Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Gaming
  3. News

Digital Blend: Celebrating Star Wars

Adam Rosenberg
By
Star Wars Celebration 6
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Greetings from a galaxy far, far away! Your regularly scheduled Digital Blend is on hiatus this week since I’m down in sunny Orlando, Florida for Star Wars Celebration VI. As you’re reading this, I’m either wandering around the show floor of the Orange County Convention Center in a fanboy daze or sitting and watching some geeky panel or another.

In honor of this year’s Celebration, we thought it would be a good idea to celebrate Star Wars as only Digital Blend can, with a look at some of the best Force-infused gaming you can find for under $20. Pretty much everything in the realm of interactive Star Wars things can be purchased in that price range right now, so I’m really more interested in highlighting a few personal favorites in this week’s column. Read on for the rundown… and may the Force be with you. Always.

Recommended Videos

LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars :: X360 / PS3 / Wii / PC :: $19.99 or less

Related

There are many LEGO games and many Star Wars LEGO games. LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars is the best in both regards. You don’t have to watch the TV series to enjoy the game, though it does faithfully follow the events of the animated series’ first and second seasons. This LEGO game is packed with content: individual episode-based missions, unlockable bounty hunter missions, a dizzying number of Republic and Separatist quick-hit ground missions, light RTS elements, an elaborate hub, and the usual diverse offering of unlockable characters and vehicles. If you wrote this one off because it has nothing to do with the movies, you should definitely consider revisiting it.

Star Wars: Jedi Knight Collection :: PC :: $19.99

For less than $20 you get yourself Star Wars: Dark Forces, the Star Wars FPS that started it all, as well as the more Jedi-focused follow-ups/spin-offs, all of which fill out the back story for one of the most beloved characters in the franchise’s Expanded Universe, Kyle Katarn. You’ll wield a lightsaber, face off against light or dark Jedi depending on the path that you choose. earn new powers, and basically just feel like a Force-powered badass. LucasArts has yet to replicate the experience of being a Jedi as well as it did in the Jedi Knight series. Some of these games are pretty old now, but they’re all still well worth your time.

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic I & II :: PC :: $9.99 apiece

You can still get these older games for your vintage Xbox consoles, but PC will be the ideal choice for most. This is a particularly timely pick, since this week marks the release of KOTOR 2 on Steam. The original Knights of the Old Republic remains one of BioWare’s best games and is still unrivaled as the best Star Wars RPG ever made. Obsidian’s KOTOR 2 continues the story, though it is highly recommended that you track down a mod pack to integrate the content that ended up being cut from the game. It was never officially released, but fans have done the work of making most of it functional in the years since the game’s release. You really can’t go wrong with either of these titles.

Star Wars: Empire at War :: PC :: $19.99

Maybe you missed this under-the-radar Star Wars RTS. Bringing together space battles, land battles, and a galaxy-spanning meta-game, Empire at War aimed high. It didn’t deliver on every level, but it’s a solid game that was improved upon with the Forces of Corruption expansion pack. Both the core game and the expansion are now part of a Gold Pack release that can be had for $19.99. Serious Expaned Universe fanfolk should take note: this game might be a bit rough around the edges, but there’s quite a large mod community that has added everything from rebalancing and rule changes to entirely new units and factions, including deep cut EU content like the Yuuzhan Vong. Definitely worth a look for armchair admirals.

Star Wars: The Old Republic :: PC :: FREE

Technically, BioWare’s Star Wars: The Old Republic MMORPG doesn’t go fully free-to-play until fall 2012. It’s halfway there now though, with every one of the game’s eight classes, split by four apiece between the two factions, playable to level 15. That’s enough for roughly 10-15 hours per class if you really dive deep and explore. Best of all, once the game goes fully free-to-play, you’ll already have a head-start with a somewhat developed character (or characters). Even if the multiplayer-oriented elements don’t excite, just think of each character class as an 80 hour-plus BioWare-scripted RPG campaign set in the Star Wars universe. Complete with nods to the two KOTOR games. It’s not quite a follow-up to those classics, but it’s a solid game. Also, did I mention that it’s entirely free? Just check out part one and part two of my review if you’d like to know more.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Adam Rosenberg
Adam Rosenberg
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Previously, Adam worked in the games press as a freelance writer and critic for a range of outlets, including Digital Trends…
Celebrate Star Wars Day by taking advantage of cheap Star Wars games
Cal fighting the Ninth Sister in Jedi Fallen Order.

May the force be with you on May 4, also known as Star Wars Day. In honor of the unofficial holiday, Disney is discounting many Star Wars video games across all consoles and PC, including the new Star War Jedi: Fallen Order and Star Wars Battlefront II.

Fallen Order is on sale for $36, Star Wars Battlefront II is available for just $8, and BioWare's Knights of the Old Republic RPGs for less than $4. The majority of the digital deals end the next day, but PlayStation's deals last until next week.

Read more
Knights of the Old Republic: Can Star Wars make a watchable video game movie?
star wars knights of the old republic ii completed by fans 8 years after release 2 finished modders

Traditionally, video game movies haven't been very good, but Disney is going to make one anyway -- and it's bringing Star Wars along for the ride. The same week that Timothy Olyphant trashed his own Hitman adaptation and the Sonic the Hedgehog flick was delayed to give filmmakers time to fix its nightmarish main character, Buzzfeed broke the news that writer Laeta Kalogridis (Altered Carbon, Shutter Island) has almost finished a script based on Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic.

Knights of the Old Republic, a role-playing game by Mass Effect, Dragon Age, and Baldur's Gate studio Bioware, came out for Xbox and PC in 2003, and it takes place about 4,000 years before the events of Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope. In the game, you play as an amnesiac Jedi who's drawn into the war between the Galactic Empire and the Sith Lord Darth Malak. The game quickly became a classic thanks to its creative use of familiar Star Wars tropes, its well-rounded characters, and one of the best plot twists in Star Wars history.

Read more
Sea of Thieves beginner’s guide: 16 tips for new pirates
sea of thieves how to play solo sanctuaryoutpost 2

Cooperative piracy simulator Sea of Thieves is a game that drops players right off the plank and into the deep end of the ocean as soon as they start it up. You're left to figure out how to do almost everything alone or with a crew of friends. All of it is picked up through experience as you play, which is part of what makes Sea of Thieves interesting. There are tons of little nuances and best practices, however, that you need to become an effective pirate.

If you want to win sea battles, escape plunderers, gather treasure, and generally be the best pirate on the Sea of Thieves, there is a lot to learn. Luckily, these tips will make you an effective sailor, a deft brawler, and a smart privateer when you join up with a crew. Going it alone has its perks as well, so check out our tips for your lone pirate voyages.
Start with the tutorial mission

Read more