Star Wars Battlefront 2

First Look : Star Wars Battlefront

Star Wars Battlefront II takes the Battlefront series one Imperial-walker step forward with all-new space combat, playable Jedi, and never-before-seen environments straight out of the Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith film.

Fans of the original Star Wars Battlefront will also enjoy an all-new single-player experience that takes players through a story-based saga where every action the player makes impacts the Battlefront and, ultimately, the fate of the Star Wars galaxy.

Star Wars Battlefront II improves upon the original game's single-player experience with open-ended, mission-based objectives inspired from all six Star Wars films. The storyline spans more than 12 new locations, many from Episode III, including volcanic Mustafar and the space battle above Coruscant.

This time around you can whum your ‘sabre around in locales lifted straight from the classic first trilogy of films such as the interior of the Death Star and Princess Leia's blockade runner, the Tantive IV, as seen at the beginning of Episode IV A New Hope. In addition, at certain key moments within the battles, players can feel the Force as a Jedi.

Star Wars Battlefront II players can now engage in space combat and, during the same battle, board enemy ships to attack from within. Starting on foot inside a capital ship, players can enter the spacecraft of their choice and travel into space to dogfight with the rival faction. From there, they can dock within the enemy's capital ship, overtake the ship's command posts, man its turrets to disable its shields and destroy it from within! Or, they can simply stay inside their own capital ship and defend it from attacks and enemy fire. The choice is theirs.

With multiplayer being central to the game itself, SWBII supports up to 24 players on PS2, 32 on Xbox and 64 on Windows. As before, teamwork will be key to success in the missions. It’s looks like LucasArts have listened to the criticisms levelled at the first game and ironed out the kinks, making SWBII something to look forward too.