Ever heard of Star Wars? I didn’t think so,
but you should look it up; it’s pretty good. Anyway, it turns out there are a whole load of
games based on the movies, which means it is our sacred duty to rank them all from worst to best.
Yes, that’s right; our single most-requested Worst to Best video is here, and we can’t
wait to upset all of you with our opinions. As you can see, the length of this
video is already out of control, so let’s get right tothe ground rules.
First, as usual, we will not be taking into account mobile games or browser
games. In most cases this is because these are often lost to history, but in this
case it’s because I’ll be 50 years old by the time I finish recording my voiceover for this
video and we have to draw the line somewhere. Second, we will only count actual Star Wars
games, rather than Star Wars crossovers with other games. That means no Disney Infinity,
Angry Birds, Zen Pinball, or The Sims. We will not count collections of previous
games nor will we count programs that are not games. Also, we won’t be covering
plug-and-play games because I don’t appreciate Yoda looking at me like that, and we won’t be
covering educational games, because I refuse to pay money for JarJar’s Journey Adventure Book.
Finally, we’re covering officially licensed games only, so that means noDeath Star
Interceptor. I know, I’m as disappointed as you are. It would clearly be #1.
Those are the rules. Let’s rank ‘em.Meesa called Ben-Ben
and I’m a little short for a stormtrooper. I mean,I’m Peter from TripleJump…and here is
every Star Wars game ranked from worst to best. #100: Star Wars: Droids
Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum Star Wars: Droids was a 1985 animated
series that ran for 13 episodes. The show does have its fans, but they should
all feel awful because this show is pants. It did get a video game adaptation on the Amstrad
CPC, though “adaptation” is probably a lofty term for a couple of robot sprites walking along
endless corridors, pausing only to play Simon. For such a simple game, it even manages to control
terribly, with on-screen buttons that need to be selected via a joystick or keyboard,
rather controlling the action directly. The game was also ported to the Commodore
64 and the ZX Spectrum, for fans who prefer their games to look as bad as they play.
Ultimately, what I am trying to say is, these aren’t the Droids you’re looking
for. Or, I suppose, this isn’t the Droids you’re looking for? Hmm. Neither really
works. Then again, nor does this game. #99: Star Wars Millennium Falcon CD-ROMPlayset
PC The Star Wars Millennium Falcon CD-ROMPlayset
could be considered one of the earliest attempts at the toys-to-life genre, which
makes it interesting in that regard and that regard only. The playset came with a figure
of Han Solo with others available separately, but none of them are needed to play the game.
The monstrositysits on your keyboard and serves as a more complicated way of pressing
buttons you could be pressing yourself. The game should be the real
draw of this package and, sadly, it probably is. It’s a series of Star Wars
clips with button prompts overlaid. Youpress the corresponding button in the physical playset.
Sometimes it tells you which button to press; sometimes it does not. That’s it. That’s the game.
The game is terrible and the playsetitself is really no better. As a wise man
once put it: What a piece of junk. #98: Star Wars: Yoda Stories
Game Boy Color No human being was asking for a
handheldversion of awful PC game Yoda Stories, but in 1999 we got one anyway.
Its main difference is that it’s even worse. Whereas the random generation of the
original game’s levels allowed for at least some superficial variety, this game has 15 tiny
levels that are the same each time you play them. In theory, this allows the developers to design
each area and mission carefully. In practice, the developers crapped out some barely-connected
screens for Luke to shuffle across, tickling things with his lightsaber in the
hopes that something will eventually happen. Though he gets top billing, all Yoda does
is tell you to find and/or kill something, then sends you on your way. This is ostensibly
part of Luke’s training that we saw in The Empire Strikes Back, but it feels more like
being sent to pick up Yoda’s dry cleaning. #97: Star Wars: Flight of the Falcon
Game Boy Advance Everybody loves the Millennium Falcon. And Han
Solo. And the large naked man Han Solo lives with. Surely a game that features all of those things
prominently in its marketing must be good. Right? NNOOO. I’d call this game a pile
of rubbish, but I don’t think this rubbish iscompetent enough to form a pile.
You rocket around – usually in the Millennium Falcon, but sometimes not, just to
really kick you when you’re down – and shoot endlessly at enemies, hoping against hope
that you’ll overcome the game’s terrible controls just long enough to hit something.
Along the way you will collide with obstacles that you couldn’t discern from the background
because everything in this game looks like it’s been smeared with crude oil. The levels
are far too long, there are no checkpoints, and any child who got this for Christmas would
likely rather have been stung by hornets. #96: Kinect Star Wars
Xbox 360 I have a bad feeling about this…
It’s easy to dismiss Kinect games. Fun, too! The hardware does have the potential
to provide a fun Star Wars experience, though. The Force is all about pretending to
do things with your hands. Shoving things over, unclogging your elderly neighbor’s toilet, or even
just strangling your friends…hold out your hand, perform some gesture, and watch the magic
happen. It’s everything the Kinect promised. And then we get a dancing game. I mean, yes,
it does provide an excellent opportunity for handsome boys to show off their rhythm,
but beyond that, who wanted this? There are other game modes, but the dancing
is by a wide margin the deepest one. The rest consist of trying to get the Kinect
to actually work. There is one part of the game that allows you to use the Force, and it’s the
least awful part. Huh. Who would have guessed? #95: Star Wars: Yoda Stories
PC It’s better than the Game Boy Color version, but
so is being dead. Star Wars: Yoda Stories for the PC has the frame rate of a flipbook, but not
nearly as much depth. As in the other version, you play as Luke, and Yoda gives you various missions
that involve walking blindly around a map. Also, the map is randomized, to ensure you’ll never
know what you’re doing long enough to enjoy it. The missions involve finding and
delivering objects, killing things, uninstalling the game, powering down your PC, and
getting out of the house to enjoy some fresh air. Also, this gameignores Yoda’s entire philosophy!
There is no try, Yoda. Don’t you remember? Have you been forgetting your medication again?
I really think we should revisit the idea of an assisted-living facility. Sitting in this
swamp all day is not good for someone your age… #94: Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy
DS As we will see, Lego and Star Wars go together
very well. It’s good that we’ll see that later, because we sure as hell won’t see it now.
Fans who purchased Lego Star Wars II on the DS no doubt knew it would not be an
experience comparable to the console version, but they probably expected something that
would be fun – or at least complete. What they got was a buggy mess, full of braindead AI,
glitches, and unintentionally funny animations. Critics went so far as to accuse the game
of being unfinished, and I see why; for such a high-profile release to feel so amateurish,
“it wasn’t finished” might have been the only explanation that made sense to them.
It scored a mere 47% on Metacritic, compared to the various proper versions of
the game – including the also-portable PSP version – which had scores in the
mid-80s. Play them instead. Please. #93: Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones Game Boy Advance
I don’t know what any of you did to deserve this, but I hope it was
worth it. Attack of the Clones for the GBA seems like a perfect satire of terrible Star Wars
games, except it really is a terrible Star Wars game. It’s slow, suffers from input lag, and has
significant hit-detection issues. What’s more, there is absolutely zero personality in its
visuals;it looks like somebody put a blank sheet of paper over another game and traced it.
The controls manage to be both stiff and overcomplicated. Instead of pressing a button to
swing your lightsaber, you hold down the button and use the D-pad to swing. That may sound
interesting, but when the entire game consists of fighting enemies that are right next to you,
it all starts to feel like a waste of time. It’s awful, and I’m angry
you made me talk about it. #92: Star Wars: The New Droid Army
Game Boy Advance As if trying to make the prequels
seem fast-paced and thrilling, The New Droid Army is one of the slowest, most
tedious, least eventful games in the GBA library. Don’t let the title fool you; the game should
have been called Anakin’s 40 Years in the Desert. At least the tedium explains why
he ended up hating sand so much. On the positive side, the graphics
are too small to criticize; we can’t tell if they look bad or not.
Otherwise, the levels are far larger than they need to be, often going for long stretches
without enemies or anything to interact with. The combat is so bad, however, that it will make you
yearn for the times when nothing was happening. Anakin walks like he’s slowly turning
into a statue of himselfand the game suffers from periodic slowdown, in case the
experience weren’t quite slow enough already. #91: Star Wars: Masters of TeräsKäsi PlayStation
Star Wars should lend itself well to fighting games, considering its large
number of recognizable characters and unique styles of combat. There have even been a few
crossovers that live up to that potential. Then there’s Star Wars’ first attempt at its own
fighting game and good lord is it awful. Masters of TeräsKäsi features only one master of
TeräsKäsi, and it’s all downhill from there. It's a sluggish, poorly controlled, uninspired mess.
Every fighting game has at least some balancing issues, but there are characters in this game
whoare simply, without any room for debate, superior. There is a massive difference in
attack range and power that puts some fighters at either clear advantages or disadvantages.
Additionally, the combos are frustratingly difficult to pull off. It’s not as much
of an issue when playing against a friend, but two people struggling to execute
combos is not much of an improvement. #90: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
DS The DS was a great handheld. I’m saying
that to remind myself of that fact, because it’s easy to forget after playing
a game that makes you use the touchscreen for just about everything. Developer n-Space
seemed to have forgotten the DS had buttons. Of all the versions of The Force Unleashed, I
can’t imagine too many people specifically wanted the one for the DS. Maybe the controls
were awful as n-Space’s way of saying, “No, seriously, buy this on a console instead.”
The visual style will appeal to those who enjoy polygons the size of gorillas. There’s no
voice acting in the game, which I imagine might surprise someone who never played a DS port
of anything else. It also goes by pretty quickly, with the entire adventure clocking in at around
four hours. The music and sound effects were well received, at least. Another nice feature
is that it’s not illegal to throw it away. #89: Star Wars
NES, Master System, Game Boy Star Wars on the NES is not this far down the
list because it’s old and we have no patience, but rather because it’s bad and…okay,
the no-patience thing still holds true. The game is punishing in all of the wrong ways.
It’s a platformer that manages to be both too stiff and too slippery – quiet back there – with
blind jumps, narrow platforms, and unforgiving fall damage. You’ll navigate interchangeable,
confusing cave systems in precisely the way nobody ever did in any Star Wars film ever.
