Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace
Published By: LucasArts Entertainment
Reviewed by Loveleigh
7/5/99
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Discussion Forum
First
Impressions:
When
I popped in the CD and finally got to the options screen, I was
amazed to see actual fight footage from the movie! That should have
been my first clue that this game was going to be just like the
movie, but we will get back to that.
When you actually start playing the game, you find yourself in the
Conference Room of one of the Trade Federation's Blockade/Battle
Ships. There is some dialogue that is VERY similar to the movie,
but I was somewhat disappointed that Ewan McGregor & Liam Neeson
did not sign on for these roles-- Natalie Portman did not either.
So instead we get a Sean Connery-wannabe for the voice of Qui-Gon
Jinn.
You start off the game as Obi-Wan Kenobi and, just like the movie,
the room is filling with poison gas and you need to decide what
to do. Should you need help, or have not seen the movie, you can
ask questions to various characters throughout the game. These usually
elicit a multiple-choice reply. Sometimes you can use your "Jedi
Mind Tricks" to get someone to respond as you needed.
Graphics:
Ahh!
The options screen was "to-die" for. There are four cool boxes
that show actual movie footage when you place your mouse pointer
over them.
I intermittently experienced a video glitch on the opening and
options screens -- there was a jagged yellow flicker, but it must
be a conflict on my end since I installed it on another system
and it did not do this. At least it did not happen during gameplay.
Finally, the cut-scenes were great eye-candy when set to the highest
video settings.
Sound/Music:
Before
I purchased this game, I had already seen the movie twice (six
times as of this writing), and had already purchased the soundtrack.
Listening to the familiar John Williams themes took me back to
the theater setting. Hearing the voices of Jake Lloyd (Anakin
Skywalker), Ahmed Best (Jar Jar Binks), and Andy Secombe (Watto),
just made the game setting complete!
Although I never had a problem understanding the dialogue of the
game, there was an option to have the words flashed at the bottom
of the screen. This can be helpful if your household has people
who want to talk to you at the least opportune time or for those
not experienced in translating Gunganeze.
Gameplay:
If
you've seen the movie, then you should have no problem finding
your way through the game in general. There are additional areas
of adventure that the movie did not cover -- so you're on your
own there. In fact, the start of the game takes place in a new
area.
From the movie we know that Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon go through the
ventilation shafts to reach the hangar and eventually stow away
on one of the Federation ships that land on Naboo. This takes
15 seconds in the movie, but will take a little longer in the
game since you (Obi-Wan) have to find your way in the shafts and
catwalks until you hook up with Qui-Gon for further instructions.
As far as characters go, you get to play four different folks:
Obi-Wan Kenobi, Qui-Gon Jinn, Captain Panaka, and Queen Amidala.
Unfortunately, when I would finally get used to using my lightsaber
and "force powers" in the roles of Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon, I ended
up moving into an area of the game where I become Captain Panaka.
This was a bit upsetting because the weapons I have acquired or
skills I have learned must be RELEARN in order to effectively
defeat my new opponents.
There was one navigational nightmare to this game. You can use
your mouse to navigate the option screens, but not in the game.
With games like Quake II, Quake III Arena, and Shogo that now
use mouse/keyboard setups to play, going back to "old-school"
was not a step in the right direction. It caused much frustration
on my end. *
Another thing that really got my attention was "quicksave." You
can do this in your game, but there was no such thing as a "quickload"!
In some instances, it took as long as 30-60 seconds in certain
areas...I even refilled my tea glass and still had to wait.
Enjoyment:
Overall
I loved it. Fighting Darth Maul was enough to make my heart go
into palpitations. Any Star Wars fan would not pass up the opportunity
to be in the movie we have long awaited. However, I wouldn't advise
playing the game before watching the movie, seeing as how it is
a huge spoiler.
My biggest "peeve" was the game loading! When you work so desperately
to get through an area of the game and then die, you lose momentum
waiting for the reload.
I also did not care for the third person viewpoint. The camera
angles were so high and awkward that some walls BLOCKED your view
from above. This can be stressful when you are low on health and
die from something you never saw coming. I have heard that there
are cheat codes that will change this.
Multiplayer:
N/A
Overall
Impression:
If
you like Star Wars, then you do not want to miss this game! I
just wish LucasArts had improved their loading time, mouse controls,
and added first person viewpoints.
Marketing
Efforts Towards Women:
This
game, in my opinion, was marketed toward the STAR WARS fan, regardless
of gender. Since I am used to playing male characters, nothing was
different. Playing Queen Amidala did not make me feel any better,
since I found her "attitude" in this game annoying. At times she
would say that I was being rude to her after she ran into me! I
found her character in the movie much easier to swallow than in
the game.
 Seen
the Movie? Read the Book!
 Did
anyone else find out who the emporer really is? The book Star
Wars I Episode I is a *great* read. Also try:
They usually ship within 24 hours.
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