A look at the franchise in the years leading up to the 'Prequel Era'
Based on the original Star Wars film, this game had players reliving the climactic assault on the Death Star in the Battle of Yavin. Players fly their X-Wing through three stages to destroy the Death Star. After that, they attack it again at a higher difficulty until they get a game over. The cockpit version of the game. May 30, 2013 Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is now available to download for the iPad, Mac game developer and publisher Aspyr Media announced today. The game's mobile debut comes as the acclaimed role.
It has been said that the 90's was the dry spell for Star Wars. The Star Wars 'mania' that had begun in 1977 had dwindled and faded away by 1985 when Kenner had stopped making the action figures and the kids who had been enthralled by the original movies were now interested in beer and girls. The words 'Star Wars' were synonymous with video rental stores, faded and half-rubbed off stickers on school lockers and the kiddie-orientated Droids and Ewoks cartoons on TV.Well, the 90's was the decade that I myself got into Star Wars. I was born in '83 and really missed the boat with the adventures of Luke, Han and Leia. But some geeky part of myself took over in the mid to late 90's when I discovered the franchise and somehow, I became a fan when everybody else just wasn't.
Books
Star Wars novels depicting events outside of the movies have been around since Alan Dean Foster's 'Splinter of the Mind's Eye' published in 1978. But the enormous entity that we now call the Expanded Universe (EU) and the hundred-odd novels that it now encompasses really began with Timothy Zahn's 'Thrawn' trilogy which was published 1991 - 1993. This was when the general public had all but forgotten about Star Wars. You might think that a trilogy of books based on some films that had their heyday over half a decade ago would flop, but 'Heir to the Empire' was hugely popular and even made it on to the New York Times' best seller list.
The flood gates were opened and the following years saw a huge output in novels based on George Lucas' characters and stories. I shan't be reviewing each and every one of these books, because honestly, I didn't read them all. But I have selected a few ones that I found memorable. 'The Truce at Bakura' (1993) by Kathy Tyres picked up where Return of the Jedi left off and concerned the remnants of the Empire teaming up with the victorious Rebellion against an alien race called the Ssi-Ruuk.
Kevin J. Anderson's 'Jedi Academy Trilogy' (1994) was a series I really enjoyed. It told the story of Luke attempting to re-establish the Jedi Order using the old temple on Yavin IV as a base.
These three anthologies (1995 - 1996) began the tradition of giving every single half-seen character in the movies a name and a backstory. 'Tales from Jabba's Palace' was the first Star Wars book I bought.
Kevin J. Anderson returned in 1995 with 'Darksaber', a tale about a Hutt clan trying to build a secret super weapon similar in destructive power to the Death Stars.
The 'X-Wing' series by Michael A. Stackpole were the first books not to feature Luke, Han and Leia, instead focusing on the elite fighter squadron mentioned in the movies. I found these pretty good, especially as I was playing the 'X-Wing' computer games to death at the time.
Probably one of the most famous EU novels is 'Shadows of the Empire' by Steve Perry. Published in 1996, 'Shadows' was much more than just a book; it was part of a massive multimedia project that was designed to pave the way for the release of the special editions of the movies the following year. The project involved a video game, a soundtrack by Joel McNeely, A comic series, a range of action figures, trading cards and even a movie-style trailer.
Comic Books
I've never really been much of a comic book reader, but for Star Wars of course, I made an exception. The ones I remember most were the excellent 'Crimson Empire' series which explored what happened to Palpatine's red-cloaked guard after his death and the 'X-Wing' series, most notably a one-shot issue called 'The Making of Baron Fel'. This comic was so great; it was basically a biography of TIE Fighter ace Baron Fel that followed him through the Imperial academy and beyond, meeting people like Vader and Tarkin along the way. Not many entries in the EU look at things from the point of view of the Imperials.
Action Figures
In 1995, Kenner, the company who had struck gold back in the late 70's with their Star Wars license returned to it once more with their 'Power of the Force 2' collection. Originally carded on red backgrounds, the figures themselves were about as articulated as the original line but featured closer attention to detail. There have been many complaints about the overly muscular sculpts (WWF was very popular at the time) and the fact that most of the figures couldn't fit into their vehicles or even stand up unassisted.
