Star Wars Reviews

All-Terrain Tactical Enforcer is a nice looking model and the six legs are poseable. For printed side pieces make for a realistic look.

The directions are standard Lego format and are easy to follow. The final construction is solid and believable. There are no extra parts for combining with other sets to make a new vehicle (like the four sets that have parts for a Y-Wing).

All in all, very nicely done.

Lucas himself has stated that the famous "cantina scene" from "Episode IV - A New Hope" could have been better - with "Jabba's Palace" Lucas improved an already brilliant idea - more aliens!

1. The Spider Droid, a "Bo'Mar Monk" in Star Wars lore, was spotted behind 3PO as he entered Jabba's palace

2. The "frog-dog" was seen at the entrance to Jabba's chamber, disturbed as the Droid passed by

3. The "Clam" was seen attached to the ceiling behind Jabba's throne, trying to lick 3PO with its tongue as Droid told the Rebels that Jabba was to execute them

In general, this playset is every collectors' dream - detailed & poseable, and at long-last available!

"Of course I'm worried, R2, and you should be, too. Lando and poor Chewbacca never returned from this awful place!"

Hasbro's Star Wars Saga Scene Pack: Jedi Council 1 features three legendary Jedi Masters -- Mace Windu, the senior Jedi Master, Oppo Rancisis, and the reptilian Even Piell -- as they confer in the topmost chamber of the Jedi Temple on Coruscant.

The three Jedi Masters are shown in a recreation of a scene from Episode II: Attack of the Clones. They are seated in a semicircle, with a simulated hologram in the foreground and an angry-looking crimson-orange sunset over Coruscant as a forboding backdrop.

Hasbro has changed the look and size of the much-coveted Scene Packs several times as the Star Wars 3.75 inch figure line expands and evolves. The packaging used in the 2003-2004 Star Wars collectibles looks a bit more compact than used in past collections (Power of the Force, Episode I) and the boxes are shaped different, but the formula of two common figures plus a rare one is still used. The quality of the figures is excellent; the poses look very natural and one can almost hear the dialog from the scene depicted here.

While Hasbro recommends this Star Wars Saga Scene Pack: Jedi Council 1 for children 4 and up, I'd say most buyers of this collectible would be more serious collectors over the age of 12.
Although Star Wars figures are pretty durable -- I ought to know, since I have been collecting them since 1978 -- they do have small parts that can come loose and be easily lost. These are really meant to be displayed rather than played with.

Disclaimer -- I am not a huge fan of console gaming, I tend to prefer PC games. However, this game is an outstanding example of what a console game *can* be when it's done right, and boy what a ride this one is.

The game is hard to categorize. It's technically a RPG following the D20 pen-and-paper Star Wars Role Playing Game rules and system presented by Wizards of the Coast, which closely follows the new DnD rules. However, the game plays more like an interactive movie than a typical RPG .. there is combat, but this isn't a predominantly hack-and-slash game. It's a great search, explore, find type of game, with a wonderful rendering of the Star Wars galaxy environment, and frankly the best dialogue and character interaction I have seen in a computer/console RPG-type game. The storlyline and characters are deep, compelling and they draw you in ... you begin to really care about what is happening, about the story that is developing, and it is not the banal story often slapped on to a RPG as a colorful backdrop for endless combat scenes, but a real cinematic-type story.

I would go as far as to say that this game justifies purchasing an X-Box, if you don't own one. It's really that good. And if you own an X-Box, obviously you have to have this game -- it's the best one out there for that, or any other, console platform.

As an RPG the story line and voices done by the actors is great. I plan on doing both Light and Dark, and I'm starting in the light. I've played other RPG and many of them have 'dumb' quests: get item, bring to person. Some of the KOTOR quests are similar, but almost all involve a twist or two that keep the game fresh. The Star Wars graphics look great and the music just blends well with the game. The corny factor is also at a minimum and some of the lines are actually funny.

The only cons I have is I'd rather go for a real-time combat system, where the player can actually interact with the combat. Also, I wish that character models had more variety. You end up seing the same people over and over and over.

But all-in-all, a great and addicting game.

As it should be in any good RPG, KotOR features an insanely good plotline. You'll begin your journey at one of three "professions." Soldier, Scout or Scoundrel - all either male or female. It's up to you as to whether you'd like to customize each aspect of your character or just have the computer create a quick one for you. You're stationed on a Republic Battle cruiser - the Endar Spire. From here, it's up to you to escape your doomed ship and make it off to Taris - the planet you're in orbit around.

Right from the first minutes of the game, you're choosing your side - or path if you will - which will ultimately result in your fate and place in the galaxy. It comes down to you to choose through your actions and dialogue whether you will side with the Republic - or the Sith.

Those who are not very familiar with RPGs (as I've noticed in some of the other reviews) sometimes find the combat style of Knights to their disliking. I myself am a fan of first person shooters like Halo. You'll soon find that Knights in the COMPLETE opposite of Halo when it comes to combat. Combat is turn based and auto- targeting and while you might formulate a picture of a slow tedious time watching the computer aim, fire,miss aim, fire, hit... it's quite the contrary. Utterly unlike Halo, combat doesn't resolve around pumping your opponent with as much lead as fast as possible (which is awesome, don't get me wrong) but around strategy. You main characters and accompanying party members each wield different skills. A Jedi might use a skill like force choke to mercilessly drain the life from an opponent while a soldier might use grenades and the rapid fire skill to take out targets. Trust me, if you're willing to try it and get into the game, combat is far from a con.

