2001 Lucas Arts
In late 1998, developers Factor 5 and LucasArts unleashed Star Wars: Rogue Squadron on the gaming public. Considered by many to be the ultimate Star Wars console game, Rogue Squadron enabled gamers to control Luke Skywalker in various land-based flight missions, in a campaign against the Empire. The shooter featured tight controls, a great selection of ships and environments, and spectacular high-resolution graphics and Dolby Surround soundtrack. When all was said and done, the game left many Star Wars and videogame fanatics hungry for a sequel.
Features
- Based on the original Star Wars Trilogy Films
- Real-Time Environmental Effects
- Dolby Pro Logic II 5.1 Surround Sound
- Supports 480p progressive scan HDTVs
- Only for Nintendo GameCube
Fast-forward two years to Nintendo's Spaceworld exhibition in August of 2000. At the company's GameCube unveiling, showgoers caught sight of footage of a new Star Wars game, footage that featured a breathtaking recreation of the fleet fly-by sequence from the Special Edition of Episode IV: A New Hope. The resemblance of the game footage to its celluloid counterpart was uncanny, but many gamers were skeptical; was this jaw-dropping footage merely a tech demo, with no relation to actual in-game play? IGN answered many questions by releasing the now-famous Death Star gameplay footage of Rogue Squadron II. Albeit early the footage displayed an impressive amount of geometry, large draw distances, and multiple Tie Fighters onscreen at once. Fans were wowed, critics were silenced, and everyone was told to wait until E3 2001 for more.
On May 10, 2001, LucasArts officially revealed that the footage shown at Spaceworld was indeed from a title in development. With that announcement, Star Wars Rogue Leader: Rogue Squadron II became one of the most talked-about games of the year. As an official sequel to Rogue Squadron (Episode 1: The Battle for Naboo doesn't really count, seeing as it was set in the prequel's universe), it had the potential to be the greatest Star Wars game ever. Star Wars fans and Nintendo loyalists rejoiced.
Rogue Leader features eleven primary campaign missions, including attacks on both Death Stars, the epic ice battle of Hoth, dogfights over Tatooine, raids over Bespin, and many more scenarios taken from the Star Wars universe and the movies themselves. Each primary mission can contain up to three sublevels. Also, while Rogue Squadron only offered air-to-land missions, the GameCube sequel will also feature air-to-air campaigns; therefore, expect some intense dogfights with Ties, while simultaneously dodging fire from Star Destroyers. Shouldn't be a problem for a crack pilot like you, however; you will take the role of Luke Skywalker, Wedge Antilles, and the rest of the Alliance's finest pilots. You won't be going in empty-handed, either; you'll be flying the finest Rebel ships, including the X-Wing, A-Wing, and B-Wing; you can even switch ships mid-level if you take on too much damage. And, of course, we can expect Factor 5 to throw in a handful of hidden missions and vehicles. Did somebody say, Millenium Falcon?
Graphically, the game is nothing short of astounding, leaving the impressive Spaceworld footage in the dust. The X-Wing models alone comprise upwards of 20,000 polygons apiece, and look so detailed that ILM is rumored to have donated them to Factor 5. Rogue Leader is no slouch in the texture department either, using multiple texture layers for bump-mapping, dirt-mapping, reflections, shadows, and more. If that wasn't enough, the developers have made sure that it all runs at a blazing-fast sixty frames per second, with no slowdown, even during the most graphically intense confrontations. Quite simply, the wizards at Factor 5 and LucasArts have cooked up some visuals that will floor gamers, and hopefully make them feel a part of the classic trilogy.
The soundtrack to Rogue Leader will feature full Dolby Surround support. There are even rumors floating around that the sound engineers have implemented 5.1 Surround in-game; whether or not this is the case remains to be seen. At any rate, expect to hear ships roar through your living room, accompanied by the classic John Williams score in all of its symphonic grandeur. Considering the fact that Factor 5 devised the MusyX sound tools for GameCube and Game Boy Advance, and the company's input actually helped shape the system sound hardware, it's safe to say that Rogue's soundtrack will rock.
