STAR WARS™ Shadows of the Empire™

I was messing around with emulators today for n64 and decided to compare this version I bought and the rom I found to run for free online, well there's not really much to say other than one was meant for N64 and this one on GOG is meant for PC. they differ in slight ways, over all pleased with the purchase and recommend this game in all its forms.

Shadows of the Empire was one of the first truly 3D games based on the Star Wars license. Unfortunately, it also spelled the end of Lucasarts' amazing streak, and would be followed by more than one subpar SW title. The story takes place during the events of Episode V, but it's mostly forgettable. You play as Dash Rendar, a mercenary who looks suspiciously like Han Solo. There's something about a bad guy who wants to replace Darth Vader and all that, but honestly, it's hard to care. Let's just say you want to play Star Wars and that's it. After all, if you are here, it's probably because of the opening level (which lets you replay the amazing Hoth battle sequence from the movie). Good stuff, I'll be the first to admit. Grappling those AT-ATs on their legs never gets old. But after this one level, things crumble: the first/third person shooting gameplay, with its slippery and approximative controls, gets tedious soon. The areas are extremely linear and won't ever really challenge your wits. There's some platforming as an attempt to make things more varied, but you will hate it soon because of said slippery controls. You'll hate it even more when falling too often will lead you to running out of lives in a level. There are also some vehicle sequences, but they leave a lot to be desired as well. The Outrider (which looks suspiciously like the Millennium Falcon) is unwieldly, like the rest of the game. The Speeder Bike? Better not speak about it. While there's some replayability in the form of collectibles in each level, I don't know if anyone would really want to replay this game after it's done. From the company that gave us Dark Forces and later Jedi Knight, not to mention X-Wing and TIE Fighter, this is a very poor showing. It cannot capture either series' strengths, and any attempt to build an identity of its own are marred by bad decisions or technical issues. The Force isn't strong with this one, and this time there's no Han Solo to save the day.

This game is probably great on a computer that fits it. Everything about windows 11 and mouse settings and core affinity and refresh rates yada yada, is hindering every part of being able to enjoy this game. Although spending some time on it im sure you can get it to run fine. Great Game, Difficult Port

Disclaimer - I will concede that I played the N64 version of this game in the 90s and have a lot of affection for it. I have tried to leave this aside and review the game objectively. I believe this game truly stands up. Granted, there are elements of it that are simply awful and at times it is staggeringly frustrating, but as an overall experience it is satisfying. Why? First and foremost, given the technological constraints on this game's development I think it is genuinely ambitious and impressively realised. The mix of gameplay styles is not entirely successful - the first level on Hoth has been rightly highlighted by other reviewers, and the game never matches this with later vehicle levels. That being said, the combination of gameplay styles contributes to the 'epic' feel and also provides a narrative function in explaining how you progress from one level to the next, etc. The bulk of the game takes the form of a third person shooter with some platform elements. This is generally well done. The controls take some (a lot) of getting used to, and the jumping mechanic is woeful. Dash will occasionally lose traction and simply slip off a ledge without warning. This is frustrating. Unbelievably, this version represents an improvement on the N64 version in this regard. I played the game using the 8BitDo SN30 Pro + which was a superior experience. Time setting up the bindings is not wasted (tip - bind 'free look' to clicking down the left analogue stick, it makes various things much, much easier). Any 'dual shock' style controller will work. This version can also boast significant graphical improvement, which makes the game look surprisingly crisp for its' age. For me, the best thing about the game is its overall atmosphere. Lest we forget, this was in some ways the last gasp of the old 'nerdy' Star Wars. The dark, grim Empire SotE captures was lost and never regained with the release of 'The Phantom Menace'. For this alone, it is worth buying.

This game is short - I completed it in around an hour or so of actual gameplay. I'm writing this review in Late November, which is a nostalgaic time frame for me, so I decided to try this out on PC. The GOG version here is well upheld, as the version I tried previously couldn't work with its fan-patches and tweaks to get it working on Windows 7. The game is a short, simple, mediocre, but charming mixture of 3d platformer and fps/tps with both space combat & turret sections. There are 3 vehicle levels, one serving as a slow, boring ship-based "Hoth Defense" intro to the game that feels longer than it actually is; the next a swoop-bike intermediary level that is quite short and ultimately a weak racing level; the last is a highlight of the game, wherein you fly into a space-structure to blow up its core. The mainstay of gameplay is the multi-genre mix, and this is where the game is more interesting, as you have direct control of your character, and can enjoy the old-school environments. The game controls like a X/Y-limited fps in one camera mode, and a 3d platformer/tps in the others. The Junkyard and Desert levels are actually quite good in their atmosphere and more complicated level designs, being that they involve more platforming in one across moving trains, and a long treck along desert cliffs and a jetpack in the other. All of the levels are short, and none even remotely touch the Jedi Knight or Dark Forces games, but they aren't horrible, either. The turret sections, however, ARE quite awful, with one being a slow, easy, boring time shooting TIE bombers and fighters out of the sky until they run out, and the other a frustrating mess wherein you can't dodge enemy fire - a section alleviated by the inifinite lives in this level. The graphics are pretty bad, but they have a sort of charm to them - the desert level and Junkyard are good, even. The sound design is very minimal, with one notable track in the Xisor's Palace level; sound effects aren't varied much.