Use the Blocks, Luke! “LEGO Star Wars II” Pokes Fun at the Original Trilogy

by Louis Bedigian

“Lando also has a unique move in that he has a soft spot for the ladies, and will kiss their hand if they're close by.”

A long time ago, on a building block platform far, far away, Darth Vader waged a war so fierce the whole galaxy quivered with fear. It wasn't until a new hope appeared in the form of a young, aspiring Jedi that the return to peace could finally be had. Luke Skywalker fought the Empire, piloting the coolest battleship in the galaxy – the X-Wing.

That didn't stop Vader from striking back. His beloved Death Star required some reassembling, as it was made of LEGO pieces and had been taken apart during an unfortunate battle.

Armed with a plastic lightsaber that glows when his head is pushed (and a box telling kids to "Try Me!"), Darth Vader marched to the beat of a John Williams tune. This fall, LucasArts will march to that same tune – plastic lightsabers and all – when they bring LEGO Star Wars II to every game console currently on the market. From Xbox 360 to the Nintendo DS, no gamer will be without the Force of LEGO and Star Wars. 

Loz Doyle (Producer, Traveller’s Tales) and David Perkinson (Producer, LucasArts) take us through the creative process.

I love Star Wars and have been collecting its LEGO sets for years. How and when did a game that builds on these properties finally come to fruition?

Loz Doyle: It was back in 2001 that the initial concept was put forward. It was such a natural fit seeing as LEGO were making Star Wars sets and we were making LEGO games. LucasArts was very excited by the concept, so we worked closely with Traveller's Tales who just 'got' the idea straight away and produced a fantastic prototype that captured the essence of LEGO and Star Wars perfectly. We then made sure that we had enough time to create an amazing game, and LEGO Star Wars was released some two and a half years later.

LEGO has an endless array of possibilities; video games have an endless list all their own. Was it hard to combine the two and settle on one game concept?

LD: The concept came quite naturally. We know that everyone loves to play with LEGO and the Star Wars brand is probably the largest and most popular the world has seen. We wanted to make sure that this was a game that people could really play with and enjoy. It had to be accessible to all age groups, and it needed to always engage and reward the players. We set up some very simple rules and then built the game around that framework.

LEGO Star Wars II is based entirely on the Original Trilogy. How is the game divided among the three films?

LD: The same basic structure as LEGO Star Wars still exists. There are three Episodes and six main levels per episode. Each level re-creates classic scenes from the movies and so, along with cutscenes, tells the story of A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back and Return on the Jedi. Of course, it features all of the characters that appear in the classic movies, with a wealth of different abilities spread between them. There are also some two bonus levels per Episode, as well as a new secret mode. 

How does the game make the transition from A New Hope to The Empire Strikes Back, and finally to The Return of the Jedi?

LD: Each Episode is accessible from the front end Cantina hub, so there is no transition between them as such. Once you have completed the first level of Episode IV, you can then choose to play Episode V or VI – it's up to you.

We've seen Chewbacca pull off arms, C-3PO hop on one leg, Jedi use their Force powers on LEGO blocks – what other trademark moves are being implemented? Can you give us any hints?

LD: As I've mentioned, there are a huge variety of characters, and they bring with them a variety of new moves, as well as a few specials thrown in for good measure. We have Bounty Hunters, including Boba Fett, Greedo and my favorite character, IG-88, all of whom have thermal detonators. You can throw them and they will stick to certain objects, or you can throw them into a room full of stormtroopers and watch the LEGO pieces fly! Lando also has a unique move in that he has a soft spot for the ladies, and will kiss their hand if they're close by.

Two to four will be playable simultaneously, depending on the mission. How many of the dozens of characters in the game will be a part of the main quest and story? Are most being added as unlockables?

David Perkinson: That is correct, in some portions of the game there will be two characters involved in the level and in others four. However, in terms of the number of characters that can be played simultaneously, that number will always be, at most, two through playing in our drop-in/drop-out co-op mode. 

Through Story mode you will be able to play with all of the main characters in the game, and even some not-so-main characters. After you've completed the level, many of the characters you've encountered or interacted with will be instantly unlocked and playable in the game in Free Play.  Characters that are not unlocked through Story Mode and Free Play will be purchasable using your collected LEGO studs from the Mos Eisley Cantina. 

One of the most interesting features is being able to build a vehicle – almost automatically – and take control immediately. Besides what's been revealed (the speeder and AT-ST), what other vehicles can you tell us about?

LD: There's the speeder bike, various guns and turrets, and loads of other vehicles to help you get about in the levels. There's even a tractor! 

There have been a lot of ground battles revealed for LEGO Star Wars II. Can you confirm: will there be space battles?

DP: There will definitely be great space battles in LEGO Star Wars II – definitely everything you'd expect, from the Death Star trench run to the Millennium Falcon in the asteroid field.

Can you tell us anything about them?

DP: You will be able to take part in all of the classic space battles from the Original Trilogy, but in an all-new and exciting way. In LEGO Star Wars II, the vehicles are now entirely off "rails," and you will be able to explore around space levels just as you can the on-foot levels. Also, the team has now added Free Play to vehicle levels, giving the player the freedom to replay the battles with whatever ship they choose! For example, once you've destroyed the Death Star with the X-wing in Story mode, you can go back and try it again in Free Play using the TIE fighter!

Let's talk about the boss mode, which is exclusive to the PSP version. The mode lets you fight every boss from the first LEGO Star Wars game. Tell us more about this.

LD: This is great – you get to watch movies showing the "LEGO Story So Far" for each of Episodes I, II and III, and at the end of each movie you get to play the boss levels from LEGO Star Wars. As these were such enjoyable levels from the first game, and you got to play as, and against, the coolest characters, we thought this would be a great reward for PSP players who may not have had a chance to play these levels since the first game was not available on PSP. 

A Jedi mind trick ought to help us here.

Will the DS version have any touch screen or other system-specific features?

DP: The DS will have a full assortment of system-specific features. First and foremost, the game has an incredible Character Customizer that makes excellent use of the touch screen. Players will be able to able to customize characters and use them not only in Free Play, but they can customize them on the fly in Story mode as well. In addition to on-the-fly character customization, the touch screen will be used to switch characters, as well as have some camera controls. In the console versions of the game, the player has the ability to pivot the camera to see more of the environment, and that same functionality will exist on the DS!

The DS will also feature full wireless two-player Co-Op throughout Story mode and Free Play, as well as four-player wireless Bounty Hunter combat arenas!

Sounds great. I can tell the Force is strong with this one.

Thanks for your time guys!