Star Wars: Empire At War
- May 25, 2010
- Petroglyph
- 176h median play time
Get on Steam"Star Wars: Empire at War" is a real-time strategy game that allows players to command either the Rebel Alliance or the Galactic Empire in the midst of the galactic civil war. With control over troops, starships, and even the Death Star, players must execute campaigns across ground, space, and the galaxy, while making decisions that impact the outcome of battles and the fate of the Star Wars universe. The game features over 80 ground and space locations from the Star Wars universe.
PC
Windows
Xbox Series X|S
Xbox
Reviews
- gameplay943 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 58 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Star Wars: Empire at War" is generally praised for its engaging mechanics, particularly in space battles, which are noted for their strategic depth and unique features like targeting ship hardpoints. While the base game is considered somewhat dated, the extensive modding community significantly enhances the experience by introducing new units, factions, and gameplay mechanics, making it a favorite among RTS fans. However, some players find the ground combat less satisfying and note balance issues, particularly with the Zann Consortium faction in the expansion, "Forces of Corruption." Overall, the game offers a solid blend of strategy and action, appealing to both casual players and hardcore fans of the Star Wars universe.
“It successfully marries the beloved Star Wars universe with engaging gameplay, resulting in a gaming experience that is nothing short of legendary.”
“The mechanics, strategies, and gameplay are so cool and addictive.”
“The gameplay strikes a balance between accessibility and complexity, allowing players of varying skill levels to enjoy the experience while still offering enough depth to satisfy seasoned strategy enthusiasts.”
“The gameplay is dated, clunky, and nothing spectacular.”
“The core game is fantastic (I love completely destroying as the empire) and the Republic at War mod easily adds at least 40 more hours of gameplay.”
“The campaign mechanics are broken to the point where you can just form a blockade of a space fleet around planets, spam credits, then demolish the enemy fleets.”
- graphics907 mentions
- 32 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The graphics of "Star Wars: Empire at War" are widely regarded as dated, reflecting its 2006 release, with many players noting that they do not meet modern standards. However, the game's extensive modding community has significantly enhanced the visuals, offering various mods that improve graphics and gameplay, making the experience feel more contemporary. While the base game's graphics may not impress, the engaging gameplay and the potential for visual upgrades through mods keep it enjoyable for both new and returning players.
“From the moment I launched the game, I was captivated by the stunning graphics and attention to detail.”
“The graphics, while not state-of-the-art, have aged well, maintaining a nostalgic aesthetic that brings players back to the mid-2000s.”
“The mods are what make the game so interesting in today's modern 'great graphics' society.”
“Yes, the graphics are dated now.”
“The only bad thing is it just has terrible graphics.”
“The graphics are a little old and the game crashes whenever I try to change the settings.”
- story610 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 65 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The game's story is generally well-received, featuring engaging campaigns for the Rebel Alliance, Galactic Empire, and the Zann Consortium, with missions that tie into the broader Star Wars universe. While the base game's narrative is considered somewhat basic and occasionally buggy, the expansion "Forces of Corruption" introduces a more dynamic storyline with unique missions and characters, enhancing the overall experience. Players appreciate the modding community, which adds depth and variety to the storytelling, making it a beloved title among Star Wars fans.
“The game offers hours of engaging gameplay and a thrilling story that will keep players coming back for more.”
“The story is a simple retelling of events that lead to Star Wars: A New Hope from both the Rebel and Empire sides that stay true to Legends continuity pretty well.”
“The campaigns offer a fantastic story leading up to Episode IV, and the skirmishes offer a good deal more to play.”
“The story is paper thin, leads up to the destruction of the 1st Death Star in Star Wars 1977.”
“The base game is incredibly light on story, and the campaigns for both sides are usually just little missions between your conquering of enemy planets.”
“The campaign is boring to me and the missions difficult, but for weird reasons like not being able to protect important troops because they will run in front of other troops and die.”
- replayability216 mentions
- 52 % positive mentions
- 46 % neutral mentions
- 1 % negative mentions
The game boasts exceptional replayability, largely attributed to its vibrant modding community, which continually introduces new content and gameplay mechanics. Players can enjoy a variety of modes, including galactic conquest and skirmishes, alongside numerous mods that enhance the experience, making it feel fresh and engaging even after many hours of play. Overall, the combination of diverse factions, strategies, and user-generated content ensures that players can find endless enjoyment and replay value.
