In an incredibly obvious Diablo 3-like announcement, Bioware and LucasArts confirm that they are indeed working on a Star Wars MMORPG set in the age of The Old Repubilc that has probably been in development since Knights of the Old Republic.

Is it just me, or is there something inherently wrong with two massively multiplayer games from two different developers about the exact same subject, trying to appeal to the exact same audience, at the exact same time?

Wait, don’t answer that question.

But this isn’t the same as a fantasy setting being done hundreds of times with roughly equivalent results. This is the most recognizable setting in science fiction. This is Star Wars. With lightsabers for everyone.

The Old Republic as a setting was preordained ever since the critical and commercial success of Bioware’s Knights of the Old Republic. A universe that had only been explored by the Dark Horse comics because Uncle George wouldn’t allow anyone to touch the timelines before and after the Original Trilogy was finally seen as a legitimate replacement for the storylines that traditionally surrounded Luke Skywalker and Company. Or for the more forgiving fans, the Clone Wars/Jedi extinction era of Anakin Skywalker.

I still believe that SOE had a great product with Star Wars Galaxies, but decided to fuck it all up with the “New Game Enhancements” two years ago. So is The Old Republic LucasArts’ way of asking for a “do over”? User activity in Star Wars Galaxies has been in steady decline since late 2005 based on MMOGChart, which coincides with the implementation of the NGE. I’m sure the only people still playing now are the ones that can put up with a grind featuring blasters instead of broadswords.

For some reason, SOE thought that everyone wanted to be a Jedi when it introduced The Jedi Trials with one of its publishes previous to the NGE, but unless you were a new player the community response was less than enthusiastic. Part of what made SWG so interesting is how much it relied on the user base to simply populate the game’s many cities, where businesses were formed, Stormtrooper squads performed drills, and player characters were trained in new skills by each other. You didn’t have to be a Jedi for the game to be rewarding. The NGE created yet another experience grind where you met up with the who’s-who of the Star Wars continuum every 30 seconds making those encounters less special, and certainly took away the feeling that you were part of a galactic community instead of in some Star Wars amusement park.

There were always rumors of multiplayer being proposed as a feature in the KOTOR series, but it was never included in either installment. Which was a perfectly reasonable decision – they didn’t need it. Both games were story-driven experiences, where the actions of the main character had implications on what happened in the rest of the game. They played out like adventure games, where combat was only there to pace the plotline. The back story is important in an MMORPG, but it is completely unrealistic to cater to each player and provide an individual storyline in a game world made up of thousands of other player characters doing the same thing. It’s like killing the Elite monster at the end of a quest chain in World of Warcraft. You follow the quest line to get there, finish off the big bastard, only to have it respawn for another group. To provide each player – or each group for that matter – with a unique experience in-game would require an incalcuable amount of options that could never possibly keep up with the rate at which they are consumed.

In an interview with Gamasutra on story in The Old Republic, Daniel Erickson of Bioware thinks he has an answer for us.

[We have a team of] Dedicated writers, writing for years and years…we have more story content than every other BioWare game ever made combined, so it is the largest project.

We realized at one point that we were doing enough content, just dialogue, to fit in dozens of books. It’s pretty mind blowing!

That’s a lot of story. But how will they manage the challenge of players wanting their own story, or at least have their choices affecting part of the overall game narrative?

Well, again, one of the things that’s really important is that the galaxy is huge. Things can be changing that are amazingly important to your world. What you’re doing and what’s happening that doesn’t necessarily affect every part of it. And there are actually… amazing, huge changes happening in [places] all over this game world that we don’t know about.

That’s interesting. It seems like a nice way of saying that the story will be implemented like any other MMORPG. In reading the interview it’s pretty clear that Erickson thinks it can be done – and he rightly points out that being the first to attempt a task like this is always hard. And even if they only partially implement these features, there will be someone else to follow with a better product and continue the pursuit of this admirable goal. Personally, I don’t need an online RPG to satisfy my need for story, but it seems that the rise in popularity of MMORPGs coupled with those lucrative subscription fees make single-player RPGs seem like a thankless proposition. I can agree with the concept of limiting player alignment to two factions to form the core of character plotlines – but I want to see unique classes other than Jedi, and allow players to have an impact on the in-game community, not just the story.

Unfortunately, EA Games president Frank Gibeau had to open his big mouth to say that World of Warcraft was the target for The Old Republic, making ridiculous arguments like the recognition of the franchise alone was enough to win over subscribers. Didn’t he get the memo? Any MMORPG launched in the post-Warcraft age can expect to do no better than second best as a rule. I don’t think any MMORPG in history – Lineage included – has penetrated the world MMORPG market like Warcraft has. Instead of trying on de-throne Blizzard, Bioware should consider what worked in Star Wars Galaxies. Their focus should be on making a genuine Star Wars experience that takes advantage of the setting, not embarrassing themselves by creating yet another grindfest. With lightsabers.

In late October of last year, the announcement was made that a collection of “New Game Enhancements” (NGE) were going to be implemented, which included nine “iconic” character classes and a completely revised combat system. This came hot on the heels of the badly needed Combat Upgrade that did more harm than good. The third expansion for Star Wars Galaxies, The Trials of Obi-Wan, was released the day the NGE changes went live. Little did players know that the NGE were also waiting in this expansion. In fact, players were so outraged by this tactic that SOE offered a refund to those that purchased the expansion online only to find that their favorite MMORPG had been irreversibly changed. Veteran players were given the Jump to Lightspeed expansion at no charge, as if it were some salve to heal the festering wounds.

