Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith

"Attacking, the Clones Are!"

Star Wars. Synonymous to most with such words as spectacular, legendary, iconic, immortal. The mere mention of “Star Wars” is enough to get only the most stubborn people excited, and is enough to give fanboys convulsions. The Star Wars movies have long been regarded as the absolute zenith of Sci-Fi cinema, but the games have yet to truly capture the essence of the films. Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith is an ambitious attempt at successfully transferring the quality of the 3rd Episode to console.

GRAPHICS (How Look, does this Game?)
Not too shabby. Maybe a little clunky in places, but the backgrounds are modelled well, especially on the Mustafar levels. The character models are ok, the facial expressions are detailed and the mouths move along with the words semi-accurately. You really do get the feeling that you are part of the action, with animated battle scenes taking place over yonder, and enemies making realistic entries into the fray by coming down on zip-lines and smashing through windows and suchlike. The only real fault here is the camera angle, which can be annoying as hell, constricting your movement and blocking your line of sight. Graphics are a definite plus-point for the game, and are one of it's more “redeeming” features.

SOUND (How Sound, does this Game?)
Oh my God. Sure, if you skip all the cut-scenes and somehow manage to plug your ears at the precise moment of in-game character dialogue, the game will sound like Marilyn Manson to a Goth. The sabers hum and clash just like they do in the films, the blaster sounds are accurate and the original Williams Star Wars music score is included in the game. Then we come to the voice acting. Repetitive lines and a poorly written game script do not make for a good combination, especially when the voice actors are not the actual actors used in the film. Mace Windu and Obi-Wan are the only ones that pull a convincing mimic job; the voice actors for Yoda and Anakin are truly pathetic. But hey, it's only sound after all right?

STORY (What about, is this Game?)
Surely I shouldn't need to write anything here, if you're reading this review you probably know the Star Wars saga back to front already. I'll just say that the game is based solely on the events of the 6th and final Star Wars film, Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, hence the title. In the main story missions you play as Anakin or Obi-Wan, depending on the level, and the story is told as you progress.

GAMEPLAY (How Play, does this Game?)
As explained earlier, Ani and Obi have their own set levels in story mode , you cannot chose who you play as. They each have various different attacks and combos, all of which are easy to pull off without much effort. You earn experience at the end of each level, of course the amount you earn is relative to the amount of things you kill and how well you kill them, (the more stylish, the better). Single player is completely linear, it is nearly impossible to get lost unless for some strange reason, you feel like going backwards. Also, all the characters in story or versus (with the exception of General Grievous and his bodyguards) have the ability to use the Force, I.E telekinetically tossing objects and other characters. The second ability of the Force for most characters is the Force Stun, a paralysing beam of energy which can persuade droids to fight for you. However, if your character is on the Dark Side, this ability is replaced by the infamous Force Lightning. Bonus missions and dual-player co-operative missions are unlocked as you progress through story mode, as are additional characters and backgrounds for versus mode.

To conclude, Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith is a completely linear hack and slasher. That doesn't mean it's a bad game, just that it is highly unreplayable. Versus mode and the Bonus mission “Size Matters Not” are the highlights of the game, it's worth going through Story Mode to unlock every character in Versus and the Bonus Mission.

SCORE
6

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 05/24/05