The line switched to green cards around '97 after the 'Shadows of the Empire' range was brought out and later the figures came with 'freeze frame' slides that could be viewed on a projector. There was even an 'Expanded Universe' line which featured fan favorites like Mara Jade and the Dark Trooper from the 'Dark Forces' video game.
Video Games
Star Wars video games started in the early 80's with 'The Empire Strikes Back' for the Atari 2600. But the franchise got its first real start in 1992 on the SNES with its 'Super Star Wars' series. 'Empire' and 'Jedi' followed in '93 and '94. These were basic platformers with lots of running, jumping and shooting. I can remember playing the first game at a friend's house and finding it incredibly hard.
In 1993, Lucasarts began its successful 'X-Wing' series. I bought the 'Collector's cd-rom' around 1997 (which included the 2 add-ons; 'Imperial Pursuit' and 'B-Wing') and played it until my wrists cramped. This was a great game.
1993 was also the year 'Rebel Assault' was released which was revolutionary in its time for its use of full motion video (FMV) in its gameplay. This meant that movements were quite limited as you followed an 'invisible rail', but very reminiscent of arcade-style games. 'Rebel Assault II: The Hidden Empire' followed in 1995 and was the one I played the most. I remember being impressed that Lucasarts had actually filmed live action cut-scenes with actors and costumes from the Lucasfilm vaults. This was probably one of the first games to do so.
'TIE Fighter' came out in 1994 and was an update on the 'X-Wing' series. This time you got to play on the side of the imperials and the game was a hoot. With improved graphics and a lot more to do other than the usual story missions, I played this game the most. As with the 'X-Wing' games, I bought the 'Collector's cd-rom' which included the add-on; 'Defender of the Empire'. It was this game that is responsible for me possessing the geeky knowledge of the differences between TIE Fighters, Interceptors, Bombers and Defenders. Oh, and TIE stands for 'Twin Ion Engine'. Yes, I am a nerd...
'Dark Forces' came out in 1995 and was basically 'Doom' in a Star Wars environment. A pretty good shoot 'em up where you play Kyle Katarn, the guy who stole the Death Star plans and beamed them to Princess Leia (that was the first level). Later levels involve Jabba the Hutt's space barge, Boba Fett and an imperial plot to create hundreds of elite 'Dark Troopers'.
With the release of the N64 in 1996, Lucasarts was quick to churn out 'Shadows of the Empire' as part of the multimedia project that would warm the public up for the re-release of the movies in 1997. You play Dash Rendar, a character created to fill the void left whilst Han Solo was encased in carbonite and on his way to a date with Jabba the Hutt. The game involved shoot 'em up platform levels as well as some flying missions and was a popular early entry in the N64 line.
Two PC entries here from 1997. 'X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter' was an updated version of the previous entries designed mainly for multiplayer use as it did not follow a storyline. 'Jedi Knight: Dark Forces 2' gave you control of Kyle Katarn once more (now a Jedi in training) and involved a RPG-style system of upgrading force powers. You also got to use a lightsaber as well as the usual range of blasters.
The second Star Wars game for the N64 was directly inspired by the 'Hoth' battle in 'Shadows of the Empire'. 1998's 'Rogue Squadron' was a great flying game that replaced the deep space missions of the previous 'X-Wing' games with aerial battles over planets.
Model Kits
I made a few model kits in the 90's and obviously Star Wars was a winner for me. These fighters looked great once assembled and painted (and with battle damage added via the use of a burning match). A lot of these kits were gathering dust in the backs of model shops until I found them, presumably left over from the early 80's (although I do think that the box art was kept the same for these kits well into the 90's). There is a rumour that the MPC Darth Vader's TIE Fighter kit (from 1978) was so good, ILM used it as a background ship in 'Return of the Jedi'.