I only played Star Wars Galaxies for five months, but I continued to follow it pretty closely despite my lack of involvement in the game world. I can trace the downward spiral back to mid 2004, where talk of improvements to the Jedi system along with the upcoming Jump to Lightspeed expansion had players still wanting the base game to be fixed in a frenzy. The developers efforts seemed focused on fully implementing the Jedi Knight system, which to that point was only something that was reserved for the hardcore. Since the implementation of the Jedi system, the game has been bleeding subscribers, with additonal expansion packs thrown together to maintain interest among the players that were still around. As with most MMORPGs, Star Wars Galaxies’ harshest critics were the ones that had invested themselves heavily in the game world. These are the people who depended on the game’s economy and structure, only to see the game receieve a complete overhaul to make the game all but unrecognizable.

The New Game Enhancements can be summarized into three main components: the new character classes, the combat system and the injection of more “Star Wars” content. The nine new classes can apparently be traced back to their origins in the original game’s system, but it removes the flexibility and freedom to explore roughly 32 professions, and instead forces players to follow a predetermined path. Jedi are also immediately selectable, which ultimately reduces their uniqueness, completely contradicting the context of the game’s setting, where Jedi are all but extinct. As a result of introducing these new classes, niche professions like creature handling were effectively removed from the game. These changes are frustrating to no end for existing players, whose characters they have been building for the last two and a half years have become obsolete.

The class levelling system is based on general experience points, not the usage of skills as in the original system. The free trial consists of the first ten character levels, and is set up almost exactly like Everquest II: Trial of the Isle. Each class goes through a series of four “phases” of increasing special abilities, with the final phase reached at level 70. At each level-up, you’re automatically given a new ability. This is exactly like Everquest. It is also a lot more boring.

From a game design perspective, this was probably an easy decision to make. The class balancing becomes simpler, the grind for specific skills disappears, and the character development system is less intimidating for new players. From a game world perspective, however, this change does away with one of the things that made playing Star Wars Galaxies so interesting: you weren’t a class, you had an occupation.

The combat system has become fully real-time, and now resembles a third-person shooter. Collision detection was a bit unfinished as well, as I could shoot (and be shot at) through walls. Hostile encounters were no longer discrete firefights; this was hack and slash with blasters.

Star Wars Galaxies begins with you being rescued off of a ship by Han Solo, Chewbacca and R2-D2. This in itself was ridiculous, because if you think about the game’s population, how could they have time to pick up everyone? The insistence on more interaction with NPCs was a good decision, as the quests become less of a job board and add a bit of depth to the experience. However socializing with famous NPCs should be a special event, not commonplace. It’s a big universe, and the game’s introduction doesn’t make it very clear why your character is so important. Part of Galaxies’ appeal is that it was a believable universe – maybe too much so – where the world seemed to go on just fine without you. I don’t need to hang out with Han Solo for my experience to be validated. Part of what made Star Wars Galaxies so immersive was the anonymity of the universe – it was up to the player to make a name for themselves within the community. It wasn’t handed to them in some half-baked story.

Though as a former player of an Artisan/Marksman, the reworking of the Crafting system was the biggest disappointment in the NGE for me. Because of the new looting system, where both credits and decent items are available as monster drops, it lessens the need for the Trader class. The Trader is divided into three sub-classes that must be chosen from during character creation: domestic goods (clothing, food), munitions (armour, weapons), structures (buildings, ship hulls), and engineering (droids, some specialty weapons). Star Wars Galaxies had one of the most detailed and robust crafting systems that I’ve ever used in an MMORPG. Now the crafting system feels stripped down, and there doesn’t seem to be that much room for tweaking the final product. Once you’ve chosen the Trader class you’re pretty much stuck, because the ability to craft items is not available to everyone. I’m not sure if the Trader can be self-sufficient and mine raw resources like the Artisan could, but this would make the class a little more interesting to play.

Out of everything I’d say that new character class system is easily the most devestating change to the game, as it upends its entire foundation, creating an obvious turning point where the game is changed forever. A decision like this should have been saved for a sequel – SOE should know best of all that keeping two generations of a series alive is not impossible (with Everquest and its sequel), though perhaps not the most financially sound decision.

As the market for MMORPGs grows, and the conventions of the genre become deeply rooted in players’ minds, occupations like “Entertainer” or “Trader” are less appealing to the newcomers who seek instant gratification. I hate to blame World of Warcraft for this situation, but it’s true – it’s very hard to expect someone who’s buffed out warrior sporting fearsome looking plate mail to settle for a droid engineer or a dancer in a cantina. There is a definite lack of heroism in Star Wars Galaxies, but to me that was just part of what made the gameworld so immersive. Star Wars Galaxies always had the potential to be a groundbreaking MMORPG: a self-sustaining gameworld that makes players feel like they’re actually part of it instead of just a tourist doing repetitive quests that are of little consequence in the game world. Not that Galaxies lacked inane quests; there were just other, more interesting things to do. There were real options for building in-game communities. There was ample opportunity for roleplaying.

These radical changes brought by the “New Game Enhancements” makes two points painfully obvious:

1. SOE was not satisfied with the original game model. They did not trust the original design. SOE wanted another World of Warcraft/Everquest.

2. SOE could care less about the community and the time they have spent building the Star Wars Galaxies universe, and in some cases, influence changes to the game.

