Star Wars: The New Droid Army

"Finally a good GBA Star Wars game!"

Star Wars. A massive franchise if ever you wanted one. The blockbusting movies are some of the most popular and well known ever. But its not only films where Star Wars is big business. There is also a huge market for video games. Down the years we've seen countless games based around the franchise and in fairness a lot of them have been good. From the original side ways scrollers on the SNES and Game Boy to the very latest Rogue Squadron and Rogue Leader games on the N64 and Game Cube. Star Wars has had a pretty good History as far as video games are concerned. Unfortunately like any licence there have been some real stinkers of Star Wars games down the years. It seems even more unfortunate that the two Star Wars games to grace our beloved GBA also come under that category. So after Jedi Power Battles and Attack of the Clones, THQ comes out with a third Star Wars title, Star Wars: The New Droid Army. Now after the previous two efforts players could be forgiven for completely ignoring this release but doing so at least for a Star Wars fan maybe a big mistake. As you will have already noted from the score THQ have finally come out with a decent Star Wars game.

Yes it seems after dragging the licence through the mud on both the GBC and the GBA THQ have finally made a good fist of giving us a Star Wars game we really want to play. They put a new development team Helixe on the job and they in turn have obviously put some real effort in and given us a good game. Granted, its not perfect but it isn't half an improvement over other recent handheld Star wars offerings.

Story 8/10

Unlike the previous two offerings where the game was based directly on the film, Star Wars: The New Droid Army, is a completely original story line. It has to be said that developers Helixe have put there extra creative licence to good use. Making a story which although obviously has no effect on the films never the less is as deep and engaging as I've seen in a GBA action game. The premise seems fairly simple. The story is set shortly after the events of Star Wars Episode 2. An informant on Tatooine has sent news that a new type of battle droid is under development. Contact with the informant has since been lost. Anakin is sent by the Jedi council to investigate these reports and discover the fate of the informant. This then uncovers a fairly complicated web that leads back to Count Dooku. Sounds simple enough? Well it is really. But the story does continue to open up and expand throughout the game as you talk to people and progress through the levels. It doesn't feel like one of those games where the story is merely a side issue, but instead the whole game is based around the story that has been created. Along the way you will meet several familiar faces along with some less familiar ones. Characters such as Yoda, Obi Wan, Mace Windu, Count Dooku, Auura Sing (remember her from Episode one?) and others make an appearance. The dialogue of all these characters is also very believable. Yoda sounds like Yoda and not like some dodgy impressionist. Anakin sounds like Anakin. Cocky, self confident, abrasive. Exactly the same Anakin that annoyed us in Episode 2. Overall I was impressed by the fine effort that has gone into the story. I mean its not exactly RPG depth but its far more than most action games include. For an original Star wars game its a nice bonus to have a good story.

Graphics 8/10

The developers have gone for an isometric perspective similar to Jedi Power Battles. Although these often look very nice they can often detract from the gameplay. Luckily this is not the case for The New Droid Army (which I will go into more detail in the gameplay section) Helixe have successfully modelled three different planets from the Star Wars universe into the game. Tatooine and Coruscant are well known to any Star wars fan. Metalorn however may provide some intrigue to Star Wars fans as most will unlikely to have heard of it. Metalorn is the home world of the Techno union alliance (remember the funny robotic guy who was one of Dooku's seperatist cronies) All the planets are very well modelled and it seems Helixe have made the effort to watch the films to see exactly what they look like. Players will feel as though they are actually walking round actual Star wars locations from Mos Espa to Coruscant.

The characters and enemies are equally well modelled as the locations. Although Anakin doesn't have an awful lot of detail he moves with a fluency and grace that can only be attributed to someone skilled in the Jedi arts. The enemies look really good too. Battle droids, Super battle droids and destroyer droids all look exactly like they did in the films. Infact there seems to be more detail on the enemies than there does on Anakin. The developers did a really good job in the movement of all the characters. The way Destroyer droids roll up and then open out certainly brings a sense of deja vu to any Star wars fan. Some of the battles look really realistic. The way Anakin blocks attacks and then closes in to hack a battle droid in two is really impressive and makes you feel like your taking part in a film. Even more impressive are the lightsaber duels. Even though there are only a handful throughout the entire game they make for a real visual spectical. They actually look very realistic, like they were taken straight out of one of the films.

