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Not up to it's price

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: March 30, 2000
Author: Amazon User

The only reason I did not gave it one star is because I am a real Star Wars fan. The gameplay graphics are ok but could have been a lot better.Te soundtrack is quite innovative but the loops are simply annoying. Interface could have been a lot easier, specially construction interface.The command point system is interesting but it means once you start loosing the battle it is extremely difficult to turn the tide, even with superb strategies. On the oher hand Force Commander improves the Star Wars experience and the cutscenes are some of the best I have ever seen. But besides this, I have paid $20 for games of more less the same quality. Somebody should tell LucasArts that the fact it is part of the Star Wars Universe does not mean he can deliver a mediocre product and the public will accept it. I had enough with Rebellion and now this...

Okay, for 9 bucks, I might say it's worth it...

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 4 / 8
Date: November 02, 2002
Author: Amazon User

It's a stretch, but I might recommend this game for 9 bucks. Why the 1 star then? Because the current rating is way too high for such a lousy RTS. I feel an obligation to warn any potential buyers that you're not likely to enjoy the game even as much as I did, since I happen to be a hardcore Star Wars fan.

Force Commander made waves when it was due for release, since it was highly anticipated as the first Star Wars real-time strategy title (Rebellion doesn't count). It made even more waves after it did come out, but not because of record sales. Let's just say that it fell a bit short of expectations. Here's a few reasons why:

Clunky interface- The camera controls are terrible and the terrain following camera does its best to put hills in your face instead of what you really want/need to see (i.e. the fighting). Issuing directions and forming teams is much like the Blizzard Warcraft/Starcraft style, but the icons that represent your units give little indication of their status. The camera rotation is more a detriment to play than anything else, as clicking around the minimap is more likely to disorient you than actually focus on what you want to see.

Lousy pathfinding- This is something that just HAS to work in an RTS. It doesn't work in Force Commander. Units will get stuck for no apparent reason, especially when navigating steep terrain or narrow valleys. You'll often have to back everyone up and send them through one at a time- that is, if they CAN back out without getting stuck again. Needless to say, this isn't something you want to do if the enemy is waiting on the other end or, even worse, above you.

Weak AI- All right, so if the enemy has the high ground, no problem right? We'll just blast them from where we are. WRONG! The AI is stupid enough that if you target units with an obstruction in between, your forces will just sit there and shoot into the blockade. Usually you'll have to maneuver around and up and right on top of what you want to kill before they can even hit it.

Mediocre graphics- All right, you would think they at least got this part right. After all, what is Star Wars without the special effects? While the scaling does look better than your typical RTS, Force Commander's graphics are obviously outdated (I'm saying this from when it was released, let alone now). While the units are decently modeled, the problem is that if you zoom in enough to see the detail, you pretty much give up your command privileges. That said, the weapon effects and movement are uninspiring and repetitive. It looks like something you'd expect out of a lesser 2-D game, and in fact I'd argue a lot of 2-D strategy games do a better job.

Soundtrack- This is a serious problem. I don't know what the folks at LucasArts were thinking, but the John Williams soundtrack is as much a part of Star Wars as the Force. They did something based off it, and the result is an assault on your ears. Don't listen to it.

Stupid resource model- Or more appropriate, NO resource model. Points to LucasArts for thinking up something new, to keep the battle going rather than worrying about mining resources. And negative points for making it so stupid. I would almost say it's unworkable, but it might actually work as long as you stick to single play.

Balance issues- So what's the real reason this game is tempting? Let me guess... AT-ATs right? Sorry to rain on the party, but AT-ATs are lousy. They get stuck more easily than other units and cost too much. You're much better off building stormtroopers. Yup, just those will do it. In fact, you can win any fight with just infantry, and pretty darn quickly too.

Since I've put in all these words deprecating the product, I'll also say that it does have some strong points. First off, the story is decent, which is better than you'd expect from a typical RTS. The movies are also worth seeing at least once, and at the moment FoCom remains the only 3-D Star Wars RTS (Galactic Battlegrounds is the other, based off the Age of Kings engine). Lastly, it's dirt cheap now, so it might be a worthy risk if you're a very bored person. Just don't expect to be blown away.

