Star Wars: Force Commander

On the surface, Star Wars: Force Commander is similar to the standard real-time strategy (RTS) genre but is actually closer to the style of SSI's Panzer General series. Unlike the standard RTS game, there's no harvesting of minerals or generating stockpiles of raw materials. Instead, by destroying enemy units, capturing important points and completing mission goals, you receive Command Points. These points can be exchanged for new units and structures, as well as repairing those damaged in battle.

In terms of gameplay, Star Wars: Force Commander offers some significant differences from traditional real-time strategy games. Instead of building huge bases to protect, the Rebels can only build six different structures, four of which are defensive in nature. The game's major focus is strategy -- your units versus enemy units. A strong base is necessary, however, as the structure allows you to bring in additional units, yet the bulk of time is spent scouting the countryside and engaging in battle.

Another notable feature is the use of a battlefield camera. Rather than giving you a standard overhead view of the battle, you can pan the camera around and get any view you wish, thus allowing some unique perspectives on the carnage.

During the course of the game, you'll take the side of both the Empire and the Rebellion. You start as a low-ranking Imperial officer who is beginning his training in commanding troops. During your training mission, an escape pod launched from a Rebel ship crash-lands near your training site. You are sent into action and discover the pod is carrying the plans for the Death Star.

As you play through the scenarios, particularly those on the Imperial side, you will follow the plot lines of the Star Wars trilogy. From Tatooine, you'll eventually wind up on Yavin, Hoth, and Endor. As the missions progress, you will eventually learn of the darker side of the Imperial military machine and for reasons not divulged here, switch to the Rebellion's side.

Star Wars: Force Commander offers 24 missions, with a slightly larger number of Imperial than Rebel missions. While the two sides are relatively evenly matched, the Empire has particular advantages. Their turrets, for instance, can be automated, leaving the troops free to cause damage. The Empire also has more units from which to choose and a larger inventory of buildings.

This doesn't mean the Rebels are a poor match for the Imperial military machine. On the contrary, the Rebel side features special units, including an infantry unit that can be used to capture Imperial vehicles and turn them against their former masters. While stealing a simple AT-PT (All-Terrain Personal Transport) isn't much, nabbing a giant AT-AT walker (All-Terrain Armored Transport) can turn the tide of battle swiftly in your favor. In addition, the Rebel vehicles are all shielded, making them harder to destroy and more capable of returning to battle quickly.

The real benefit to the player is the way reinforcements are provided. Rather than building them, you simply order them. Each general type of unit has a particular shuttle it uses in order to bring new units into battle and each side has only one of each. You can carry multiple units at one time but the specific number of units you can transport will depend on their type. For example, the same shuttle that can ferry down six AT-STs can only bring down two AT-ATs at a time and the shuttle is only available every minute or so. Thus, while you can build up some huge forces, it will take some time and patience.

Star Wars: Force Commander also prevents you from overloading the battlefield. If you have more units than you need to complete the mission objectives, you start to lose your Command Points, making it harder to bring down reinforcements. This is critical because, between missions, you can keep the experienced units you already have as long as there are enough Command Points left over to purchase them at the start of the next mission. For a slightly lower cost in Command Points, you can also store units you don't plan on using for future missions. Potentially, this gives you a huge edge, because you can start successive missions with an increasingly large force, giving you a jump on your enemy.

 Get this Game! We rate this PC Game  A+++++++++ !!!!!!