When it first debut as a tech demo for the system, the crowds were amazed, but not so much as they were when they found out the details. These demos were all rendered in real time, and were to be shaped into another game, a sequel to the glorious Rogue Squadron on the Nintendo 64. In the very capable hands of Factor 5, people had their main reason to be excited for Nintendo's new console.

"Red 5 Standing by..."

Though a story would seem to be in order at this point, I am sure about 95% of the people out there know the details. Like almost all Star Wars games, this one manages to "fill in the gaps" in that you play scenarios that were not present in the feature films. The missions take place when the action in the movie lay elsewhere. You work your way all the way from the attack on the first Death Star from the end of Episode IV, to the climactic finale at the core of the second, fully operational Death Star high above the moon of Endor in Episode VI.

You take control of Luke Skywalker up until midway through the Hoth level, where you will slip into the persona of the ace rebel pilot Wedge Antilles. This helps move the progress of the game quite a bit, as Luke goes off to become a Jedi. Interesting enough, Dennis Lawson, the real Wedge, does the voice over for himself. This is a neat little addition, which will be of significant value to Star Wars trivia buffs.

Unfortunately, as solid as the levels are, there's simply not enough of them. The game takes you through 10 main levels, and adds a few extra levels that you have to unlock. Fortunately, the levels themselves are completely immersive, save for one downright irritating stage. But this doesn't do much to hinder what is just about the complete package in terms of Star Wars games. And trust me, when you compete that annoying level, you will be all smiles as soon as the Battle of Endor initiates. By far the best level in the game, and arguably the best level in any Star Wars games, this one is hectic, challenging, and completely stunning.

"That's no moon -- it's a space station."

For such a small time that this game spent in the development stage, Factor 5 managed to wrangle the Gamecube's graphical prowess as if it were 2 year old hardware. Most impressive to me was the fact that there are basically no flat textures in this game. Where most games before it would render a smooth surface, with a texture over it to give it the appearance of being rigid, Rogue Leader manages to actually produce these bumps, buildings, and guns realistically. This is first shown off on the first level, the Death Star Attack, when everything on the surface of the Death Star sticks up realistically. The amount of architecture being processed by the Gamecube is simply awe inspiring right off the bat. This is especially impressive when fighting Star Destroyers later on in the game. Just fly along side of it shows off the graphic quality perfectly.

The amount of effects practically thrown at you during any given level is amazing. Just take a look at the reflective water on "Vengeance on Kothlis." Not only does the sun reflect realistically, but when you have to take down the Imperial Walkers, you will see their own reflections in the water, along with laser fire, even the tow cable you are taking them down with. Want more? How about the myriad of asteroids in space in the "Prisoners of the Maw." All these details help make each and every environment immersive to the point in which actually feel like your here. The ships models are impressively rendered, ranging from the relentless craftsmanship of the basic X-Wing fighter to the enemy Tie Interceptor. Each exhibits such a vast labor of love, that I'd be hard pressed to find any game that could equal or surpass their designs.

But all of this doesn't hinder the speed of the game…most of the time. While many will argue that Rogue Leader slides along at a silky 60 frames per second, anyone who has put the game through its paces will find this isn't completely true. The game will take a hit at certain places, especially places where AT-ATs are present. The other instant is the final level, "Strike at the Core," where you fly inside of the second Death Star. The huge amount of architecture here is impressive, but it cuts the frame rate down a bit. You don't actually have a feeling of going fast inside the claustrophobic environment. But I guess speed is a small price to pay for playability.

"We'll last longer than we will against that Death Star,
and we might take a few of them with us!"

Rogue Squadron 2 is the perfect opportunity to see what a dream the Gamecube's control really is. Perfectly set up for such a game, Factor 5 takes advantage of it for maximum results. Using each and every button, stick, and D pad on the controller Rogue Squadron 2 strays away from being to difficult for its own good. You have all the basic functions, such as speed settings, guns, bombs, and targeting computer. The targeting computer is very nicely integrated into the place, and can be accessed by using the Y button. It is extremely easy to use this in tandem with firing because of its position, and height. It's easy to hold down the button and shoot at the same time.

Perhaps the only flaw in the scheme is the use of the Z button for rolling. Not only is this cramped on the fingers, it small and tough to get to in the heat of battle. As a result of this, you will find that you rarely use the roll at all during the course of the game, but it hardly effects your strategies.

One thing you will notice throughout your playing experience is that the hit detection can be really off at times. Especially on the last level, where I found that I wasn't even close to a pipe or girder, and would reflect off them for no reason, careening into a wall. But for the most part, you won't find this a problem until the last level.

"There's too many of them!"

One thing that Rogue Leader has in common with its predecessor is the music. Of course, being a Star Wars title, it has to incorporate the obligatory John Williams masterpieces of music. But for incidental, and filler music, Factor 5 incorporates the same style of synthesizer music as featured in the first edition. Although the clarity is greater, and the always lovable Star Wars theme is present throughout, it's far from being a groundbreaking innovation. Nevertheless, the soundtrack is executed admirably. Whereas, the sound effects are typically what you've heard on multiple occassions from respective Star Wars video game adaptions and feature films. Ranging from the burst of lasers (which strangely enough, sound as if someone is blowing their nose), to the screeching of Tie Fighters. Yes, they sound good, but I'll tell you, those Tie Fighter sound effects do get really, really annoying with prolonged exposure. Interesting enough, Factor 5 incorporated a Dolby Pro Logic surround sound scheme with Rogue Leader that works really nicely.

"So be it...Jedi."

This all adds up to quite a nice experience, which could have used a little polish. But to make up for lack of certain things, Factor 5 has gone to great lengths to assure this game has some handy dandy extras that are quite fun to play around with. Most impressive is the audio commentary. As a long time fan of DVD commentaries, I can honestly say that I'd really like to see this element incorporated in more games in the future. It's a truly pioneering idea that Factor 5 first incorporated into its last title, Battle of Naboo for the N64. It's immensely interesting to listen to the designers of certain aspects of the game talking about the creative process as you play the game.

Rogue Leader ended up being everything it was hyped up to be, but no less. It takes a tried and true formula, and injects it with some killer levels and graphics, and comes out as one of the top 3 launch games for the Cube. Factor 5 deserves kudos for making this happen as smoothly and precisely as they did. It could have benefited from being a bit longer, but I doubt many will complain as it's the journey itself that matters, not the length of the journey.

Screens 4-12 courtesy of Lucasarts.com

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