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| Title: | Star Wars Arcade |
| Released: | 1994 |
| Genre: | 3-D Shooter |
| Developer: | Sega |
| Publisher: | Sega |
| Regions: | USA, UK, Japan |
| Availability: | Common |
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Few video games excite gamers more than those set in the Star Wars universe. Indeed, almost any product with a Star Wars license attached to it can expect instant fans and impressive sales, and the 32x version of the little-known Star Wars Arcade game is no exception. The most popular and best-selling of all the 32x games, Star Wars Arcade was the launch title that created the most excitement. Oddly enough, especially considering the inherent strength of the Star Wars license, Sega never ported this game over to the Saturn, making the 32x home to the only version ever available for a home console.
As the title suggests, Star Wars Arcade began as an arcade machine in the tradition of the classic vector Star Wars arcade game, without the vector graphics. The original spawned home versions for such classic systems as the Atari 2600, 5200, and the Colecovision, but those ports were weak and largely forgettable. (The original vector Star Wars arcade game is highly sought after by many arcade game enthusiasts, and its little-seen sequel, The Empire Strikes Back, is viewed as the Holy Grail among arcade game collectors.) The updated 1990's version ran on Sega’s vaulted Model 2 board and was a graphical tour-de-force in its day. Unfortunately, it wasn’t an especially great game to begin with and it failed to attract arcade owners when coupled with the initial high cost of the Model 2 board. The arcade unit didn’t sell many units (it's rumored that less than 100 units were imported into the United States) and quickly faded into obscurity (we managed to play one at the local Putt-Putt until it suddenly disappeared after a short stay.) Sega released another update to the Star Wars saga a while back, this time called Star Wars Trilogy. Running on the powerful Model 3 board, Trilogy is a graphical masterpiece with many of the same gameplay shortcomings that plagued its predecessor. It has yet to be released to any home console.
Much like the all-powerful “force”, Star Wars Arcade 32x is a study in contrasts. The “good” half of the game is actually quite a bit of fun, but that damned “dark side” affects an unfortunately large portion of the game. Impressive graphics and a rousing soundtrack cannot disguise the fact that Star Wars Arcade is at times a weak game in terms of gameplay and control. Fortunately, the Star Wars license and the awesome Star Destroyer and Death Star sequences save this game and earn it a recommendation.
The game begins on an impressive note... a rendered-on-the-fly re-enactment of the original movie’s opening sequence (when an Imperial Battle Cruiser is shown bearing down on Princess Leia’s tiny rebel ship.) This is followed by the infamous Star Wars text introduction fading out into space. This section has serious scaling problems, and is one of the few dark spots of the game’s graphical canvas. You are then prompted to choose between the Arcade version and the “enhanced” 32x upgrade. After selecting either one or two players (you have the option of playing by yourself or having a friend act as a second gunner), you begin your assault on the forces of the malicious Empire.
The trouble starts immediately. The first segment of Star Wars Arcade has you sitting in the cockpit of one of two available rebel fighters, shooting down Imperial Tie-Fighters while avoiding the gunfire of the enormous Imperial Battle Cruisers that loom ominously in the distance. Your mission is to destroy a set amount of enemies without losing all your shield power. You have both laser cannons and endless supply of self-guided proton torpedoes at your disposal, as well as the freedom to go almost wherever you want, including straight to the imposing Battle Cruisers (which cannot be damaged.) Those of you envisioning the awesome dog-fighting action of the Playstation’s Colony Wars series or even a decent rip-off of Wing Commander III (starring Mark Hamil!) are in for a big disappointment... the game isn’t nearly as exciting as it sounds.
The problem is in the game’s control, or lack thereof. You are severely limited as to where you can pilot your ship, even though it initially appears that you have complete freedom of movement. You cannot steer your craft very far up or down, or even turn it sharply. Your enemies zip and dodge all around you as you pilot a supposedly maneuverable fighter that really handles like an ocean liner. Your craft has three available speeds- slow, fast, and medium (regular?) All three speeds feel exactly the same. Game play consists of flying your space barge in a straight line on the slowest speed, firing constantly and waiting for the enemy to fly in front of your gunfire. On many occasions, the Tie-Fighters will simply follow behind for a bit and then speed right in front of you, positioning themselves as dreadfully easy targets. The game’s designers must have realized the absurdity of this kamikaze approach because they added a game timer, forcing you to wait for enemies to cross your sights while on a time limit. Many games end simply because the enemies don’t position themselves in front of the sights fast enough. The supposedly “enhanced” 32x version merely adds more waves of Tie-Fighters and a few asteroid belts.