The Master System version looks much better but still doesn’t manage to look good. It
also introduces more slowdown and hit-detection issues which, believe it or not,
don’t make the game any better. The Game Boy version is actually the best
of the bunch. Luke no longer slides around, he can start running immediately
without needing to build momentum, and the soundtrack is less terrible. Also, it’s
shorter. That actually qualifies as a bonus here. #88: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II
DS With the DS version of The Force Unleashed II,
there was an opportunity to improve just about everything from the first game. The
developers only improved maybe 30% of it but, still, that is progress. As with
the first game, the experience suffers from excessive reliance on the touchscreen. As with
the first game, it was both too easy and too short. As with the first game, there was genuinely
no reason that a sane human being would purchase it over its console counterparts.
What has improved, however, is the game’s design. It’s still not great, but
it’s a 2D platformer rather than a 3D adventure, making this a much better fit for the hardware.
Whereas the previous game felt like it was only released for DS for the sake of having a
slightly larger presence on store shelves, The Force Unleashed II at least feels like an
experience that was designed for the handheld. #87: Star Wars: Jedi Arena
Atari 2600 When you hear the words “Jedi Arena,” you
probably think of two or more Jedi swinging lightsabers at each other, either in
battle or in sport. You may picture that scene in Attack of the Clones when a
bunch of Jedi wig out and kill everything. You probably don’t picture Luke in A New
Hope playing with that little training ball, but Parker Brothers doesn’t care what you think!
Jedi Arena features two color-coded Jedi waving their…erm…weapons from side to side, as the
seeker ball floats about. The game plays as a sort of one-on-one version of Breakout, with
each player chipping through the other’s shield. The difference is that Breakout was
very good and this game is very bad. It’s simplistic to a fault, even for an Atari 2600
game, and doesn’t control very well. One fun fact, though: This is the first Star Wars game to
feature lightsabers. From humble beginnings, eh? #86: Star Wars
Game Gear Often dismissed as a port of the
NES Star Wars game, it’s not, and anyone who tells you it is should no longer
be trusted. It’s been redesigned so that it’s actually playable, for one, and it adds levels.
You now start as Leia. This already represents more variety and more recognizable Star Wars
content than most players wouldever see in the NES game. Also, the irritating Landspeeder
segments between levels have been replaced with simple left-to-right platforming stages.
It’s still not good, mind you. The visuals are roughly on par with early DOS games, the
flickering effect during low health is indistinguishable from a graphical glitch, and
the intro screen looks like it was handled by the same woman who restored the Ecce Homo. If you
need to play a version of this Star Wars game, go with the Game Gear one. But you don’t need
to play a version of this Star Wars game. #85: Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
NES, Game Boy These NES games certainly thought the appeal of
Star Wars was wandering around confusing maze systems with pixel-perfect platforming. Based on
the unrivaled worst film in the series, The Empire Strikes Back is an improvement on the previous
game. It controls better, it looks better, and the music is recognizably Star Wars. That is
hardly a recommendation, though, and it inherits many of the flaws of its predecessor.There was
also a Game Boy version of the game, in case your main complaint was that it controlled too well.
On the bright side, there is a chiptuned version of the Cantina theme. Or is it a chiptuned
version of the song Bea Arthur sings in the Holiday Special? There is no way to be sure.
And yes, The Empire Strikes Back is a great film. I just wanted to see who ranted in the
comments before I finished speaking. As you were. #84: Lego Star Wars: The Video Game
Game Boy Advance Lego Star Wars for consoles was a
simplified retelling of the prequel trilogy. Lego Star Wars for the Game Boy Advance is
a simplification of that simplification. For those who only owned a GBA and wanted to make
adorable Star Wars toys knock seven shades of studs out of each other, this was nice, but it
obviously cannot compete with the proper game. On the bright side, it looks fine and it’s well
animated. But there’s no getting around the fact that this is a lesser experience in every way. The
cutsceneshave been replaced by static images…sort of like experiencing Lego Star Wars as a
PowerPoint presentation. Also, the vehicle segments and other setpieces have been removed.
There’s very little variety in the experience, with stages repeating the same small amount of
content. As an attempt to translate Lego Star Wars to lesser hardware, it’s admirable, but
it’s not worth seeking out on its own merits. #83: Star Wars: The Clone Wars – Republic Heroes DS
Luke probably would have been much less impressed that
Obi-Wan fought in the Clone Wars if he’d known the entire thing took place on a touchscreen.
Republic Heroes is hardly remembered at all, and its DS port is remembered
even less so. This, I promise you, is for the best. It offers precious little in
terms of gameplay, in terms of variety, in terms of…just about everything, actually. You take a few
steps, kill some enemies, take a few more steps, kill some more enemies. The constant chatter from
your companions would be annoying if they weren’t the only evidence that you hadn’t fallen asleep.
Visually, the game is quite ugly. The stylized characters of The Clone Wars would have lent
themselves nicely to 2D sprites. Instead, we got a game that looks like somebody wiped
it across your screen when you weren’t looking. #82: Star Wars: Return of
the Jedi – Death Star Battle Atari 2600, Atari 5200, Atari 8-Bit, ZX Spectrum
That’s no moon! Or is…is that a moon? It might be a moon; it’s really
hard to tell with these early games. Even compared to other Atari 2600titles,
Return of the Jedi – Death Star Battle feels limited. The game takes place across two
sequences. In the first, you approach the Death Star. In the second, you shoot the Death Star.
Am I simplifying? Yes. Am I simplifying much? No. The first sequence sees you cramped in the
bottom half of the screen, waiting for a hole to appear in the barrier that separates you from
the Death Star. That’s it. In the second sequence you fire away, chipping a path to the Death Star’s
core, which explodes when you hit it. That’s it. A slightly better-looking version was released
for the Atari 5200 and the Atari 8-Bit family of computers. A worse-looking version came
out for the ZX Spectrum. Pick your poison. #81: Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy
Game Boy Advance Like the first Lego Star Wars game on the Game
Boy Advance, Lego Star Wars II loses a lot in translation. It does, however, add some unique
weapons and other features that give it at least some degree of identity. There is also, of
course, no contest when it comes to deciding whether you’d rather play as characters from the
prequels or from the original trilogy. The events, environments, and enemies are simply much more
appealing in this game, even it’s still a far cry from the console version.
It is nice that they included vehicle segments. They control terribly and I
periodically wished they hadn’t included them, but I’ll give them points for effort.
Once again the levels repeat assets too often to stay interesting, and killing the same
enemies over and over against similar backgrounds really starts to grate. It’s easier to recommend
than its predecessor, but that is not saying much. #80: Star Wars: The Clone Wars – Jedi Alliance
DS The Nintendo DS was a massive success. Actually,
I wonder where it would fall if we were to rank every handheld from worst to best…no matter. The
point is that millions of fans around the world owned one, and so when The Clone Wars TV series
debuted in 2008, a tie-in DS game made a lot of sense. Unfortunately, designing the entire game
around the stylus also made a lot of sense. Nearly every action is controlled via the touch
screen, and to be quite honest, it functions well enough. Like The Phantom Hourglass
before it, it takes some getting used to, but it does work. Maybe they should have
called this “The Phantom Hourglass Menace”? No, ignore that, it’s rubbish. The problem is
that the touchscreen holds back the game’s design, reducing battles to screen-tapping
minigames and action set-pieces to stylus-dragging quick time events.
The game also gets repetitive fast and, it must be said, it looks like
somebody’s daycare art project. #79: Star Wars: Lethal Alliance
DS,PlayStation Portable Taking place between episodes III
and IV, Lethal Alliance on the PSP drops you into the boots of Rianna. NOT THAT
ONE. Although a game about that one doing her shopping would probably be more interesting…
Anyway, you’re a mercenary nobody will ever refer to again, and it’s your job
to contend with a terrible camera, dull levels, and uninspired gameplay as you
shoot things and make underwhelming use of one of gaming’s most coveted licenses. Criticism
was levied at the poor controls and lack of any reason to play it whatsoever. Overall, it’s pretty
FLIPPING bad. I’m funny. I’m so glad I’m as funny as I am. There was a similar version released
for the DS. There are differences, of course – different modes, touch-screen
controls, the game looking like somebody ate it – but it probably doesn’t warrant
its own entry, especially since it scored similarly poorly and the PSP version was
barely worth talking about to begin with. Also then we'd have 101 entries which
would make me very sad #78: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II
Wii For the Wii version of The Force Unleashed II,
the developers went with a complete reimagining rather than a downscaled port. That is a
good thing, in theory. In practice, this reimagining should qualify as a thought-crime.
The most obvious difference comes from the visuals. To be honest, I think they look quite
good. There is a clear visual style here that suits the Wiivery well. The problem is that The
Force Unleashed II crams motion controls into everything. Basic attacks, special attacks,
puzzle solving…everything you do involves shaking, thrusting, and swinging, and never
the fun kind. Constantly jiggling the Wii Remote makes the combat feel even
more repetitive than it actually is. Across all platforms, the Wii version
performed the best with critics, earning a 71% Metacritic average when compared to the 63% for
the PS3 version, which was the second highest. Those critics are wrong. Neither game is
good, but this certainly isn’t better. #77: Star Wars: Force Commander
PC A real-time strategy game relies on two things:
the depth of the strategy, and the interface. If it’s too shallow, it feels like you’re
not so much playing the game as you are passively influencing it. And if the interface is
poor, playing itat all will be frustrating. Force Commander manages to have both problems in spades.
