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Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader

by Max Lake - November 9, 2001, 12:48 pm EST

Max blows up the Death Star with the Rogue Squadron & returned with impressions. WARNING! Excessive use of the phrase: “just like the Star Wars movies.”

Yay! My local Toys R Us finally got GameCube kiosks! As you may well know, Nintendo has set up demo units with playable demos of Luigi’s Mansion, Wave Race Blue Storm I think this is a fantastic move. Many of our readers have said that Rogue should be the game to show off the GameCube, not Luigi. Thanks to the NGC disc format we get both and Wave Race to boot. All three are great games but after grasping the kiosk controller & debating for like, 2 seconds, I decided to go for Rogue Leader. Playing the game at E3 was a daunting task and I was only able to get a sample of it just before the show ended. Finding myself with a kiosk all to myself, it was an easy first choice Rogue Leader: Rogue Squadron II displays just what NGC can do, perhaps more than any other launch title.

The Death Star trench run from Star Wars: A New Hope is certainly one of the most memorable scenes in all of cinema and Factor 5 have done a phenomenal job in recreating it. It was the only playable level in the kiosk version of the game but it provided a great taste this highly anticipated game.

What can I say? Rogue Leader really appears to live up to all the hype. I mean, the first time you see the game in action it’s amazing how much detail there is and I don’t mean just graphics. Along with the stunning visuals, the audio is completely faithful to the flicks and the gameplay is absolutely fantastic.

Rogue Leader provides some of the sweetest eye candy I’ve ever seen. As you fly above the surface of the Death Star, all kinds of crazy laser blasts circling around you. Ships look perfect. It looks like the movies, down to decals on X-Wings except it’s a game, more detailed and has that polished digital glossy look the DVD format provides.

Control is very similar to the first Rogue Squadron but somehow it is smoother and more responsive than on the N64. Maybe it’s just the new controller but maneuvering my X-Wing was a dream come true.

I’ve read some complaints about the targeting computer but I felt that it worked great. Holding Y brings it up and highlights any enemies in bright colors, for example, the Tie Fighters were yellow while smaller gun turrets on the ground were a bright violet color. This helps locate enemies in the distance against the vast backdrop of space. Holding down Y for extended periods of time didn’t seem to give me any problems either. While getting familiar with the controls, I accidentally hit X, which switches the perspective to cockpit view but this was a silly mistake.

Kind of like Star Fox, you have wingmen but you can actually instruct them as you progress throughout the mission with the D pad. You give a command and Luke and Wedge have a verbal exchange, and then allies act accordingly. I really dug this feature.

Like the first Rogue Squadron, there’s LOTS of speech in RL. If you spend too much time attacking the numerous turrets firing on you, you’ll get a command from HQ telling you to concentrate on the towers or tie-fighters respectively. R2D2 chirps and whistles and even shrieks if you get hit. There’s even several of the classic lines. All of it seems to be taken directly from the movies—no pale Harrison Ford imitations here. Playing is like actually living out the flick and isn’t like going through the motions. The execution of voice samples comes off like a natural progression of the battle due to things being so intense.

Not to mention all this is backed by the classic Star Wars music and sound FX. Yow. I just know that this game is going to get me to purchase some surround sound equipment.

Other thoughts:

  • Darth Vader in the first level is great. Swooping down in his “Advance” Tie Fighter, he’s accursedly persistent and shot me down a few times. DAMN YOU FATHER!

  • Prior to missions, you select your craft control Luke in pilot gear running around the hangar. Very nice touch.

  • This game is much more exciting than the first Rogue Squadron, because it’s all so familiar. SW fanboys are going to rejoice, and then need a change of pants.

    After a couple attempts, I finally beat the level. Blowing up the Death Star completely made my day. It doesn’t get cooler than that, but this is only Rogue Leader’s first level. (And boy was I disappointed that it was the only one I could play!)

    I have been really curious as to Rogue Leader’s presentation. Just how faithful to the movies were Factor 5, I wondered, and how well does it come together. Now I know: it’s great. The interlacing of plot points, scenes and actual movie audio with segments of gameplay works wonderfully. For the Death Star trench run, you first must take out towers on the surface of the Death Star, then fend off a squadron of Tie fighters and then make your way into the trench for the legendary run. With Rogue Leader, Factor 5 have possibly even surpassed Goldeneye in creating a movie-based game.

    I’ll admit that I’m a big Star Wars fan and enjoyed the heck out of Rogue Squadron for N64 but I think that any gamer even remotely interested in Star Wars would get a kick out of this game. It’s even got non-gamers interested. I saw more than a couple parents (and grandparents) stare in awe at the Rogue Leader demo in action.

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    Genre Shooter
    Developer Factor 5
    Players1

    Worldwide Releases

    na: Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader
    Release Nov 09, 2001
    PublisherLucasArts
    RatingTeen
    jpn: Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader
    Release Mar 22, 2002
    PublisherLucasArts
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