegrounds does is put you in the position of a grunt, a regular soldier who goes out and tries to do what he can in an army. In each mission you choose from a group of characters to use. Each character uses different weapons and has different skills. Usually you'll have a character that uses a misslelauncher, blaster, shotgun, or support troop. Each has their own strength and weakness. There are several more than listed.

As I mentioned before you are just a grunt in an army. Before each mission you get to chose point in which to start, otherwise known as a spawn point. In each mission you'll need to capture enemy spawn points so you'll be able to move farther toward your goal and limit the enemy the places to where he can go. Holding all spawn points for 30 seconds will allow you to win, also killing off all the enemies will be an instant victory. Each battle will have between 150-250 units per side. Also in some maps you'll be able to use several different vehicles. Tie Fighters, X-Wings, Speeders are all in the game along with tons more. As for maps you'll have a ton to play. All the major battles in Star Wars history are in this game including Yavin, Hoth, and Tatooine.

GRAPHICS

Each map is done extremely well and really gives you the feeling of being in the location you're playing. None of the maps really feel like the last one and they are all different. The Pre-Luke Skywalker and Post-Luke Skywalker maps are obviously different and pretty well.

As for character, they are done extremely well. You can tell at a glance the difference between characters. Clones and Stormtroopers each look different from eachother as does the different classes of rebels. Each character is extremely detailed and look true to their silverscreen counterparts.

Next, Vehicles, are also extremely well done. Each look exactly like it's movie counterpart and not only does it look like it, but is just as detailed. Not only do these vehicles look exactly like they should, but they work exactly like they should. One note about vehicles they not only have a driver, but most of them have several different positions such as a left or right gunner or copilot.

Finally, there is one huge bonus in this game for Star Wars freaks. There are actual digital cuts from the actual movies. I must say they are absolutely amazing. I never thought Star Wars would look so great.

SOUND

This is exactly what you would expect. All the sounds from the movies and previous games are in this one. Lasers sound like…..well lasers. Vehicles sound exactly like they should. Also, the music is from the movies are also included and as well done as ever. What can I say, it's simply solid.

COMPARISONS

This game feels a lot like a few different games. Most obvious would be the Dynasty Warriors franchise. Since just like those games, this one puts you in the middle of a giant battle and these two armies fight it out. Also this game is similar to Grand Theft Auto. The stealing vehicles portion is a small part of this game and adds a lot of fun to it.

OVERALL

This is probably the best Star Wars game EVER made. I know that's not a huge compliment as several of the past ones weren't exactly stellar. However, this game is solid and adds a lot for Star Wars Freak and casual gamer alike. With the unlockables the Freak is happy since they'll get their hands on even more Star Wars stuff, along with the digital movies. The casual gamer will enjoy the solid gameplay and hours of enjoyment. I would defiantly advise anyone who is even slightly interested in this game to buy it.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 09/22/04