The second point being infinitely more damaging than the first, both to the success of the “new and improved” Star Wars Galaxies, and SOE’s reputation overall.

It’s regrettable that this had to happen, but SOE has a business to run. I can understand from that perspective why they would decide to change the game into something more accessible – Galaxies has constantly been struggling with its moderately sized but dedicated community since its release in July 2003. The subscriber base was at a standstill, if not already fading before World of Warcraft launched in late 2004.

Naturally there are rumours about further additions to the game to inject more Star Wars and less, well, MMORPG and of course the ones that everyone wants to believe about the game being rolled back to what it was. Whether there’s any truth to these reports remains to be seen, though I think they’re materializing out of former players’ desires to see their favorite game returned to its former glory. As someone’s signature on the official forums aptly put it: “SWG – Where removing the playerbase from the game is considered an enhancement”.

Real time strategy often conjures up thoughts of base building, resource gathering and general clickery around an arbitrary map while accelerating through a technology tree. The Total War series added a much needed dimension to the experience – a macro view that provided ample support to the ground battles that would ensue in a campaign. While Rise of Nations slanted towards resource-gathering on a larger scale as well with their “Conquer the World” mode, it didn’t offer the grand strategy that future titles like Rome: Total War would so skillfully display. Little did I know that a Star Wars license would be next in line to offer something that could almost be considered innovation.

Waging a war on disparate fronts seemed like a lofty design decision for Empire at War- I didn’t think it could be done. In a universe where we have been given six movies’ worth of evidence that wars take place planetside as well as in the vastness of space, for once a game provides a battlefield that is similarly all-encompassing.

Star Wars: Empire at War presents a battle map at the beginning of the game consisting of planets. Above each planet are orbit “slots”, where ships carrying troops or space cruisers can lie in wait before attacking the planet below. Trade routes and flight paths are easily navigated by using an intuitive drag-and-drop interface. Garrisons can be constructed on planets that have been assimilated into the Empire or liberated by the Rebellion. Smugglers can infiltrate enemy planets and siphon credits to your cause. And I haven’t even talked about the actual fighting yet.

If the space around a planet is occupied, a battle for control of this area will take place once you’ve moved your fleet into position. The battles are kind of like Homeworld, but…they’re missing something. They felt flat and almost as if it was simply a land map with no real point of reference to give the impression of space. The purity of space combat was gone, but in its place I was nevertheless immediately entranced by re-enactments of the battles I had seen so many times in the films. The visuals serve their purpose, and seeing TIE fighters and X-Wings darting around like insects next to the gargantuan capital gunships gives the proper sense of scale.

Ground battles aren’t particularly ground-breaking; the conventions of standard RTS dominate the experience. Though your troops can take cover to improve defence as in Dawn of War, and the addition of reinforcement points on the map allow you to drop in troops at these locations as long as you have them in orbit around the planet. Then there are the bomber squadrons that can be used to eliminate enemy structures. But once again these must be already waiting to be launched. In games past, calling in an airstrike was simply a button click away – but Empire at War clearly requires the preparation for massive-scale assaults. It ties both battlefronts together.

There is always a place for skirmishes and tank rush battles – they are fun in their own right. But I see the approach of Empire at War as the future for strategy games that possess enough scale to warrant the use of meta-strategy, since it only makes sense in a setting where the battle for supremacy is so far-reaching. Indeed, Empire at War feels like a game of galactic proportions. While each field of battle is merely sufficient on its own, as a whole they provide the scope that was needed to truly convey the menacing Imperial assaults of the films, as well as the calculated tactical strikes of the Rebellion. I fully expect to be playing a game mode that offers the entire Galaxy for the taking, one planet at a time.

despite the metal and wires

Short answer: I loved it. This movie was woven from the same fabric of the Star Wars I remembered. It tied everything together, and left nothing to criticize except minutiae that can only be dreamt up by fanboys such as myself. Which is largely going to be the content of this review, if I can even call it that. The usual warning against spoilers applies, but I’m sure the only people reading this are the ones who have seen it anyway.

ILM made me believe again

I’m not going to drag out any Jar Jar Binks jokes. He wasn’t in this movie, and I’ll leave it at that.

I don’t think I was mentally prepared for what was shown during the opening scene where Obi-Wan and Anakin are piloting their fighters towards the capital ship where Palpatine is being held captive. This whole sequence reached new heights of realism, and I felt my stomach drop as the camera panned out from one cruiser to an entire battle. The movie was populated with exotic locales with equally stunning visuals, the most tantalizing being the Wookiee home planet of Kashyyyk. I’ll get to that later.

The “romance” of Anakin and Padme

I still don’t buy it. It seems like an extremely unbelievable relationship, where Padme still allows herself to care for a man that single-handedly exterminated a tribe of sandpeople. He’s also far too brooding and aggressive, making me wonder if Padme wasn’t emotionally unstable herself. Even though the delivery of the “love has blinded you?” conversation was like receiving a beating from an enraged wookiee, this theme makes its way into almost every bad thing that happens in the movie. I suppose the spirit of the conversation is acceptable, but Lucas could have thought up a much more subtle way of presenting it.

Aside from those stilted attempts at romance, Hayden Christiansen does a much better job in this film conveying Anakin’s inner conflict. There are a few powerful scenes, in fact, where he did a fantastic job without saying any lines at all.

Parallels, Parallels, Parallels

This is a classic device that Lucas loves to employ in these films.

