Star Wars: Rogue Squadron
Reviewed by Goshi
Remember how cool the first level of Shadow of the Empire was. I still
pop in that game to play the first level once in a while. Well, the guys at
Lucas Arts must have been proud of that level because they've turned it
into an entire game. Enter Rouge Squadron. This is one of the games I
own that makes me proud to own a 64. It's one of the best to come out
of 98'. You fly an array of Rebel star craft as Luke Skywalker, Leader
of Rouge Squadron, the Son of Anikin, the big man himself. It's a 3-d
shooter and the story is between the first two movies, your job is to
fly a series of missions against the empire and complete objectives.
Graphics 4.5 out of 5
This game is available for PC and the two versions almost identical.
The only way the PC upstages the 64 version is if you have a really
good machine and but it into a higher resolution than 64's. That and
maybe the fog. While everything you can see looks amazing and beautifully
textured, their is a fog line where the pop-up begins. It doesn't bother me
though, half the time I'm having so much fun i don't even notice it. This
game uses the ram expansion to boost it's graphics, and boost it does! If
there is any reason to get the ram expansion then this game is it. The
craft are incredibly detailed and the terrain is textured so well. You can
see your blaster marks and black spots from proton and bomb explosions.
Music and Sound 4 out of 5
The music on this game sounded a little strange to me at first and I
learned latter that Lucas Arts used a new 1 to 13 (I think) sound
compression. Anyway, after I hooked up my stereo started to like the
sound and music a little better. After all, it has all the classic tunes
from the Star Wars Trilogy, which beats the monkey out of any other
video game. All the sound effects are cool too, like the roar of a tie
as it flies past you. Another important aspect of the game is the spoken
text; there is a mind numbing amount of speech for a cartridge game.
There are spoken craft descriptions, mission briefings, cutscenes, and
in-flight chatter. It's amazing how much they squeezed into that cartridge.
I feel that Lucas Arts has really raised the bar for speech with this one.
Game Challenge 4.5 out of 5
I've had this game for a few weeks now and I still haven't beaten it, but
I'm a perfectionist and I'm trying to get gold on every mission. The game
basic game consists of 15 levels, each with certain objectives to beat.
This may not seem like much but each one is entirely different. The game
starts of fairly easy and becomes progressively harder, they last few levels
seem down right impossible(cheats available). Each level takes from 6 to
12 minutes, the game saves your progress so you don't have to beat it in one
sitting. If that isn't enough there are three medals available for each man,
bronze, silver, and ,you guessed it, gold. Each one requires you to beat
progressively more difficult objectives respectfully. Replay? Oh yeah.
Game Play-Fun 4.5 out of 5
This game is a ton of fun. Like I said earlier, I haven't even finished yet.
In addition to the normal game there are hidden levels and craft. You can
cruise around in the Falcon, become a spy in a tie interceptor, or even fly
in Luke's Skyhopper (so I've heard). Some of my friends like to pop in this
game to just fly around.
Frustration
I experienced little frustration when I first played this game, but some
of my friends say it's hard to control your craft, especially when using
the speeders tow cable. I think it's just because they don't have good
analog skills, like me.
Overall 4.5 out of 10
If you haven't played this game already then you should defiantly rent it,
your missing out. Personally, it is one of my favorite games.