Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power Battles Remastered: The Force is not strong in this one…
Star Wars and videogames have had a long history together. It’s arguably videogames that kept the Star Wars brand afloat during times when there were no movies or TV shows and maybe a few books based on the franchise. But there has been no more prolific period of Star Wars games than the Prequel Saga of Star Wars Episodes I-III. A virtual blitzkrieg of games were released, mostly based on Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (not many on Star Wars Episode II: The Clone Wars though) and while they represented a pretty wide range of genres, most were some take on playing Jedis. And frankly most weren’t very good as tie-in games tend to be.
On paper, one of the more potentially fun ideas was certainly Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power Battles. Not really a story with this game you just play through levels very loosely based on scenes and events from Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace as your choice of a wide variety of Jedi (and a couple random options such as Queen Amidala or a Battle Droid). Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power Battles Remastered also adds a bunch of new wacky choices to play as such as Jar Jar Binks, a Tusken Raider, and more. The game features really silly things like a lightsaber extender that literally makes your lightsaber ridicously long and the classic staple of many games of the era, Big Head mode. Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power Battles knew it was a silly game and should be enjoyed as such. And if not for the poor execution, it might be.
It’s not that there is zero enjoyment in Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power Battles Remastered, but it’s ultimately ruined by incredibly stiff controls, floaty jumps that often get you killed, and just a lack of variety. Despite some characters being Jedi and some not, there’s almost no difference when you play them, they are just characters with ultimately virtually the same skills as any other character. And you’d think in a game featuring Jedi, you’d be able to use, you know THE FORCE. And indeed, there is a “force” meter, but all it is is more powerful swings with your lightsaber that barely mean anything. It’s just so basic and dull.
Most of these complaints should not be laid at the feet of Aspyr, the developer of the remaster. These problems were there in the original and fixing them would probably require a from-the-ground-up remake that a game like Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power Battles honestly doesn’t warrant. So that raises the question, is there a point to remastering this game at all?
And actually, as game preservation becomes more and more pressing, I’d say yes. I mean we have games like Night Trap and Plumbers Don’t Wear Ties getting remasters. Whether or not it’s worth the $20 for you to have Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power Battles Remastered in your collection, whether it’s as a Star Wars fan, a general retro hobbyist or even as someone who has nostalgia for the original and wants to experience it again that’s entirely up to you. But is it a good game by any standard? Dear god no….
That’s all for today, that will almost definitely be it for the month of January as the month is nearly over but I will certainly have a post up either this coming weekend or early next week so see ya real soon!