Sound 10/10

Quite simply brilliant. I have never heard sound as good as this coming out of the GBA's speaker. Perfect renditions of not only the Star Wars theme but also music from the Star Wars films playing throughout. Remember the final duel music in Episode 1? Well its here as is much of the other music from the Star Wars films. Its like having the movie soundtrack on your GBA. The sound effects are also excellent. The unique hum of the lightsaber, the blaster effects its all here. The sound really is excellent. I like the Star Wars music anyway, I've always thought it was very atmospheric. To have perfect renditions of it here on this game is excellent. Like I said this is the best sounding game on the GBA.

Gameplay 7/10

So often where a Star wars game falls down, The New Droid Army comes up with the goods. Controlling Anakin takes some getting used to with the isometric visuals. But once mastered its possible to do some really impressive moves. At its simplest level pressing A will swing the lightsaber whilst pressing B will block. However pressing A constantly will launch Anakin into a chain attack. Some more impressive moves can be performed with different control combinations including a very cool flip attack just like in the films. I have to admit its very cool to come up against a battle droid and then simply flip over it and hack it in two. Here Helixe have shown really good attention to detail in the fighting style of the Jedi. You no longer merely feel like Mario with a light saber but actually feel like you have Jedi powers. The lightsaber battles are even more impressive with the characters mercilessly slashing their sabers. It all adds to the realism and in the end what separates this from so many other Star wars games. To have such a realistic approach is rare indeed and the developers should be congratulated for this.

The game also features force powers which can be obtained gradually during the game. These add an extra dimension to the fighting. With powers such as speed, jump, meditation, hide and push. Spees greatly accelerates Anakins movement. Hide renders Anakin invisible. Meditation restores health and force energy at an accelerated rate. Jump allows Anakin to execute a force jump so he can jump much further. Finally Push is just like what we see the Jedi do in the films. It allows Anakin to execute a force push, pushing away and damaging any enemy close by. L selects the force powers whilst R activates them. The addition of the force powers was one I was quite impressed with. Again they help to add to the realism that you are actually controlling a Jedi with full knowledge if the force. Clever use of these powers can often be the difference between life and death in the game.

Anakin has two energy bars represented in the top left hand corner of the screen. One is for life whilst the other is the force power meter. Every time Anakin takes a hit his life bar is diminished. Every time he swings his lightsaber or uses his force powers his force power meter is diminished. Both of these recharge gradually and they recharge quicker when Anakin's lightsaber is off. Here in lies the first major problem with the game. There is no health or force meter collectibles that bring your health or force power back up. So if you are running low on either health or force power you have to stand around whilst it recharges. Although it recharges it a reasonable rate its annoying that you have to stand around whilst it recharges to a respectable level. This problem is further compounded by the fact that both your health and force power seem to diminish very quickly in the heat of battle, meaning at times you have to stand around and wait after almost every battle. I do wish Helixe had found another way around this as standing and waiting for thirty seconds whilst your power recharges isn't really what should be happening in an action game.

