Super Star Wars: Return of the Jedi

Review

by Brad Cook

The biggest problem with the Star Wars games which have the word "Super" before their title is the fact that they're so hard. While some may relish a challenge, others can get easily frustrated with a game which requires a few gameplay sessions just to beat the first level.

I have to admit I'm in the latter group. While I had fun with Super Star Wars back in my Super NES days, I still had trouble making much progress in the game even on the easiest level. Then again, my roommate was able to get to the end, so beating the game obviously wasn't impossible. Of course, he had more time on his hands than I did.

Is any game worth putting so much effort into that you feel like you're working a part-time job just to beat it? I don't think so, especially when a game like Super Return of the Jedi, a port of the Super NES version of the same name, is daunting even on the first level. No matter which character - Luke Skywalker, Boushh (Princess Leia in disguise), or Chewbacca - you choose to start the game with, you'll be in for a gameplay session full of cheap deaths and struggles to figure out where the heck you're supposed to be going.

The game's levels mimic the film's storyline, but they're expanded versions of the major beats. In level one, Boushh is on her way to Jabba the Hutt's palace as part of the attempt to rescue Han Solo. Luke is a worthy alternative, although Chewbacca is useless. The best part about using Luke is the ability to swing his lightsaber around every time you jump, thus eliminating those pesky Jawas which always seem to be standing where you need to be.

Speaking of Jawas, it's amazing that those pesky little critters can cause so much damage just by throwing rocks at you. Even on the easiest skill setting it's amazing how much of your health deteriorates each time something hits you. Many times it's almost impossible to avoid them, simply because the creature is too big to jump over or you can't back away without getting into more trouble.

Completing even the first level is a task made more difficult by the fact that there are no signposts to guide you along the way. Even when you run into R2-D2 at the checkpoints, you don't get any clues where you should be going. At one point you find yourself jumping from one hanging rock to the next without knowing where to go next; if you happen to take a misstep, you fall to your death. I've never played a side-scrolling action game which was this hard.

If you don't mind really difficult gameplay, you'll probably appreciate this game more than I did. The sounds are really good, especially the rendition of the Star Wars main theme, and the graphics are well done. The game was designed to be played on the Super NES as well with the Super Game Boy, so a lot of attention was paid to little details in the graphics. While I wasn't able to play this game on my television, I can imagine it probably holds up pretty well.

Overall, Super Return of the Jedi is a worthy purchase only if you're prepared for a challenge. If you prefer games which at least allow you to get through the first level with a modicum of damage, then this one isn't for you.