Star Wars: Demolition
Jabba the Hutt has convened a host of hotshot pilots and a fleet of modern
(i.e. original trilogy) and outdated (i.e. prequel-era) vehicles to engage
in winner-take-all vehicular warfare. Contestants and opponents include
Boba Fett, super-armed Snowspeeders, Trade Federation tanks, bounty hunter
Aurra Sing on her swoop bike, Battle Droids astride their STAPS, and others.
Obstacles include slow-moving Jawa sandcrawlers, unpredictable Banthas, and
a little thing we call the Sarlacc - and that's just on the
Tattooine track. Other tracks include Cloud City, Hoth, Naboo, and - how
did Jabba get permission to race there? - the Death Star.
(LucasArts [developed by Activision], 2000)
Star Wars: Demolition is right up there with the upcoming PS2
game Super Bombad Racing. Demolition is a decent game, but for the
fans who demand something that cleaves tightly to the continuity of the
Star Wars universe, you'd
best look elsewhere. If you have any doubt, check the bullet point on the
game's packaging: Interactive environment - blow it all up! 'Nuff
said.
The controls are fairly simple, and overall the game is easy to keep a
handle on, though I'll admit that the first time I fell into the Sarlacc
pit on Tattooine it surprised the hell out of me. Somewhat more commonplace
and annoying are Banthas rushing your vehicle.
The graphics, 3-D work and textures in the game are top-notch - as silly
as the premise of the game may be, it looks awesome. The sound is
also excellent, with techno renditions of various percussive themes, as
well as the tuba-based theme established for Jabba in Return Of The Jedi.
It's a nice game, but fans who insist on movie-continuity-friendly games
like Rebel Assault II may feel that their
intelligence is being insulted; Demolition is along the lines of the
extremely flawed (though not nearly as fun) Masters
Of Teras Kasi - it uses characters and settings of the Star
Wars universe, but it throws to the wind the larger story that so
many fans take very seriously indeed.
It really brings one question to mind - why couldn't we have just gotten
Episode I: Racer for the Playstation?
