Back in My Day: Star Wars NES & SNES

There is no real argument about whether or not Star Wars is one of the greatest stories ever told. It was a trilogy that amazed the minds of many youngsters as well as adults. These films reached out and entertained just about everyone, and very few films can do just that. When Star Wars was first released in 1977, there was no doubt that everything was going to suddenly turn into a Star Wars frenzy. While we know there were toys, posters, shirts, and Star Wars cookbooks (which I own) made, we're focusing on what is important to every game out there – Star Wars video games.

The list of Star Wars based games is probably endless. They more than likely stretch around the world in different cultures. While I have never played it, I know for a fact that Famicom had a Star Wars game of its own in Japan. I'm sure there are Star Wars spin offs in India, China, and probably even Russia. (Russian Yoda FTW!) This week, however, we're keeping things simple and sticking with the NES and SNES versions of Star Wars that I had the chance to play.


Star Wars wouldn't be Star Wars if it didn't have its own game on the Nintendo. Luckily, unlike every other movie turned game out there, Star Wars was picked up by JVC rather than LJN. Right off the bat we know that the game can't be as bad as anything that LJN could produce. Knowing LJN, they would have renamed Luke to Kirk and turned him into an underwater astronaut who is in search for the City of Atlantis. I'm not exaggerating on that either.


The first Star Wars game is simply called “Star Wars.” While it tries to stay true the movie, it just doesn't manage to pull it off. Understandable; a lot of Nintendo games left players in the dark, especially when it came to movie games. I'm sure somewhere in the back of their minds they expected players to have memorized most of the key scenes in the movie and to be able to recognize them in their 8-bit glory. That's not how it works, though. Too often does the game stray from how the movie portrayed certain scenes because it's too hard to pull off with old school graphics. Instead, Star Wars tries to fill in bits and pieces with its own creative story. That's where things take a turn for the worst.


Right off the bat, players start in a speeder with no idea on where to go. I guess it is kinda cool that the game gives players some sort of free roam abilities, but if there is no direction on what needs to be accomplished first, then how are players supposed to know how to beat the game? Star Wars is a very trial and error based game. If players end up having too hard a time defeating Storm Troopers, then they'll soon figure out that maybe a different route needs to be taken. It's a game where all the levels are open, but they will be done in a correct order. Players will need to find a super blaster, and then a light-saber, and then shield power ups for the Millennium Falcon. Doing any other way is going to be a major headache.


Many would think that after all that is done, the game would ease up on the difficulty. There is no such luck in this game. Once players are geared up, the game kicks it into high gear with tons of conveyer belt floors, deadly traps, and even anti gravity levels that send players flying all over the place. One level even goes so far to have nothing but spikes. This means floors are extremely rare and players will have to time their floating bodies down dangerous corridors lest they wish to be impaled against the wall, ceiling, or floor. It's a merciless game, but if you really want to be a Jedi, this is just one of the many trials to complete.


In the next game for the NES, Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, players are greeted with a well known opening scene taken straight from the movie. The silly driving stage is left behind and players just might have a chance at something a bit easier that they can handle. Again, no such luck. The Empire Strikes back takes us through a hellish first level with some difficult jumping as well as some crazy shooting controls. There is no tutorial here. Everything has to be learned in real time and getting used to the blaster is a huge pain in the rear end.


The second stage is probably one that I remember most just because I thought it was the most realistic. Players have to take part in the battle against the Imperial Walkers. Here, they will have to guide the ships around and either shoot down walkers or tie them up with cables. While it was pretty difficult to do, it was great to see one of the scenes from the movie come to a video game where I could actually do it myself. If there was one level of the game that I wish I could have played repeatedly, it was this one.


Unfortunately, I sort of got my wish because I never remember getting any further in this game. With its wacky side scrolling controls and insane difficulty, I could never pass the next stage. I'm not sure what the developers were thinking, but both of the Star Wars games on the NES were absolutely ridiculous when it came to difficulty. I can understand that it was their first stab at it, and they wanted to stick to the movies, but I'm here to play a game and have fun. I don’t actually want to become a Jedi. Lay off on the insane difficulty already!


A few flops on the Nintendo wasn't enough to bury the Star Wars franchise for the gaming world, and I'm glad they didn't throw in the towel. When Star Wars hit the Super Nintendo in 1992, we had a new type of game to have googly eyes for. All three Star Wars episodes made their way to this console under the title Super Star Wars. For the most part, they life up to their name. They were superior to every other Star Wars game that had previously been released. They weren't superior just because of the whole 16bit graphics launch; they were superior because they really brought the game to life.


These were games that I rented multiple times from Blockbuster. Whenever I had the urge to play a Star Wars game, these were the ones I picked up. Of course, I could only get one at a time, so most of my time was spent with the first one just because it took so long to beat. The game hit the nail on the head in just about every aspect. The music was superb, the graphics were amazing, and the storyline was what it was supposed to be. Very rarely did the game travel off onto some other path, but even when it did, it was very linear and tried its best to merge in with the rest of the story.


By far, the greatest thing about Super Star Wars was the ability to play so many different characters. We bounced from Luke to Han to Chewy, we got it all. We even got special attack moves that were nowhere in the movie at all. It was one of those added abilities that were so appreciated. The game also didn't just stick to a very plain, side scrolling beat'em up either. Players had stages where they could drive and fly as well. There are so many great things that Super Star Wars managed to pull off, but much like its NES brethren, there was one element that would have players groaning – the difficulty.



Yes, Super Star Wars was super difficult. The only major difference between the Nintendo versions and the Super Nintendo games was that the difficulty was welcomed for the latter. What fun would a game be if it was super easy? Super Star Wars had difficulty done right, such as being able to properly pull off some special moves or knowing when to progress and when to wait for the level to catch up. Very rarely were there times when the game dropped you into an area that lead to a dead end or put you in a situation that was nearly impossible to fight your way out of.


The bosses at times could be quite a nuisance, but that is why they are the bosses. They require complete focus and perfectly executed moves. The only problem is players had to focus for far too long or perform those perfect moves too much because the hit points on a boss were near endless. The only complaint here is that the bosses' health should have been taken down a notch. They were pretty powerful without 4,000,000 bars of health.


All in all, the games will always be a part of any Star Wars gamer's collection. While my collection is pretty pitiful, I can still say that I've journeyed through most of the Star Wars games, from Atari to the current PC games. One thing that has always stuck around is the difficulty for most of these games. I guess the old saying is true when things too difficult or just plain impossible - “Do or do not; there is no try!”