“This mode provides a sandbox-like experience, allowing for a high level of replayability as players can experiment with different strategies and explore alternate storylines.”
“The modding community surrounding this game is incredibly dedicated, and the availability of mods adds tremendous replay value.”
“The addition of mods makes the game replayable indefinitely and variable.”
“The base game has a ton of replay value, and the mods just increase that tenfold.”
“It's a pretty solid game on its own but has some gameplay problems and low replay value; all that, however, goes away if you play with mods. This game has one of the best and most diverse modding communities out there.”
“While the base game is okay, the modding community gives this game endless replayability (my favorite mod being Awakening of the Rebellion).”
- stability104 mentions
- 12 % positive mentions
- 1 % neutral mentions
- 88 % negative mentions
The game's stability is frequently criticized, with many users reporting various bugs, glitches, and crashes that can disrupt gameplay. While some players find the experience enjoyable despite these issues, others note that the game's age contributes to its instability, particularly in the base version and when using mods. Overall, while the game remains fun and engaging, potential players should be aware of its persistent technical problems.
“I just think it's a really neat game; still in 2023, it's enjoyable and fun to play. I have a pretty bad PC, yet this game runs great even with really big workshop mods.”
“Even if you turn the graphics and resolution down, the game still looks nice and runs great even on older machines.”
“The game was a lot of fun, it runs great and I barely ran into any bugs, and to add to the experience, it is mod supported.”
“The game is somewhat buggy, and the auto-save feature has been disabled on the Steam version, at least for Windows 11.”
“I cannot quit a game without hard shutting down Windows as the game freezes on me, very annoying.”
“This game is very buggy; however, so if the Star Wars license doesn't matter to you, I'd approach with caution.”
- music89 mentions
- 35 % positive mentions
- 62 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its iconic Star Wars themes and sound effects, which enhance immersion and evoke nostalgia among fans. Composed by Frank Klepacki, the soundtrack complements the classic tracks from the films, although some players noted a desire for more original compositions. Overall, the audio design, including voice acting and sound effects, contributes significantly to the game's atmosphere, making it a standout feature for players.
“The iconic music, voiceovers, and sound effects transport players into the heart of the action, enhancing the overall sense of immersion.”
“The sound design, which incorporates classic Star Wars music and sound effects, truly makes you feel as though you're directing the fate of a galaxy far, far away.”
“The game features iconic Star Wars sound effects and music, immersing players in the familiar audio landscape of the franchise.”
“The background music made me feel a bit unsettled, then when an invasion came, I would get scared because it was always so unexpected.”
“- forces of corruption music is disgusting and there is no option to separate it from the John Williams' original.”
“All the music I have heard in this game is recycled from the official movie's soundtracks.”
- optimization70 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 54 % neutral mentions
- 16 % negative mentions
The game's optimization is a mixed bag; while it runs smoothly for its age and has received updates that improve performance and modding capabilities, it struggles with modern multi-core CPUs, leading to occasional lag and stuttering, especially during intense battles. Users note that while the base game performs well on older hardware, it can be poorly optimized for newer systems, resulting in crashes and inconsistent frame rates. Overall, the modding community has helped extend the game's life, but performance issues remain a significant concern.
“But the base of the game is perfect for modders as the concept is really easy to add on to, very optimized and very fun.”
“Recent updates to the game made it more compatible for mods and optimized performance.”
“What's great about the FOC expansion is that it is surprisingly much more optimized than the original Empire at War and is much less demanding in terms of performance.”
“However, it's worth noting that, despite the game's brilliance, there are performance issues, and lag can be a persistent concern across different settings.”
“Not amazingly optimized, especially if you're like me, and modded out the unit cap.”
“The only real issue is performance as the game cannot figure out how to use multiple cores, mainly due to its age which causes a decent amount of stutter.”
