Now that we’ve gotten our second Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer, and a release date for Star Wars: Battlefront, we only have the force on our minds. The series really transcends mediums. From the obvious movies, to comics, and novels there’s a story for any source of entertainment. But one of the most fun parts of Star Wars is living out everyone’s fantasy of actually being in the universe. And the only way to force choke someone is with videogames. So, here’s a top five for our favourite Star Wars games. The rules are like all the other lists we’ve done, one game per series, and they have to be Star Wars games. So let’s do this.
5) Star Wars: Bounty Hunter-PlayStation 2, GameCube
I don’t care if people say it’s repetitive, this game gives you almost the entire backstory for Jango Fett, who is a certified bad ass. Gamers can play as the Mandalorian bounty hunter, use his jet pack, learn about why his DNA was chosen to create the clone army, and see how he got the Slave One.
For story purposes alone, this game has to make this list.
4) Star Wars: Republic Commando-Xbox, Windows
What makes Republic Commando so fantastic is how different it is from every other Star Wars game out there. Instead of playing as a famous character, or a Jedi, you’re in the shoes of a commander in a Clone Trooper team. It’s a tactical, squad based first person shooter that takes you through familiar settings while juggling the plot the second trilogy created. If you haven’t played it, you should.
3) Super Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back– Super Nintendo
Holy hell this game is good. Like, really good. Let’s put this into perspective, it’s a game on one of the greatest consoles ever based on arguably the best movie in the franchise.
Released in 1993, and published by the legendary LucasArts, Super Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back takes everything awesome about run and gun games and puts a Star Wars filter over it. In the first level you can ride a Tauntaun while wielding a light sabre as Luke Skywalker on Hoth. Visually, it still holds up, the gameplay is challenging, and it’s fun!
2) Star Wars Battlefront 2-Xbox, PlayStation 2, PSP, Windows
I don’t think there are enough words in the English language to describe how fantastic Battlefront 2 is, but I will try.
Players can choose the war they fight in, pick a side they like and just go for it. There is a single player story, but the game really shines when playing with friends. Just the amount of crap there is to do in this game makes it worth your time. And boy did this game eat up hours of my life. Whether it was with friends hanging out, or just by myself playing Galactic Conquest there was never a point in my life where I thought, “maybe I should stop playing for a little while.”
Ten years later, a sequel is finally coming our way, but it will have massive shoes to fill.
1) Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic– Xbox, Windows
I challenge Star Wars fans to find a game in the franchise that reveals more, lets you do more and tells a better story than BioWare’s Knights of the Old Republic. This game isn’t only the best Star Wars game, it’s one of the best games ever.
Players can fully customize their hero, and make choices that align them with the light or dark side of the force. These actions have consequences that run through the entire game, from the way people respond to you, to who will work in your team. Oh, and you can build a light sabre. If that isn’t a sell on it’s own, I don’t know what to tell you.
From the sort of real time but mostly turn-based combat based on the Dungeons and Dragons battle system, to the colourful cast of characters, to the amount of exploration, this is almost perfect. Yes, it’s dated, but once you get through the old visuals, there is a massive game with tons of content and a story that rivals the movies. Play this game.
For a franchise that spans over 30 years, there are way more games than we could list. We kept some really solid titles off this top five, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t worth mentioning. Did we snub a game you love? Let us know what your top five Star Wars games are.