20th Anniversary Special Editions
1997 marked the 20th anniversary of the release of 'Star Wars'. I was 13 at the time and back then 20 years seemed like a huge amount of time to me. 'Man, Star Wars is an old movie', I remember thinking. But what films are 20 years old today? 'Home Alone' and 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'. Ouch.
In celebration Lucas re-released the Star Wars Trilogy with various changes and re-hashed special effects which I won't go into here. I never got around to seeing the movies on the cinema screen (which I regret to this day), but I made damn sure that I picked them up on video when they came out the following Christmas.
You see, it was remarkably hard to find these classic films on VHS. Nowadays you can pick up pretty much any DVD you want in most big stores or order them on the internet, but back in the VHS days, stores usually only kept the most recent and popular titles in stock. It sounds crazy now, but back then I couldn't get my own copy of the most succesful movie franchise of all time for love nor money. It just wasn't available. My only way of watching the movies was by renting them from a local video store (which I did many, many times). So you can bet that I jumped at the chance when the special editions came out in a beautiful gold box-set.
In the Netherlands (where I was living at the time) Pepsi did a promotion where you could save the black ring pulls from Pepsi cans and trade them in for Topps Star Wars Special Edition Widevision trading cards at your local video store. I drank a lot of Pepsi that summer, but never managed to complete the set.
Episode I: The Phantom Menace
Now we come to it at last; the end of the 90's and the beginning of a new era. The hype building up to the release of Episode I was unbelievable and for a while in 1999, the world went Star Wars crazy once again. I can remember devouring the production photographs in 'Star Wars Insider' #36 which showed the Naboo hanger and some shots of Tatooine. I had no idea what I was looking at and, like most Star Wars fans at the time, my head was buzzing with what the story might be. Around this time Kenner released a sneak preview action figure of Mace Windu (who?) and started a line of 'Flashback' figures of original trilogy characters with a changeable cardboard photo that showed their Episode I counterpart.
As the movie approached the merchandising machine worked overtime. And I bought into it hook, line and sinker. Before I saw the movie I had already read the novelisation and graphic novel and listened to the soundtrack to death. So there were really no suprises for me by the time the movie came around. Conversley, I avoided any Episode II stuff like the plague in 2002 and enjoyed the movie much more for it. Oh, and Jar Jar works much better as a comic book character.
Darth Maul's face was on almost every piece of merchandise and the new action figures came with a 'Commtech chip' that could play back quotes from the movie if connected to a special 'Commtech Reader' (sold seperately).
The area of video games was not about to be neglected amidst this 'Episode I' boom. I had 'The Phantom Menace' on the playstation, and although it was a pretty crummy game, I spent a lot of time playing it as it was the only way to enjoy some Episode I action in computer game form other than 'Episode I: Racer' which my friend had on the N64.
And so the 90's came to an end and Star Wars had once again, evolved into something else. Love it or hate it, 'The Phantom Menace' managed to inject some youthful energy into the franchise which had grown a little stale since the 'Return of the Jedi' days. After 1999 you could see young kids wearing Darth Maul T-shirts and playing with battle-droid action figures. Star Wars was no longer solely the realm of geeky teenagers and adults (like me). For better or for worse, the whole thing seemed to have started over.
Although I myself got carried away in the 90's by the glut of Star Wars merchandise and memorabillia, I've somewhat calmed down these days. There is just far too much stuff out there, and with new books, action figures and other things being churned out every year, I find it too much to keep track of. Nowadays, I limit my interest to collecting the really old stuff from '77 - '80 which you can see in my blog here: http://starwars77-80.blogspot.com/
It's not that I don't like the prequels or that I have turned my back on the 90's era of Star Wars, in fact I love the new 'Clone Wars' series. It's just that I cannot bring myself to spend money on every single new line of action figures. I haven't read an EU novel in years, but I'll always have fond memories of my teenage relationship with the franchise as it was something that, for a few years, brought me a huge amount of joy.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-D0RG9nIqU
This was a fun article! Thanks for putting it together. I think Star Wars was fantastic in the 90s. The expanded universe was a ton of fun. I recently started a youtube channel in which I want to cover a lot of similar things because I feel like it's kind of a forgotten period. People used to refer to the late 80s as the 'dark ages' for star wars. Now it seems like the 90s is considered that too, but nothing could be further than the truth.
