April 25, 2005 - Necessity may very well be the mother of all invention, but sometimes, nothing beats a little craziness to infuse the process. A long time ago, in this very galaxy, a man looked at the egg (possibly still under a chicken at the time) and decided to steal it, cook it up and yes, eat it. Word passed through town of his exploit and soon the man was labeled crazy. His wife probably left him and his children then changed their last names to something more respectable like "Chicken Punters", but still, there is no denying it; that man was a genius. Not so long ago, in a boardroom or some large stuffy office, another man decided to announce that what the world truly needed was to have one game that recreated all three of the first Star Wars episodes. A hush probably fell across the room then. One game? With all three episodes? One of which would still not be out at the time? Would George Lucas even allow such a thing? Isn't this the same man that was rumored to take showers with the diskette containing Episode I's script? This was a doubtful proposition at best. A severe bout of lunacy even! Well, the man went on, this game would be mostly aimed at children. Oh, well, uh, what's a nice, delicate way to say no to such an idea? Children wouldn't want to see Qui-Gon Jinn killed or want to deal with the political goings-on of Nabu or have to sit through hours (and hours and hours) of Jar-Jar. Oh, but wait.... Did he mention that the entire game was going to be built in LEGO; with LEGO Star Wars characters and LEGO spaceships and LEGO buildings in LEGO towns with LEGO flowers in LEGO pots and Darth Maul dual-wielding LEGO Lightsabers? He probably didn’t have to, but he also added that the game would feature an amazing co-op mode, tons of unlockables, amazing replay value and that parents, children, hard-core gamers, Star Wars enthusiasts and even girlfriends alike would want to play it. And yes, Chicken Punters take note, that man was a genius too.

Designed by Traveler’s Tales, a developer whose previous games have mostly been geared towards children (Finding Nemo, Buzz Lightyear of Star Command, Toy Story Racer, etc) and published by Eidos Interactive, there has never been a more guilty pleasure available to anyone, of any age, on any planet, in the solar system. LEGO Star Wars achieves the envious task of being a game that anyone can pick up, play and enjoy. Star Wars fans will appreciate the attention given to small details surrounding the Star Wars lure and myth (as well as the clever easter eggs found throughout... pay close attention in the first level of Episode II), children will like the look and feel of the game. Parents will appreciate the nostalgic feeling of seeing LEGO again portrayed in a humorous way, and girlfriends will learn the controls easily and really like playing through a game that is light and fun. Even hardcore gamers will enjoy the tons of unlockables available throughout the game and everyone will appreciate a sneak peak at Episode III.

The central hub of the game is Dexter's Diner. From here, you can view your collected ships in the parking lot, run around using your force powers on various diner objects in the hopes of collecting LEGO Studs (the 1 x 1 LEGO blocks that act as the game's currency), buy additional characters, cheats and hints or you may choose to continue your adventure and play a scene from one of the three Star Wars episodes. Each new scene (17 in total plus a Bonus Mission which should give you “Hope”) begins with the traditional scrolling marquee, set to John Williams’ famous theme, which gives you all the information required to enjoy the level. Each scene also features comical recreations of famous Star Wars moments complete with the authentic camera swipes used since the original trilogy. Fans are guaranteed to appreciate the humor that has been injected at every turn, from Obi-Wan’s initial “Padewan” attitude, to seeing Yoda’s classic “bounce out” moment in Episode II.

The story (and each unlocked scene thereafter) can be played in single player mode with a computer controlled buddy (which can be switched to on the fly) or in co-op mode with a live partner. In story mode, you are forced to use certain characters to further the “actual” story along, but the real joy of LEGO Star Wars comes from Free Play Mode where you and a friend can take a selection of any unlocked characters into any level in the hopes of using their various special abilities to find the hidden LEGO canisters, achieve True Jedi Status or simply collect more Studs to buy that wonderful Invincible cheat. In this respect, it is therefore quite possible to have Jar-Jar and Darth Maul working together to free Obi-Wan in Episode II. What effect will that rift in the Star Wars continuum have on the minds of Star Wars Purists? Who knows?