It’s May 4th, commonly known as Star Wars Day based on the pun of “May the Fourth be with you.” In honor of the ongoing struggle between the Sith and the Jedi, the Daily Reaction duo have decided to create their own perfect Star Wars games.
Chandler: PlayStation LifeStyle has already had a video feature describing what a perfect Battlefront game would be like, but here on Daily Reaction, we’re going off the rails. We’re thinking ambitious. And we’re stretching the boundaries to what would make the perfect Star Wars game overall; budget constraints, time limitations, and disc space be damned.
First of all, I want the experience of all of the greatest moments in Star Wars history. I want to fly the Millenium Falcon and complete the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs. I want to pilot pod racers on tracks around the galaxy. I want to partake in epic lightsaber duels and massive battles. I want to walk single-file, in order to conceal my numbers. I want to really be these characters and interactively take part in every classic event. I know there are games out there that let us do some of these things, but none let us do them all. There’s an entire universe to explore with tons of stories in that universe, and the perfect Star Wars game would give us all of them. Remember, we’re talking about what we want here, whether it’s realistic or not.
Now I’m envisioning something almost like Grand Theft Auto, mixed with The Old Republic, and then expanded and blown up to cover every planet and event from every Star Wars movie. We all know that Star Wars is actually an anecdote about the adventures of two robots, C-3PO and R2-D2, so we’d start out playing as C-3PO, and as the story progresses, we would get access to additional characters that we could swap between on the fly, much like Grand Theft Auto V. As the story progresses, you would be able to unlock the ability to do a chapter select of sorts, in order to rewind time and play as characters — both heroes and villains — and participate in events that may not be available anymore. And yeah, we’re talking open world for the most part, allowing you as much freedom as it can without deviating from the set story that the Star Wars universe has to tell.
If this idea seems a bit too ambitious, my backup plan is to have an MMO styled game that takes place across the course of all of the films. The only problem with this plan is that you don’t get to have those awesome character moments like blowing up a Death Star, hiding inside a tauntaun to keep warm, or piloting the Millenium Falcon. Though if it were like The Sims, certain life decisions could result in your character being in the wrong place at the wrong time, leading to a quick game over screen because you opted to be a farmer or an ad exec on Alderaan. Kaboom.
Screw it! Making games is hard work so let’s go with the simple choice that will make us the most money: Han Solo Dating Sim.
Dan: I couldn’t agree more with Chandler’s suggestion of a world where we take the best aspects of the Star Wars universe and put them all into one project. How cool would it be to be able to have a light saber duel on Tatooine, then fly off into space in an X-Wing, only to end up dog fighting or getting into it with a Star Destroyer. This is what I had in mind when we first heard about Star Wars Galaxy, but sadly, the hopes far out weighed the realities. As the ability to create multiple high quality aspects of a game would push development costs through the roof.
So, as cool as that would be, I have started to think that I would like to see a Star Wars title that uses Mass Effect for inspiration, or more accurately, something more akin to a modernized version of Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic. The only major change that I would put on it, is make it a drop-in drop-out co-op multiplayer game similar to Borderlands, but with a much darker atmosphere that moves the franchise away from its ever growing feeling that it is little more than a tool to drive toy sales to children.
Many Star Wars fans have really grown up with it, so we really are in need of some more mature content that have yet to see on the gaming market. This doesn’t mean I want to see God of War meets Star Wars, but death and bloodshed should be a reality for a world filled with smugglers, bounty hunters and the Sith. What this really means is that besides the story needing to tie in the realities of the universe, but to also allow for players to inflict a similar level of destruction and mayhem that would make joining the dark side more interesting.
Lightsabers have always been one of the biggest draws for gamers, but I have always felt that they never could live up to the movie-world counterpart that they are trying to be. The ability reflect lasers is simple enough, but the idea that a lightsaber should be able to cut through anything, as well as dismember your opponent is what makes them interesting, at least to me. After seeing Luke’s hand get cut off, and Darth Maul getting cut in half, watching a person slash at someone in a game without doing more than lower their lifebar as if they were wielding a stick seems odd. So, the other major change I’d like to see is a system for lightsabers that looks similar to the slicing mechanics for Metal Gear Revengeance — how cool would that be?
What would make it into your perfect Star Wars game? What is the perfect genre for a Star Wars title? Feel free to use the Force and reach out to us on Twitter @Foolsjoker and @FinchStrife, email us [email protected], and freeze your comments in carbonite below.
Check out previous Daily Reaction articles here.