Found this article a little late I guess, but it's an amazing read. I've watched the movies more times than what's probably healthy, and I've read some of the books. I particularly enjoyed K.W. Jeter's 'The Bounty Hunter Wars'.
I played the first Star Wars game for NES but found it too challenging back then (I got as far as Mos Eisley, but rarely beyond). My favourite games would have to be the first SNES game and Rogue Squadron for the N64. I played X-Wing on our old PC in the early days and got quite far even though I sometimes didn't know what I was doing or what I was supposed to do... And yes, Dark Forces is a solid FPS game, I still play that from time to time.
I played the first Star Wars game for NES but found it too challenging back then (I got as far as Mos Eisley, but rarely beyond). My favourite games would have to be the first SNES game and Rogue Squadron for the N64. I played X-Wing on our old PC in the early days and got quite far even though I sometimes didn't know what I was doing or what I was supposed to do... And yes, Dark Forces is a solid FPS game, I still play that from time to time.
I had always liked Star Wars, but when I started reading 'Heir to the Empire', I became a Star Wars fanatic. For me, my Star Wars obsession phase was right before the prequels. As the prequels came out, I enjoyed them, but not to the same level as the originals. There was a magic in the originals that Lucas really lost. (See here to see what I mean, this is actually one of the very best reviews on the problems with prequels, just ignore the lamo humor: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxKtZmQgxrI)
Now that being said, I loved the EU novels, especially the whole Jedi Academy, and of course, I'm a Luke fanatic! But when I look back on it now, the EU never really tapped into the universal mythological qualities that the original movies had (although some authors have been able to do this.)
Now a days, while I still love Star Wars, I feel a bit super saturated with it. There was a time when I was OBSESSED with X-Wing, ga ga about Jedi knights, and just loved how all of this stuff could bring me more of the magic of the original films. But now, mmmmmm, not so much. Anyways, here's to a long time ago in a galaxy far far away. . .
Now that being said, I loved the EU novels, especially the whole Jedi Academy, and of course, I'm a Luke fanatic! But when I look back on it now, the EU never really tapped into the universal mythological qualities that the original movies had (although some authors have been able to do this.)
Now a days, while I still love Star Wars, I feel a bit super saturated with it. There was a time when I was OBSESSED with X-Wing, ga ga about Jedi knights, and just loved how all of this stuff could bring me more of the magic of the original films. But now, mmmmmm, not so much. Anyways, here's to a long time ago in a galaxy far far away. . .
You forgot to mention the (totally forgettable) Master of Teras Kasi fighting game for PSX.
Excellent article! Reminds me of my own Star Wars obsession that began back around 94 at age 12, all beginning with the playing of the TIE Fighter demo for PC. After that, it was onto X-Wing, all the SNES Super Star Wars games, the Star Wars Galaxy Series 3 cards (of which I think I had nearly all of them), the customizable card game, books and comics (loved the X-wing series by Stackpole), seeing all the movies in theatres during the release of the Special Edition. Man, I tell you the 90s were a great time to be a Star Wars fan. And regardless of what others say, I actually enjoyed Episode 1 and all the prequels. Seeing a young Obi-Wan in his prime was awesome, nobody can deny that. And just the build up to Episode 1 was something in itself. I remember when the first preview of the movie was unveiled about a year or so before the movie's release...I was sitting there stunned. Definitely one of those instances where the journey may have been more satisfying than the destination (well, maybe for some of us)
Those were the days, I remember seeing ONLY return of the jedi in theaters in 97 and that was the first SW movie I ever saw (Not sure why I chose to watch episode 6 first). I was only 9 when Episode I came out and I remember all the hype. Such a fun time. I even loved the movie the first 10 times I saw it.