Perhaps this is because the original version of the game – which was entirely 2D – was scrapped
and hurriedly replaced with a completely different 3D iteration. Force Commander was riddled
with glitches, saddled with a stubborn camera, and had uncommonly poor visuals for a Star
Wars game. It was also infamously boring, with a number of reviewers admitting to giving
up because they felt so miserable playing it. Thankfully, Force Commander was not
the only attempt to turn Star Wars into an RTS. Or a Star WaRTS,
perhaps? No. Perhaps not. #76: Star Wars: Super Bombad Racing
PlayStation 2 I don’t want to talk about it and you don’t want
to hear about it, so let’s just get this out of the way. Star Wars: Super Bombad Racing is a kart
racer in which all of your favorite characters are reimagined as the Happy Meal toys you’d get
at the McDonald’s in Hell. It could play worse, to be fair, but it’s a pretty blatant way to wring
a little more money out of a movie everybody was trying very, very hard to forget. No least because
that movie literally featured a racing sequence! So what's "bombad"? Wookieepedia says it’s “a gungan superlative,”
which means nothing to me. Click the link to learn more and it says it’s “a superlative used
by gungans.” So there. It’s without meaning. And therefore pretty fitting for this game.
Oh well. There isn’t much else to say, so here’s a joke I invented: What happens when
a gungan gets sand in his eyes? Jar Jar blinks. You’re welcome. #75: Star Wars
Famicom A Japanexclusive, to this day Star
Wars on the Famicom still hasn’t seen a proper Western release. For that, I am
grateful beyond my capacity for expression. It’s a platformer, which were
often quite good on 8-bit systems, at least when the games weren’t called Star Wars.
Once again, Luke slips around like he’s got banana peels for feet. Why does a guy called Skywalker
have so much trouble keeping his balance? The levels get progressively more frustrating
as they introduce tighter and tighter jumps, and Luke is fragile enough that one hit
will kill him. Maybe he’s getting off easy, though; whenever Darth Vader takes a hit, he
instantly reincarnates as some weird animal. The game both looks and sounds better than
the NES game, but it doesn’t play any better, and isn’t worth seeking out aside from the
opportunity to fight Darth Vader while swimming. #74: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II
PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC If you liked The Force Unleashed, you’ll love
a pointless, rushed, uninventive sequel. What’s that? No you won’t? I’m sorry; I was misinformed.
The Force Unleashed had clear potential, but left a lot of room for improvement. It’s almost daring
how little of that room The Force Unleashed II explored. Certainly that’s due in part to the
fact that LucasArts gave the development team less than one year to complete it. One of the
writers revealed that he was given only three weeks to turn a script around. If you were
wondering why one of the major characters killed in the previous game returns here with
the excuse of “oh, he’s a clone now,” that’s why. Neither critics nor fans were much impressed,
and I’m sure there will be people watching this video who are surprised we ranked
it even this high. It’s underwhelming in just about every way imaginable. It’s
nothing if not consistent, I guess. #73: Super Star Wars: Return of the Jedi
Game Boy, Game Gear The Super Star Wars series on the
SNES has a distinctive look and feel, so it’s a bit disingenuous that a Game
Boy game that looks and feels nothing like it got released under the same banner.
It isn’t awful. It’s not good, to be clear, but it isn’t awful. While all of the Super Star
Wars games feature multiple playable characters, this one opens with a character select,
allowing you to choose between Luke, Chewie, and the Mighty Leia-Boushh. It works
well enough as a standard platformer, but compared to the SNES game it sees a significant
reduction in the number of enemies and hazards. Many fans might see as a good thing, however.
A version was also released for the Game Gear which certainly looks better – we’d be impressed
if it managed to look worse – but it introduced significant slowdown, making it a chore to play.
Fortunately, you weren’t going to do that, anyway. #72: Star Wars Battlefront: Elite Squadron
DS While every other Battlefront game
stayed largely consistent across platforms, Elite Squadron on the DS is very
different from Elite Squadron on the PSP. Neither is great, but it’s nice that these very
different systems received games that were at least somewhat tailored to their strengths.
On the DS, the action is simplified and makes use of a top-down perspective during ground
sequences. The simplification may work against it; critics took issue with the fact that you
could essentially fire repeatedly while walking in circles and have a pretty
decent shot at finishing the game. The space battles were also scaled back,
allowing for horizontal movement only. This renders the very concept of a space
battle pointless; you actually have fewer movement options in a spaceship than you
do when you’re on foot. The game functions well for what it is and certainly does offer an hour
or two of fun…but it’s Battlefront in name only. #71: Star Wars: The Clone Wars – Republic Heroes
PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Xbox 360, Wii, PC
Republic Heroes takes place within the continuity of the Clone Wars TV show, and at
times it actually does a good job of feeling like a lost episode. The cutscenes more or less
look the part, the entire voice cast returns, and the events of the game fit neatly after the
end of the first season. For fans of the show, this is excellent news.
The less-excellent news is everything else. While the game looks
and plays similarly across all platforms, that’s only because it does
neither of those things well. They can get away with these visuals on
PS2 and Wii but less so on PS3 and 360 Gameplay-wise though it doesn't matter what
platform you're playing on; it's inexcusable in all cases You’ll mash your way through repeated enemies
and tumble into chasms during the game’s awful platforming sections.You are able to play as
different characters in different missions, but none of them makes the game more enjoyable.
Outside of the cutscenes, Republic Heroes doesn’t even look that great, eliminating much of
the appeal for fans in the first place. #70: Star Wars: Attack on the Death Star
PC-98, X68000 To be honest, I had no idea this game existed
prior to researching this list. I don’t feel too guilty about that; it was released for
two computer systems that had practically zero presence outside of Japan. But now that I’m
actually familiar with it, it’s not half bad. The vector-based graphics still look fine today,
and the game animates remarkably smoothly on the PC-98. It’s responsive, and it’s satisfying to see
things explode into polygons when you shoot them. There is approximately zero depth to the
gameplay, but it’s about as good as one can reasonably expect from such a humble game in 1991.
The game doesn’t seem to run quite as well on the X68000, but it’s still not bad. The two versions
look different, certainly, but each has charms of its own. A bit much to call it a hidden gem,
maybe, but it’s a hidden few pence at least. #69: Star Wars: Obi-Wan
Xbox Star Wars: Obi-Wan is the story of the man who
honored Qui-Gon Jinn’s request to raise the child who would one day murder him. It’s just
as much fun as that sounds. It’s not all bad; it’s an action-adventure game that does few things
interestingly but does fewer things appallingly. One point of contention was the control
scheme:You wave your Obi-wand around using the right thumb stick. This seemed to split
fans roughly down the middle. On the one hand, you had full control over the direction
of your attacks. On the other hand, it’s different and people hate
things that are different. Critics took issue with the bland, brown
textures, which is just a longer way of saying this is an Xbox game. It’s not a game that
was ever much loved, but it does have its fans, and if you scroll down you’ll find them
yelling at me in the comments right now. #68: Star Wars: Demolition
Dreamcast, PlayStation Star Wars: Demolition is a Star Wars demolition
game. Everything is proceeding as I have foreseen. And since it’s so far down this list, it’s
likely also proceeding as you have foreseen. The concept of using a classic Star Wars
vehicle to blow up other classic Star Wars vehicles is a good one, but the game doesn’t
seem to have been given much consideration beyond that. The maps look good
but you won’t see much of them, as the vehicles all end up clustering in one spot
and firing blindly until the rest of them explode. The draw distance is terrible, and the ability
to heal yourself in the middle of a match is irritating, especially since you’ll want
to end the game as quickly as possible. Both version play similarly but the PlayStation
version looks worse. Maybe that draw distance is a mercy. I don't want too much of this in my field
of view at any one time. #67: Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron
PlayStation Portable Battlefront II received a surprisingly faithful
PSP port. It lost some areas and modes, but it was recognizably Battlefront II. From that point
forward, it seemed likely that handheld systems would continue to get scaled-down versions
of Battlefront games. What happened instead is that handhelds got the only Battlefront
games, at least until EA rebooted the series. For Renegade Squadron, developer Pandemic
handed the series to Rebellion Developments. Rebellion sure must have had some truly
fantastic games under their belt. Okay, Google: What else have they made? Oh God no, Google,
take it away! Get it out of my eyes, Google! Reviewers found the controls clumsy and
cluttered without a second analogue stick. Or whatever that thing was that the PSP had
instead. A nipple, I guess. The point is, as a game designed for a handheld system,
it translated the Battlefront experience underwhelmingly. The other point
is that your PSP has a nipple. #66: Lego Star Wars III: The Clone Wars
3DS, DS, PlayStation Portable Of all the Lego Star Wars games – and there
were a lot of them – this one probably had the narrowest appeal. Based on the CGI film
The Clone Wars and the TV show that followed, Lego Star Wars III meant little to anyone who
wasn’t interested in those spinoff titles. Additionally, those who were interested might
not have wanted a Lego game. And those who did, might not have wanted a portable
version with less content. Gone is the well-received ground assault
mode, gone are many of the playable characters (77 here as compared to 115 on consoles),
and gone are cooperative puzzles, as only one character is on screen at a time. Additionally,
the levels that are here have been simplified and contain fewer enemies and obstacles overall.
On the bright side, the game was largely the same across the three portable versions, meaning
we won’t have to talk about it two more times. #65: Star Wars Chess
Sega CD, PC Essentially a reskinnedBattle Chess,Star
Wars Chess may not be the worst game on this list, but it is one of the least
inspired and least interesting ones. The opening text crawl explains that the
Rebels and the Empire are sitting down to settle their differences through chess. It does
not explain why the chessmen resemble actual human beings on either side of the conflict,
however. Does Garry Kasparov carry little Garry Kasparovs with him to use as chessmen?
Also, Star Wars takes place a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, so does chess predate Earth
history? Did chess come from space? I expected these games to wreak havoc with Star Wars canon,
but this one is destroying the canon of real life. The most frustrating thing is we’d have
probably enjoyedthis if it were based on the Star Wars-specific holochess. Instead,
we got Star Wars sprites on a chessboard, lifting animations from a much more original game. #64: Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith
PlayStation 2, Xbox I never got round to playing this one myself but
some people in our office absolutely love it If you’ve ever watched characters in a Star
Wars film walk down a corridor and thought, “I wish I could do that in a game, many
times in a row without any variation,” Revenge of the Sith is for you, my friend.
You progress through the game easily through mere button mashing, and very rarely will you
be rewarded with anything other than the same handful of enemies and environments for
your trouble. The experience feels like somebody purchased a template for a repetitive
brawler and plopped Star Wars imagery into it. Revenge of the Sith is by no means the only
offender on this list, but it is bizarre to me that with the Star Wars license and a universe
as vast as these films occupy, we spend an entire game confined to a series of narrow corridors.