The most powerful scene in the film was when Anakin defied Mace Windu’s orders and went to Supreme Chancellor Palpatine’s quarters. He watches Windu and Palpatine locked in combat, with Palpatine pleading for mercy – and Anakin’s help. Knowing that Palpatine can help him, Anakin must choose to stay loyal to the Jedi order, or save Palpatine and begin his journey to the Dark Side. I felt this joined perfectly with the end of Return of the Jedi, where Anakin must make another, similar choice: save his son by killing his master, or lose his humanity to the Dark Side forever. Now that I’ve seen Episode III, throwing Palpatine down that electrical shaft must have felt pretty good for Anakin. If you think about it, Palpatine is the reason he’s in that armour.

Despite General Grievous’ limited screen time, I found his character to be one of the most interesting. He was developed as a villain who enjoyed collecting the lightsabers of slain Jedi as part of the Clone Wars cartoon series. Grievous is mostly a machine (built by the separtists for all we know), but still retains some living tissue. I found this comparable to what happens to Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader at the end of the film.

At the end, you see Owen and Beru Lars holding baby Luke as they look over a dune into the twin Tatooine sunset as Luke did in the beginning of A New Hope. While it was a nice gesture to fans, it felt like they were trying too hard to squeeze that one in.

The Cutting of Appendages

We had a good laugh over this one after the movie. I’m not going to go into too much detail, but suffice to say that a Jedi that doesn’t lose his hand in the Star Wars Trilogy is lucky indeed.

• Count Dooku loses both hands to Anakin Skywalker
• General Grievous loses two arms to Obi-Wan Kenobi
• Mace Windu loses his hand to Anakin Skywalker
• Anakin loses another arm (and his legs!) to Obi-Wan Kenobi

Not enough Kashyyyk

Perhaps the new expansion for Star Wars Galaxies will pick up where the film left off, but I felt that this location was far too underdeveloped considering it’s the home of one of the saga’s main characters. Moreover, we only learn Chewbacca’s identity when Yoda leaves – and that’s only because he refers to him by name. Based on the novels and comics, Wookiees were a highly oppressed race. Even the recent Republic Commando explores the capture and enslavement of Wookiees by Trandoshans. Revenge of the Sith does nothing to address this, and instead treats Kashyyyk as simply another planet contended for by the Republic and the Separtists.

The visuals of Kashyyyk were impressive, and it was fascinating to see Wookiee technology in action. I’m just disappointed there wasn’t more of it.

The Instant Aging of Supreme Chancellor Palpatine

I thought the scene where Mace Windu battles Palpatine was brilliant. I learned in the comic books (Dark Empire, specifically) that using the Dark Side rapidly ages you. It becomes evident that Palpatine was stronger in the Dark Side than we anticipated, but I imagine that he used quite a bit of his power to remain hidden from the eyes of the Jedi and disguise his true intentions. Could it be that this sudden release of Force lightning drained his powers, such that he could no longer maintain his disguise? This also lends a bit of realism to Anakin’s condition at the end of Return of the Jedi, where it looks like he aged about 40 years.

Order 66

The chilling scene where Palpatine gives the instruction to eradicate every Jedi really resonated with me. Going into this film, we knew that the Jedi are all but extinct during the time period of the original trilogy. Though the logistics of killing all of those Jedi at a time where they were everywhere was hard for me to grasp. And now I know.

The clones were Palpatine’s idea all along. Programming them with this “back door”, if you will, Palpatine was able to execute every Jedi at once, essentially eliminating the possibility of a Jedi resurgence. Brilliantly done.

The Lightsaber Duels

Was it just me, or were the duels just so evenly matched that they became boring? I believed the emotional exchange between Obi-Wan and Anakin before their duel, and Anakin’s paranoia making him hurt the woman he loved. All of this was building up to Obi-Wan’s near-tears confession on the banks of that river of molten lava, with Anakin broken and his eyes filled with hatred. The climax of this battle was worth it, but I was expecting a battle that was more furious and emotionally charged. After all, this duel is what long time fans of the series were waiting for.

To be honest, I doubt anything could have come close to the duel between Obi-Wan, Qui-Gon and Darth Maul at the end of Episode I. This suprised everyone, and for good reason. As Lucas himself has said, the original trilogy showcased the lightsaber skills of old men. The prequel trilogy was meant to illustrate lightsaber battles of Jedi in their prime. Perhaps the novelty of the lightsaber has worn off, and it became little more than swordfighting, but I still think the lightsaber duels in Revenge of the Sith could have been injected with a little more excitement.

The reconstruction of Darth Vader

The movie made it feel like he went right from the shores of a molten river to the operating table – with spare parts waiting. Did Palpatine run a body shop too? I would have also liked to see where the inspiration for the body armour came from. Clearly the clone troopers were based on the Mandalorian armour worn by Jango Fett. It wouldn’t have been that hard to slip something in.

“NOOOOOOOooooooooooooooooooo!”

Revenge of the Sith may catch a lot of flak for this completely over-the-top scene, but if you remember in The Empire Strikes Back, Luke says the exact same thing in response to Vader’s startling revelation that he is Luke’s father. Furthermore, I didn’t find this reaction as important as Palpatine telling Vader that he had killed Padme in anger.

“My wife and I have always wanted to adopt a baby girl.”

