Star Wars Empire at War Preview

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Once Anakin turned to the dark side, the evil republic leader Darth Sidious was able to take control of the galaxy, creating a fearsome empire. Fight them and die. Disagree with them and die. Look at them the wrong way – that’ll do it too.

Star Wars: Empire at War takes place two years before A New Hope, the episode where the Empire finally got to meet the son of the devil (Luke Skywalker). As the first Star Wars RTS to let players command an entire galaxy, Empire at War gives you the chance to control the Force from either side. Be the Rebels and fight for your life. Control past and present vehicles, all new spacecrafts, and new ground vehicles. The same is true for the dark side, but if you decide to join up with them, you’ll have the luxury of pulling the planet destruction lever of the Death Star!! This element is still being worked on, but the final version will allow you to build the Death Star, travel the galaxy and eliminate whoever you please.

Kind of makes that whole “do as we say or die” thing really simple, huh?

Expect the controls to be some of the easiest and most intuitive you’ve seen in a real-time strategy game. It is important to note, however, that LucasArts defines this as a tactical action strategy game. Resource management is there, but it’s not the main focus of the game. This was clearly evident in the demo, which had the game running from one battle to the next.

During one battle, the Empire decided to retreat into space. This is considered a viable move in Empire at War because of the advantages you have when you’re in the middle of the galaxy. There aren’t as many hiding places in space. More importantly, you can control enormous ships and slaughter those evil Rebellion fighters.

One of the first things that stood out about the game was how well the shadows overlapped the spacecrafts. You could tell the ships were three-dimensional, but this made the whole game look much more realistic.

Most impressive, this strategy game is.

For All E3 2005 Previews