It feels like a joke. Somewhere out in space, something fun must be happening, but
you’re stuck here instead. Enjoy! #63: Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
Atari 2600, Intellivision The very first officially licensed Star Wars
game, The Empire Strikes Back for the Atari 2600 took clear inspiration from Williams
Electronics’ Defender. In fact, it even looks a lot like the 2600 port of Defender.
The game centers entirely on the Hoth sequence from the film, with you taking down AT-AT walkers.
The hulking machines can take a lot of damage, but players can show off their
skills by hitting a glowing pixel that serves as the enemy’s weak point.
The game is notable for the fact that celebrated science fiction author Harlan Ellison took time
out of his schedule to pen a scathing critique for Video Review magazine. He said the game bored
his “ass off” and called it “the latest icon of the Imbecile Industry,” with “the potential to
emerge as the most virulent electronic botulism of all.” You know…just in case you thought
the “angry reviewer” trend started on YouTube. #62: Star Wars: Rebel Assault
3DO, Sega CD, PC As a series that relies so heavily on
visual spectacle, it’s no surprise that LucasArts often pushed video game technology
as far as it could go. Also like the films, a common criticism is that the visual spectacle
may come at the expense of a better product. Rebel Assault is an early disc-based game, which
allowed it to take advantage of full-motion video, pre-rendered animated backgrounds, and full
voice acting. Okay, it was 1993 voice acting, but still, that’s impressive.
The game is almost entirely on rails, though you do have just enough control over your
ship to get frustrated when you crash into things that you thought were part of the background. The
poor controls were a common complaint as well, especially in the Sega CD version, which also
saw a significant downgrade to the visuals. It’s more of a maddening experience than it
is a challenging one, but there is another… #61: Star Wars: Rebel
Assault II: The Hidden Empire PlayStation, PC
In Rebel Assault II, every complaint about the first game has
been addressed. Not always for the best, but it has been addressed.The game looks better,
sounds better, and controls better. Its story is better. Its voice acting is better. Okay, it
was 1995 voice acting, but still, it was better. The missions were also more
varied, but this is where the “improvements” might begin to work against the
game. One of the new mission types involves steering a YT-1300 Corellian light freighter
through narrow passageways like a trash barge. Why missions that essentially allow you to fly
the Millennium Falcon are so dull is beyond me. These should have been the highlight of the game.
They also overcorrected for the difficulty. Next Generation said that it was like “a movie that
requires you to press a button at certain points until you get to see more of the movie.”
Critics, eh? There’s just no pleasing us. #60: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC The Force Unleashed takes place between the
prequel trilogy and the original trilogy, with story concepts and plot details
contributed by George Lucas himself. Is that a recommendation or a warning? Yes.
The point is, this game was meant to represent a story in the series’ main canon.That’s
good, because without that narrative clout, the game honestly wouldn’t stand out much. It
was a third-person action game that may have looked like Star Wars, but felt like
most other third-person action games. One of its specific selling points was the use of
the Force, which was meant to put every previous game to shame in that regard. It…didn’t.
The controls are finicky and without the ability to lock on to targets, hurling things
around with the Force is more frustrating than fun. You do gain other Force abilities as you
progress. If you decide to progress, that is. #59: Star Wars Battlefront II
PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC I don’t like microtransactions. They’re
expensive, and predatory, and irritating. And they get everywhere. I HATE THEM.
There’s a fine line between providing valuable additional content to players and preying on them
with aggressive microtransactions. I’m joking, of course; that line is long and thick
and EA knew exactly what they were doing. Paying for a full price game would, you’d
think, allow you access to its characters and features. Perhaps you’d have to unlock
them, but not pay for them a second time. And, indeed, they could be unlocked, but only
through grinding that was clearly designed to be lengthy and tedious. The practice proved to
be a legally grey area, with several countries launching investigations into whether or not
the game’s loot boxes constituted gambling. EA at least somewhat addressed the concerns with
a series of post-launch tweaks, but by that point it was clear that they hadn’t sold players a
game; they had sold them a vending machine. #58: Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
Arcade The original Star Wars arcade game was a massive
hit for Atari, so it was not surprising that they’d want to release games based on the other
films. What was surprising was that they adapted Return of the Jedi next. The Empire Strikes
Back was actually the third game released. It was not, however,released as a cabinet. Instead
it was a conversion kit, meaning that if arcades wanted the new game,they needed to buy both the
first game and the conversion kit. They’d also lose the original game by converting it to The
Empire Strikes Back. This was not a popular idea, as the original game was still profitable.
The game includes more variety than the original, but it’s less fun, and the final mission–
which involves no combat whatsoever – was a disappointing finale. Especially, y’know,
compared to blowing up the Death Star. #57: Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace
PlayStation, PC As a concept, The Phantom Menace
for the PlayStation is not a bad one. It was intended to explore the
relationship between Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi. And why not? The
film didn’t bother exploring it. In reality, however, it’s aconfusing slog
through mediocre late-90s game design. The camera manages to remain zoomed out
without actually showing you anything, making platformingunnecessarily frustrating.
There’s also a frequent lack of clarity on how to progress, and when the game decides to
spice up its formula, it does so with an escort mission straight from the depths of Hell.
The combat is not great, either. Using a lightsaber feels fine, but using a blaster is an
exercise in frustration, as lining up your shots is more “a nice idea” than even a remote
possibility. The PC version looks better, at least. By that I mean it doesn’t
look like a child drew it from memory. #56: Star Wars: Return of the Jedi
Arcade Atari’s second arcade game was a
massive visual departure from its first. The vector-based graphics were gone
in favor of what was a more colorful and common sight in arcades at the time. Everybody
will have their own preferences, of course, but for the era this looked pretty good.
The gameplay unfolds over the course of several vehicle-based segments, in which you
control a speeder bike, the Millennium Falcon, and an AT-ST. Each segment involves both combat
and navigating obstacles, and it’s not easy. The highlight of the game – though a very difficult
one – comes in the second section, where you must escape the exploding Death Star after blowing
up its reactor. Navigating the same course again in reverse is a clever way of getting more mileage
out of the sequence and ramping up the tension. In the end it’s little more than a fancy
score-attack, but it’s a fun one while it lasts. #55: Star Wars Battlefront: Elite Squadron PlayStation Portable
Usually considered the “proper” version of Elite Squadron by fans of the game
– yes, both of them – the PSP version is much closer to the spirit of Battlefront than the DS
one is. This was the third game in the series made for Sony’s handheld, of course, which meant that
developers had already seen just how close the system could get to a full Battlefront experience.
Both the ground combat and space combat felt closer to what the series had established,
and the game was praised for its campaign. There was also a nice multiplayer mode that
allowed two players to share a single PSP. It wasn’t received much differently from the
DS version overall, however. It sits at 63% on Metacritic compared to the DS version’s
61%. For both fans and critics at the time, the handheld titles simply were not
scratching that Battlefront itch. #54: Star Wars Racer Revenge
PlayStation 2 Episode I: Racer was great, but there was
one problem: the PlayStation didn’t get it. Nintendo and Sega fans got to enjoy the
only good thing that said “Episode I” on it, but Sony ponies – as we’ve seen you cleverly
call us in the comments – were left out. Well, the joke is on you, because PlayStation
owners got the disappointing sequel and you didn’t! Put that in your pipe and Snoke it. The
story serves as a sequel to the previous game, with Anakin and Sebulba meeting up
eight years later to podrace again. Because as a Jedi in training,
Anakin surely has loads of free time. It wasn’t terrible, even if it was a big step
backwards. It had fewer tracks and fewer racers, but you could race as Darth Vader, which you
shouldn’t think about too carefully. You can also unlock Darth Maul, but I would’ve preferred
having to unlock each of his halves individually. #53: Star Wars
Arcade Regarded as one of the best arcade games
of its era, Atari’s Star Wars was parsecs ahead of its time. (We’re referring
to both time and distance here so, look, we used the wordcorrectlyand stayed true to
the film. BE IMPRESSED.) Its vector-based graphics still look great, and they provided gamers with
one of the fastest, most intenseexperiences they could have for a quarter/the UK equivalent.
The entire game centers on a single sequence from A New Hope: the attack on the Death Star. Three
levels repeat, increasing in difficulty each time, of course, until the player finally runs
out of lives. The game gets frantic fast, to the point that anyone who consistently
performs well should be tested for midichlorians. Fun fact: In 2005, Brandon Erickson set a world
record by playing the game for a continuous 54 hours on a single credit. I’d hate to have
been the guy after him, waiting for my turn. #52: Star Wars Galaxies
PC Star Wars Galaxies was an ambitious MMORPG
that ran from 2003 to 2011. In that time, it built a large and passionate user base, and then drove all of those users away
through a series of poor decisions. Galaxies was a rich experience, full of
customization and opportunities for roleplaying. Charactersdid not have to engage in combat at all,
if they didn’t want to. They could run shops, be entertainers, gather resources…it was basically an
opportunity to live within the Star Wars universe. In 2005, however, the game introduced an
expansion which, contrary to its name, actually reduced the amount of content available.
It was so poorly received that Sony Online Entertainment offered refunds, but Galaxies
started to hemorrhage users. It dragged itself along to 2011, when the game was hacked, affecting
the personal information of between 20 million and 30 million users, and was shuttered not long
after. Way to go out with a bang, though. #51: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, Wii, N-Gage Weirdly, the scaled-down version
of The Force Unleashed released for inferior hardware is the better game overall. LucasArts created a unique physics engine for the
PS3 and Xbox 360 versions of the game, which is not used here due to hardware limitations.
This actually ends up being a good thing, as that physics engine didn’t work. This
version of The Force Unleashed centers around direct combat instead ofobject manipulation.
