Star Wars: Republic Commando received good press when it first released back in 2005. Instead of playing as a Jedi, you play as a stormtrooper, albeit a gifted and specially trained one. You lead missions with your 4 troop squad set during the height of the Clone Wars, taking down enemy artillery, investigating derelict spacecraft and doing reconnaissance on contested worlds. It was considered a fresh and well executed fusion of the broader fantastical world of Star Wars with the more frontline perspective more common to Call Of Duty.
But can a tactical first person shooter built to run on the original Xbox still be enjoyable to play today? Do the character and story moments feel boring and generic in the face of the hundreds of military shooters that have come out since? Is Star Wars: Republic Commando a hidden gem, or does it deserve the moniker of being yet another 7/10 game?
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On this episode, we discuss:
Just how ‘tactical’ is this tactical first person shooter? Are context sensitive commands a seamless and user friendly way to do tactics, or does this rob the game of any potential tactical complexity?
What did we think about the sharper focus of Republic Commando’s storytelling? Is this a memorable story and cast of characters, or would it have been more interesting to not just get dropped in the role of a generic trooper?
How well does the level design facilitate your tactics and movement through each environment? Are they large enough to allow you to properly make use of your 4 man unit?
We answer these questions and many more on the 85th episode of the Retro Spectives Podcast!
Intro Music: KieLoBot - Tanzen K
Outro Music: Rockit Maxx - One point to another
Star Wars: Republic Commando OST: Jesse Harlin
Is Star Wars: Republic Commando the diamond in the rough that everyone says it is? How do you think it compares to the Jedi Knight series? Which Star Wars game should we play next? Join the conversation and let us know what you think on our community discord server!
