Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire

1996 · Shooter · Nintendo 64

About Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire

Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire (1996) is LucasArts' Nintendo 64 action game in which mercenary Dash Rendar helps Luke Skywalker rescue Leia from Prince Xizor, opening with the Battle of Hoth.

Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire in Depth

Part of a multimedia project set between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, it casts the player as mercenary Dash Rendar, helping Luke Skywalker and rescuing Princess Leia from Prince Xizor across four chapters. Dash and his droid co-pilot Leebo deliver supplies to Echo Base just before the Battle of Hoth, and Han Solo gets him clearance to fly with Rogue Squadron. After defending the base in a snowspeeder, Dash fights wampas and an AT-ST to reach his ship, the Outrider, and escapes through an asteroid field. Later he hunts IG-88 and Boba Fett, who holds the carbon-frozen Han, while Xizor schemes to replace Darth Vader.

It is mainly a third-person shooter: Dash's blaster recharges after each shot and can be powered up, later levels give him a jetpack, usable even underwater in the sewers, and health packs and a limited stock of lives keep him going. Levels are timed, and challenge points for particular actions or hidden tokens unlock rewards. Other sequences vary the action: snowspeeder combat on Hoth, 360-degree turret battles and piloted space combat in the Outrider, and a high-speed swoop bike chase against a gang. The opening Battle of Hoth won praise, but critics found the other levels weaker and the shooting stages hampered by poor controls and a camera that limited the view or let Dash block the action.

Making Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire

Work began in late 1994 on a side story to the films; rather than use the main characters, the developers built on Dash Rendar, which gave them more freedom. LucasArts developed it and Nintendo published it for the Nintendo 64 in 1996, with LucasArts releasing a Windows version in 1997. Its score uses tracks from the multimedia project's soundtrack. Reviews were mixed: critics praised its polygonal graphics as convincing enough to affect the mood, but Next Generation felt the cartridge format caused problems such as stiff sewer water and frequently looping music.

Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire Trivia

Dash Rendar was a minor character from the book, built up as a Han Solo-like hero.
His ship, the Outrider, closely resembles the Millennium Falcon.
Senior artist Jon Knoles is credited with the idea of setting it between the two films.
It used the level editor from the Jedi engine of Dark Forces and Outlaws.
It was the third best-selling Nintendo 64 game of 1997, with over a million copies sold.