That is unquestionably a good thing. It also has all of Starkiller’s abilities unlocked
from the start, meaning you have more options for how to deal with any particular threat. What’s
more, the narrative of the game is the same, meaning you don’t lose out on that sweet, sweet
canon; you just gain a better experience overall. Oh, also, there was a version released for the
N-Gage. We couldn’t find much information on it, but it seems to run at the
framerate of a novelization. #50: Star Wars: The Clone Wars
GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox Dedicated specifically to the battles
that took place in and around Episode II, The Clone Wars relies heavily on vehicular
combat. It’s not a standout title on any of its platforms – even among Star Wars games –
but it plays well and looks great for its time. Criticism was directed at the campaign’s
reliance on escort missions, on-foot sequences, and other irritating objectives that
distracted from the game’s actual strengths. The Clone Wars is at its best when it leaves the
player alone to simply enjoy the explosive fun, and it really shines in multiplayer. The Xbox
version took this aspect of the game online, giving it an edge over the others.
Cooperative modes and competitive modes kept things interesting long
after the story was complete…if you even bothered to complete the story. If
somebody remembers The Clone Wars fondly today, it’s almost certainly due to nights spent
blasting the absolute sith out of a loved one. #49: Star Wars Episode I: Racer
Game Boy Color If there was one thing everybody loved about
The Phantom Menace, it was Jar Jar. I’m joking, of course; it was midichlorians. I’m joking,
of course; it was child Anakin. I’m joking, of course; it was the Galactic Senate.
I’m joking, of course; it was Darth Maul appearing for only about 20 seconds.
I’m joking, of course; it was the pod racing sequence, which felt tailor made to
serve as the basis of a great video game. And it did! But less so on the Game Boy Color.
This versionworks well enough and conveys a decent sense of speed. You can’t always see the
entire width of the track, however, making it difficult to judge upcoming turns. An on-screen
indicator tells youwhat’s ahead, but that’s different from being able to see it yourself.
It’s like driving with your eyes closed while someone in the passenger seat shouts directions at
you. Only, y’know, not utterly stupid and illegal. #48: Star Wars: Squadrons
PlayStation 4, PlayStation VR,Xbox One, PC Star Wars: Squadrons doesn’t bode
especially well for an inspired future of Star Wars games. I will say that
it looks excellent. Visually, it’s difficult to find much fault. The modeling of the ships in
particular – both inside and outside – is great, and that’s good, because the ships
are the main appeal of Squadrons. Sorry; I misspoke. The ships are the
only appeal of Squadrons. In fact, it feels like it’s been carved off from a larger,
more-complete game. One that had more of a story and a variety of missions and couldn’t as easily
be boiled down to “blow things up in space.” It’s unclear who, exactly, the game is for.
Fans of X-Wing and TIE Fighter will likely be turned away by the focus on quick combat as
opposed to simulation, and those who enjoy the quick combat probably already own several Star
Wars games with much more content and variety. #47: Star Wars: The Clone Wars – Lightsaber Duels
Wii After Masters of TeräsKäsi brought us
an underwhelming Star Wars fighting game and The Force Unleashed brought
underwhelming lightsaber combat to the Wii, there wasn’t much reason to expect that a
title combining the two would be any good. The Clone Wars – Lightsaber Duels, however, is
less disposable than you would have expected. The lightsabers work about as well as
anything can with a Wii Remote. The game may have benefited from the Wii MotionPlus,
which didn’t release until the following year, but the standard controller works well enough
for the game to be fun, especially with friends. The combat is simple and repetitive,
though. The characters also never shut up, a problem exacerbated by the limited
number of voice lines. Additionally, the AI is atrocious, sometimes hacking away at
the environment instead of at you. But it works, and when it comes to motion-controlled games, that
is sadly enough to qualify as a recommendation. #46: Star Wars: X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter
PC The first game was X-Wing. The second game was
TIE Fighter. The third game is X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter. It’s somehow confusing and perfectly
straightforward at the same time.You won’t see those other two games for a while, and that’s
for a good reason: There was a lot more to them. X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter had a rather
daring idea: It was multiplayer-focused, with only practice missions available for single
players. In 1997 – when dial-up modems with limited online hours were commonplace – online
gaming was far less convenient than it is today, though, andthis limited the game’s appeal.
The developers eventually did release an expansion that gave the game a single-player
campaign, but we aren’t counting expansion packs for the purposes of this list. Those
who could play online had a lot of fun. #45: Star Wars Arcade
32X, Arcade Ten years after Atari’s classic Star Wars game
hit arcades, Sega released what was essentially an updated, ground-up reimagining. While it
did not offer much more than the original, it was worth making if only to show just
how far video game technology had advanced. Look! The polygons are solid now!
Also, few arcades in 1993 would’ve still possessed a cabinet from 1983 taking
up floor space. If they wanted more quarters, they’d have to release a new game. Like the
original, this one sees you flying around and blasting things, and now you could do it in
co-op. That alone is worth it for the chance to shout, “Don’t get cocky” at each other.
The fact that Sega made the game meant that they would have dibs on a home console port, and
they indeed released one for their struggling 32X. It was well received by critics,
but not well enough to save the console. #44: Star Wars: Starfighter
Arcade,PlayStation 2, Xbox, PC Starfighter for the PlayStation 2 is a difficult
game to get a handle on, mainly because it feels unremarkable. Some Star Wars games are
significantly better than this one, and some of them are significantly worse. In almost
all cases, they’re more noteworthy and unique. All of which is to say Starfighter is
neither very bad nor very good. It’s entirely competent. The game runs fine. It looks
okay. But it’s a far from memorable experience. Perhaps this is due to its short length and low
level of difficulty. Blasting ships is less fun if you don’t feel like you’re in danger, and the
enemies in this game really stretch the second half of the phrase “artificial intelligence.”
An upgraded version was released for the Xbox, and it made a rare console-to-arcade transition
as part of Tsunami Visual Technologies’ TsuMomulti-game system. I can find almost no
information about it. I’m sure it was great. #43: Star Wars: Jedi Starfighter
PlayStation 2, Xbox One year after Starfighter, which was a
Phantom Menace tie in, we got Jedi Starfighter, released to promote Attack of the Clones.
Like the movies on which they’re based, the second one was superior to the first,
but not by enough to really matter. Still, it is a better experience overall,
representing more of a challenge and more variety in the types of missions available. The
major difference is indeed the Jedi Starfighter itself. Players can now choose between two
pilots, one of whom can use Jedi powers in addition to the ship’s weaponry. That
alone makes the game more interesting. Both versions of Jedi Starfighter
suffered from frame-rate issues, and the Xbox version introduced some bugs of its
own. If you’repicking up only a singleStarfighter game, this is the one to get, but if you
enjoy one you’ll probably enjoy the other. #42: Star Wars Episode I: Obi-Wan’s Adventures
Game Boy Color Pop quiz: Which Star Wars film received the
largest number of video game adaptations? Well, The Phantom Menace, obviously,
otherwise I wouldn’t be asking the question during this entry. But still, if it
weren’t for that, you’d be quite surprised! Obi-Wan’s Adventuresdoes not look great.
In fact, you’d be forgiven for taking one glance at this and deciding that it is not
for you. Give it a shot, though, and you’ll find a surprisingly decent Star Wars game.
The game shines in its responsiveness and fluidity. It’s far beyond most games
on the Game Boy Color in that sense, with genuinely engaging combat that is
helped along by incredibly smooth animations. It’s everything fans hoped for from
the 8-bit Star Wars games on the NES. It took a while to get here, and a much worse
film to be based on, but it was worth the wait. #41: Star Wars: Jedi Power Battles
Game Boy Advance It’s not quite up to the standards of its console
counterpart, but the Game Boy Advance version of Jedi Power Battles does an admirable job. It
features three characters: Obi-Wan Kenobi, Qui-Gon Jinn, and the correct choice, Samuel L. Jackson.
They each have their own abilities, but none of them will make for an easy adventure; the
game is tough as nails, particularly when it comes to the platforming. The combination
of the small screen, limited visibility, and aggressive enemies means you’re always in
danger of falling into a pit and dying instantly, long after you’ve mastered the actual combat.
For this reason, Jedi Power Battles is about evenly split between being satisfying
and frustrating. That’s unfortunate, because the game looks fine, has great pacing, and
is a lot of fun while it’s focused on the combat. It’s a shame the platforming is so
mac-clunky. OKAY. OKAY, I’M SORRY. #40: Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power Battles
Dreamcast, PlayStation Jedi Power Battles is a lightsaber-‘em-up
with platforming elements that really, truly should not have any platforming
elements. It’s an uneven experience to be sure, and it frequently feels unpolished, but
for some mindless action – especially mindless co-op action – it’s a lot of fun.
The biggest crime the game commits is being dull. The impressive animation obscures how shallow
the movesets actually are. What’s more, those animations end up getting in the way
during the more-frantic sections, as you’ll be vulnerable during your windup animations.
The PlayStation version is nearly identical to the Dreamcast version, but the latter does
have some noticeable advantages. For instance, it has improved visuals, much quicker
load times, and even had some of the platforming sections redesigned so that they
are …still pretty bad, actually. Nevermind. #39: Star Wars Episode I: Battle for Naboo
Nintendo 64, PC The final N64 Star Wars game saw Factor
5 – developer of the excellent Rogue Squadron – working their magic on The Phantom
Menace. That’s a bit like hiring a master chef to warm up your Ginster’s chicken and mushroom slice,
I know, but Factor 5 did some pretty good work with the source material. And, by that, I mean
they didn’t focus too much on the source material. The game comes across as a sci-fi war game
with sky-, sea-, and ground-based vehicles armed with futuristic weaponry. Beyond that,
it didn’t have to be a Star Wars game at all. Criticism was directed at a lack of the
film’s characters, but considering the characters introduced in that film, I think
they made the right decision. Praise was directed at its technical achievements, such as
its impressive draw distance and weather effects. The game’s PC versionwasreceived much worse,
due to poor porting, controls, and optimization. #38: Vader Immortal
Oculus Quest, Oculus Rift, PlayStation VR It may have a title like your grandmother
trying not to curse after stubbing her toe – “Vader immortal!” – but until Squadrons came
along, Vader Immortal was the closest thing fans had to a proper Star Wars experience in VR.
