Star Wars: Rebellion
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Take command of the Rebels or the Empire in this strategy game from Lucasarts based around the Star Wars universe. Instead of a command and Conquer style game this is based on taking over planets with Diplomacy and also force. Slowly building up your empire and trying to beat your opposing force. There is no actual real-time fighting; it is all done with commands.
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Reviews
Critics
Average score: 65% (based on 19 ratings)
Players
Average score: 3.2 out of 5 (based on 42 ratings with 13 reviews)
An old, misunderstood gem in the vast Star Wars game universe.
The Good
This is a truly immersive and addictive game. To actually play as the Empire or the Rebellion and try to take over the galaxy with or without force is a dream many Star Wars fans have had. To build multiple Death Stars and blow up planets at will is a first in the line of Star Wars games. As an avid fan of TIE Fighter I felt a strong desire to correct the mistakes of the Empire and bring true peace and order to the galaxy. I tried playing as the Rebels but hearing that fake Leia or Luke voice made it so annoying to play as the Rebels. The Empire was much more fun as their characters were more civilized and proper. The Imperial Star Destroyer is a great capital ship and with the Lancer Frigate and Carrack Light Cruiser can easily take on Rebel fleets fairly early in the game. The Super Star Destroyer along with a fleet of the smaller Star Destroyers with fighters and support craft make the game very engrossing.
The game diverges from so many other RTS and turn-based strategy games in that it requires the player to effectively manage political, social as well as economical and military events in the game. The lower your expenditures in the war against the Rebels the more popular you can be. Gaining support for your cause is crucial to success in this game as you only have limited resources and a big galaxy to conquer.
The Bad
It takes a very long time to build ships and send fleets to fight the enemy. The Rebels start off with a huge disadvantage as they have NO LARGE CAPITAL SHIPS. The Empire can rely on the fact that it will start the game with at least one Star Destroyer, either a smaller Victory Star Destoyer or the superior Imperial-class Star Destroyer. Very wise planning is needed in this game to achieve success as the enemy is not as dumb as they look.
The infamous interface which has so often killed the game in the reviewers' minds is not hard to learn. It is better than the interface in newer games like Star Trek Armada. Unfortunately it is terribly inefficient and can even lead to mistakes such as retiring officers prematurely or scrapping necessary ships (I've never made these mistakes in the game but came close).
The sound options are terrible as it is impossible to mute those annoying C-3PO sounds and other robot noises.
The Bottom Line
Only a four on five as it lacks proper sound and interface controls. I still recommend it to all hardcore Star Wars fans as you do get to conquer the galaxy either with an iron fist or a soft hand.
Do you have what it takes to command a galaxy?
Windows · by bb bb (25) · 2005
Wow people really hate this game!
The Good
First of all Rebellion was one of the first real time strategy games on the market. Between the concept of the game and the new type of game (rts) Rebellion had the potential to be one of the greatest of all time.
Personally Rebellion was enjoyable and fun. I admit the interface is horrible but after giving it a chance, I got used to it. I think a lot of people who didn't like Rebellion's interface never really gave it a chance. I think many people had this image of C&C Star Wars style, well that's not what it was. Rebellion can be fun and enjoyable but only as long as you cant have too many expectations up front.
I loved building up the empire into the aramada that It should be. I loved it when at the end the Alliance battlecruser is destroyed and the droids run for cover. This is a game I play often and still enjoy today. I liked the tech tree and enjoyed building super ships.
The Bad
Ship combat well.... it sucked. Also what other reviewers said about a card game is true. Players like Luke and Darth are no more than a strato card that can raise planet morale a pinch. The way the game deploys characters is horrible. Also Intelligence was hard and almost useless. It would have been better if they had just done some sort of abstract funding model and said your intellegence depended on how much you spent. (I.E. the more you spent on intellegence gathering, the better you knew the location and strength of your enemy)
Also lets face it... How can a game call itself Star Wars when the empire starts out even with the Alliance in ships and planets? <br><br>**The Bottom Line**<br>The game has its flaws. If you were a die hard Star Wars fan I would probably not recommend it to you. However if it doesn't bother you to stray a little from the Star Wars universe, then this can be a good game for you.
Trust me, the interface can be mastered, its just a little hard to understand at first.
Windows · by William Shawn McDonie (1131) · 2000
A complex and compelling Star Wars strategy game
The Good
I think that Rebellion is best categorized as a 4X strategy game but it's not an obvious clone of any strategy game I've played. Unlike most of the other 4X games, it's not turn-based but instead operates in real-time. There is a lot to digest. It took me many hours to figure out how to play the game. I read some of the rather large manual and followed the tutorial. Once I got the hang of things, I really got sucked in.
There are many strategic options. You can go the conqueror route, with huge armies and fleets of ships led by officers who gain experience. You can alternatively go with a more "diplomatic" direction. You can also do lots of sabotage, espionage and incite rebellions and such. Combine, mix and match. Whatever you enjoy.
The game has a lot of Star Wars "expanded universe" material. I really like seeing the games go beyond the movies. There are numerous characters and a lot of technology from the novels. I have read a boatload of Star Wars novels and recognized a lot of things and this definitely enriched the experience for me.
The space combat is strange and maybe difficult to control, but it definitely has the proper slow lumbering naval capital ship feel to it. The simulation of each ship/fighter's capabilities is complex and fascinating and definitely is something you can learn to leverage advantages and weaknesses of.
The Bad
The interface isn't really capable of dealing with the amount of info you have available. I would like to have seen an interface with windows that you can drag around so you can keep them open. It's hard to juggle the game events. It's not that bad though.
The real-time aspect isn't particularly beneficial to a game like this. Thankfully the game speed is adjustable so essentially it ends up being a turn-based game without a turn button.
Ground combat isn't presented in a satisfying manner. I think a little animated battle screen like the MOO games have would have added some excitement to this aspect. A little goes a long way, but this game does zero.
Space combat is ugly? This is true but I don't think it matters. The ships are recognizable and that's all that matters to me.
The Bottom Line
Rebellion is a misunderstood game for some reason. I think a lot of people were expecting Command & Conquer Star Wars Edition. That is not what this game is at all. If that's what you want, look at Force Commander or Galactic Battlegrounds.
Don't expect it to be easy to jump into. It has a nasty learning curve. Give the manual a read and follow the tutorial to get a grasp on the basics and then things will go much better for you.
If you want to see a simplified and arguably refined version of this game, look at Star Wars Empire at War. I immediately caught on to this when I first loaded EaW up. I think they went way too far with the simplification of the strategy aspect and the ground combat is not great, but the space combat is fun.
Windows · by Deleted (33) · 2010
Trivia
'Star Wars: Rebellion' earned Gamespot.com's nod for 'Most Disappointing Game of the Year' in 1998.
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Lucas Arts: Rebellion
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Contributors to this Entry
Game added by Matthew Bailey.
Additional contributors: Trixter, Entorphane, Apogee IV, chirinea.
Game added March 26, 2000. Last modified January 18, 2024.