This line from Bail Organa stuck out in my mind because it was in one of the last scenes in the movie. I was curious to see how Lucas would explain how the homes of Leia and Luke were determined. It’s clear why they needed to be separated – but why did Leia go to Alderaan to be a politician (clearly taking after her mother), and Luke sent to live out his young life as a simple farmboy on Tatooine (somewhat following the path of his father). I was disappointed to learn that it was simply a matter of Bail Organa saying “we want a baby girl”, and Yoda saying “put Luke with his family”. It just seemed too haphazard, and this is one of the scenes that could have used more dialogue. Was Luke sent to Tatooine because of his Force-sensitivity? Obi-Wan, an equally powerful Jedi, exiled himself there to watch over Luke. This was probably a wise choice given that the Empire wouldn’t be troubled by an outer-rim planet run by the Hutts. I would have even been happy with Bail Organa saying “we’ve always wanted a child.” Lucas picked the wrong character to start talking about specifics.

The construction of the Death Star

The Death Star prototype was hinted at in the final scenes of Episode II. Anyone that’s read Kevin J. Anderson’s Jedi Academy Trilogy knows about the Death Star prototype in the Maw installation. Tarkin personally oversaw its construction, and I’m assuming that’s who was on the bridge of the ship with the Emperor and Vader at the end of Revenge of the Sith. However, as we know from the Star Wars timeline, there’s at least 20 years in between Episode III and IV, and I find it hard to believe that it took that long to build after seeing the second Death Star built in the 2 years between Empire and Jedi. Taking the Jedi Academy Trilogy as fact, then, which Death Star were we looking at? The prototype? Or the one that would destroy Alderaan? In any case, this was a great way to tie up the movie. Like the newly appointed Vader, the Death Star was ominously waiting to utilize its power to terrorize the galaxy.

Judged by the standards set by its prequel predecessors, Revenge of the Sith is the strongest of the three. Indeed, it suffers from the same calibre of acting and draft-quality dialogue, but there was a certain cohesiveness to the film’s presentation that kept it running along smoothly, satisfying even the jaded Star Wars fan in me that was fearing the absolute worst. Now that the story arc of Anakin Skywalker is complete, I doubt that Lucas will leave this series alone. There’s already confirmation of a cartoon series and live-action TV series in the works, and making another movie could certainly be done as long as it follows a new set of characters. While I wouldn’t put it past Lucasfilm to recreate Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Princess Leia in CG for Episodes VII and beyond, there’s something about the original trilogy that branded the actors into our fan subconscious, and it would be hard to accept anything else. I’d be more interested to see the results of a reconstructed Jedi Academy, as described in the novels and games. There’s plenty of room there to cover many different themes and storylines, while still drawing from the mythos that will keep fans interested. Though thinking of the dramatic possibilities in a film about a bunch of misunderstood, angst-filled Jedi initiates leaves me a bit queasy.

born to die one thousand times

Yesterday I happened to be in a department store’s toy section out of pure coincidence (I swear), and I saw their enitre Episode III product line spread out like a Star Wars collector’s banquet. I was unmoved, however, because after a few select glances at the figures displayed, my suspicion that Star Wars action figures have reached a nadir was confirmed.

Ever since the first wave of Episode II figures the actor likenesses were taking a serious downturn. Obi Wan and Anakin looked nothing like their on-screen counterparts. Like figures starting as far back as the Episode I series, they also suffered from bad paint jobs. In the first wave of Episode III figures, Obi-Wan was sporting a Grizzly Adams beard complete with an odd looking splash of grey. What is this, Hasbro? Your version of shading? Or is it meant to age Obi-Wan? It looks like crap. Anakin looks like an emaciated goth that just wandered out of a Misfits concert. Moreover, despite obviously wearing some maternity tunic, Padme looks about 40 years old and nothing like Natalie Portman. These are core characters that have been made all but unrecognizable.

I could forgive the occasional accessorizing that didn’t exactly mesh with Star Wars canon. Aside from Luke Skywalker looking extra buff and coming equipped with some kind of grappling hook, it was still Luke Skywalker. He had a lightsaber. The Episode III version of Yoda comes with a giant bowcaster or something that shoots a rocket. I’m sure this has something to do with the film, but Yoda of all people should not be packing a piece of weaponry that’s twice his size. And look at his head! It deeply saddens me.

Even the Original Trilogy series that was started last year has been taking a dive. Mark Hamill is by no means an attractive man (at least that’s what my wife tells me), and yet they manage to turn Luke Skywalker into some kind of Dagobah swamp troll – ugly even by Yoda’s standards. Are they even using reference photos anymore?

All this is telling me that Hasbro is getting lazy, and Lucasfilm by extension for letting this crap through as official merchandise. Who gives a shit if the action figures look like the actors – let’s get them on the god damned shelves, right? I used to justify to myself that I was getting these figures for a complete collection, but not anymore. Call it growing up or simply the feelings of a jaded Star Wars fan – it doesn’t matter. It’s movie merchandising at its worst.

you’ve been lying to me

The Zelda gamecube trailer that was released during last week’s Game Developer’s conference made me a believer. This isn’t a darkening of the series so much as it is an aging of the series; Link’s new adventure does not look like something you have to make excuses for to play. There are no tattoos or trite one-liners here; this is a calculated reframing of an existing, accepted universe. Graveyards no longer have cartoonish ghosts or creatures that you would sooner laugh at; the battles contain a legitamately creepy atmosphere. What actually gave me goosebumps – yes, motherfucking goosebumps – was the brief glimpse of what seemed to be Link’s view of Return of the King’s Path of the Dead. This new adventure could very well end up falling back to its traditional gameplay elements, but at this point I’m more interested in seeing more of what the game world itself has to offer.