Big Star Wars fan when I was a kid. The action figures, movies, and video games kept me busy...for...well... several years.
Never got bitten by the 'Star Wars bug' and glad I didn't. The only thing I liked about Star Wars was the Star Tours ride at Disneyland.
I still have x-wing vs Tie-fighter...I load it up on my pc every year or so just for old times.
N64 also had another Rogue Squadron type game that took place during the newer episodes called 'Battle for Naboo' they were both pretty good games.
I'm a star wars fan but can't really say I'm a fan of the newer movies. Too much CGI and I think Lucas geared them a little too much for children (Jar Jar I hate you with a passion). I was born in '78 so I still remember the originals being huge. My father loved them to and I'd sit and watch them with him on VHS. Admittedly at the time I didn't understand there was more than one movie....just Star Wars. Anyways good read, thanks for the article. Your comment on ninja turtles and home alone made me feel oooold.
N64 also had another Rogue Squadron type game that took place during the newer episodes called 'Battle for Naboo' they were both pretty good games.
I'm a star wars fan but can't really say I'm a fan of the newer movies. Too much CGI and I think Lucas geared them a little too much for children (Jar Jar I hate you with a passion). I was born in '78 so I still remember the originals being huge. My father loved them to and I'd sit and watch them with him on VHS. Admittedly at the time I didn't understand there was more than one movie....just Star Wars. Anyways good read, thanks for the article. Your comment on ninja turtles and home alone made me feel oooold.
Excellent! BTW, I just finished playing X-Wing and have just started TIE Fighter.
Rogue Squadron on the N64 was freaking sweet.
hehe I have all three versions of Shadows of the Empire..the graphic novel which is pretty much all 6 comic books in one, the novel by steve perry, and the behind the scenes of shadows of the empire..it's my favorite story in all of star wars and it deserves a film, which I'm going to make
@jpdraven:
As taciturnwes already pointed out, Lucas was the one who decided to change the title from 'Revenge of the Jedi' to 'Return of the Jedi.' But, he didn't tell you why. Lucas realized after releasing some promotional materials (like posters, for example, that are worth a fortune in today's market) that something about the title was wrong. Jedi would not go seeking revenge, as that is an emotion of the dark side. He realized that the name wouldn't work, since Luke technically wasn't seeking revenge anyway. So, he changed it to 'Return of the Jedi' to emphasize that Luke would make a comeback from his defeat in 'The Empire Strikes Back.'
As taciturnwes already pointed out, Lucas was the one who decided to change the title from 'Revenge of the Jedi' to 'Return of the Jedi.' But, he didn't tell you why. Lucas realized after releasing some promotional materials (like posters, for example, that are worth a fortune in today's market) that something about the title was wrong. Jedi would not go seeking revenge, as that is an emotion of the dark side. He realized that the name wouldn't work, since Luke technically wasn't seeking revenge anyway. So, he changed it to 'Return of the Jedi' to emphasize that Luke would make a comeback from his defeat in 'The Empire Strikes Back.'
By chance I ended up with a friend's garbage sack full of dozens of Star Wars novels that didn't quite make it to good will. Being more of a Spider-Man fan than a Star Wars fan, I decided to hand them off to my sister-in-law who was the head of some Imperial Fan Club Organization and was even interviewed by David Letterman when the prequels came out. I should have known better. I dumped them out at her house and she's like, 'Got it, have it, read it...' Not a one she needed. Stars Wars folk are obsessive folk indeed.
jpdraven: Actually, Lucas was the one who decided to change the Revenge title, he personally financed both Empire and Jedi to avoid any and all studio involvement.
I didn't get into Star Wars much until the early 90s. I actually like both the Original Trilogy and The Prequels. Never touched the EU books though, to me Star Wars just works better as a movie.
