Star Wars: Gaming | Snapshots from the Battlefront

A stormtrooper named Boba takes a quick look at his tactical map. Rebel scum has infested these woods of Endor, and Alliance forces have overrun his command center just north of his position. It's a long trek uphill, but there is an unmanned AT-ST walker parked nearby for just such a purpose. He decides to leave his post; it should be safe, and he wants to be where the action is.

With mighty mechanical legs pushing him through the forest, he soon arrives. Rebel troops are swarming through the underbrush. They start to scurry as the AT-ST emerges from the forest. An Imperial dark trooper soars past on his jetpack, picking off fleeing Rebels. Rocket launchers slam against Boba's walker, as he targets a Wookiee smuggler for a kill...

Not quite how you remember the Battle of Endor? Welcome to Star Wars Battlefront, an open-ended multiplayer action game that spans the entire Star Wars saga. The game isn't due out until September, but this past Tuesday, June 22, select members of the electronic gaming press were given a taste of the action to come.

"We wanted to deliver the experience that Battlefront delivers," said Anne Marie Stein, of LucasArts Public Relations. The resulting venue: the forested wilderness of the Presidio in San Francisco. A short bus trip brings the assembled journalists to a camp in the woods like no other. A path into the forest is flanked on one side by stormtroopers, on the other by Rebel commandos - all local costumed fans from Bay Area 501st units. The symphonic music of the Star Wars saga plays from concealed speakers, punctuated by blaster fire, explosions and the cries of bloodthirsty Ewoks.

All's not quiet on this Battlefront. At the main camp area are a number of tents draped with camo-netting and marked with Imperial or Rebel flags. Inside the tents are computer and console stations loaded with the eagerly awaited game. Over 80 journalists and reviewers from the games media sat down and entered the fray on the platform of their choosing - Xbox, PlayStation 2 or PC.

Four different armies, 10 different planets, over 30 vehicles -- the game is enormous is scope. Such scale is best experienced in a networked environment, battling against up to 32 combatants on a familiar Star Wars battlefield.

Or maybe not so familiar... though Rhen Var, Endor, Hoth, Yavin 4, and Kamino were opened up for sampling at this event, the finished game will include a preview of one of the new worlds of Episode III.

Here are some snapshots from the event. Keep checking starwars.com, and especially LucasArts.com for more detailed Star Wars Battlefront coverage and war stories. The game is scheduled for release on September 21 for Xbox, PlayStation 2 and PC. For those wanting a sample, the DVD release of the Star Wars Trilogy will feature an Xbox playable demo of the game.