Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds
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| Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds | |
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| Developer(s) | LucasArts |
| Publisher(s) | LucasArts |
| Engine | Age of Empires II |
| Release date(s) | November 13, 2001 (original) May 14, 2002 (expansion) 2002 (bundle) |
| Genre(s) | RTS |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer |
| Rating(s) | ELSPA: 11+ ESRB: Teen (T) |
| Platform(s) | PC, Mac |
Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds is a real-time strategy game built on the Age of Empires II engine. The factions in the original game include the Wookiees, Royal Naboo, the Trade Federation, the Empire, the Rebels, and the Gungans. Two campaigns in the game are centered on the Wookiee race, and one each centered on Gungans, the Trade Federation, the Galactic Empire, and the Rebel Alliance.
An expansion pack known as Clone Campaigns was released to the original game in 2002. Later in 2002, Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds Saga was released, containing both Galactic Battlegrounds and the Clone Campaigns expansion pack.
The expansion pack added the Republic and the CIS factions. Both of them have their own campaign.
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[edit] Clone Campaigns Expansion
Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds: Clone Campaigns is an expansion pack that was released shortly after the theatrical release of Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones. It introduced two more playable factions and campaigns: That of the Confederacy of Independent Systems and the Galactic Republic.
The Clone Campaigns added more units, such as the Decimator and the Air Cruiser, support for movable power supplies, and more.
Online play is mainly played through GameSpy Arcade, maintaining a small base of friendly users. This small base of users was considerably damaged after Zone.com, the main site for online play, closed down all CD-ROM games on June 19th 2006. They were dropped due to financial problems.
[edit] Galactic Battlegrounds Campaigns
[edit] Tutorial Campaign
The tutorial campaign takes place shortly before the Battle of Naboo. It is centered on Chewbacca, along with his friend Shoran and his father Attichitcuk. Their quest is to rid the Trade Federation on Alaris Prime, a Kashyyyk moon the Wookiees were given colonization rights to. The player is guided through the tutorial by Qui-Gon Jinn.
The campaign begins when Chewbacca and Shoran destroy a Trade Federation power core and defend a Wookiee camp from Gundarks. At the camp, workers begin gathering resources when more Gundarks attack, which are defeated by Chewbacca. He starts to build an army that destroys a group of Battle droids. Attichituk then goes exploring and is injured near death by Battle droids. After Chewbacca upgrades his army, he is able to heal his father with medics. The army wards off incoming Droidekas and then is upgraded enough to destroy a Trade Federation Troop Center. Chewbacca and his army find out that Shoran has created a large camp. The two camps, with the help of Jedi, work together to acquire a Holocron and fend off Trade Federation attacks. Chewbacca, Shoran, Attichituk, and Qui-Gon then proceed to finish off all remaining Trade Federation forces.[1]
[edit] Trade Federation Campaign
The Trade Federation campaign follows OOM-9, the de facto droid leader of the Trade Federation's army. This campaign tells the story of several battles on Naboo between the Trade Federation and Gungans. It begins with the beginning of the invasion with an assault on several Naboo villages, the destruction of major Naboo cities, the destruction of the gungan capitol, Otoh Gunga, and an alternate history level, "If the Trade Federation won the invasion of Naboo." (This level deals with a failed assault on a droid control ship, which included the death of Anakin Skywalker, Darth Maul killing Obi-Wan Kenobi and Qui-Gon Jinn, along with a number of other ideas that would drastically change the Star Wars universe.)
[edit] Gungans Campaign
In the Gungans campaign, the first three missions take place 3000 years before Naboo was invaded by the Federation. They show how Boss Nass's ancestor, Boss Gallo, united the Gungan tribes to defeat the evil warlord, Boss Rogoe. In the next mission, 3000 years later, the Gungans must guide the Queen to their hiding place in the forest. The next two are about the Gungans attacking towns occupied by the Federation to unite their army. The bonus mission is about if the Gungans had won against the battle droids without the Droid Control Ship getting destroyed, so they must take back Theed. This campaign can also be called the Naboo Campaign, as it is centred around Naboo.
While the Royal Naboo faction is also a playable race in the game, there are no campaigns centered on that faction. However, they are occasionally counted as being in the Gungan campaign.
[edit] Empire Campaign
In the Empire campaign, Darth Vader is the main character, and the events take place just before and during Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. The campaign includes several battles between the Empire and Rebels, including versions of the battle of Cloud City, and an alternate history level to the Battle of Endor. If the player were to use a cheat that revealed the entire map, Mara Jade can be seen spying at Vader from corners of the map. She will disappear however, if the player sees or clicks her.
[edit] Rebel Campaign
The campaign of the Rebellion. The player's main character this time around varies from level to level. Some times it is Princess Leia, while other times it is Luke Skywalker, or others. The events of this campaign are outside the scope of the movies. They deal with Princess Leia's exploits with a Jedi master named Echuu Shen-Jon, including a series of battles with the imperial asteroid base of Geddes, later to be known as the Rebel allied colony of Hanoon. The campaign also deals with a battle between the Empire and the Rebels which takes place very early on in the Galactic Civil War.