We share for the most part the same experiences. I was born in 75' and by 78-79 I was DEF a star wars fan. Star Wars and Indiana Jones were THE movies of my time loved most, well also Back to the Future and The Monster Squad, ok but anyhoo, the only thing I gotta admit I didn't dig was the 1st 3 movies episodes 1,2,3. Revenge of the Sith I dug, but the name bugs me. Return of the Jedi was originally named Revenge of the Jedi but the studio made Lucas change it, sooo this was his chance to use it. Why didn't I like the newer movies? Simple, they got too commercial. Aliens with oriental accents? JAR JAR BINKS!? Look Lucas my friend, we love you but Jar Jar is no replacement for R2 and 3P0. The over use of 3-D animation. Yep bugged me, why?, simple. Because the brilliance of the 1st 3 is the absence of 3-D animation. C'mon to this day the original 3 hold their own with respect to this day as viable believable movies so to speak. I felt that Lucas got away from the story telling and focused too much on the visual in the prequels.
I truthfully would have liked to see stories based after Jedi, and seen where he would have gone with it. The story of Darth Vader becoming Vader is interesting BUT to fans don't ya think the story after Jedi woulda been more appealing? Im asking being you're a fan.
PLEASE don't get me wrong I love the Star Wars Universe. The original 3 movies are the best movies of my generation hands down. I just wish the prequels felt more like the originals
I truthfully would have liked to see stories based after Jedi, and seen where he would have gone with it. The story of Darth Vader becoming Vader is interesting BUT to fans don't ya think the story after Jedi woulda been more appealing? Im asking being you're a fan.
PLEASE don't get me wrong I love the Star Wars Universe. The original 3 movies are the best movies of my generation hands down. I just wish the prequels felt more like the originals
I remember the day I stumbled upon The Original Black Box of the Mecha that is Star Wars at my Aunts house, I was like, hmmm Star. Wars. I'll give it a go. 15 years later I'm 24 and still defend the honor that the originals were the best. Yet Expanded Universe is just as amazing, I finally finished Shadows of the Empire, late i know, and The Han Solo Trilogy, it breathes much more life into this world of George Lucas, a world he created, burned and is now dragging through the mud of fire.
May the force be with you.
May the force be with you.
Your first experience with Star Wars is about the same as mine. My earliest memories of Star Wars are my uncles and my grandpa watching a taped copy of Return Of The Jedi when I was four, I think. However I wouldn't truly be bitten by the Star Wars bug until AFTER the special editions came out in theaters. I can't believe I missed those movies in the theater!! Especially my favorite Star Wars film as well as my favorite film of all time, The Empire Strikes Back. Oh well, it wasn't that big of a deal because a few months later I finally saw the first Star Wars film on a long bus ride for a class field trip (yes, we had time to watch a few movies given the bus ride was five hours both ways so ten hours total). Then over summer vacation, I was able to acquire both Empire and Jedi from my local library and I also bought my first two Star Wars figures (of like about 120 now...lol) from the POTF2 line, Luke Skywalker in Hoth Gear and R5-D4 (with the awesome spring loaded missile...lol).
I have so many stories to tell related to my love of Star Wars, heck I could probably write a book about it, but here are a few defining moments I have as a fan:
-Seeing the whole prequel trilogy in theaters and actually crying in the theater while I watched Episode III. The infamous Order 66 scene and Padme's death get me almost every time...lol
-Going to see the 'Star Wars: Magic Of Myth' traveling Smithsonian exhibit when it came to Toledo, OH. I actually got to see David Prowse (Darth Vader) and Jeremy Bulloch's (Boba Fett) costumes in person.
-Playing Dark Forces II: Jedi Knight on my computer. I got the game from a Garage Sale when I was 16 and I still have it and I still play it when the mood strikes me. The graphics are primitive by today's standards but its still a joy to play.
-Collecting Star Wars figures. I started collecting SW figures the summer of 1997 and since then I've amassed a huge collection of over 100+ figures. My favorites include Darth Vader (POTF2 line), Boba Fett (Ralph McQuarrie concept version), R2-D2 (electronic version from the Episode II line), and Luke Skywalker (Empire/Bespin version from the POTF2 line).
MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU!!
