Star Wars: Battlefront

It's hard to believe that it was almost 10 years ago, way back in 1995, when Lucasarts released their first FPS, Dark Forces. Needless to say, it was a huge hit; it was Doom in the Star Wars universe, and gamers had a blast playing as an elite ex-Imperial soldier running and gunning after the Empire's nasty forces. But if you wanted to play as a Stormtrooper, you were out of luck; in fact, the only games that ever let you play on the Empire's side were the classic but short-lived TIE Fighter series.

Fast forward to the new millennium to see multiplayer first-person shooters evolve from the basic every-man-for-himself frenzy of Doom to games focusing on strategy, tactics and, most importantly, teamwork. It all started back in 2001 when Return to Castle Wolfenstein introduced the unique class system, which let you choose a character with highly specialized abilities, such as a Medic, Soldier, Engineer or Lieutenant; in order to win, you had to play together as a team with a good balance of each class. For example, if you had too few Medics, you would have trouble getting health packs; if you had no Lieutenants, there would be no way of getting ammo refills. This innovative system forced you to work together as a team if you wanted to succeed.

A year later, the critically acclaimed Battlefield 1942 took things a step further and allowed you to pilot tanks, planes and other vehicles, giving you greater flexibility in your tactics. The teamwork and class system enhanced the realism of the game, and pulled you deeper into the experience, making you feel as if you really were fighting in World War II Europe.

Now imagine the same thing in the Star Wars universe. Are you drooling yet?

Developed by Pandemic Studios, Battlefront is one of the most hotly anticipated titles of the year, ranking right up there with Doom 3, Half-Life 2, and that small art-house game called Halo-something.

Players will be able to choose from one of four factions: the Rebel Alliance, the Separatists, the Republic Clone Army, and for the first time in a FPS, the Imperial Empire. Each faction has at least five different classes of soldier, including standard infantry, snipers, heavy weapons, the all important pilot - who is the only one capable of repairing and piloting vehicles - and at least one class unique to each faction. For example, the Rebels have a Smuggler class that can supply medical kits, and a Spy who can disguise himself and sneak behind enemy lines. The Republic Army has a Jet Trooper who can hop around in a Jango Fett-like jet pack, the Separatists have the powerful "rolling hula hoop of death" Droideka destroyer, and in an homage to Dark Forces, the Imperials have the mighty Dark Trooper. Some classes can also plant mines, a truly fun way of killing your friends.

Battles will take place across ten planets, including Bespin, Endor, Hoth, Tatooine and Yavin 4, all from the original trilogy; and Naboo, Geonosis, and Kamino from Episodes I and II. Rhen Var, an ice planet originally seen in The Clone Wars, will also make an appearance, as will an as yet unidentified planet from Episode III (perhaps the Wookie homeworld Kashyyyk?).

Those who choose to play as a pilot will have the pleasure of being able to hop into more than 25 vehicles, including speeder bikes, AT-ST walkers, Republic gunships that can hold up to five players - each manning their own gun - and yes, even the coveted X-Wing and TIE Fighter. Think of the fun that can be had tripping up an AT-AT walker with a snow speeder or dropping big flashy "gifts" with a TIE Bomber. Just make sure you keep one finger on the eject button when you see those annoying enemy heavy soldiers with their powerful vehicle-busting missile launchers.

Okay, so the game has cool classes, weapons, planets and vehicles. But what about game play? While many people are eagerly looking forward to multiplayer online battles, the 16-level single player campaign looks like it could keep you riveted to your console as well. There are three single player modes: Instant Action, Historical Campaign and Galactic Conquest. Instant Action is exactly that; you get dropped into a random battle and go for it. Historical Campaign is a linear story mode where you fight through some of the saga's epic battles in chronological order.

Galactic Conquest is a bit more open ended and rewards you for conquering planets. Once you pick your faction, the planets are divided between you and the computer, and you wage both offensive and defensive battles to win the planet. Win four in a row and you receive a faction bonus, which lets you take over another planet without having to fire a shot.

Even better, each planet has its own unique factional bonus. For example, you may be able to call upon Luke Skywalker or his grumpy emphysemic dad to assist you in battle; unfortunately, you won't be able to control them, but hey, I'll take a computer controlled Jedi Master working on my side any day. Other planetary bonuses include extra health for your side and even decreased health against the enemy. The only downside is that planetary bonuses are restricted to their specific planets, but can go a long way to helping you turn the tide in battle.

Online multiplayer, however, is where the real action will be. Supporting up to 16-players on Xbox Live and 32 on a LAN, gamers are sure to enjoy some frenzied battles this side of Halo 2. And to emphasize the need for strategy and tactics rather than running around Rambo-style with infinite respawns, each team is given a set amount of shared respawns, similar to Battlefield 1942. Once those respawns are used up, you lose - and since the respawns are shared, it can potentially take only one or two cannon fodder-loving teammates to ruin your day. However, you can gain respawns by winning and holding key capture points and objectives on the map; alternately, your respawns will decrease if lose these points.

Some maps even have NPCs that will assist you. For example, on Endor, the Ewoks will assist Rebel troopers by setting up those deadly AT-ST log traps seen in Return of the Jedi, but the upside is if you're an Imperial, you can blast those furry little buggers all to heck. Hoth will have Tauntauns and even soldier-eating Wampas to watch out for. Naboo will have Gungans - and meesa oh so looking forward to squashing those guys with my Separatist tank.

The maps are huge and look great, each faithfully recreating the classic locations from the movies. The forests of Endor and Yavin give you plenty of foliage for cover, while the buildings of Kamino and Naboo can provide nasty sniper hidey holes. Visually, the whole game looks fantastic; perhaps not Splinter Cell-like quality, but it is impressive nonetheless. And of course, the Star Wars sound effects and music will do much to pull you into the action and make you feel as if you're actually in one of the movies.

Star Wars fans have been looking forward to this game for months, and from the looks of it, Battlefront won't disappoint them. And in a little stroke of marketing genius, Battlefront will be released the same day as the original trilogy DVD box set (which will also contain an Xbox exclusive demo of Battlefront), so it seems September 21 will be an early Christmas for Star Wars geeks like me everywhere.