On top of the stellar storyline, combat, and the ability to decide how the game's going the end - Knights wields additonal positives. One thing I was impressed about right off the bat - before I even got into the storyline - was the sound and graphics. The voices of each of the main characters are performed by actors who do a great job with tone and rate. The sound of a lightsaber springing to life or a blaster going off are instantly recognizable. On one particular planet, you can hear the breeze blowing across the plains. The music is decent. The most important things is that it doesn't get really annoying after a lot of gameplay time. It changes accordingly during exploring time and time spent in combat. The graphics are impressive. Those displayed during the various movie clips are better than the in-game ones, though the in-game graphics are still satisfactory.

Finally - plus the graphics and sound, Knights features great replayability - something that sometimes hard to find in XBox games. The variation of games you can play are stunning. You might play your first game as the Light Side male soldier while you take a couple side quests because you're still getting the hang of things. Then you may go back and play the game as a Dark Side female scoundrel with a completely differnt set of powers and storyline. You may take a few more side quests - opening up further possibilities. Depending on the side quests you take, game might anywhere from 24 hours to 40 hours.

Overall, I'd go back and shell out $100 dollars for this game. I can't say enough about it - as is obvious by the above.

Hope I've helped give you some insight into one of the best games I've ever played! (BTW, look for the sequel on December)

The Pros:

1.) The graphics are breath-taking. Some points make me believe that they were taken right from the movies. Each ship is perfect, along with explosions and everything that goes with it.

2.) Amazing sound. Most of it is taken right from the movies themselves, which include the characters chatter and the sounds of the ships. But don't forget the awesome score!

3.) It's Star Wars. Everybody loves the chance to jump into the cockpit of an X-Wing and pilot it, and here's the most realistic chance you've had such far.

The Cons

1.) I heard that this game plays lightning fast, but I haven't seen it yet. No, there's not any slowdown, which is amazing due to the chaos around you, but my X-Wing seems to drag along when I have my X-foils in attack position. Maybe some of the ships are better, though. (The Naboo Starfighter was amazingly quick in the original, and you can fly that in this one, too, I hear.)

One detriment to this game makes me say this: "Buy this soon-to-be classic game, and buy it now!" A lot of people are complaining about the difficulty, but personally I would rather have a tough game than an easy one. Here's my final thought:

Graphics: 5/5. Simply the best I've ever seen. (Right there with Resident Evil for the GC.)

Gameplay: 5/5. If you play Rogue Squadron, you'll have no problem adjusting to this.
Sound: 5/5. Simply awesome.
Replayability: 4/5. A tough game that makes you want to play again and again until you beat the level. The extra features will also keep you coming back.
Overall: 4.5/5. Easily one of the best games on any next-gen console. Worth a play or two...or maybe even a thousand.

Thanks for reading. Hope this helped.

You play as Luke Skywalker as you pilot lots o' ships, blow up Tie- fighters, Tie-bombers, Star destroyers and Walkers. The graphics and sound are much too good for such an early game. (NOTE:Get a lot of medals so you can access the music hall!)

The only flaw I'd say is the length of it. It's too short, the missions are really fun but you finish it very quickly... I'd still recommend this game still though because you will sometime have an urge to play it. Don't sell it! You're going to regret that for it's a game you can play over and over again.

Initially, I was really disappointed. I had never played any of the N64 games before, so I wasn't used to the controls. The TIE fighters blended in with the background too often. The radar was confusing. The missions were too hard -- TIEs would relentlessly pound me from behind, my tow cable would always snap while trying to down AT-ATs, I wouldn't understand the objectives of a mission sometimes.

But I kept at it, and an hour or so later realized that this is the best Star Wars game ever made, and that this is probably the closest we'll get to flying in Luke and Wedge's cockpit for a long, long time. The visuals, of course, are spot on, and look like they were ripped straight out of the three movies. Movie fans are rewarded with cut scenes and dialogue that directly, eerily mirror the action of the movies, except that _you're_ the hero, and _you're_ the one to blame if the mission fails. The music is all very good, a blend of classic Star Wars and original Williamsesque tunes that work very well for the missions, adding further to the feeling of immersion within the Star Wars universe.

The control -- it took me a while to get used to but now I can down TIEs with the greatest of ease. You learn to use your accelerator and decelerator to max effect. You learn to use the targeting computer to quickly highlight hard-to-see TIEs. And you learn the hard way which approaches work best on which types of enemies (hint: try to approach Star Destroyers from the side or the back rather than head-on). Yes, the missions are hard, and it can be frustrating. But the inescapable realization that you are _in_ the Star Wars universe, and the incredible fun will keep you pushing that "Replay Mission" button over and over again. And secrets: there are tons of secrets to reward the persistent gamer, including a rare opportunity to play a bit of the trilogy from the "other" perspective.

Just a quick story to end: I was playing the Battle of Endor level, and the Rebel fleet was quickly doing a U-turn from the Death Star, Admiral Ackbar realizing too late that this was a trap. Suddenly, what appeared to be 200+ TIEs came screaming at me from the rear, lasers blazing and swarming around the surprised fleet. I was literally overwhelmed with targets, all trying to independently evade and fire with nary a slowdown. As in RotJ, one of the pilots shouted, "There's too many of them!"

Star Wars gaming just doesn't get any better than that.