Many video games take place in a galaxy far, far away, and, much like the movies, some are better than others. While some try to recreate the movie and let gamers take the role of some of the strongest characters from the Star Wars franchise, others introduce entirely new characters and weave stories of what was happening on the other side of the galaxy while Darth Vader was destroying the Jedi Order. Below are our picks for the best Star Wars video games ever made.
1. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (2019)
This action-adventure platformer takes place five years after George Lucas‘ Star Wars: Episode III—Revenge of the Sith and follows Cal Kestis (Cameron Monaghan), a Jedi Padawan who becomes a target of the Galactic Empire. Rogue One and Star Wars Rebels inspired the game’s design.
What is it about? After Cal is seen using the Force to save a friend, Inquisitors are sent after him. He manages to escape, though his friend gets killed in the process and is rescued by a former Jedi Knight who needs help retrieving a list of Force-sensitive children’s names. Cal agrees to help, and along the way, he meets Saw Gerrera, who helps free several Wookiees. He is hunted by the Second and Ninth Sisters and spends a lot of time dealing with memories on his part.
Why we love it: The game was well-received by fans and critics and won several awards. It did so well that it eventually earned a sequel, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, and a tie-in novel, Star Wars Jedi: Battle Scars. Fall Order was developed by Respawn Entertainment and published by Electronic Arts for PlayStation 4, Windows and Xbox One, then later PlayStation 5 and X Box Series X/S.
2. Star Wars Battlefront II (2005)
What is it about? The sequel to 2004’s Star Wars: Battlefront was developed by Pandemic Studios and published by LucasArts. It is the second game in the series. The first and third-person shooter features a single-player campaign that tells the story of a veteran clone Imperial Stormtrooper. His story starts with the Battle of Geonosis and ends with the Battle of Hoth, taking place over 18 missions.
Why we love it: The game features more characters, vehicles, and maps than its predecessor and a multiplayer mode that allows both split-screen and online gameplay. Despite its age, this game is widely considered the best in the series thanks to its compelling campaign, improved gameplay, and fun space battles. It’s a pity we haven’t gotten Star Wars Battlefront III yet.
3. Star Wars: Jedi Survivor (2023)
What is it about? This game takes place five years after its predecessor and continues the adventures of Cal Kestis (Cameron Monaghan), now a Jedi Knight struggling to survive in the Galactic Empire. Cal is working as a resistance fighter under Saw Gerrera and is sent on a mission to retrieve data from Senator Daho Sejan. Unfortunately, the mission doesn’t go according to plan, and most of his team is killed.
After learning that the Empire has only become more powerful despite his best efforts, Cal returns to his old friends and awakens what he thought was a Jedi Knight while searching for parts to repair his ship. But, unfortunately, things don’t quite go the way he’d been expecting, as the Jedi had fallen to the dark side because he felt betrayed by the Jedi Order. Cal fights to destroy the Dark Jedi and plans to use the planet the Dark Jedi had found to rebuild the Jedi Order. Unfortunately, he is soon betrayed by one of his allies, who will do anything to protect his daughter, and feels he is too far gone to the dark side.
Why we love it: Many critics and fans praised the gameplay and Monaghan’s performance, though some found the story bland. Stig Asmussen revealed that he planned to make the series a trilogy. Survivor was only made available for Windows and Next-Gen consoles.
4. Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast (2002)
Raven Studios and Vicarious Visions developed this first- and third-person shooter game for Windows, Mac, Xbox and GameCube. It is the third instalment of the Star Wars: Jedi Knight series and takes place two years after Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II’s expansion Mysteries of the Sith.
What is it about? The game follows Kyle Katarn, a mercenary and former Jedi working for the New Republic who reconnects with the Force after Jan Ors seemingly dies and leads a Dark Jedi to the Valley of the Jedi. After rescuing Lando Calrissian and freeing Bespin from Force-wielding soldiers, Kyle learns that Jan is still alive. On his way to rescue her, he bumps into Luke Skywalker, who informs him that the Dark Jedi had used the Valley of the Jedi to provide Force powers to possibly thousands of soldiers. They split up to deal with the problem and try to find Jan. Kyle eventually finds her, and they escape in a pod while Rogue Squadron destroys the Star Destroyer Jan was being kept on. They head to Yavin IV to deal with the Dark Jedi’s imperial invasion and offer him a chance to rejoin the Jedi, but he refuses, forcing Kyle to kill him.
