Product Description

LIVE the SAGA in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace for your PC. You will participate in the dramatic events from the Star Wars Episode I story--and beyond. The action in The Phantom Menace will pick up where the movie begins--as two heroic Jedi Knights dock on the Trade Federation Battleship above the planet Naboo. The journey takes you to such locations as Naboo, Tatooine, and all the way to the Galactic capital world of Coruscant as you confront imposing threats to freedom in the midst of a galaxy in crisis.

PC SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Pentium 166 or higher, 32MB RAM or higher; 4X or faster CD-ROM drive, Direct3D-compatible; 3D hardware accelerator required. Joystick supported.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #20265 in Video Games
• Brand: Lucas Arts
• Model: 31518
• Released on: 1998-12-15
• ESRB Rating: Teen
• Platforms: Windows 98, Windows Me, Windows 95
• Format: CD-ROM
• Dimensions: 9.00" h x 2.00" w x 5.00" l, .50 pounds

Amazon.com Review
A role-playing tie-in to the popular movie, The Phantom Menace allows players to save the planet Naboo by assuming four roles: Obi-wan Kenobi, Qui-Gon Jinn, Queen Amidala, and the Queen's bodyguard, Captain Panaka. The action alternates between problem-solving sequences and combat, with side quests thrown in to add some mystery.

The storyline is largely faithful to the 1999 movie, taking players from a Trade Federation battleship to beautifully rendered settings, such as the underwater city of Otoh Gunga and the desert world Tattooine, while introducing them to the film's major characters. Old and new fans of the Star Wars universe will be thrilled to have the chance--as Obi-wan and Qui-Gon--to fight with a light saber, complete with the familiar sound effects. It is often hard to avoid fights--there is little scope for sneaking your way out of trouble. However, the violence committed is often against robots and as a result is fairly bloodless.

The Phantom Menace is easy to learn, despite a clunky keyboard configuration, and enjoyable to play. Advanced gamers may find it too simple for their tastes. For Star Wars devotees and newer players, this game will provide hours of enjoyment. --Alyx Dellamonica

Amazon.com Product Description
Step into the epic saga from the Star Wars: Episode I story--and beyond--while taking on the roles of Obi-Wan Kenobi, Qui-Gon Jinn, Queen Amidala, and Captain Panaka. Use the Force--and your wits--to overcome challenges at every turn as you plunge deeper into this story of a galaxy in crisis.

In Episode I, Luke Skywalker's father is just a hopeful 9-year-old boy named Anakin, who knows nothing of his eventual fate as a Dark Lord in years to come. In this earlier time, Obi-Wan Kenobi is a determined young Jedi. Qui-Gon Jinn is Obi-Wan's venerable Jedi master, trying to teach the Jedi way to his apprentice as their world begins to unravel in political turmoil. Episode I will take audiences through extraordinary realms and adventures, from the desert planet of Tatooine to the galactic capital world of Coruscant (with its Jedi Temple), the green world of Naboo, and beyond. Familiar Star Wars characters Yoda, R2-D2, C-3PO, and Jabba the Hutt are along for the ride.

GameSpot Review
While the debate rages on about the quality of the film, there can be little question about the game based upon it: It is bad. Very, very bad.

The Phantom Menace, despite earlier reports, is not an adventure game. It is a third-person action game in the vein of Tomb Raider or Heretic II, with a slightly altered perspective. The game closely follows the plot of its motion picture counterpart, though the levels themselves mostly take place between major plot points of the film. You control four of the major characters (Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, Queen Amidala, Captain Panaka), running about and accomplishing small tasks that let you progress to the next level.

The game starts off promisingly. You are in control of the young Obi-Wan aboard a Trade Federation ship. You run around, fight droids, and push buttons (in later levels this list of requirements will include pulling blocks and jumping). The game looks good, with lots of color and nice lighting effects. It sounds good as well, with the original film score and solid voice acting that sounds enough like the real actors to be convincing. In the early levels, you only face a handful of enemies, and the game seems like it may be a simplified Jedi Knight-like escapade.

With the second level, though, The Phantom Menace's faults begin to show - and it isn't just the introduction of Jar Jar Binks. You begin to see that being a Jedi, at least in this gameworld, is not all it's cracked up to be. Sure, you can roll side to side and do back flips, but that doesn't do you much good when your acrobatics and lightsaber are no match for a row of shrubs. And your only real Jedi power is the force push, which lets you knock down close-by enemies. Clearings full of droids are waiting for you, but the combat (which mostly consists of you hitting the fire button repeatedly or just holding it down when you're tired) is disappointing.

