Everyone searching for new hope in “Star Wars” needs to stop what they’re doing and listen very, very carefully. LucasArts is taking the “Star Wars” franchise to a galaxy far, far away from the Jar Jar-infested circus of the past few years. This galaxy, which will appear on Xbox and PC this fall, is much darker, grittier and adult-oriented than any “Star Wars” experience to date. Its name? Star Wars: Republic Commando.
Republic Commando, a squad-based first-person shooter announced at E3 2003, places gamers in the expendable boots of an elite Republic Special Operations unit fighting between the events of Episodes II and III. Where clone troopers (and eventually Storm Troopers) fought in almost-mindless individuality, though, the Republic Special Operations unit fights as a team, completely dedicated to achieving the mission objectives or to die trying. Simply put, reporting back to the Republic a failure is not an option.
Similar to Rainbow Six 3, Republic Commando features a three-man squad to which players can issue orders and coordinate attacks to ferret out or destroy the Separatists and other, more alien, enemies. Yet while the player and squad are expendable, strategic commands are imperative to ensuring the squad’s survival, because the situations players will face may be nearly insurmountable alone.
For example, if an enemy is patrolling a hallway on the Republic Capital Ship (one of the game’s three environments), players can rush in with guns blazing, hoping to down the enemy before he calls for help; they can scan for an alternate route to come in from the rear; or, making good use of the intuitive command interface, they can instruct a squad member to mount a nearby turret and provide cover while the rest of the team gets in formation. Lose a teammate in the firefight, and the phalanx of enemies around the corner may prove too much. Take out the enemy with all troopers intact, though, and players will help their pursuit of a successful mission.
The missions in Republic Commando vary considerably, from hostage rescue, elimination and infiltration/data retrieval to assault, sabotage and reconnaissance. But in many respects, the locations where these missions play out are just as intriguing as the missions themselves.
Republic Commando’s 15-plus levels span three environments: the Republic Capital Ship (a pseudo Death Star), Geonosis (the planet from the end of Episode II) and Kashyyyk (the Wookie homeworld). Along the way, players will also encounter for the first time General Grievous and his deadly bodyguards, all of which will play a significant role in Episode III.
Yet if playing on a prototype Death Star has you hot and bothered, the multiplayer online combat will leave you exhausted and gasping for air. Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch and Capture the Flag are all on tap, and players will be able to hop into matches with four squads of four troopers each (16 players total). LucasArts has also said the game will be “optimized for Xbox Live content,” which hints at the possibility of downloadable levels, missions and/or weapons in addition to the online play, although no official announcement has been made.
Republic Commando will take the Star Wars franchise to an entirely new place when it ships this fall, and if LucasArts takes the time to do the concept justice, Republic Commando has the potential to be the squad-based complement to the non team-based Halo 2. If its progress so far is to be believed, Republic Commando will be one to watch in 2004. We can’t wait to bring you more impressions from E3 in May.