It looks the part, sounds authentic and tells an interesting story about one of the most famous
villains in cinemahistory. For some, that will be more than enough reason to pick it up.
For those seeking an actual game, though, Vader Immortal leaves a lot to be desired.
It might as well be on rails for the amount of interactivity there is, andthe full
experience clocks in at around two hours. It’s also glitchyto an unfortunate degree.
Much betteris the side content: isolated training missions that allow you to wield
blasters, lightsabers, and the Force. All of the replay value is here. If only they’d
fleshed it out and made this the game instead. #37: Clone Wars Adventures
PC Few properties lend themselves to MMORPGs better
than Star Wars. The films introduced audiences to a wealth of races, factions, and planets, each
with their own histories ripe for exploring. If you take the expanded universe material into
account, the possibilities are even greater. Of course, that was until Disney bought Star
Wars and started dispatching agents to the home of anyone who mentions the expanded
universe. Okay, I need to hurry this up… Clone Wars Adventures was basedon the Clone Wars
series, and it shares the family-friendly approach that show took to its material. Critics, however,
took issue with how shallow the experience was. Much of Clone Wars Adventures consisted of playing
minigames, most of which were modeled onother games. It’s difficult to look at something
like Star Wars and decide that playing a few rounds of Tower Defense in an MMORPG setting
is living up to the franchise’s true potential. #36: Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire
Nintendo 64, PC Shadows of the Empire had a troubled
development, which is reflected in the uneven nature of its overall experience. It
entered development for the Nintendo 64 before the specs for that system were finalized. The
team used a modified SNES controller to get a feel for how it might play on the new system.
The fruits of their labors were shown off at E3 1996, where nobody liked it. They postponed
the game for retooling and that was probably for the best. Even so, the finished product met with
mixed reviews. The overall consensus was that the vehicle segments were varying degrees of good and
the on-foot segments were varying degrees of bad. Critics and fans loved the opening mission on
Hoth, though, which was uniformly lauded as a high-water mark for Star Wars games in general.
So beloved was that mission that it actually inspired the Rogue Squadron series, which
we will not hear about any time soon. #35: Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds
PC Have you played Age of Empires II?
If so, you’ve played Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds.I’m exaggerating, but
only a bit. Whereas a few games on this list could be said to be clones of other, non-Star
Wars games, Galactic Battlegrounds went so far as to license the engine from its inspiration.
LucasArtsliterally took Age of Empires II and painted over it with Star Wars characters, making
it feel like a standalone expansion to that game. “Age of Empire Strikes Back,” if you will.
By no means did that result in a bad product; Age of Empires II is great and
provided a sturdy foundation. And if Galactic Battlegrounds WAS an Age of
Empires expansion in all but name, it was the biggest flipping expansion I've ever seen.
The number of different units here was ridiculous LucasArts certainly put a lot of work into this game but, either way, it still feels like an AoE clone.
Amusingly, Galactic Battlegrounds got its own expansion called The Clone Campaigns. It
was a more accurate title than they intended. #34: Lego Star Wars III: The Clone Wars
PlayStation 3, Wii, Xbox 360, PC “More of the same” is a phrase we started hearing
a lot at this point in the life of Lego Star Wars, but with a formula this strong, that’s not
such a bad thing. You know the kind of gameplay to expect, you know the kind of humor you’ll
experience, and you know it will be a good time, even if it’s not as memorable as its predecessors.
Fewer fans were going to get as excited for a Clone Wars game as they were for the games
based on the live-action films. Developer Traveller's Tales did their best, though.
They introduced real-time strategy segments, improved the vehicle segments, and
included more playable characters than were available in the previous games: 115
this time, which is nothing to sneeze at. It didn’t review as well as Lego Star
Wars II, but that was to be expected. As with all Star Wars material, it’s almost
impossible to compete with the original trilogy. #33: Star Wars Battle Pod
Arcade Nowthis is pod-battling! With the
heyday of arcades long since past, Bandai Namco knew its 2014 Star Wars game would
have to feel like an event. The company debuted it at New York Comic-Con to demonstrate the
machine’s merits, and those merits were many. It was designed as a 180-degree experience, with
the action unfolding around you and simulated wind to make you feel as though you were really
in space. You know…where all that wind is. The levels take the form of famous
scenes from the first three films. Weirdly, the prequels are not
represented. That’s unfortunate; I would have loved playing through those long
scenes of boring people talking to each other, feeling their breath in my hair.
It was an expensive game, and it’s not the sort of thing every arcade could
afford. Bandai Namco also released a standard, non-pod version for that reason, but
playing it was nowhere near as memorable. #32: X-Wing Alliance
PC Two years after X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter left
single-player fans cold, X-Wing Alliance attempted to win them back, and it was a solid attempt.
The game looked incredible for 1999, the combat had been reworked, and the space battles were far
larger and featured more ships than ever before. You begin the game essentially slumming for your
family’s transport company, which serves as both a great tutorial and a fitting prologue
for the character. Before long, of course, you end up roped into a struggle for the fate
of the galaxy, where you – just like everyone else in every other game – are our “only hope.”
You’d think that title would be more exclusive… Anyway, fans and critics saw it as something of a
return to form, but numerous glitches, confusing objectives, and a lack of polish held it back from
being regarded as highly as the first two games. #31: Star Wars: Dark Forces
PlayStation, PC 1993’s Doom released to such
acclaim and popularity that countless knockoffs appeared in its wake.
It turns out people like money. Who knew?! Star Wars was not about to be left behind. In
1995, LucasArts released what looked like a very impressive Doom mod featuring Star Wars
characters. The game is good, and it kicked off the larger Jedi Knight series, but in this
first game there was not much to set it apart from id Software’s game from two years prior.
LucasArts built its own engine for Dark Forces, allowing for more complicated atmospheric effects
and some additional movement options, such as looking up and down. Which is all well and good,
but it was still Doom with Star Wars characters, and it would be up to the game’s sequels to move
beyond that definition. It’s a good time, though, as long as you avoid the PlayStation version, which runs like the console is
attempting to leap into the sarlac pit. #30: Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens
PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Wii U,
3DS, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PC What? Could it be? A Lego Star Wars game that
is more or less the same experience across all platforms? Well…no, actually, because
this game was also released on mobile phones, but we are not taking those into account,
which means Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens only needs one entry on this list.
It’s also a pretty good game overall, though it feels a little slight when compared
to the previous titles, which either adapted entire trilogies or TV shows.The reduced scale of
the game still left plenty of content, however, with more than 200 playable characters.
Like the film, it didn’t reinvent the formula, but it gave us another serving of something
we enjoy. Now to see what they do with The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker in the
upcoming Lego Skywalker Saga. I have to admit, the design of the steelbookmakes me
think they’re off to a good start. #29: Star Wars Trilogy Arcade
Arcade The run-up to The Phantom Menace sawmassive
amounts of merchandising. Store shelves were full of Star Wars characters and imagery.
Though it was obviously the upcoming films that dominated imaginations, it was also
a time to celebrate the original trilogy. Sega’s Star Wars Trilogy Arcade, released just
a few months before Episode I hit theaters, was among the best of those celebrations. While
the visuals may be showing their age a bit now, the core gameplay is still every bit as fun as
it ever was. Sega took famous scenes from the original three films and reimagined
them as nail-biting rail-shooters. The game had great controls and a
surprising amount of variety for the genre, shifting between ground missions,
vehicle segments, and even lightsaber battles. It may not be as
“classic” as the Atari cabinets were, but this is what every young fan saw when
they played those games in the first place. #28: Star Wars Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike
GameCube The release of the excellent Nintendo 64 original
established Rogue Squadron as a series to follow. It got a solid sequel on the GameCube, so
surely the third would be even better. Right? Not right. Wrong, in fact!
Rogue Squadron III ran into development problems that were, let’s be honest
here, completely avoidable. For no real reason, Factor 5 scrapped the entire engine they had built
and started fresh, running into new glitches and complications that had never been problems before.
They also introducedclumsy on-foot missions, which is a puzzling decision for a series based around
thrilling aerial combat. Wait, is it aerial if there’s no air? Eh, you know what I mean.
Neither fans nor critics were particularly impressed. It didn’t score terribly,
but a Metacritic average of 75% for this game was a huge step down from
the 90% of its immediate predecessor. #27: Star Wars: Bounty Hunter
GameCube, PlayStation 2 Star Wars: Bounty Hunter was
released in support of Episode II: Attack of the Clones. It stars JangoFett,
who was the best-received aspect of that film…probably because he reminded fans
of a character in a much bettermovie. The game fleshes out his history, which
should be a huge bonus to anyone who felt the prequels didn’t contain enough unnecessary
exposition. Overall, it’s a simple action game with good controls and exciting gun fights.
You get to walk around and shoot people, jump around and shoot people, and fly around
and shoot people. Who could ask for more? The bulk of the criticism was levied toward
the game’s stubborn camera and finicky lock-on, as well as the fact that it drags on far longer
than it remains enjoyable. The GameCube version was better received
due to its higher framerate and superior visuals. #26: Star Wars Trilogy: Apprentice of the Force
Game Boy Advance We’ve seen a number of attempts to reimagine
the Star Wars saga as a platformer – and we’ll still see a few more – but Apprentice of the
Force is among the best. I know, that’s saying precious little, but it really is worth a look.
True to the game’s title, we play as Luke through the events of the original trilogy. He gradually
becomes more in tune with the Force, acquiring new abilities, which keeps what is an overall simple
game from ever growing too stale. Vehicle segments also make an appearance to break up the formula,
and the pair of one-on-one lightsaber duels with Darth Vader feel appropriately climactic.
It animates smoothly and the action is engaging. It’s a genuinely goodtranslation of a classic
film series intoa classic video-game genre. It’s not nearly as well known as some other
titles, but it is indeed worth a look. #25: Star Wars: Racer Arcade
Arcade Star Wars: Racer Arcade ended up being
the final Star Wars game Sega developed, but they definitely went out memorably.
There’s no wrong answer when it comes to choosing between this and Episode I:
Racer. We ranked it below the console game, but we still admit it’s gorgeous, runs
marvelously, and is fun to play, especially if you can find one of the two-player models.