Enemies can hit you from offscreen, when you can't even see them. Your ability to deflect blaster shots is a great idea, but it feels ineffectual - like you are at some crazed batting cages where all the machines are set on high and pointed straight at you. In fact, the lightsaber seems incredibly weak in the game, especially considering how fun it was to wield it in Jedi Knight. Here, it's about as elegant as a lead pipe, and as you repeatedly bang away on droids and Tusken Raiders, it's hard not to wonder why it only took one hit to take out Obi-Wan in the original Star Wars. The other weapons are standard fare - blasters, a rocket launcher, an assortment of grenades - but the lack of an auto-aim function (as in Heretic II and Tomb Raider) is a problematic oversight. As is the lack of an always-run option, which forces you to continually hold down the shift key while moving.

While levels have some interesting elements - such as leading another character to safety or solving some peripheral task within - too many problems face you at every turn. Characters whom you are supposed to protect will follow for a while, only to stop at predetermined points - usually in a swarm of enemies whom you'll then have to attack. Sure, there are plenty of indoor areas that are absolutely safe, but why should they miss all the action just because they don't want to help? And often they won't follow you even after you tell them to, so you'll run to a safe spot only to find they're still in the midst of the mayhem.

The level design sets up some nice action sequences, but the game just isn't up to the task. A horde of droids is ahead, manning a gun turret under a bridge. You can just run up some stairs, flip off of the bridge, take out the gunner, grab the turret, and have at it. Which would be incredibly fun, except for the fact that there are more powerful enemies behind, you can't turn the turret around, and you can't see under the bridge while you're fighting.

The viewpoint is constantly a problem, either obscuring enemies you want to fight or obscuring the character you're controlling. And because of the high angle, you simply can't see very far ahead. Unlike other games of its type, The Phantom Menace uses a camera angle that is much higher. It borders on top-down, located above and just slightly behind whomever you are controlling, as opposed to the behind-the-back viewpoint used much more effectively in other third-person games.

There's no doubt many of the game's problems stem from the fact that it was rushed, having to be in stores when the film was released. There are some good ideas here, and, with time, they may have become a good game. But The Phantom Menace is just too frustrating to recommend. If you loved the movie, you may bear with the game's problems simply for letting you run around in the world, swinging your lightsaber (if only ineffectually). If you haven't seen the movie, the game will undoubtedly ruin the experience. Not just because it gives away the story, but because you'll be reminded of it while you watch. -- Ron Dulin
--Copyright ©1999 GameSpot Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of GameSpot is prohibited. GameSpot and the GameSpot logo are trademarks of GameSpot Inc.

Customer Reviews

An OK game
The Phantom Menace. Sometimes this game seems like an excellent one, while at others it is downright boring and silly.

The graphics, while not the best, are certainly the best i'll ever see on my fast-approaching obsolete computer. They are still pretty impressive though, as are the reflections, particle trails, and other little graphical effects. The sounds and voices are all pretty good too.

While the first few levels and the last few levels are pretty much fun, the Tatooine levels are boring and silly. Also, after playing the jedi for half of the game, you feel immeasurably weak when you are forced to play as panaka or the queen with her wimpy "droid stunner" gun.

The first time you play this game, it is pretty fun and challenging. Most of the puzzles aren't too difficult, but then you get to those jumping puzzles like the one on level three, and due to the awkward POV and controls, it takes twenty minutes to cross that little bit of water. This becomes a constant problem later...little jumping puzzles that take a vast amount of time and get very annoying very fast. It's also annoying running around tatooine, running when people try to kill you but not allowed to kill them, and trying to trade things back and forth.

Fortunately, the darth maul fights are pretty cool.

The second time you play the game, it's extremely easy, and I don't think I died once, and I beat the game in one sitting. Boring, fast, this game is fun the first time but has no replayability value. Add to that the lack of variety in enemies (100's of battle droids with once and a while a destroyer thrown in), and the lack of multiplayer, and you get a game which is decent but not worth the original $50 price.

Now that the price has gone down, if you like these types of games, I'd recommend trying it, but if you prefer shoot-em-up action games, stear clear of this one.

AMAZING game. Just a few flaws.
I TOTALLY DISAGREE with Gamespot's Ron Dulin...what is he thinking??? This game is top-quality, and just like all LucasArts games, you get stuck once in awhile. The hard-to-see third person angle can easily be changed by the way by using the command "naughty naughty". Buy the game! Don't be swayed by Gamespot's terrible review job!

Exciting....Good Graphics
Very exciting game. A little easy but exciting. The puzzles and some of the challenges were great. Despite the bad characters(Queen Amidala and Panaka) this game was good. Although character changes can be fixed with a cheat.