Star Wars: Demolition

Review

by Jon Thompson

The powerful Star Wars license has been both a blessing and a curse to gamers the world over. While the fantastic and compelling nature of the movies, when translated with competence and dedication, can create some magnificent games, it also gives companies the opportunity to make a sub-standard product, slap the Star Wars name onto it, and still sell a gazillion copies on the brand value alone.

We've been subjected to a number of less-than-spectacular games based on the Star Wars license, and upon first glance of Star Wars: Demolition, we are right to be worried of the same fate. It is, after all, built on the engine of another game ( Vigilante 8), and while that game was entertaining, it isn't enough to slap some Star Wars textures on it and release it as a new experience.

Fortunately, however, this doesn't turn out to be the case. Star Wars: Demolition isn't the world's best game, or even the best vehicular combat game available, but it certainly is a decent title, and for those who hunger for any and all things Star Wars it would be a great addition to their collection. While you can't help but get game déjà vu with the title, conjuring up images of games past that play strikingly similar, it has enough of its own style and flair to give it at least the gloss of originality.

Aside from all the trappings, at the heart of this game is its engine. It's a modified version of Vigilante 8's own car combat simulation, but has some modifications to separate itself. Each of the many vehicles in the game only has one main laser weapon, but these weapons differ in function from craft to craft, and each weapon has different levels of damage that it can unleash. You can charge your blaster up, choosing from four levels. The higher the level, of course, the more damage it does, and this brings an interesting and strategic element into play: should you charge up and really blast that opponent, or is it too risky with him breathing down your neck?

The rest of the controls, however, are a fairly mixed bag. One of Star Wars: Demolition's main problems is the over-sensitivity that every craft seems to produce. They don't always feel very connected to the game world, they're quite floaty and tend to turn at a rapid rate, especially the crafts that are supposed to be more nimble. Nimbleness is well and good, but if you can't make your craft go where you want it to, then what good is being quick?

Also, the default auto-lock doesn't work well, especially with a lot of action going on in the screen. Although it might be needed to beat some of the quick and crafty computer-controlled opponents, who can of course handle their craft better than you could hope to, it still gets annoying when you lock on to an enemy and fire, only to have your shot trail off in the direction of something else nearby. Still, these issues don't do enough damage to the overall game to ruin the experience.

Another interesting and creative aspect of Demolition is the Tournament system, where, instead of just being thrust into match after match of action, you're given a bit of a theme. You're playing for Jabba, of course; since he can't race his Pods anymore, he's had to find something to satisfy his need for gambling and death. Your objective is to garner 10,000 credits over the course of four matches, but if you foul up and lose everything, it's the Sarlacc Pit for you.

Money will be gained by destroying the opposition, and bonus credits can be earned with particularly nasty volleys and special final blows, but get too damaged and you'll find that money drained away quickly. This balance and its overall design isn't terribly complicated and doesn't change gameplay that much, but it is a nice touch that helps the game separate itself from it's close kin such as Vigilante 8 and Twisted Metal.

The game looks fairly decent, although an extreme attention to detail wasn't highest on the developers lists, obviously, and fine tuning it for the DC from the PSOne version must not have been that big of a priority, either. The frame rate is fast and fairly constant. Only when the screen is crammed with action do things slow down, and usually it isn't a problem. The models all look decent, although some of them could have been better animated. And the explosions aren't up to par, usually looking like big, chunky, blocky messes. The music and sound effects, however, are quite nice, as they usually are in Star Wars games.

All in all, the game isn't destined to be a classic, but if you're a fan of either the genre or Star Wars, you'll find a very complete and competent game in Star Wars: Demolition, utilizing some favorite characters and vehicles from the movies. And, as has now become obligatory for me to mention in Star Wars game reviews, there is neither hide nor hair of Jar Jar Binks anywhere to be seen. Although given the prospect of blowing him to bits, maybe that wasn't such a great choice, after all.