Lego Star Wars: The Video Game

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Lego Star Wars: The Video Game
Developer(s)	Traveller's Tales Griptonite Games Aspyr Media Giant Interactive Entertainment
Publisher(s)	Eidos Interactive LucasArts
Platform(s)	Game Boy Advance, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube, Mac OS X
Release date	GBA, Windows, PS2, Xbox USA April 5, 2005 EU April 22, 2005 GameCube USA August 2005 Mac OS X USA October 10, 2005 EU November 4, 2005
Genre(s)	Action,Adventure
Mode(s)	Single player, two-player simultaneous
Rating(s)	ESRB: E (Everyone) PEGI: 3+
System requirements	OS: Windows 2000/XP, Processor: PIII 1 GHz, RAM: 256 MB, Hard drive: 500 MB free space, Video Card: 32 MB, Sound: DirectX 9 compatible sound card, CD-ROM: required.
Input methods	Keyboard, gamepad

Lego Star Wars: The Video Game is a video game based on the Star Wars themed toy line by the Lego Group, that takes place during the prequel trilogy (The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith), with a bonus segment from A New Hope. Lego Star Wars was first released on April 5, 2005, a full month before the final Star Wars film premiered.

It was developed by Traveller's Tales for the Microsoft Xbox and Sony PlayStation 2 video game consoles and Microsoft Windows personal computers, with Griptonite Games developing the Nintendo Game Boy Advance version. These initial versions were published in April of 2005. A Mac port, developed by Aspyr, was released in August 2005. A Nintendo GameCube version of the game was released on October 26, 2005. All versions were published by Eidos Interactive and LucasArts.

Lego Star Wars was billed as a kids' game and received the Game of the Year award from Kidzworld.com It received generally positive reviews (PC version Metacritic score 77) and peaked at the top of the UK charts during early May 2005. It later lost the spot to the official game of Episode III but maintained a consistently high chart position throughout the month.

A sequel, Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy, was released in September 2006, while a compilation, Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga was released on the 6th of November, 2007.

Synopsis

See also: Star Wars Episode I, Episode II, and Episode III

The story of Lego Star Wars is similar to those of Episodes 1-3, with minor differences. Scenes that do not include much action in the movie are only lightly touched on in the game or removed entirely. Scenes are also changed to make them more humorous.

This game was released before Revenge of the Sith, possibly driving sales up as the basic plotline was present in the game. To prevent inadvertent spoilers however, most reviewers warned that this was the case in their reviews.

Gameplay

Characters

Lego Star Wars contains a total of 56 playable characters. The playable characters are modeled like actual Lego parts (but with far more mobility) and when they die, fall to pieces like an actual Lego minifigure. There are a wide variety of characters included in the game, all of which are unlocked by completing levels or by purchasing them at Dexter's Diner. Characters are divided into groups according to certain skills. For instance, Jedi can double-jump, use lightsabers, and have control of the force, which they can use to activate or lift Lego objects or defeat certain enemies. Characters who carry blasters have the ability to grapple. Droids, while not being armed, can travel through the game without being intentionally attacked by enemy characters; also, protocol droids and astromech droids can open special doors. Every character, other than the PK Droid, the Gonk Droid, and Chancellor Palpatine, has a special ability.

Unlocked characters can be imported into the game's sequel, LEGO Star Wars: The Original Trilogy, as an extra called "use old save" costing 250,000 Lego Studs.

Because Lego Star Wars is based on the Prequel Trilogy (Episodes I, II and III), Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and other characters from the original Star Wars trilogy are not shown, appearing in Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy. However, if you unlock the last level (an episode 4 preview), Darth Vader, a stormtrooper, a rebel and Princess Leia become available.

Free Play

Lego Star Wars has a feature called 'Free Play', which enables the player to play a level again, but with the ability to switch between characters. This permits access to areas containing extras the player was unable to get before. In Free Play mode, a player may use any character they have unlocked; unlike Story Mode, which only allows players to switch between the characters involved in that scene. The Free Play option will only appear when the player finishes a level in Story Mode. Levels that are played in vehicles cannot be played in Free Play, but are able to be replayed in story mode like all the others.

Dexter's Diner

Dexter's Diner is the area from which the player chooses what level to enter, or can enter the Parking Lot to view any vehicles whose parts they have found. The parts to these vehicles are contained in 10 mini-kit canisters which are hidden in each level. Battles often take place between canon-good and canon-evil characters in the Parking Lot as well. At the diner counter, the player may purchase unlockable extras in exchange for Lego studs they have collected by playing through the levels.

Levels

Each level in Lego Star Wars loosely follows the various sequences from the Star Wars prequel films: The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith, with game play segments linked together by various cutscenes. There is no spoken dialogue; rather, the characters act out their parts using gestures and pantomime. The game begins with Obi-Wan Kenobi and Qui-Gon Jinn aboard the Trade Federation ship, and ends with Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi's duel on Mustafar. Scenes that did not become levels were "The Duel on Tatooine" and "Anakin's flight" from Episode I, "Bounty Hunter Pursuit", "Tusken Slaughter", and "Asteroid Field Chase" from Episode II, and "Boga Chase" and "Darth Sidous and Mace Windu duel" from Episode III.

Bonus level

In each of the 17 levels in Episodes I-III, if a player collects a certain number of Lego studs in one attempt of the level, they will obtain a piece of a super kit, a model of the Tantive IV blockade runner. The studs can be collected in story mode or free play mode. After all 17 kit pieces are collected, a fourth door, marked by a question mark, unlocks in the main room of Dexter's Diner. This room contains the bonus level, a short prelude into Episode IV: A New Hope. This level is available for both story and free play modes, however there are no mini-kit pieces to collect, no Lego stud meter and no areas that can only be reached in free play mode.

In the bonus level, the player plays as Darth Vader and an Imperial Stormtrooper who later meet up with C-3PO upon entering the Tantive IV blockade runner. In the level, the player encounters a few Rebel soldiers, and is capable of collecting over 100,000 Lego studs. The level ends upon finding Princess Leia and R2-D2. The message "To be continued..." follows completion. This is different than the Lego Star Wars II Episode IV opening level, as you play as Leia and Captain Antilles in the sequel.

Trivia

If you crash your starfighter in the "Battle Over Coruscant" level of Episode III, the character driving it will emit a Wilhelm scream. This sound, which is famous for appearing in many films, is attributed to Star Wars sound designer Ben Burtt.

Game Boy Advance version

The Game Boy Advance (GBA) version of Lego Star Wars has several differences (mostly for the sake of portability), including fewer playable characters (only 15), devalued studs (grey Lego studs are worth 1, blue 5, and yellow 10 stud credits), fewer levels, only one player character on screen at a time, and cutscenes consist of still frames of the home console versions.

All lightsaber users are able to deflect blaster shots aimed at them (provided they are attacking the shot) and each character has their own style. They also are the only ones able to use the force to interact with undeployed platforms and switches. However, unlike other versions of the game, blaster shots can only be deflected if they are headed straight towards the player at the front, not the back or sides of the character. Blaster characters can charge a shot by holding the button, making it stronger and able to pass through several enemies. However, they don't have the shot deflecting abilities of Jedi.

References

External links

• Star Wars Games wikia
• Lego Star Wars: The Video Game at MobyGames