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Platform
Xbox
Genre
Action
Publisher
LucasArts
Developer
Pandemic Studios
ESRB
T (Teen)
Released
Q2 2003
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- Great Xbox Live multiplayer
choices
- The magnificent Star Wars soundtrack and score
- Variety of different single-player levels decreases
repetitiveness of gameplay
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- It’s based on a mediocre movie
- Flying missions are frustrating
- Unless you’re a big fan of the movie (there are a few of you
out there) single-player game is not as entertaining as
multiplayer
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Review: Star Wars: Starfighter (XB)
Review: Jedi Starfighter (XB)
Review: Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast (XB)
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Star
Wars: The Clone Wars
Score: 8.1 / 10
From E.T. and Jaws on the Atari 2600 to
Shrek, Superman, and Batman releases on today’s consoles, some of the
most dreadful video games ever made are licensed titles, which rarely do
justice to the movie/book/TV series they are based on. With
justification, games created with some kind of licensing usually are
regarded with high skepticism as to how good they will be. Star Wars has
been one of the few licensed series of games to have avoided, with few
exceptions, the licensing curse. Star Wars: The Clone Wars for the Xbox
zooms into the ranks of yet another decent Star Wars title, although
even with strong multiplayer options, because of a short single-player
game filled with some frustrating flying missions it isn’t quite able to
measure up to some of the better Star Wars-based games LucasArts has
released over the years.
I am personally an old-school Star Wars aficionado, so I haven’t even
bothered watching either The Phantom Menace or The Clone Wars movies. If
they don’t have
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Han Solo and Chewbacca, I’m really not too
interested in viewing them. So I played The Clone Wars with nary an idea
of what to expect story-wise. It’s set right where the events of Episode
II left off. Your goal throughout the single-player campaign is to lead
the Republic army with Anakin Skywalker, Mace Windu, Obi-Wan Kenobi and
the ageless muppet himself, Yoda. Your mission is to |
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stop the Separatists from creating a Death Star-like super-Sith weapon
of mass destruction.
Primarily The Clone Wars is a vehicle third-person action game covering
16 missions on six worlds from the Star Wars cosmos. But there are some
scant missions where you will actually get to play as one of the game’s
heroes in a third-person perspective using either a lightsaber or the
force to defeat ground-based enemies. These missions weren’t bad, but
since the thrust of the gameplay is done in one of the five crafts you
will pilot (depending on which level you are on) they did feel out of
place in The Clone Wars. Each mission has specific goals that must be
completed to advance and reminiscent to GoldenEye on the N64, there are
bonus goals that can open up hidden easter eggs. Overall, the
well-developed, yet too-linear single-player campaign mode is
unfortunately too short and not entirely challenging. But there is a
facet of gameplay that usually is associated with warfare titles that
allows you to manipulate the functions of more than one craft at a time
as the squad commander. You can’t employ the squad commander controls is
every mission, but when you can the gameplay is a lot more
strategy-based and becomes more enjoyable.
What throws a damper on that fun are the specific missions where you
will be flying the Republic gunship. No question about it, trying to
complete these missions is the worst part of The Clone Wars. You cannot
actually stop the constantly-in-motion gunship as a result you’ll be
constantly smashing into not only the ground, but the surrounding
environment like mountain ranges. I was never happier than once I
completed these aggravating and headache-inducing gunship-flying
missions.
Controlling any other Star Wars craft in The Clone Wars is a complete
180 from the gunship, especially in the Republic Fighter Tank -- the
vehicle you will be hyper-driving most in the game. Each vehicle
features laser cannons (rendered with some nifty particle effects) as
its chief weaponry, but there is also a secondary weapon like missiles
and a special ability such as shields inherent to every craft.
Controlling these weapons, abilities, the speed boost, and having the
ability to strafe from side to side while also engaging in battles is
easy to do because of the tight control setup. Strategy must be used in
using your more powerful secondary weapons, because there are in a
limited supply. But power-ups will replenish them and also provide
health and a temporary super blaster at times.
Visiting all the varied worlds and having to learn the intricacies of
the crafts you’ll maneuver in The Clone Wars keeps the game from getting
too repetitive. The development team at Pandemic did a great job of
making The Clone Wars sensually appealing. The soundtrack naturally
features the magnificent John Williams score that is some of the best
music ever created for a movie, and in kind any Star Wars game benefits
from this. Visually, The Clone Wars features Xbox-enhanced graphics that
really bring alive the Star Wars universe as you travel through highly
detailed snow-covered frozen tundra, welcome-to-the-jungle forests, and
Mars-like desert environments.
Multiplayer modes, particularly played online, really save The Clone
Wars from mediocrity. Playing on Xbox Live in a full spectrum of
multiplayer modes elevates The Clone Wars to an enjoyment level it
doesn’t reach in the single-player campaign. Among others, the basics
king-of-the-hill and deathmatch are available, and also a team-based
conquest mode that allows you to play multiplayer with the squad command
feature that is one of the better aspects of the single-player campaign.
Playing conquest mode, when I docked my ship and took command of a base
reminded me of the Command & Conquer series, and any time a game can be
compared favorably to great games such as Command & Conquer should give
an indication of how good The Clone Wars’ Xbox Live gaming can be. Even
offline, The Clone Wars offers a few multiplayer options such as the
Russell Crowe’s Gladiator-inspired Academy mode that really extends the
life of the game tremendously.
Fans of all things Star Wars will be most enamored with The Clone Wars.
Xbox Live players who love MechAssault may also enjoy playing The Clone
Wars because of the similarities in the type of combat and destruction
machines that you can use online. But casual Star Wars fans without Xbox
Live are better off renting The Clone Wars.
- Lee Cieniawa
lcieniawa@armchairempire.com
(June 8, 2003) |
