I’ve got a baaad feeling about this… Review

I’ve got a baaad feeling about this…

A not so long time ago, in a ranch not so far, far away, someone over at LucasArts

had a plan. This plan was to put forth a game in every genre possible and make

a pretty penny off of the Star Wars faithful. From there, the crusade began

and would ultimately show some mixed results. A few great games, such as Jedi

Knight, would arise to take their place in the hallowed halls of gaming history,

while others, such as the recent Jedi Power Battles and Force

Commander, would bomb like a malfunctioning thermal detonator. So what’s the

next game from a galaxy far, far away? Star Wars Demolition.

If you’ve ever played Vigilante 8,

you know exactly what you’re getting into. Demolition basically just

throws the Star Wars universe into the mix. Take control of a vehicle/creature/jetpack

and blast the stuffing out of your opponents.

Ever wonder if Boba Fett could single-handedly take out an AT-ST ? Curious

how a STAP would do against a Rancor? Well, wonder no more. Demolition

gives you the pick of the roughest, toughest, meanest hombres this side of Chalmun’s

Cantina. Over ten characters can be chosen in this all-out battle for supremacy.

Game modes include Battle, Tournament, High Stakes and Hunt-a-Droid. Battle

is a one on one fight, Tournament pits you against several opponents whose numbers

increase with each level, High Stakes allows you to bet on your performance,

and in Hunt-a-Droid, well, you do the obvious.

Demolition’s multiplayer mode features both versus and co-op play. This

is great except that the split screen is run vertically rather than horizontally.

Your field of view is so narrow; it’s almost as if you’re wearing blinders.

Why no option to switch?

The worlds in which your battles take place will be familiar to anyone remotely

in touch with the Star Wars universe. Hoth, Tatooine, Naboo, and even

the second Death Star are just some of the arenas. The best part about each

of these worlds is the level of interactivity. On Tatooine’s Dune Sea, players

can use their tractor beam to throw an opponent into the Pit of Carkoon. The

second Death Star features wings of tie-fighters on strafing runs, and Hoth

sports an attack on all contenders by AT-ATs. If your opponents don’t get you,

the level just might.

When it comes to control, things are made simple. Driving your vehicle/creature/jetpack

feels just like Vigilante 8 complete with drift maneuvers. When standing

still, players can rotate 360 degrees….

…which you’ll have to do quite often, since there’s no reverse. I’ll say

that again for the hard of reading: no reverse. This would have definitely

come in handy on all those occasions when you run up against buildings. Isn’t

backing up sort of key in a game called Demolition? Sheesh, even airplanes

have a reverse gear. Why doesn’t my landspeeder, dammit? Stopping and turning

allows the others a perfect opportunity to send a proton torpedo right up the

wazoo. And speaking of proton torpedoes…

Demolition could have used more in the way of weapons. Besides your

standard lasers, players can pick up one of only four secondary weapons common

to the Star Wars universe. Proton torpedoes, concussion missiles, thermal

detonators and tractor beams are the only choices. While finding out the best

situations for each of the weapons can be fun, the game would have definitely

benefited from a wider assortment of destructive fury. After all, this is a

demolition, right?

A few power ups are also thrown into the mix, though they just don’t have

a big impact on the gameplay. Cloaking devices, deflector shields and energy

converters are all helpful, but they don’t seem to give you much of an advantage.

Players can also find droids to increase the efficiency of their weapons and

shields, but again, these little guys can only do so much.

Two vital structures on every battlefield include shield and weapons generators.

At these stations, contestants can recharge their shields and weapons to an

optimal level. These charges aren’t free, though, as they will slowly drain

your credit supply.

When it comes to visuals, the Demolition team has got it right. The

damage modeling on the vehicles is excellent. There’s nothing better than seeing

you opponents fall apart piece by piece before you send them to the scrap heap.

On the other side of the gun, seeing your vehicle getting trashed add a bit

of urgency to your cause.

Blowing stuff up in Demolition is definitely fun in all its Star

Wars glory, but the more you play, the more you’ll notice the imbalance

in gameplay. One thing that I learned early on is that offense is not the best

policy. Players can unleash all their destructive force immediately, but without

the proper weapon and enough charge, you’ll barely scratch your opponents. Also,

offensive play ends up draining the credits you have on recharges. It seems

to me that a game like this needs plenty of offensive attitude. Demolition

seems to reward defensive play instead, which leads to less thrashing.

But despite my fears, Star Wars Demolition turns out to be a decent

game. There’s some room for improvement, but what we’ve got isn’t that bad.

I just wish there were an Ewok fighter. Yub, yub!