Star Wars Trilogy: Apprentice of the Force – GBA – Review

A new hope is upon us.  It
won’t be another story about a menacing phantom, or another tale of attacking
clones.  Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith will conclude the saga
once and for all.  It will merge the two trilogies together in a way that
could only be done by George Lucas.

To celebrate this
once-in-a-lifetime event, Lucas brought the original Star Wars trilogy to
DVD.  What’s old is new again thanks to improved color, picture, sound, and a
series of updated scenes.

LucasArts got in the
classic Star Wars spirit by producing a game that chronicles the story of Luke
Skywalker – Star Wars Trilogy: Apprentice of the Force.

Developed exclusively for
the Game Boy Advance, Apprentice of the Force was somewhat of a mystery game.
We all know how the story goes, but what does this mean for the game?  Where
will gameplay fit into each sequence?

Apprentice of the Force
covered each of the three films by being a side-scrolling action game.  Luke
didn’t have any particularly strong moves up until the end when he became a
Jedi.  The game does its part of inventing some, but not to the extreme.  You
might question why Luke can roll almost as fast as Sonic the Hedgehog.  But in
truth, can we really know for certain that he didn’t have the power to do so?
It’s not like the opportunity presented itself in any of the films.  Jedi
Knights can do many things we never see.  Things George Lucas could capitalize
on in the new television show (assuming it gets made).

Since this is a side-scroller,
the levels are set up with ledges to hang from, platforms to climb, and small
areas to roll through.  Luke has an interesting dash move that thrusts him
forward.  Combine the move with a carefully positioned jump (hit the A button
before the thrust ends to ensure that your jump’s length is not shortened) to
– you guessed it – cross the many pitfalls the Sith has laid out for you.
They’re an angry bunch aren’t they?

Luke didn’t wield his
lightsaber with masterful skills for quite some time, making the laser blaster
his weapon of choice.  Shoot in all directions, run around, collect keycards,
and have R2-D2 unlock the few doors that you’re unable to open yourself.
That’s the gist of the game.  Apprentice of the Force doesn’t have much
variety.  Players get to use Luke’s lightsaber during specific levels, but
then the game is very hack-n-slash.  Not overly gripping, but still above
mediocrity.

Game Boy Advance isn’t
the best place to letterbox (widescreen) a game, but you will see black bars
along the sides, top and bottom of the screen from time to time.  When the
black bars appear, at least one Stormtrooper is nearby.  The game prohibits
you from moving beyond the block bar area.  Take out all of the enemies to
free yourself.

There are a few instances
when two groups of Stormtroopers will attack, one of which is guarded by a
force field at all times.  Since the force field cannot be penetrated from
either side, they can’t attack you either.  The force field changes frequently
though, increasing your chances of taking them out and vice versa.  It never
hurts to duck, so be sure and do that whenever a laser beam is headed directly
for your head.

The thing that really got
me into this game was the music.  It’s the same old soundtrack, the one we’ve
been hearing since 1977.  But for a true Star Wars fan like myself, that music
never gets old.  It never grows tiresome.  No matter how many video games have
it, I love hearing it play through my TV’s speakers (or in this case, my GBA’s
lone speaker).

Not the best or worst
Star Wars game by any means, Apprentice of the Force is the almost game of the
season.  It almost has great gameplay.  It could have had a significant amount
of replay value.  It doesn’t quite accomplish either of those, leaving players
with a game that’s more of a collector’s item than anything else.  You’ll dig
it out, look at it, and play it for a few moments every time you need that bit
of nostalgia to get you through your day.  Then it’s off to your closet for
safe keeping, the place where this game will ultimately spend most of its
time.

Review Scoring Details for Star Wars Trilogy: Apprentice of the Force

Gameplay: 7
Side-scrolling
shooting and lightsaber-ing.  Navigate through simple mazes, collect the
necessary keycards, and make your way to the final battle.

Graphics: 7
Apprentice of the
Force has a weird graphic style.  The backgrounds look good, as do some of the
enemies.  But Luke looks strange.  It almost looks like they motion-captured a
real person’s clunky movements and then digitized them for the game.

Sound: 8
John Williams’s
greatest masterpieces in GBA form.

Difficulty: Easy
Possibly
difficult for a five-year-old, Apprentice of the Force is no match for a Star
Wars fan.  Remember: we’re Jedi in training.  Weak battles are no match for
our advanced skills.

Concept: 6.5
Star Wars meets
side-scrolling action.  Done before, and done better many moons ago on the
SNES.

Multiplayer: 6

Overall: 7
Star Wars
Trilogy: Apprentice of the Force makes a better collector’s item than it does
a great playing video game.  Star Wars fans will think it’s cool, but only for
a limited amount of time.