Then there’s the Episode III trailer. It furthers my theory that these trailers do an excellent job of building expectations. Then again, fans have been doing that for the last 20 years. I have this sinking feeling that this film will be incredible, and will somehow alleviate the growing pains that were endured over the course of its predecessors in the minds of fans. It almost feels like the entire plot could be summarized into one film, where Anakin’s childhood and “romance” with Padme are glossed over in couple of scenes. The Clone Wars and associated galactic conflicts have been developed more by outside materials than Episode II itself, and this is something I hope Episode III corrects with the stunning space battles hinted at in the trailer. The movie is starting to look more like the original trilogy, with familiar looking spacecraft filling out some of the short scenes. The part man, part machine known General Grievous looks like a fascinating character, and even after those split seconds in the trailer it seems like an indignity for him not to be canonized in the official poster. The prequel trilogy’s focus on droids is actually something to consider: could it be that the bartender in the Mos Eisley cantina had a hatred that was actually founded in these historical battles? It’s this type of thing that allows Star Wars to permanently reside in my sphere of interests.

Somehow German gaming site Gamona has scored a high res feast of the upcoming Call of Duty 2 that was recently previewed in the April issue of PC Gamer. According to dates listed on EB Games and Gamespot, the game is due to be released this August, which I have a very hard time believing. The inevitable sequel announced last month was rumoured to have enlisted the assistance of id software’s Doom III engine, but will instead be using a proprietary engine as noted in a portion of the PC gamer article. Though the screens do share similarities to the aging Quake III engine, I have to admit the models and environments look more natural. There will obviously be a campaign in North Africa, and while I do appreciate the added ability to choose which one to play, one of the screens almost looks like we’ll be placed into the boots of a German soldier. All joking aside, this could be a big step for WW2FPS single player campaign. It’s easy for a developer to motivate players by throwing a bunch of Nazis onto the screen and call them “The Enemy”. What would be even more impressive is if Infinity Ward actually used this scenario to their advantage, and explored the other side of the war. Though I doubt the moral quandary that comes with it would be suited to fans of the genre’s previously established conventions.

do not hesitate, show no mercy

The Star Wars Galaxies expansion pack I alluded to the other day is called Rage of the Wookiees. A mild surprise, to be sure, but that’s probably because I was expecting something a little more…exciting. Then again, they’ve already covered the jump into hyperspace, so what else is there besides adding a few new planets or playable races from the films?

According to the announcement, both land and space around the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk will be added, along with many new missions to go along with this new locale. In their contribution to the slave trade, the evil Trandoshans have set up several camps, and it will be the duty of players to either put and end to it or see that it flourishes. This ties in with one of the settings of the upcoming Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, as well as one of the missions in Republic Commando.

I find it a bit ironic that Episode III is going to be using Kashyyyk as a setpiece, because that was supposed to be the setting for the endgame of Return of the Jedi. Up until Chewie was established in a late draft of Star Wars as a technologically aware being – and a remarkable mechanic – Wookiees were to be a race of savages. In fact, that whole sequence where the Ewoks take on the Empire was supposed to be with Wookiees. After A New Hope Uncle George felt he was kind of screwed – there was no way people would believe that Wookiees would fight with rocks and logs after they’d seen him fire his bowcaster or fly the Millenium Falcon. To this day I still believe that Wookiee plush toys would have sold equally well, but that’s neither here nor there.

Also added in the expansion will be some new space faring vehicles, the most notable being Anakin’s Jedi Starfighter As Seen In The Film. This sounds like such a movie tie-in doesn’t it? I thought Galaxies would be able to avoid this kind of cross marketing, since it’s a game that’s been out for a while already. Due to the nature of its dynamic content though, I guess it was a valid target. It’s also pretty transparent that Lucasarts is calling the expansion “Episode III” – I mean, Jump to Lightspeed had “Episode I” right on the box. I know that they’re counting from the first release of Galaxies, but really, does the promotion have to be this obvious?

Players who enjoy the space based missions will now be able to take on “space mining” missions, where you can harvest resources from asteroids and contribute to the land based game’s economy. This is a great idea, and a step in integrating the two completely different experiences. Another addition is the ability for players to add cybernetic components to their characters, that will in turn offer improved abilities that are more than likely related to your performance in combat. Why this was done is anyone’s guess, because the cybernetic enhancements look far too crude to mesh with the period Galaxies covers in the Star Wars timeline. When Luke gets his new hand at the end of Empire Strikes Back, it’s clearly meant to be an extension of his existing body. In this new expansion, it seems that these enhancements are meant to look like enhancements, instead of adding a feature in the game to allow characters to improve on their stats without any visible side effects. But maybe I’m just nitpicking.

I’m not sure if this additional expansion was such a great idea, but I think Star Wars is experiencing some kind of fallout with the fans that it recollected after the new action figures and novels came onto the scene in the early to mid 90s. This kind of game and media integration will keep Star Wars in the geek collective consciousness, and that’s generally where they want to be. I just hope the playability of Galaxies isn’t sacrificed again by a hasty expansion that does little to change the game’s intrinsic shortcomings.

to smooth the unattractive truth

With Republic Commando, Close Combat: First to Fight, Brothers in Arms, Rainbow Six: Lockdown and SWAT 4 all arriving in the next couple of months, PC gaming appears to be fixated on squad tactical shooters for the moment. Which is fine by me, as long as they’re offering something more than genre lip service.