There is a very good variety of enemies that you will face throughout the game. Standard lightsaber fodder includes battle droids, super battle droids and the very nasty destroyer droids. There are also some types of enemy which I'm not really familiar with including giant droids operated by the Techno Union army and automated gun turrets. The intelligence of these seems to vary. Often the enemies can be very intelligent attacking you relentlessly. The Destroyer Droids are a good example of this. They roll up and attack without mercy. With their shield generators they are a powerful foe and again it feels very realistic as the lightsaber deflects their fire straight onto there shield. So the bad guys put up a good fight. Early enemies on Tatooine feel more like cannon fodder. As you progress through the game however you will soon find yourself up against a real challenge. Boss levels are also good fun. You will end up in a variety of fights including lightsaber battles and others. In one fight you will end up against two lighsaber wielding Sith whilst in another you will fight Auura Sing the bounty hunter from Episode 1. She may not have a lightsaber but she's just as deadly. The lightsaber battles are really well implemented. Often with Star Wars games there a bit of a chore but not so here. Although the earlier battles involve the player just hammering the controls, the later battles often require a bit of strategy. In one battle you fight two Jedi and because of this you can't afford to go all out as they will ware you down and kill you. Here you have to be controlled, careful and patient. This is the same for many of the boss battles.

What in some ways is slightly disappointing though is the fact that in many cases if you find yourself up against the odds the best solution is to simply run for it. Yes so when you realise that those two destroyer droids are not going to die any soon theirs only one option. To leg it. Not very Jedi like is it? Admittedly this doesn't happen in all parts of the game as in some sections you need to defeat the enemies to open the door. However in some parts of the game you can get through much of the level by walking as fast as you can and simply ignoring any nearby enemies. Not a major complaint really as its up to the player whether they decide to play the game this way or not. For me it spoils the fun.

The game is also quite repetitive. Although the designers vary things with the story line and the throwing of new locations and enemies at you, the game is still very much a hack and slash affair. The only weapon you have is a lightsaber and although this is just about the coolest weapon in the Star Wars universe, like Han Solo said ''You can't beat a good blaster'' It would have been nice to see more variety in the weapons. I would have also been nice to see some more playable characters. Obviously the story line revolves around Anakin but there is a cheat to allow you to play as Luke Skywalker. Its a shame Helixe couldn't have included a cheat to play as Mace Windu, Obi Wan or even Yoda. I for one would have loved to re create that final battle in Episode 2.

The usual THQ password system is here. It does amaze me, that with almost all there games they go for the password system. I mean is it to save money or what? Yet they obviously have spent extra money on having the manual in full colour, something Nintendo rarely do. Luckily the password system here is one of the nicest I've seen. Each password is only three characters long. Its still a bit irritating to have to write them down and re type them every time you switch on the game but its no where near as bad as it could have been. Well done to Helixe for making the password system as un fussy and user friendly as possible. Although usually make a bit of a thing about password saves in this case I really don't mind the password system too much because its nice and short and the lack of battery save in this case won't overly effect my enjoyment of the game. I just hope other developers will take note: If your publisher is tight fisted and won't let you have a battery save then please make the password as short as possible. It makes it a lot easier.

Lastability 7/10

With twenty or so levels this game is actually quite big. A lot bigger than any other Star Wars GBA game. Infact a lot bigger than most licensed games full stop. Its nice to see that Helixe put the effort into making a decent sized Star Wars GBA game. The game can still be completed in a few nights but considering its a lot longer and much more enjoyable experience than any other GBA Star Wars game I was quite impressed with just how long it lasted. Sure it won't take you any longer to complete than Metroid Fusion but then again thats a lot longer than many GBA games. The lack of link up is somewhat of a disappointment, I for one would have fancied a lightsaber battle with a friend and judging what they've done with the lightsaber battles I imagine it could have been good fun.

Overall 7/10

All in all I was very impressed. It was a risk buying this game given previous THQ Star Wars outings and the lack of any rave reviews for this title. Still, I'm glad I did. Admittedly the game is probably too repetitive and hack and slash to justify anything more than the score I've awarded it. I also think extra polish could have been done with in certain areas. But you have to remember this a big step up from previous Star Wars outings. Helixe in their first attempt at a Star wars game have done a good job. I only hope that when THQ do wheel out the Star Wars licence again they hand the job to Helixe and Helixe in turn use their obvious talent to make an even better and more varied game than this one. If your a Star Wars fan then I fully recommend this title. Not only is it the best Star Wars GBA game but it will also pass some time before Episode 3.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 05/29/03, Updated 05/29/03