Why we love it: It was well-received by fans and critics and deemed “truly fantastic” and “the best Star Wars experience on the Xbox.” However, while it was nominated for Action Game of the Year, it ultimately lost because it lacked the originality and consistency to win.
5. Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic (2003)
This RPG, developed by BioWare and published by LucasArts, is the first instalment of the Knights of the Old Republic series, often abbreviated to KOTOR.
What is it about? The game takes place 4000 years before the formation of the Galactic Empire and sees Darth Malak releasing a Sith armada against the Galactic Empire. At the beginning of the game, players control a force-sensitive character that they can customise. Their interactions and plot decisions earn them Light Side or Dark Side points, which affect their abilities. After escaping from Darth Malak’s forces, the player will go on an adventure, meeting several characters as they train to be a Jedi, discover Star Maps and search for information about the Star Forge, the source of Malak’s military resources.
Players will meet Carth Onasi (a skilled pilot and Republic war hero), Mission Vao and Zaalbar (a Twi’lek street urchin and her Wookie companion), Bastila Shan (a Jedi Knight known for her mastery of battle meditation), T3-M4 (a utility droid), Canderous Ordo (a Mandalorian mercenary), Jolee Bindo (a Gray Jedi) and HK-58 (an assassin droid).
After Darth Malak captures the player, you learn that the player is the former Darth Revan, an amnesiac Sith whose memories were wiped by the Jedi Council, who hoped the former Sith would lead them to the Star Forge. The players’ ending will be determined by the path they follow during the game.
Why we love it: The game was well-received and won several awards, including “Game of the Year,” “Best Xbox Game of the Year,” “Best Console RPG,” and “Best Computer RPG.” It was initially released for PC and Xbox and later made available for Mac, iOS, Android, and Nintendo Switch. Darth Revan was set to appear in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars episode Ghosts of Mortis, but the scene was cut before it could be animated.
6. LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga (2022)
This LEGO-themed action adventure is the sixth instalment in the LEGO Star Wars game series. It is an adaptation of all nine movies and includes some additional characters. It was developed by Traveller’s Tales and published by Warner Bros. Games for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One and Series X/S, and Windows.
What is it about? Players can choose to start the game from any of the trilogies, playing through a total of 45 levels. Short pre-levels connect the levels and advance the story, and combat has been revamped. The game hub consists of several planets seen in the Star Wars universe, and there are 380 playable characters, not all of which are from the Skywalker Saga. Unfortunately, given the multitude of characters, the game doesn’t have a customisation station like previous LEGO games.
Why we love it: This game features some of the best Star Wars moments and scenes from the movies. Another feature not seen in the previous Lego Star Wars games is voice acting. Players can choose between voice acting or Mumble Mode, which will see the character mumble and grunt similarly to how they did in older Lego games. It was well-received by fans and critics, some of whom deemed it the perfect way to enjoy the films as an adult while showing them to kids.
7. Star Wars: Republic Commando (2005)
This tactical first-person shooter game, set in the Star Wars Legends expanded universe, was released for Xbox and Windows. Players take control of clone trooper RC-1138, referred to as “Boss” by his squadron, a group of genetically enhanced clone troopers known as Clone Commandos.
What is it about? The game follows the Delta Squad (“Boss”, “Scorch”, “Fixer” and “Seb”), and players get to see their creation, early life and training before they’re deployed and tasked with assassinating the Geonosian Archduke and Separatist Council member Poggie the Lesser’s chief lieutenant Sun Fac. After a successful mission, they’re given several more. They sabotage a battle droid factory, disable an anti-aircraft bunker, sneak onto a disabled Separatist Trade Federation ship to damage it, and steal launch codes that will prevent the rest of the fleet from retreating.
A year into the war, they are sent to investigate a derelict Acclamator-class ship known as the Prosecutor and find that Trandoshans have taken over the ship. Though separated and attacked several times, Delta Squad works together to take back the bridge and kill the Trandoshan slavers and mercenaries on board, then armies of droids and then the Separatist Battleship. They are involved in several other dangerous missions, including the rescue of Wookie Chieftain Tarfful and the beginning of the Battle of Kashyyyk. Unfortunately, during the battle, they are forced to abandon Sev.
Why we love it: While the game was short and had a considerably average multiplayer option, it was still highly praised for its story, characters and combat style. It earned itself a sequel titled Star Wars: Republic Commando: Order 66 and a novel series written by Karen Traviss focusing on their missions during the Clone Wars. Unfortunately, the game’s second sequel, Star Wars: Imperial Commando, was cancelled. However, Traviss still wrote Star Wars Imperial Commando: 501st, which, much like the planned game, would have explored Delta Squad’s perspective of the galaxy’s transition from the Republic to the Galactic Empire.