I guess it wasn’t much of a stretch for LucasArts to develop its own take on the genre with Republic Commando: take the nameless, faceless clone troopers from Episode II: Attack of the Clones and put them in close combat engagements, picking and choosing from the featuresets of games to come before it, and creating what can only be called a mediocre first person shooter.

I downloaded the demo last week after hearing a mixed bag of opinions. I was interested to see if LucasArts could tackle the squad tactics genre on its own, as this would be the first Star Wars game in some time that was actually developed-in house. The first thing I noticed was only one of the four squad members actually sounded like Temuera Morrison (Jango Fett). They also had their own “nicknames”, and different personalities. I thought they were supposed to be a cross section of an army of clones? Why get tied up in things like “cameraderie” and “sassy one liners” when you’re essentially a one man army multiplied a thousand times?

LucasArts definitely took some liberties with the character design, but everything ended up looking like Galactic Heroes. Of course, it’s up to the player whether they like this interpretation or not. As someone who enjoys employing precision tactics when facing my enemy, I’d rather not be looking at a chunky, obtrusive interface and even chunkier avatars. I’m really not a fan of the “visor view” either, and in my mind it goes down in history with the likes of Deus Ex: Invisible War’s HUD. I can only imagine what this view will be like in Rainbow Six: Lockdown.

I liked the way squad commands felt intuitive, but I wouldn’t call it tactics. It doesn’t require any real problem solving by the player: simply mousing over points on the map will show “hot” areas, or actions a squad member can complete. Clicking on these points will issue the associated command, but it’s not like you get the option of storming a room with thermal detonators or sneaking in quietly. The objectives and their solutions are completely transparent. In the demo’s mission, Republic Commando does a good job of making you feel surrounded and overwhelmed, but I never feared for my life. There’s a pretty good chance when you go down with 0 health a squad mate will be by to heal you up with seemingly unlimited medkits.

All the weapons felt insubstantial, like toys. I’ve played Star Wars FPS before, and I know what a repeater blaster should “feel” like. I also find it hard to believe that every character has the entire Republic arsenal at their disposal. Wouldn’t it make more sense for the squad to have a Heavy Blaster unit, a sniper unit and a support unit? That way your men become indispensable – not interchangeable. In the face of existing and soon to be released squad tactical shooters, the whole game feels like a toy. More like squad tactical action figures.

The biggest thing this game has going for it is that it’s suprisingly polished given LucasArts’ past foray into 3D. Perhaps the campaign is really interesting, and eclipses the shortfalls of the game’s core mechanics. However I’m not willing to take the time to find out. If you’re looking for another Star Wars FPS that doesn’t involve the words “Jedi Knight”, then I suppose Republic Commando is for you.

Now I’d like to talk about Ash. Ash is a band from Ireland that was introduced to me during the end credits/blooper scenes from the North American release of Rumble in the Bronx. Their catchy tribute to old martial arts films, the aptly named “Kung Fu”, played in the background. The next day I bought the album it was from, “1977″. Opening with the sound of a tie fighter flying by, and later learning that the album was named after the year Star Wars was released (despite any of the members not being born yet), I knew these guys were for real. I even had the chance to meet them when they came to Toronto back in 1996 to promote that album.

This week I found that one of the songs off of their upcoming album was selected to be on the Republic Commando soundtrack. Once again falling back on their clever songwriting skills, “Clones” will also appear on an exclusive EP called “Commando” which includes a playable demo for the game. I can’t vouch for their popularity at the moment, as I’ve been into Ash for years. Though if anyone will benefit from this multi-media promotion it will be the band. Incidentally, Ash will be back in Toronto at the Opera House April 13th. I will be there.

I don’t know if you knew that

The new Episode III teaser trailer leaves me feeling a bit crestfallen. It was supposed to be an exclusive for paying members of Hyperspace, but as everyone knows this exclusivity doesn’t last long. I found a few mirrors, but you can also grab it on the official site if you don’t mind the wait. I liked how Obi-Wan Kenobi was spliced into the trailer to tell the story of Vader from his “certain point of view”, connecting the two trilogies and preparing us for the ultimate fall from grace. Indeed, a battle between capital ships, a climactic face off between old friends, and the Emperor hovering over his new creation were all merely hinted at. I have to admit, regardless of how these movies turn out, the trailers have all been outstanding at building up expectations.

Planet Gamecube posted links to a massive number of demo reels from Nintendo Japan, most of which I’ve only been able to take cursory glances at. Fire Emblem for the Gamecube looks like, well, Fire Emblem for the Gamecube. I was completely enthralled by the GBA version, and this Gamecube version looks like a straightforward transplant into three dimensions. This isn’t to say that its receiving the same treatment as Advance Wars, mind you, because the turn based strategy thankfully remains intact.

Seeing the DS in action was pretty fascinating, and even though Advance Wars DS only got a split second I can see how the second screen will be coming in handy. And naturally WarioWare will have some cleverly distracting minigames that utilize the touch screen. I have to admit I was a little uneasy about the Nintendo DS when I first heard about it, but I avoided outright condemnation of the thing like so many media outlets were quick to do. As the feature list became more tangible, most were quick to change their tune. I’m this close to adding it to my Christmas list, as the unique gaming possibilities are seemingly endless. I’ve also determined that the Sony PSP and Nintendo DS are not direct competitors; where one is satisfied to pander an existing mindshare, the other is pushing portable gaming in new directions.