Why did we rank it lower, then? First, to make you angry. But second, because we don’t feel that
it has quite as much staying power as Episode I: Racer. The amount of content here simply doesn’t
compare. There are only four tracks and four racers, as compared to the more than 20 of each
available in the console games. Also, y’know, there’s the fact that you can’t buy this nearly as
easily. Don’t let me stop you from trying, though. #24: Star Wars: The Old Republic
PC According to reports, Star Wars: The Old Republic
is one of the most expensive games ever produced, with estimates placing the development costs
north of $200 million. For that kind of money, the game had better be good.
And it is! Like all MMORPGs, the game has had its ups and downs, but criticism
tends to be more along the lines of “it’s World of Warcraft with Star Wars stuff” rather than
“it’s a bad game and not worth your time.” Even the least impressed players,
however, have had great things to say about the writing. A game like this
could have skimped on narrative, but each of its eight classes gets an
entire storyline full of companions, dialogue options, and voice acting. Also, it
came to Steam in July, nine years after its original launch. If you’re interested in giving
a go for the first time, you won’t be alone. #23: Star Wars Battlefront
PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC Oh how naïve we were in 2015, when
EA launched a rebooted Battlefront series and gamers were actually happy about it.
In fairness to our younger selves, their first Battlefront game provided little reason to worry.
It looked great, it played well, it was fun, and – get this – the DLC was substantive and
worth buying. Fancy that! Especially praiseworthy were the detailed visuals, which were lauded as
being the best a Star Wars game has ever looked. There were perfectly valid criticisms of the
game, centered mainly on its dearth (ha ha) of single-player content and the fact that several
of the multiplayer modes felt unbalanced, favoring one side over the other. Each version of
the game scored between 72% and 75% on Metacritic, which we think was fair. It was clear,
however, that the game’s flaws could easily be ironed out by a sequel.
Again: How naïve we were in 2015. #22: Star Wars: Republic Commando
Xbox, PC For a game about the joys of going without
undergarments, Republic Commando is darned good. It’s a first-person shooter
following a squad of clone troopers, which sounds like it should be the
most disposable game in history, but its solid design and unexpectedly
strong characterization helped it stand out. Republic Commando takes superficial
inspiration from the excellent Metroid Prime, with the HUD consisting of actual visor
elements that your character sees, though it is far more action-oriented and
relies on teamwork as opposed to going solo. The teamwork, of course, would be a detriment
rather than a benefit if it weren’t for the impressive squad AI, which sees your companions
only rarely doing the dumbest things imaginable in the heat of combat.
The game was well received, with the main criticism being that it
wasn’t long enough. While it lasted, though, it was a lot of fun with a style that
was both distinctive and recognizably Star Wars. #21: Star Wars: Battlefront
PlayStation 2, Xbox, PC Before EA left its distinctive mark
on Battlefront, the series belongs to Pandemic Studios. They had an appealing –
and pretty savvy – idea for a Star Wars game: no boring stuff. Other Star Wars games had
clear high and low points. Pandemic intended Battlefront to consist only of high points.
Overall, the approach worked. They took an assortment of planets – mostly ones we’d seen
in the films – and allowed players to choose from different factions and time periods. From
there, they’d be launched right into battle. The developers counted on the rhythms of
multiplayer matches to provide the tension and release necessary to keep things interesting.
It was a hit, with scores mainly in the low to mid-80s. It was far from the deepest or most
complex Star Wars experience available, but Pandemic managed to capture akind of thrill that
many other games had only periodically achieved. #20: Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II
PC Kyle Katarn, star of the first Dark Forces
game, got his chance to shine outside of Doom’s shadow with Dark Forces II. And…okay,
yes, it’s still an awful lot like Doom, but it does a better job of making the series
stand out…which might be why they applied a new title – Jedi Knight – from here onward.
The levels are more carefully designed and better balanced, giving the feeling of a
series of actual locations as opposed to the interchangeable rooms and corridors that made
the first gameso claustrophobic. Additionally, the items and enemies are no longer sprite-based;
they are made of polygons, which was uncommon for first-person shooters at the time. Also,
there’s a lightsabernow. You like those, right? Critics adored this game. Whereas the first was
understandably derided as a clone, this one scored exceptionally well, jumping from the first
game’s average of 77% to a well-deserved 91%. #19: Super Star Wars
SNES The earliest Star Wars game for which anyone
with self-respect could possibly feel nostalgic, Super Star Wars is far from perfect
but still manages to be a lot of fun. It has an appealing simplicity that keeps
it in the conversation today. Not many SNES games warrant a PS4 re-release, after all.
As far as a true retro Star Wars experience goes, Super Star Wars hits the spot. The controls are
tight, the sound effects are true to the films, and murdering aliens is endlessly satisfying.
It has its flaws, of course. It seems to want to both look like the films and
be cartoony, doing neither style justice. Its level design could certainly use
some cleaning up, too; it alternates between being simple to the point of boredom and being
overstuffed to the point of frustration. Still, it set the stage for the entire SNES trilogy, and
it’s absolutely worth a few hours of your time. #18: Star Wars: Empire at War
PC Galactic Battlegrounds was a good game in the
sense that LucasArts took an already-good game and wrote “Star Wars” on it. Five years later,
Empire at War made good on the promise of a genuine Star Wars RTS experience, and it’s
still remembered as a highlight of the genre. One advantage it clearly has over its
predecessor is its space battles. You know…literal star wars. Instead of just
claiming and conquering territory on the ground, you also get to spread your influence
throughout the vast reaches of space. It was an obvious addition and a welcome one.
There’s also a much-loved Galactic Conquest mode, which sees players conquering planet after
planet, either as the dominating forces of the Empire or the scrappy resistance of the Rebel
Alliance. Empire at War does an excellent job of capturing the spirit of the films in a more
strategic way than most games ever attempted. #17: Lego Star Wars: The Video Game
GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox, PC Lego and Star Wars are two of
the most beloved properties in the world. Combining the two in a
video game would, at the very least, be an interesting experiment. It turned
out to be a beloved new series of its own. The game reimagined the prequel trilogy as
silent minifigures performing slapstick comedy. It was a genuinely funny and surprising take on
what was – for better or worse –deeply serious source material. It also featured legitimately
creative gameplay, laying down a sturdy formula for all other licensed Lego games to follow.
It reviewed well, but not exceptionally so; depending on the platform it averaged
between 75% and 79% on Metacritic. It was a sales success, however, selling around
seven million copies worldwide. Its low difficulty and simplistic puzzles were
singled out for criticism, but its charm, accessibility and sense of humor were the real
draws here, and nobody can find fault with those. #16: Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith
DS, Game Boy Advance Revenge of the Sith is a movie about two
men beating each other up by some lava. Sorry, did you say there was more to the movie
than that? Not as far as I remember. Anyway, the handheld game is quite good.
Unlike the movie on which it’s based, the game is bright, colorful, and honestly
rather adorable. It couldn’t possibly be further from the source material in terms of
its presentation, and that’s exactly what I love about it. The game plays to the strengths
of Nintendo’s handhelds, with a great comic-book style and gorgeous sprite animations. Combat
is fairly involved, as well, and the enemies can quite easily get the upper hand if you
don’t pay attention to what you’re doing. The DS and GBA versions look almost
identical. They differ a little bit in terms of extra content, but you
can’t go wrong with either version. #15: Super Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
SNES The second Super Star Wars game is an excellent
evolution of the first. Fansresponded positively to just about everything it did differently.
The levels wereless frustrating and the gameplay introduced new abilities, which represented Luke’s
development as a hero. This includes using the Force, deflecting lasers with his lightsaber, and
double ju…erm… two thirds of a triple jumping. The difficulty was still extraordinarily high,
but everything felt a bit fairer with more room for error. That doesn’t mean that it was
fair or that it had much room for error, but with games this difficult, we will
certainly take all the help we can get. The best thing about it, of course, was that its
existence all but guaranteed we’d get one more game, and Star Wars would not just be a trilogy of
great films, but would also be a trilogy of great 16-bit platformers. Maybe it’s a bit greedy
to want both, but I’m glad we’ve got them. #14: Star Wars: Battlefront II
PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, Xbox, PC With the first game, developer Pandemic
decided “no boring stuff.” When looking at critical feedback, their thought process changed
slightly to, “okay, maybe a little boring stuff.” While the previous game succeeded as the
action-focused cacophony it set out to be, much of the criticism it received was based on the fact
that there was nothing more to the proceedings. Battlefront II gave the single-player
mode an actual narrative, improved the AI, added new types of objectives, and expanded
the player’s moveset. In short, it retained everything that fans enjoyed about the first
game and improved or replaced what they didn’t. Miraculously, the PSP version compares
well to its console counterparts. The controls and graphics aren’t
as good, but that’s to be assumed. It lost some content, but everything
that survived the transition works well. Battlefront II was great all around. That’s a
sentence nobody has said in a long, long time. #13: Star Wars: Rebellion
PC Renamed Star Wars: Supremacy in the UK
for reasons that don’t seem to exist, Star Wars: Rebellion was a strategy game
with “strategy” underlined several times. There are action sequences, but that’s
not what the game was about. In fact, the game allowed you to skip them entirely.
Instead, Star Wars: Rebellion was about squad building, time management, diplomacy, resource
allocation…essentially everything that happens behind the excitement of an interstellar war.
Likely for that very reason, it split critics right down the middle. Computer Games Magazine
called it “nearly flawless,” for instance, while Next Generation used its review to
caution LucasArts that they should stop slapping the Star Wars name on any old trash.
Honestly, we think the game is pretty good. It’s a bit too ambitious, perhaps, but it’s
that ambition that helps it to stand out. It’s not the easiest game to love, but
those who love it, love it for good reason. #12: X-Wing
PC Space combat is a common feature of the games on
this list, but X-Wing had the interesting idea of merging it with a flight simulator. It was not
a simplified, accessible one, either; X-Wing was a difficult game to fully understand and
master, but that’s exactly why people loved it. Anybody could line up some virtual crosshairs and
press a button to make some virtual war widows, but in X-Wing, you actually had to learn what
you were doing. If you managed that, it felt satisfying in a way few other Star Wars games did.