Fortunately, things get much, much better during later stages of Star Wars Arcade. One segment has you flying deep inside an Imperial Star Destroyer in an attempt to destroy the main engines. Later scenes have you destroying more Tie-Fighters, this time over the surface of the Death Star. The most impressive stage of Star Wars Arcade, as you might imagine, is the obligatory re-creation of the attack on the Death Star itself. Fortunately, these portions of the game offer greatly improved maneuverability, a feature you’ll need as the difficulty ramps up quite a bit. Good stuff, and entertaining enough to make you nearly forget about the boring space sequences.
Graphically, Star Wars Arcade is an impressive demonstration of what the 32x is capable of in the hands of a talented programming team and is the one of the best 32x games in terms of 3-D graphics. Unfortunately, the home version lacks all the beautiful texture mapping of the its arcade parent, but features most of its impressive polygonal imagery, with zero slowdown and no draw-in whatsoever. The Death Star sports an impressive range of physical features, including structures of all shapes and sizes, weapon installations of varied firepower, layered walls, and all sorts of gullies and alleys. The enemy vessels themselves (particularly the Tie-Fighters) are rendered very cleanly and smoothly, and are the space sequence’s most visually impressive features. The sight of a Tie-Fighter coming into view from behind you is a truly inspiring and beautiful sight to behold. On the negative side, Star Wars Arcade occasionally (and painfully) illustrates what must have been Sega’s rushed attempt to have this game ready for launch. Collision detection, particularly during the Death Star sequences, is distracting and occasionally ridiculous. You’ll watch in amazement as Tie-Fighters pass through solid bulkheads unscathed, a trick you’d better not try if you value your shield strength. Fortunately, your proton torpedoes have no difficulty tracking and destroying the enemy ships right through those pesky bulkheads, either. The explosions are a bit on the weak side as well, especially those that result from the destruction of large targets. Those of you expecting an incredible display of explosive distruction upon the termination of the Death Star are in for a disappointment.
For a system not renowned for its sound capabilities, the 32x sounds mighty good when Star Wars Arcade is up and running. Perhaps the most impressive aspects of the game, the musical score and sound effects (particularly the warp jump and weapons fire) come straight from the movie and go a long way towards providing an immersive Star Wars experience. One sour note- Admiral Ackbar sounds exactly like the smelly Brooklyn cab driver that chauffeured us around New York the last time we visited. Who the hell did that voice? Did we miss that in the movie? Darth Vader sounds great, heavy bass breathing and all. We're not sure what happened to the Admiral.
One thing is for sure- this is not an easy game. Don’t expect to finish this game in one sitting, or several sittings... the challenge level is pretty extreme. Don’t expect any great cheat codes, either. The best you’ll do is cutting off the timer. We read somewhere on the net that one of the programmers of the game admitted that the game was difficult and that the game contained very few cheats. Continues are limited, and you’ll most likely put forth a great deal of effort to see the later stages of the game. It’s worth it, so just grin and bear it. Here's a tip that will double your firepower and add an extra sheild: start a two-player game, then take the second joypad and weigh down the fire button with a reasonably heavy object, taking care to aim the second crosshairs towards the top or bottom of the screen where enemy ships generally appear. You'll gain an extra gun that will pick off some easy hits, and you'll gain the extra sheild normally reserved for two player mode.
Star Wars Arcade, with its graphical flair and cool soundtrack, ends up being one of the better games that attempts to live up to the mighty Star Wars license. The game certainly has its moments, but the boring space sequences and weak control occasionally detract from an otherwise impressive offering. None of this will really matter to Star Wars fans, a truly rabid bunch if there ever was one.
Contrary to popular belief, the 32x console was a strong seller during the '94 Christmas season. Much of this initial success was attributed to Star Wars Arcade. It was the best-selling 32x cartridge of them all, and remains the easiest to find. The game (with box!) is both cheap and readily available, and the 32x has the only home version you’ll ever see, so we suggest you pick up a copy if you run across one.
Star Wars FINALLY got
the treatment it deserved with the release of Star Wars Rogue Leader
for the Nintendo Game Cube. Featuring many levels that are eerily similar
to Star Wars Arcade,
Rogue Leader sports amazing
graphics and awesome control. It was also a strong selling launch title.
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