You can also find some gameplay videos of assorted Gameboy Advance titles, and if there’s one game I’m more interested in after seeing it in action it would be Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories. A sound decision was made to include Advance Wars and its sequel in one cart – any fan of turn based strategy that missed out the first time now has no excuse.

I thought that Blizzard was the master of introductory cinematics until I played Dawn of War. That doesn’t mean that the World of Warcraft intro video misses the mark; rather, it does a fine job of mixing together the various races of the game and puts them into a short film to let you know what kind of mess you’re getting into. I read about the possibility of the Open Beta starting today, and I envisioned an Internet that was incessantly bursting at the seams.

“And lo, Blizzard did begin the Open Beta, and there was much rejoicing. But it was like a mighty flood unto their servers, as thousands of keys were secured in an instant.”

i knew it wouldn’t last

After The Wife picked me up off the floor, tears streaming down my cheeks, I skimmed briefly through the discs checking over some of the key scenes that I had heard received a bit of a touch up. I half expected to see Jabba re-replaced with Declan McCullaugh in A New Hope, but instead I saw a more freckly Jabba that had obviously been remodelled to look less like inserted CG than it did in 1997. Fair enough. All of the lightsabers look a lot brighter, and I was really suprised at how clean the film-to-DVD transfer was. In an even longer celebration sequence at the end of Return of the Jedi was a brief shot of the celebration on Naboo, which I suppose was inevitable now that we know it’s part of the Alliance.

I kept looking at the DVD covers with a sneer on my face, thinking about how Lucasfilm took extra special care in trying to awkwardly place clearly old pictures to mimic the covers from the Prequel Trilogy. I decided to toss in the Bonus Materials disc, not defeated, but definitely feeling a bit demoralized. I watched the exclusive preview for Episode III, and I was a jellyfish again.

The Duel between Obi-Wan and Anakin, the fight this entire Prequel trilogy has been cultivating, will be the mantlepiece for the entire film. Watching McGregor and Christiansen rehearse against the blue screen, you can only imagine what environment is around them. Observing the extremely talented artists in Lucasfilm’s costume studio create a more “modern looking” Vader suit, I got goosebumps. It wasn’t until one of the sculptors working on Vader’s facemask said something that made you realize just how 70s the original Vader helmet looks. It’s not like they gave him glowing eyes or a platinum grill or anything, they just made some subtle changes to the entire outfit so it would seem appropriate on Christiansen’s obviously smaller frame. When he walked on set in it for the first time, the entire crew cheered – fuck, I cheered – and I was ready to jump up and wait in line for this stupid movie.

There are also three featurettes on the disc, one of them being about the evolution of the Lightsaber. I mean everyone knows the story about sound man Ben Burtt’s quest to search for what would be come one of the most famous sound effects in movie history, but there was a playful, even mythical quality to the whole thing that made you look at the Lightsaber as not just a prop or special effect, but a cornerstone of the entire series. I really doubt Star Wars would have gone anywhere if the effects crew decided to keep the rods wrapped in highly reflective tape.

The highlight of the bonus disc though is the amazingly detailed two and a half hour documentary that shows everything from Star Wars the concept and Lucas’ merchandising foresight, to the fan reaction at the release of the prequels. Anyone that’s seen From Star Wars to Jedi: The Making of a Saga knows that it was more of a promotional tool for Jedi’s theatrical release. Empire of Dreams is the story behind the Star Wars saga proper, something desperately needed to ground everyone’s expectations about this series. Indeed, things have gotten a bit out of hand with people like me acting as if Lucas himself pillaged our childhood memories, but the series still remains a great concept and a monumental influence on modern Hollywood cinema, despite Lucas’ efforts to distance himself from the Hollywood machine. The whole thing had a very VH1-feel to it, but I suppose we’re better off without Mark Hamill’s narration and the talking puppets in Star Wars to Jedi.

The release of Star Wars: Battlefront this week was met with average reviews, and much to my disappointment the demo released with the DVD set is for XBox only (and apparently overwrites your dashboard – modders beware!). Fortunately, my local electronics superstore had an outright buffet of Star Wars media to consume, the foremost being a tricked out PC with Battlefront on it. Pandemic’s engine looked very hazy and surreal, apparently sharing this behaviour with Full Spectrum Warrior. The Naboo battlefield was presented quite nicely, and this haziness served as a kind of fog that wouldn’t be out of place on this planet. The controls were standard, as were the basic gameplay objectives. I didn’t play it long enough to justify an instant buy; then again, I also can’t name too many people that wouldn’t want to aim a blaster rifle at a Gungan’s head.

I also checked out Apprentice of the Force, something I thought would end up as a “Star Wars” emblazoned turd. The animations are suprisingly smooth, and reminiscent of the acrobatics found in The Sands of Time (GBA). However the sprites remain undetailed, the backgrounds lack substance and are overall presented quite shabbily – right down to the pixellated movieframe cutscenes. You traverse the entire trilogy, faced with battles along the way for the most menial of tasks. I don’t remember Luke having to fend off a legion of Stormtroopers just to sell his damnable landspeeder, but I guess you have to gain experience for your future Force abilities somehow. The level design is uninspired and excruciatingly repetitive, and incredibly easy to play through. It’s a decent action game for serious SW fans only. And when I say serious, I’m talking about the same kind that shelled out $60 CDN on Tuesday for Hayden Christiansen’s ghost. But I’m not bitter or anything.

another slow train to the coast