Star Wars: Jedi Starfighter - Xbox

You think you're some kind of Jedi?

Having just seen the movie, my geek radar naturally gravitates toward Star Wars: Jedi Starfighter, currently the only console game based on Episode II. Originally released for the Playstation 2, Jedi Starfighter is a sort of upgrade to Star Wars: Starfighter. Not many changes have been made for Microsoft's machine, but a slight disturbance in the Force still emanates from this game.

The original Starfighter left off with a young pilot from the Naboo fighter corps, Rhys Dallows, teaming up with the mercenary Vana Sage and the Feeorin pirate Nym to take down the Trade Federation blockade of Naboo. This time around, the focus shifts to Nym and his unlikely alliance with a Jedi Master named Adi Gallia - both of which are playable depending on the mission. The Trade Federation has sided with the evil Count Dooku this time around, so you know that the poodoo is about to hit the fan.

If you've already seen the movie, you'll get a kick out of how the events of Jedi Starfighter intersect with Episode II. While playing as Adi, you'll zip around in one of those nifty Delta-Sevens complete with a little Arfour-Pea (R4-P) at your side. As Nym, you'll be back in the pilot's seat of an upgraded Havoc. Taking part in one of the movie's major battles with these cool ships leads to some genuine Star Wars fun.

The bulk of the gameplay in Jedi Starfighter is similar to that of the original. You fly, you shoot, you save the day. The game's 15 main missions take place both planetside and in space, and there are still plenty of bonus goodies to unlock.

Jedi Starfighter does introduce one unique concept - Force powers that can be used when playing the Adi Gallia missions. Since the Jedi's prototype fighter does not carry any secondary weapons, Adi reaches out to the Force for a handful of useful tricks. There's the Force Shield, which will create a Force powered barrier around the small craft for a limited amount of time. Next up is Force Lightning, which can rip through groups of enemy fighters. There's also Force Reflex, which slows down motion around you so you can pop off even more shots. Lastly, there's Force Shock Wave, which sends out a powerful ripple to damage any nearby enemies.

Almost as interesting as the Force powers is the skill it takes to use them effectively. Unlike normal 'fire and forget' secondary weapons, these powers must be charged up. When executed at the proper time, they'll unleash even more damage or have a longer effect. Mastering this skill is especially useful since it takes some time for you to gather up enough energy to use the Force again.

This challenge is made even tougher since you'll have to get used to the wingmate commands. Due to the lack of four triggers on the standard Xbox controller, giving orders to your wingmates is awkward. With the PS2 version you could use your thumb to fire while selecting the wingmate option with your index finger. Since the extra trigger is absent with the Xbox, you'll have to stop firing and move your right thumb over to the "white" button while selecting the command with the left. That means you lose your maneuverability and your ability to fire all at once. Sure, it only lasts a second, but the developers should have had a Jedi mind trick up their sleeve to solve this one.

At least Jedi Starfighter features a significantly beefed-up multiplayer game. Not only can you go through 2-player specific missions, but you can also play through main story missions in a cooperative split-screened mode. In this situation, the second player is assigned to an alternate character such as Reti, the Toydarian, or Jinkins, Nym's right hand Bith. These characters also feature their own ships such as the Zoomer or Freefall. This is certainly a big step up from the bare-bones multiplayer of the original.

The Xbox version also features the "Coruscant Cloudtops" multiplayer game, where players vie for control of several territories. Capturing a territory results in points, which can be used to purchase helpful wingmen in the game. Not a bad little multiplayer addition for the green machine.

The bonus unlockables are no slouch, either. Completing the bonus objective for each mission usually yields some extra single or multiplayer mission. There are also plenty of other unlockable fighters as well as bonus artwork, video previews for upcoming LucasArts games and the amusing "outtakes" video. If you manage to complete all of the hidden objectives (there's one for each mission), you'll gain the developer's commentary and even unlock another familiar craft that's usually not playable in a Star Wars game.

Despite its advances in gameplay, the game's visuals are kind of a letdown as there really isn't a noticeable change from the original, which was released about a year ago. Even with the cleaned up edges for the Xbox version, Jedi Starfighter still looks pretty plain. Don't get me wrong - it doesn't look bad, it just looks rather bland compared to the graphical marvels that we've seen lately.

Audio quality retains that high Lucasarts standard with plenty of familiar sounding tracks as well as a few brand new ones. Sound effects are also exactly what you'd expect.

But even though Jedi Starfighter is a solid game, it still doesn't feel like it goes the distance to become a great game. Again, like the original, this incarnation lacks a dynamic storyline or even level structure. I know that you can't mess with the timeline of the universe, but it would have been nice to see a little more freedom within the layout of the game.

Oh well, at least the game turned out better than the movie's dialogue. I'll take the fun of Star Wars space combat action over watching the masterful Hayden Christensen try to act any day.