I have so many stories to tell related to my love of Star Wars, heck I could probably write a book about it, but here are a few defining moments I have as a fan:
-Seeing the whole prequel trilogy in theaters and actually crying in the theater while I watched Episode III. The infamous Order 66 scene and Padme's death get me almost every time...lol
-Going to see the 'Star Wars: Magic Of Myth' traveling Smithsonian exhibit when it came to Toledo, OH. I actually got to see David Prowse (Darth Vader) and Jeremy Bulloch's (Boba Fett) costumes in person.
-Playing Dark Forces II: Jedi Knight on my computer. I got the game from a Garage Sale when I was 16 and I still have it and I still play it when the mood strikes me. The graphics are primitive by today's standards but its still a joy to play.
-Collecting Star Wars figures. I started collecting SW figures the summer of 1997 and since then I've amassed a huge collection of over 100+ figures. My favorites include Darth Vader (POTF2 line), Boba Fett (Ralph McQuarrie concept version), R2-D2 (electronic version from the Episode II line), and Luke Skywalker (Empire/Bespin version from the POTF2 line).
MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU!!
Speaking as a fellow Star Wars geek also born in '83, I really enjoyed this article. I remember when Heir to the Empire was first in stores and how much I wanted to get it and finally saved up enough cash to purchase the paperback, which was only like $5 at the time. I also had a TON of the comic books released through Dark Horse in the 90s. Many of them I've gotten rid of over the years but I still have the entire 14-part Dark Empire series which was very difficult to individual issues of back in the day. Oh, and don't get me started on the 90s Power of the Force action figure line, I bought so many of those damn things and just wound up selling most of them on eBay for a lot less than I was hoping. It's a shame you didn't get a chance to catch the SE's in theaters back in '97, despite the unnecessary CGI, it was quite an experience. Hell if they re-released the movies in theaters every year, I'd go every single time, no matter how many further additions Lucas applied. But anyways, great article, thumbs up!
Thank you for sharing your memories of Star Wars! I never got into the books simply because there were too many and I didn't know where to start.
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EF2000 is a combat flight simulator developed by Digital Image Design and published by Ocean Software for PC in 1995. The game, the sequel to TFX, puts the player in the cockpit of a Eurofighter Typhoon (also know as EF2000).
Year: 1995Genre: SimulationUpdated: 2019-10-22Tags: aviationcombat simflightflight simvehicular combat simulator
Star Trek 25th Anniversary
Star Trek 25th Anniversary is an adventure game and space combat sim based on the Star Trek universe, developed and published by Interplay for DOS and Amiga in 1992. Funnily enough...
Year: 1992Genre: AdventureUpdated: 2020-01-31Tags: agapoint and clickpuzzle-solvingscience fictionspace flighttv series
Star Wars: Rebel Assault
Star Wars: Rebel Assault is a flight shooter based in the Star Wars universe and was developed and published by LucasArts in 1993 for Mac and DOS. The game renders actual footage and uses music from the movies.
Year: 1993Genre: ActionUpdated: 2019-10-22Tags: arcadeaviationflightlicensedrail shooterscience fictionspace flightvideo backdrop
Terminal Velocity
Terminal Velocity is an arcade-style simulation video game released by 3D Realms in 1995 for PC and Mac. Terminal Velocity was quite different from the flight simulation games of ...
Year: 1995Genre: ActionUpdated: 2019-10-22Tags: 3daviationfirst-personflightscience fictionshoot em upspace flighttexture map
Xenon 2: Megablast
Xenon 2: Megablast is a vertical scrolling space shooter designed by Bitmap Brothers, originally produced for the Amiga and Atari ST in 1989, and later converted to the PC, Sega Master System and other platforms.
Year: 1989Genre: ShooterUpdated: 2019-07-19Tags: arcadescience fictionshoot em upspacespace flightspaceship
Strike Commander
Strike Commander is one of the best combat flight simulator ever created. It was designed by Chris Roberts and released by Origin Systems for the PC MS-DOS in 1993, after 4 years of development.
Year: 1993Genre: SimulationUpdated: 2019-10-22Tags: aviationflightflight sim