[edit] Wookiee Campaign
The Wookiee campaign takes place after Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, during which time the Imperial Remnants are trying to keep the Empire together, and have attacked Kashyyyk. The main character of this campaign is Han Solo. Chewbacca makes appearances, as does Attichitcuk and Lando Calrissian.
[edit] Clone Campaigns
The Clone Campaigns occur during the first months of the Clone Wars.
[edit] Confederacy campaign
In the Confederacy campaign, the hero is Sev'rance Tann, and guided by Count Dooku himself. The player's goal is to capture the energy-mining platforms of the Galactic Republic so that they can effectively hold Coruscant hostage, and take control of the decimators, a secret weapon developed by the Republic.
In the years between Geonosis and his death, Count Dooku's most trusted general was Sev'rance Tann. Therefore, he gives her the job of finding out any information on a certain Republic Experiment- the Decimator. Count Dooku first directs her to Tatooine, where she finds Boorka the Hutt. In exchange for destroying a Republic outpost, she is given information regarding the Decimator. The experiment is located on Eredenn Prime, at the Republic research facility. General Tann manages to capture the base and the Decimators, but their Wookiee manufacturers include a failsafe locking code and prevent the CIS from using the Decimators. However, Tann manages to also capture a Data Droid, which she takes with her to the Wookiee colony on Alaris Prime. Alaris Prime soon serves as one of many probing attacks by the CIS on Wookiee territory before the Battle of Kashyyyk. After destroying the Wookiee Decimator facilities, Tann makes the droid unlock the Decimators. With the Decimators, Tan attacks Sarapin, penetrating the defences in the planet's rings. Capturing the planet's energy facilities, Sev'rance destroys the Republic base and kills Jor Drakas.
[edit] Republic campaign
The Galactic Republic campaign occurs after Sarapin is taken by Sev'rance Tann. The Jedi Council sends Echuu Shen-Jon there to reactivate the energy platforms. There he finds the wreckage of a Decimator, Republic technology stolen by the Confederacy. Echuu then reactivates the energy platforms and retakes Sarapin. Along the way, he captures and interrogates Zian Finnis, a Confederate officer, who gives away the Confederacy's presence on Tatooine, which becomes Echuu's next destination.
Echuu Shen-Jon is led to Tatooine, where he strikes an alliance with Jabba the Hutt. After defeating a band of Tusken Raiders, Echuu defeats the Confederacy on Tatooine. He then finds some supply crates destined for Krant, which becomes his next destination.
Having found out about the Confederacy's presence on Krant from supply crates on Tatooine, Echuu and his padawan Naat Reath destroy a Trade Federation mining camp on Krant's moon. They then invade the planet with the help of some stranded Wookiees, destroying the Confederate Decimator labs. However, Naat is then captured by Sev'rance Tann, who takes refuge inside her fort. Echuu then manages to penetrate the fort and kill Sev'rance in a duel. However, the dark side had taken root in him so much that he stays on Krant when Naat left. Echuu later meets with Princess Leia on Krant during the Rebel campaign.
The last mission follows the Rebel Alliance in their conquest of Coruscant's Imperial Palace following the Battle of Endor.
[edit] Gameplay
The player starts the game with a Command Center and three workers (in a normal random map game). He/she then gathers Food, Carbon, Nova Crystals, and Ore as resources to build new buildings and units with workers. The player can build separate units at separate buildings designed specifically for different types of units. The player can advance through the four Tech Levels by paying a certain amount of resources. When a player advances a Tech Level, more units, buildings, and upgrades become available.
If Victory is set to standard, the player can win in three different ways. He/she may win by destroying all of the enemies buildings and units with his/her army. Also, he player can use a Jedi/Sith to bring all of the Holocrons to the Jedi/Sith Temple and preserve them for 200 "days". The final way to win is to build a monument that is only available at Tech Level 4. If the monument stays standing for 200 days, then the player wins.
[edit] Reception
Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds received generally positive reviews, both from critics[2] and fans[3][4]. GameSpot gave the game an 8.2/10, calling it "perfect for a generation of gamers raised on Star Wars"[5]. However, Brian Gee of Game Revolution gave the game a "C" and said that it "doesn't feel very Star Wars".[6]
[edit] References
[edit] External links
[edit] Official sites
[edit] Fansites and custom scenario design sites
- The Vandhaal Rts scenario design
- Star Wars Galactic Battlegrounds Heaven
- The Zone Aristocracy "Le Crew"'s Main Site
[edit] Game Archive and Review sites
- Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds at MobyGames
- Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds at IGN
- Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds: Clone Campaigns at IGN
- Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds at GameSpot
- Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds: Clone Campaigns at GameSpot
