Star Wars: Rogue Squadron [N64]

Star Wars Rogue Squadron packs a serious punch into showing what the Nintendo 64 can do. The last time we got to give it a spin in the X-Wing fighter was after using a special cheat in Shadows of the Empire to fly around and do battle at the end of the game. Star Wars Rogue Squadron follows an interesting plot between the original Star Wars movies and ends in a futuristic battle (if that is even possible to say for such a series) with robot controlled TIE fighters and gigantic ground vehicles. Rogue Squadron is very, very impressive and it is one of those series of games that remain true to the original as well as keep the same fun as the first. And this is the first of that series of Rogue Squadron games. If you are a fan of this series and you have avoided this game because you are afraid of the graphics in this day of age or if you are scared the gameplay would not be all that great, well this review is to tell you that this is a game that is still fun to play and is definitely worth your time.

Star Wars Rogue Squadron begins almost immediately where Star Wars: A New Hope ends. You first must protect a supply convoy and continue doing raids, escorts, and liberations on various planets. Some of these escorts will leave you wondering why the transports just couldn't zoom away from the original starting location like in the first mission. You will meet some new faces in the form of defectors and there is plenty of dialogue between Luke Skywalker and Kasan Moor, who is voiced by Olivia Hussey of all people. LucasArts spares no expense on this game and that is a definite truth. Anyway the plot takes you through these raids and escorts and you will have to dogfight with a very antagonistic Imperial by the name of Moff Seerdon. This is not so easy to deal with and he is very much bent on out the Alliance's bacta supply (whatever that is). The plot plays along well with the in between movies approach and further explores characters like Han Solo and Luke as well introduce us to the defectors from the Imperial side and why they would defect. Several years later you go outside the original series and into the Dark Empire series where the reincarnated Emperor has launched an attack on Mon Calamari with several World Devastators-massive levitating blocks of destruction and TIE-D's that are controlled by robots. I guess they ran out of clones.

Rogue Squadron is easy to play and quick to enjoy. The controls keep your craft vertical no matter where you are in a game so as to not lose a sense of direction. The weapon controls are simple with your blasters and guided proton torpedoes for some of the fighters. The bombers you use will give you a bombing reticule similar to the experience of a World War Two bombing simulation. It is important that the controls are easy to deal with because you have a load of difficult objectives and plenty of medals to earn to be able to unlock more star craft and levels. Most of the levels will either have you protecting something like a transport convoy or you will be blowing stuff up in raids and there will be plenty of shooting down TIE fighters and bombers. The medal system is very similar to other N64 games and you will be able to unlock items by completing these challenges which involve accuracy, time, and stuff shot up. This game was released just before the release of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace so the developers figured it would be cool to go ahead and add in the Naboo Starfighter along with the other vehicles to unlock like the Millennium Falcon. The only thing is, the Naboo fighter is probably the best craft in this game. You would think things got a little more up to date compared to some local star fighter from Naboo that is generations old. Oh well. You will encounter several different worlds not explored in the movies and also be able to unlock some original battles like the first Death Star and the Battle of Hoth. Oh yeah, I did forget about the final Alliance vehicle in the Calamari battle. The V-Wing is one excellent fighter that shoots a multitude of guided torpedoes at your enemies and it is very powerful against the drone fighters you face in that last battle.

Star Wars Rogue Squadron deserves an outstanding for the sound of the game. No expense was spared for making this one of the best developed games for the Nintendo 64. The graphics have their boundaries, but compared to the Wii, it's right on par. The expansion pack dramatically enhanced the resolution and really made the graphics what they are. The maps are also small and are not free roaming as I feel flight games should always be, but the vehicles and smaller things in the game are detailed very well. The sound is top of the line. Dialogue is professional- Oliva Hussey has a role in this game! There is a lot of chatter going on throughout the levels and of course you have the Star Wars music all throughout the game. You also have a section from the main menu where Luke will read the biographies of each of his squadron mates. This is something you don't get to see again in the other games of the series.

I've mentioned the challenges and what you can unlock by completing these challenges and here I must say that the things you unlock are very much worth the replay value of Rogue Squadron. It is very worth your time to shoot for that Gold Medal in each mission because the unlocked vehicles make this game much more fun and who wouldn't want to get the chance to replay the Death Star run or trip a Walker? The missions are fun to replay and the game itself is challenging enough. So I think you get a great game that offers plenty of stuff to do once you have beaten the game once through.

Star Wars Rogue Squadron is a great game for its time and is still an excellent game to find. This game really sets the pace for the sequels in the series and not only follows the in between paths of the movies, but also allows for more character development of your Star Wars heroes. Star Wars Rogue Squadron is fun and challenging and is definitely one of those games that any Rogue Squadron or Star Wars fan should own. I would definitely recommend that you buy this game wherever you can find it. LucasArts has had some Star Wars games to bomb in the past, but most of the time these games really come out strong and Rogue Squadron is definitely among the best of them. The Gamecube sequels offer better graphics and more variety in gameplay, but you will not be disappointed by anything that the original Star Wars Rogue Squadron has to offer.