Star Wars is considered science fiction, but like its adversary Star Trek, the George Lucas universe had foreseen many real technological breakthroughs. These innovative achievements showcase the vision that went into making the films and how the future would come to pass. Here are some examples:
In Empire Strikes Back, Luke loses his hand in the battle with Lord Vader at the Cloud City. He is seen later in the film getting a new hand put back on. Inventors like Dean Kamen (of Segway fame) have created a bionic arm that provides amputees with functional fingers where they can pick up and manipulate things much easier. While still not as agile as Luke’s arm, they can go a long way to helping the handicapped be able to do tasks that before were quite difficult if not impossible.
The Force Unleashed II continues the story of Starkiller, despite the fact that he was killed in the first game. Darth Vader, upset that his apprentice did not finish the job of helping him to take over the universe, decides to clone him and leave him on a distant world. With very little memory of his former life, he must fight back against the Dark Lord and find his past love Juno Eclipse (who was a pilot in the first game).
The new adventure is an onslaught of action with wave after wave of enemies that Starkiller has to destroy. There is more variety in this one, giving you many more enemies to take down with your force powers, but the constant fighting will leave some players bored with little in between. This makes the game considerably shorter than the first one, almost to the point of being too short for experienced players.
Force Unleashed II is available for the PS3 and Xbox 360 in standard ($50-60) and collector’s editions ($20 more). The latter gives you a steel book that the game comes in, a 2 gig flash drive, and three different challenge modes, plus other bonus content. The game is also available for the Wii and Nintendo DS. There is no PC version.
Falcon Gunner
Remember the arcade game where you shot at the tie-fighters as they came after you to destroy your ship? Well now you can relive those moments in the famed battle scene from the film. This new Star Wars iPhone game puts you in the gunner’s chair as you fight the evil empire to save your ship from destruction.
But what makes this game different is that you don’t have to just save your ship. By using the built in camera for the iPhone, you can have the empire attacking just about anywhere. Your office, the bus, the subway, even your house can be the latest battleground. Imagine the enemy swarming down on your property and you having to pick them off.
The app is scheduled to be released this month.
Other iPhone apps recently released from the Star Wars Universe (available through iTunes) are:
Star Wars Cantina is a casual gaming title based loosely on the Diner Dash series where you have to serve up the food and drinks to the various aliens to keep them happy.
Yoda Soundboard allows you have the wisdom of the jedi master at your fingertips. Hit a button and it plays your favorite Yoda quote from the films.
Lightsaber Duel is a multiplayer game that allows you to battle using the weapon of the Jedi. It features Bluetooth connectivity for the players.
The Battle for Hoth pits you against the empire in a strategy-based game. You must protect the tower by fortifying the ground with trenches, soldiers, weapons and control rooms to help guide your X-Wings in their air defense.
It’s great to revisit the Star Wars Universe and these games really set the mood. Enjoy.