Those who stuck with X-Wing and learned how to play it – or, I suppose, fly it – loved
it, and it still comes up in conversations about the best Star Wars games ever. Those who
did not have the patience for it, of course, found it far less enjoyable, but its critical
reception was overall positive, and deservedly so. #11: Star Wars Episode I: Racer
Dreamcast, Nintendo 64, PC We could list all of the franchises that
needlessly crammed its characters into a racing game, but it would be quicker to list all of
them that didn’t. Ready? BBC News at 10…actually, that’s it. Sorry; I thought there would be more.
Most of these racing games are cash-ins that have little or nothing to do with
the property being represented.Then there’s Episode I: Racer, which is among the best.
Borrowing more than a little from 1995’s Wipeout, Episode I: Racer has an incredible
sense of speed. Its controls are great, its courses offer a variety of
alternate paths, and the customization options leave real room for strategy.
There is a reason this game is regarded as one of the best Star Wars games, but the
fact is, it’s a great racing game in general. Take away the Star Wars license and we’d still
be talking about it as a highlight of the genre. #10: Super Star Wars: Return of the Jedi
SNES The Super Star Wars trilogy concluded with
Return of the Jedi. It looked, sounded, and played a lot like the previous two games,
but it also improved upon them both in key ways. It hadmore varied environments, fun levels,
and the best movement options in the series. We disagree with the critics on this one, as many
of them complained that it was too similar to the previous games. We would argue instead that Return
of the Jedi represents the ultimate refinement of the Super Star Wars formula, which wasn’t all that
bad to begin with. Besides, it’s a bit silly to complain that three games in the same series
released for the same system play similarly. It’s especially silly for them to
complain about repeated content when they never even finished the previous two
games. We know they didn’t, because nobody did. Maybe someone told you they finished the games,
but no. That’s not true. That’s impossible. #9: TIE Fighter
PC X-Wing, this game’s predecessor, found
an appreciative audience in spite of its obtuse mechanics and rock-hard difficulty, but
it left a lot of other fans cold. TIE Fighter, the sequel to that game, took the criticism
on board. The developers did not want to lose the sense of accomplishment
that came from mastering that game, but they also wanted to craft a more forgiving
experience that a wider audience would enjoy. That could have ended up creating
somethingnobody enjoyed but, instead, TIE Fighter is almost universally seen as the
better game. Perhaps that’s because the developers didn’t stop at making X-Wing simpler or easier;
they crafted a game that played to new strengths rather than only addressed previous weaknesses.
Also, you got to play as the bad guy. Not in some optional mode or an unlockable
scenario, either;you are, by default, killing Rebels on behalf of the Empire.
That alone makes it a memorable experience. #8: Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC By this point in the list I’ve been tempted
to make a “Dark Souls of Star Wars” joke…let me count…fifty-one times. But I couldn’t do
that because there actually is a Souls-inspired Star Wars game. What’s more, it’s pretty good.
Fallen Order is an adventure through the stars, relying on challenging combat with little room
for error. Those who stick with it will find a lot to appreciate, even if it does wear out its
welcome as the game progresses. Criticism was aimed at the blandness of the protagonist,
bugs, and a lack of incentive to explore, but little else. The game sold more than 10
million copies and holds either a 79% or 81% on Metacritic, depending on the version.
Fallen Order is the second-most-recent game on this list,and it is hopefully a sign
of more great Star Wars titles to come. #7: Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader
GameCube Rogue Squadron for the Nintendo 64 was a
massive hit for Factor 5 and, truth be told, it was a much-needed hit for Nintendo as well.
When the GameCube released in 2001, then, it was in the interest of both companies
for its sequel to be a launch title. Rogue Squadron II looked and sounded even better
than the first game. There was more content, more action, and more ships to master.
There was playable Darth Vader. Oh, and cockpit mode, so you could feel like
you were actually flying these things. Yes, I consider that to be a massive selling
point and yes, you may judge me for it. And yet, it wasn’t quite as good as its
predecessor. Rogue Squadron showed fans what Star Wars games could be. Rogue Squadron II
did that again, but lesswell and a bit flashier. It’s still worth playing, of course; it’s a
chance to experience more of a great thing. #6: Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy
Xbox, PC After the excellent Jedi Outcast, developer
Raven Software was given only one year to produce a direct sequel. This felt like a
move designed to kill what had quickly become a renowned subseries but, honestly, Jedi Academy
turned out very well. We prefer Outcast overall, mainly because Kyle Katarn is relegated to
sidekick status in this adventure, with the player taking control of his protégé instead.
Some fans do prefer this game, likely due to the amount of customization it offersand the improved
swordplay. But the new protagonist never feels as compelling as Katarn did, and the story doesn’t
live up to the standard set by its predecessor. Jedi Academy ended up being the
last game in the series. That’s odd, as sidelining Katarn for this game seemed to imply
that the series could continue while focusing on others. Jedi Academy isn’t the best Jedi Knight
game, but it’s still an impressive way to go out. #5: Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy
GameCube, PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, Xbox, Xbox 360, PC
People loved Lego Star Wars. I know, because I’m people. But there was one thing
holding the game back from being truly great: the prequels. It’s a simple fact that the original
Star Wars trilogy is more beloved, better known, and has had a greater impact on pop culture in
general. It’s also better. You can disagree, but I find your lack of taste disturbing.
A sequel to Lego Star Wars focusing on the first three movies was guaranteed to be a hit. It had
more characters, a more memorable story to retell, and refined gameplay. It also reviewed better,
with Metacritic scores in the low to mid-80s. Even the PSP version was great!
That’s an achievement in itself! The game sold more than one
million copies in its first week, and ended up being within the ten best-selling
games on each of its platforms for 2006. That’s astonishing, and not
even slightly undeserved. #4: Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords
Xbox, PC For the sequel to what was already being lauded
as one of the greatest games of its decade – and which would go on to be lauded as one of the
best of all time – BioWare handed the reins to Obsidian, a name we all know today,
but this was that company’s first game. Opinion is overall split on how Knights of the
Old Republic II fares when measured against its predecessor. Critics said it inherited
the unbalanced combat from the first game and introduced significant bugs to the experience.
Some reviewers went so far as to accuse Obsidian of releasing an unfinished game.
Others feel that the morality was more satisfyingly grey in this game, the characters
were better, and the already strong story of the first installment was improved upon.
Where do we fall? We think it’s great, but we’re not sure it measures up to the
original. That’s okay, though. Very few things do. #3: Star Wars: Rogue Squadron
Nintendo 64, PC Looking at the evolution of Star Wars games
is like looking at the evolution of gaming as a whole. Compare what it looked like
to take down an AT-AT Walker in 1982’s The Empire Strikes Back with what it
looks like in 1998’s Rogue Squadron. It’s impressivejust how far
the technology had come. Even more impressive is how large Star Wars
games had gotten. Rogue Squadron had huge maps, varied missions, and classic Star Wars moments
and imagery scattered throughout. Factor 5 was clearly doing its best to make the definitive Star
Wars experience. They even included a spacecraft from the then-unreleased Episode I, waiting until
the film debuted to reveal the code to unlock it. If Rogue Squadron has any real shortcomings it’s a
lack of multiplayer, but that did not deter fans, whomade it a massive sales success. For many
of them, it is still the best Star Wars game to this day. Not for us, though. And
we’re the ones making this list. So relax. #2: Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast
GameCube, Xbox, PC The second Jedi Knight game – and the third game
in the Kyle Katarn saga – was a massive leap forward. Everything fans loved about the previous
game was better here. Visually, narratively, lightsaber-atively…every aspect of the
adventure was simply better than ever before. It also holds up impressively well. Granted,
it shows its age in its presentation, and its objectives could do with some
clarity, but last year’s rerelease on the Switch and PlayStation 4 has reminded
us of just how engaging Jedi Outcast can be. The real star here is Katarn himself, whose
experiences in the previous two games have soured him on the whole Light Side / Dark
Side struggle. He has attempted to return to his quieter life as a mercenary. Yes,
I said “quieter life as a mercenary.” Katarn left a surprisingly large mark on Star
Wars, appearing in a trilogy of novels and even becoming an action figure…one of very few
extended universe characters to have that honor. Nice work, Kyle. But there’s a
game that’s done you one better… #1: Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Xbox, PC Star Wars games can be system sellers.
It’s no stretch, in other words, to assume that Knights of the Old Republic
was a big part of what helped Microsoft to gain a foothold in the gaming market. It was
the fastest-selling Xbox title upon release, was universally praised, and made a
number of Sony fans extremely jealous. Developed by BioWare – fast establishing
themselves as RPG royalty with Baldur’s Gate and Neverwinter Nights – the game
was a critical and commercial smash. Knights of the Old Republic is considered one
of the best games ever made, Star Wars or not, and has been lauded for its compelling
narrative, characterization, and voice acting. It was also highly detailed and well animated,
providing a remarkable degree of immersion. The Force Alignment system has more of an
impact than one might expect from a binary morality system, as well, with your character’s
overall appearance changing depending upon your proximity to the Light or Dark side.
There are also, of course, legendary narrative twists, which we won’t spoil
for those who haven’t yet played it. And, yes, that’s my coy way of assuring you
that it’s still very much worth playing. And that’s every Star Wars game ranked from worst
to best. Disagree? Good. Let the hate flow through you. Tell us in the comments which Star Wars game
you had growing up and which is therefore the best one. Tell us which of these games you’re
still playing today. And tell us, please, how wrong we are about everything we’ve just said.
Also, if you have suggestions for other “Every X Ranked From Worst to Best” videos, let us know.
We do listen; it’s just that these videos take so long to make that it seems like we don’t.
You can follow TripleJump on Twitter here, and while you’re at it, why not support the things
you enjoy by having a look at our patreon.Finally, don’t forget to like the video, share it with
your friends, and subscribe to the channel. I’m Ben,and I’m Peter from
TripleJump, and thanks for watching.