A Suprise from LucasArts

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 3 / 5
Date: May 19, 2000
Author: Amazon User

Although LucasArts usually comes out with quality games, this is not one of them. I remember my long nights of StarCraft, and hoped that Force Commander would be one of those games that were just as fun, but in the Star Wars universe (which is usually the case). I think this is the first LucasArts game that did not live up to my expectations. Overall, the idea is good, the way you move through the game is well thought out, and the graphics are (as usual) astounding. What the game does however, is put your camera view, right there in the action. Although this is really need for the first hour or two, you quickly being to realize that it's difficult to see what's really going on, and even more difficult to navigate. It becomes a task in and of its self just to find one of your units to control it.

Good but room for Improvement

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 5
Date: March 28, 2000
Author: Amazon User

The game play is smooth and fairley easy to get a hang of. However, the game lacks in the ammount of vehicles and units you can build. Also, I have noticed a few bugs when trying to move units as battle groups. All in all it is a good game that could be made a lot better with Total Anihilation like patches.

Disappointing at Best

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 3 / 5
Date: March 25, 2000
Author: Amazon User

Looks like LucasArts has done it again: a great storyline and great cutscenes mixed with a slow, akward interface. Sure, the colors are all there and 3D is everywhere, but zooming in closer shows the boxy troops and vehicles, with very low detail compared to many games of today. The learning curve is steep, and new players can't even adjust the difficulty. In conclusion: hard to control, hard to see what's happening, and hard to think why LucasArts couldn't have done better.

Force commander is awsome

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 5
Date: May 19, 2002
Author: Amazon User

lets cut to the chase this game is one of the best games out there because of the STORY you're Brenn Tantor
A stormtrooper that gets promoted to a luitenent in the Imperial army the first level has you looking for the escape pod from episode
IIV and ends after episode V the graphics are cool and so is the music But I still Really like the STORY.

One of the Best Star Wars games yet

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 6
Date: April 11, 2000
Author: Amazon User

Great game - at first I thought it was going to be like Rebellion (slow) - But was I ever wrong. This game make you think. You really need to plan out every move. This is a must for all Star Wars fans.

Great game fo Star Wars and stragey fans alike

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 6
Date: April 29, 2000
Author: Amazon User

When i bought this game and played it for the first time I thought wow. This has to be one of the best computer let alone Star Wars game I have ever played. It is very similar to Age of Empires. The campaign(which is only for the Imperials) takes place during the Stars trilogy and a lot of its missions come from the movie. The skirmish feature allows Star wars fans accomplish their dream of controlling the Empire or the Rebels. The only bad thing is the camera which is complex to move and sometimes doesn't give you a good view. So my final thought is whoever said their is no good strategy game for Star Wars. There is one and it is called Force Commander

Force Commander is Great, BUT...

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 6
Date: August 06, 2000
Author: Amazon User

I bought FoCom a week after it was released. After playing it, it was great, but there are a number of problems. First of all, the graphics could be better. I think they can be a litter bit crisper. Also, the terrain is a bit patchy, especially on the Abridon levels. There is an omission of several Imperial craft, such as the Floating Fortress or the S.1 Firehawk tank, which I would like to see in there. Those stupid Ewoks can destroy an AT-ST by flinging rocks at it - I think whoever was in charge of the Endor levels better take a good look at what he was smoking at the time;) Your walkers are also damaged whenever they run over somebody, I noticed. The DF.9 and P-Tower defnsive turrets can detroy AT-ATs. If any of you were watching TESB, you know that is inaccurate. Also, I noticed that the Empire seems to have a lot of women in there forces. I know this may sound shoveinest, but remember the Empire is supposed to be oppressive. There are no women or aliens on the Rebel side, either, which makes me think just how much research did these guys put into FoCom? Anyway, after three years of development, you think they could've done better, but with all the nit-picking aside, it's still pretty fun:)

its great

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 3
Date: March 21, 2000
Author: Amazon User

i love this game there are no downsides exxcept for the lack of lightsaber duels

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