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| Source // MobyGames |
I liked Star Wars: Rogue Squadron quite a bit. I wasn't good at it, but it made me feel like a kid again, reminding me of when Star Wars was cool. Enter a new console generation and a mouthy sequel: Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader.
Once again, we get to pilot all the letter-Wings throughout the galaxy, beginning with the destruction of one Death Star, and ending with the destruction of another. The better we do, the shinier our medal cabinet becomes, and the more bonus content we unlock.
Strap in, get your targeting computers set up, and get ready to hear those TIE Fighters scream...
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Fun Times
For many reasons, I ignored emulating this one and went straight to the GameCube. I couldn't work out why I was getting no signal to the TV, but soon connected all the right cables into the correct ports and was met by a montage of Star Wars footage - mostly of characters, rather than spaceships - set to the tunes of Star Wars as written by someone evoking John Williams, but clearly is not themselves John Williams.
It's not the music you'd expect to hear in a game so very clearly about Star Wars, is what I'm saying, and yet there are musical cues here and there that very definitely come from the films. It's a bizarre mix of authentic and soundalike, but I'm not here to listen to the music. I'm here to shoot TIE Fighters out of the sky.
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| Source // MobyGames |
Outside of a Tatooine tutorial level, we start Rogue Leader in the thick of things with an assault on the Death Star, controlling Luke Skywalker in his X-Wing as he destroys a bunch of turrets on the surface, then a bunch of TIE Fighters skimming the surface, and finally whatever is in his way inside that trench run.
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| Source // MobyGames |
Look at that trench! It's even better in motion. The light of your laser fire illuminates the walls along their travels, and explosions scatter debris every which way before you (usually) fly through the fireball a few seconds later. Rogue Squadron is a joy to see. I know these are promotional images I'm using, but the game looks pretty damn good.
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| Source // MobyGames |
So what is the game? Like the first Rogue Squadron, Rogue Leader follows a bunch of pilots on their galactic travels, thwarting the Empire and striking critical victories for the Rebel Alliance. You'll be doing much the same as the first game - fly this to there, stop other things from flying at all, protect another thing from being destroyed, and so on - but all of it looks so much better. So much. I was caught off guard by some of it. I wasn't expecting the GameCube to be able to handle it all, but it did, and it looked great.
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| Source // MobyGames |
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| Source // MobyGames |
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| Source // MobyGames |
After destroying the Death Star, you have a mission to protect a convoy travelling somewhere or other, but it inevitably gets attacked by the Empire. Halfway through, you just find yourself inside a nebula, still having to track and defeat the opposition before they destroy your fleet. Silent Hill doesn't even have this much fog, and it doesn't look as good either. Rogue Leader is that damn good.
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| Source // MobyGames |
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| Source // MobyGames |
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| Source // MobyGames |
Frustrations
But it can't all be amazing. Nothing's perfect, and that includes Rogue Leader's idea of difficulty, which ramps up throughout the game, as expected, but I read that it almost requires repeat plays of earlier missions to get bonus upgrades to your shields, for example.
I never got that far, as you might imagine, but I did see my fair share of deaths, and if you lose all your lives, you're not restarting at a checkpoint, no. You're going back to the start of what is likely a 10-minute level. Did Darth Vader kill you in the trench run? Back you go to the turrets and the TIE Fighters...
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| Source // MobyGames |
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The controls are fairly obvious, with a primary and secondary fire button, speed controls, even some degree of camera control, though it is more likely you'll switch between the cockpit and chase camera, more than using the C-stick to look around a little. And yes, the cockpits are rather detailed. Almost like fans were developing the game.
Anyway, while the controls are fairly obvious, they don't feel brilliant. It may have been down to the fact I was using a cheap third-party controller, but if it wasn't, then ships are somewhat choppy in their movement, and engaging with dogfights is an exercise in frustration. Far better to approach from a distance and hope you've done enough damage by the time you get close, in my experience.
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| Source // MobyGames |
Further Fun Times
You're not alone, however, and you can issue orders to various other characters through the D-pad, allowing you to concentrate on one of your numerous targets, sending your wingmen to deal with another. I don't know how effective they are in the grand scheme of things, but it's a welcome mechanic and makes me feel like I'm part of a squadron and not a lone fighter. I don't feel like a full leader, yet, though. It's not like I'm setting up these missions. I just find myself in them, following orders.
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| Source // MobyGames |
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| Source // MobyGames |
But look at this game. I'll gladly follow orders if it means I can fly around locales like these. Have you ever tied up an AT-AT's legs and drowned it at the same time? Neither have I, to be fair. I died too many times before this mission was even available, but now I know it's in here, I might have to get back into the cockpit.
For a fan of Star Wars: Starfighter, of all titles, it's incredible that I haven't played Rogue Leader until now. What a mistake that was. But that's what console exclusivity does - it was a significant game on the GameCube, but in my PlayStation world, it might as well have not existed.
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| Source // MobyGames |
Final Word
While there are only ten missions, they seem to be lengthy and difficult, so there's plenty of gaming to be had here, and I'll have to decide how to get on with it. Do I try out another, better controller for the original hardware, or do I see how modern(ish) analogue sticks deal with this title through emulation?
One way or another, I'm going to play Rogue Leader again. It's a well presented, technically sound game that I enjoy. It might feel a little repetitive sometimes, especially if you have to redo levels for any reason, but it's Star Wars, and to me, it's fresh. Yeah, it leans on the same battles we've seen multiple times before, but they look spectacular, and they are spread out between brand new environments that show off what this game and its console can do.
You'll likely already know if you want to play it or not. I suppose its more likely worth playing if you're a fan of Star Wars, but even if not, it looks mighty impressive at the very least.
Fun Facts
The first tech demo for a game on a new Nintendo console, complete with a recreated scene from Star Wars of X-Wings approaching the Death Star, was completed in just 19 days.
Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader, developed by Factor 5, LucasArts, first released in 2001.
Version played: GameCube, 2002.