8. Star Wars Rogue Squadron 2: Rogue Leader (2001/2002)
What is it about? This fast-paced action game takes place during Episodes 4 – 6. Players can choose to play as either Luke Skywalker or Wedge Antilles as they fight the Galactic Empire through ten levels, each with objectives players must complete to get to the next level. It was developed by Factor 5 and LucasArts, who also published it. In the game, you can control seven vehicles, each with a unique set of weapons and varying speed and manoeuvrability capabilities: the X-wing, A-wing, Y-wing, B-wing, Snowspeeder, the T-16 Skyhopper, and the Millennium Falcon.
The story is represented through character conversation, cut scenes, the game’s instruction manual and pre-mission briefings. Players get to reenact the climatic battle from A New Hope, accompany a supply convoy from Yavin IV to Hoth, fight in the battle on Hoth, free and escort imprisoned Rebels out of an Imperial base and destroy both Death Stars.
Why we love it: Rogue Leader was highly praised for its graphics, sound and gameplay. It won the Game Critics Award for Best Action Game and was among the highest-rated GameCube launch titles.
9. Star Wars: The Old Republic (2011/2012)
This massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) was developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts. It was released for Windows.
What is it about? The game occurs 300 years after Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and 3600 years before the Star Wars films during the tenuous peace between the Sith Empire and the Galactic Republic. Following the 28-year-long Great Galactic War, the Jedi relocated to Tython, where the Jedi Order had been founded, and sought guidance from the Force; meanwhile, the Sith re-established the Sith Academy. While the Jedi Order and the Galactic Republic struggle to maintain their control of the core worlds, the Sith plot their downfall and continue to expand their Empire, with conflict taking place on many planets.
Why we love it: Players could choose to be a part of the Galactic Republic or the Sith Empire. However, morally, players don’t have to match the faction they’ve chosen and can make decisions based on the path they want their in-game character to take. Choices made throughout the game can open or close storylines and affect non-player character companions. In addition, players can choose from several species, classes, ships and companions in the game. It was well-received and won Best MMO in the 2011 Game of the Year Awards.
10. Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (2008)
This third-person action game was developed and published by LucasArts. It acted as an origin story of the Rebel Alliance and the Galactic Civil War, bridging the first two Star Wars trilogies. The game also introduced Starkiller, a powerful Force user and Darth Vader’s secret apprentice.
What is it about? Known initially as Galen Marek, Darth Vader took the young force-sensitive boy on as his secret apprentice after sensing his strong connection to the force. As Starkiller, Galen completes his training and is tasked with eliminating Jedi survivors in preparation for the assassination of the Emperor. Starkiller is tasked with hunting three powerful Jedi (Rahm Kota, Kazdan Paratus and Shaak Ti). He sets out with PROXY, a training droid programmed to kill him, and Juno Eclipse, an Imperial pilot. During their duel, Kota learns that he will be part of Starkiller’s future and is then blinded by his lightsaber before falling to his apparent death. Starkiller completes his mission and returns to Vader.
Though the Sith lord is forced to prove his loyalty to his master by killing his apprentice, Vader revives Starkiller and sends him to ignite a rebellion among the Empire’s enemies, hoping that that will distract his master enough for Vader to overthrow him. Starkiller rescues Juno, and she, him and PROXY head to Cloud City, where they find and rescue a blind, alcoholic Kota before travelling to Kashyyyk.
While visiting his old home, Starkiller meets his father’s spirit and gains Bail Organa’s trust by rescuing his captive daughter and liberating captive Wookies at her request. He then rescues Bail Organa from a vengeful padawan and convinces him to join the rebellion. When Bail meets with Mon Mothma and Garm Bel Iblis to discuss and organise a rebellion, Vader appears to arrest them and Kota, revealing to Starkiller that he was using him to lure out the Emperor’s enemies. Starkiller and Juno fly off to rescue the captured senators and Jedi and confront Vader and the Emperor, who quickly subdues him. Players must then choose to save Kota or kill Vader.
Why we love it: It won “Best Use of a Creative License” from Game Spot and a Writers Guild of America Award for “Best Video Game Writing. Say what you want, but The Force Unleashed has some of the best Star Wars fight scenes of all time, too. We’re still hoping for a Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 3.
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Tell us, what do you think are the best Star Wars games?