The impressive aesthetics beg the question: is Rogue Leader nothing more than its N64 predecessor with a next-generation facelift? Well, not exactly. N-Sider braved the long lines and hordes of sweaty journos to try the game out firsthand. And while it is true that its gameplay borrows heavily from the earlier game, that is the nature of the sequel beast. This game, like its predecessor, is a single-player experience only. Factor 5's Julian Eggebrecht told N-Sider that he detests split-screen multiplayer gaming; therefore, since Nintendo's online strategy was unclear at the outset of development, multiplayer was not an option. Also, the medals system, which awarded the player different medals based on speed, accuracy of shots, number of kills, and other criteria, will return in Rogue Leader. It goes without saying that anyone familiar with the N64 game will quickly be able to pick up the controls of this next-generation sequel and kick some Imperial butt.
Speaking of controls, you maneuver your ship with the main analog control. The ship's lasers are fired by pressing the A button. Pressing the B button fires the secondary weapon, such as the Death Star exhaust port-seeking torpedo. The L and R shoulder buttons control braking and acceleration, respectively. Interestingly, both button commands utilize the GameCube controller's "secret" clicking feature. If you click the L button all the way through, the ship will slow to a snail's pace; conversely, clicking in the R button will lock in the wings and accelerate your ship greatly. Obviously, gradual presses of the shoulder buttons will result in equally gradual braking and acceleration changes. The X button switches the camera to cockpit view. You can use the C-stick to look around the cockpit.
Use of the Y-button highlights one of the more interesting features of the game. The Y-button brings up the ship's targeting computer. A screen slides down in front of the pilot's eyes, and enables the player to pick out targets more easily. For instance, if the primary objective is to take out all the main guns on a Star Destroyer, then all the guns would be displayed in a unique color. This monitor also reads through walls, so if a target is well hidden, this feature can help you snuff it out.
Use of the directional pad brings up the game's most innovative feature: wingman control. A small D-pad icon will appear in the corner of your screen, giving you various command options. You can choose to have your wingmen attack a designated enemy, hold back, or come up behind your own ship for protection. The original Rogue Squadron featured helpful wingmates, but didn't offer anything approaching this level of control. While its general level of usefulness was difficult to ascertain in the demo, this function certainly holds a great deal of potential.
The E3 demo of Rogue Leader contained three playable levels. The Death Star trench run (or "Battle Over Yavin," as it is officially called), the first level of the final game, was the first one I tried out at the show (can you blame me?). It was split up into three segments. The first has you attempting to take out all the gun turrets on the surface of the Death Star. A massive dogfight with Imperial snub fighters follows thereafter. The last portion of this level is taken up by the legendary trench run itself. The action in this sequence is fast and furious, as it requires you to dodge crossbeams and laser fire, on your way to that heavily-guarded (and very small) exhaust port. Quick reflexes and a tolerance for dizzyingly-fast speeds is the name of the game here.
The second playable level took place in the city in the clouds, Bespin. This level featured multiple Tie Fighters, and hot-air balloons for you to try to take down. The specific goal of this mission was unclear, so it presented a good opportunity to track down hidden generators by using the targeting computer. Bespin looked absolutely gorgeous, with smooth textures and dazzling reflections on the ships. The city's buildings featured a shiny, metallic gloss, that helped make this level the most visually impressive portion of the demo.
"Razor Rendezvous" was the only air-to-air mission playable at E3. The objective was to protect a Rebel main carrier from an enormous (and gorgeously rendered) Star Destroyer. More tricky dogfighting was to be found in this level; against the blackness of space, the Tie Fighters were hard to pick out. It also was necessary to take out the massive ship's shield genrators. The one element that stood out about this level was the immensity of the thing; your tiny ship is completely dwarfed by just the Star Destroyer's rear engines.
If there was one game that had everyone (including Microsoft and Sony personnel) drooling, it was Star Wars Rogue Leader: Rogue Squadron II. As evidenced by the E3 demo, the Factor 5/LucasArts developed title features mind-blowing graphics, tight and responsive controls, and lightning-fast action. Factor 5 can be counted on to throw in some surprises; using the original game as a blueprint, the inclusion of a handful of hidden ships, levels, and character cameos, is pretty much a certainty. Also, depending on time constraints, Julian mentioned that he would like to implement 16:9 anamorphic widescreen enhancement (you heard it here first).
For years now, game designers have worked overtime to fashion the ultimate cinematic experience. As it turned out, the answer lie a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far, away. Star Wars Rogue Leader: Rogue Squadron II will enable gamers to actually take part in the classic trilogy of films, with a level of authenticity and realism previously unattainable. Make no mistake...this is GameCube's killer app, the reason why many gamers will pick the system up on November 5th.