- grinding54 mentions
- 6 % positive mentions
- 28 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game is frequently criticized for being tedious and time-consuming, particularly in ground battles, which many players find slow and repetitive. While some enjoy the strategic elements and find the space combat engaging, the overall consensus is that the game requires significant investment in time to progress, often leading to a feeling of monotony. Despite these drawbacks, players appreciate the fun and challenge it offers, especially when enhanced with mods.
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“Grinding is only for leaderboards or ranks.”
“Grinding isn't necessary to progress.”
“The land battles are so slow and tedious, yet they are a significant enough portion of the game that skipping them renders it redundant.”
“However, the base game suffers from lack of options and grinding - it gets old fast.”
“Galactic conquest mode is cool in theory but is very grindy in my opinion and has way too many long meaningless land battles.”
- humor51 mentions
- 98 % positive mentions
- -4 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The humor in this game is widely appreciated, with players enjoying its comedic mods and funny scenarios, particularly in the context of Star Wars. Many reviews highlight the amusing interactions and glitches, as well as the entertaining multiplayer experiences that lead to hilarious moments. Overall, the game's ability to evoke laughter through its gameplay and community-created content is a significant draw for fans.
“Funny game where you make Darth Vader kiss Boba Fett (I think you can make spaceships fight too, I don't know).”
“It's smooth, easy to learn, extremely interesting and rewarding to succeed in, and at times hilarious to fail in.”
“Extremely fun, hilarious how you have 6 squads of fighters against one corvette :3, also how you can have a crap load of acclimators and smash a few blockade runners like a rancor and a goat!”
“The humor in the game feels insignificant and often relies on glitches that aren't funny.”
“I found the jokes to be flat and lacking any real wit, making the humor fall completely flat.”
“The attempts at humor are so forced that they detract from the overall experience.”
- atmosphere20 mentions
- 45 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its immersive sound design and attention to detail, effectively capturing the essence of the Star Wars universe. Players appreciate the combination of original soundtrack, varied unit battles, and the overall strategic depth that enhances the experience, despite some criticisms regarding gameplay balance and camera mechanics. Overall, the game is considered to have a captivating atmosphere that remains engaging even years after its release.
“The sound design deserves special mention, as it perfectly complements the visuals to create an authentic Star Wars atmosphere.”
“Phenomenal attention to detail (lore, design, atmosphere, characters) enhances the experience.”
“After over 13 years, it still holds up as an amazing Star Wars strategy game with great atmosphere, varied and challenging gameplay, and original Star Wars soundtrack.”
“Alliance also has an annoying change to the way the camera works in space that ruins the top down atmosphere.”
“It feels like vehicles can die too easily, the empire infantry weirdly stack up into box formations that just doesn't really fit with the Star Wars atmosphere, and the rocket artillery on the rebel's side is retardedly overpowered, to the point where they can almost take out your entire military force at the beginning of a match (yet when you use them, they don't feel nearly as powerful).”
“That ancient game had some serious flaws, but also had incredible strategic depth for its time and tons of atmosphere.”
- emotional16 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players express a strong emotional connection to the game, highlighting its thrilling and wholesome elements, particularly during intense space battles that evoke feelings of fear and excitement. The immersive experience allows players to feel like real commanders in the Star Wars universe, with moments of discomfort arising from morally challenging missions, such as kidnapping iconic characters. Overall, the game fosters a deep sense of nostalgia and engagement, making it a beloved classic among fans.
“The background music made me feel a bit unsettled, then when an invasion came, I would get scared because it was always so unexpected.”
“To all the developers, producers, and modders of this game, here is my very heartfelt thank you!!!”
“The last one really made me feel like I was commanding the forces in the movie.”
- monetization9 mentions
- 22 % positive mentions
- 22 % neutral mentions
- 56 % negative mentions
The monetization aspect of the game is generally viewed positively, as it lacks modern microtransactions and offers a complete experience without additional costs, making it a nostalgic alternative to contemporary titles that often rely on predatory practices. While the base game can become repetitive, the DLC adds valuable content, though some players find it frustrating if not engaging with specific factions. Overall, players recommend purchasing the game during sales to maximize value.
“Oh the good DLC-free, no microtransactions times...”
“At a time when newer Star Wars games are usually live-service or mobile games with predatory microtransactions, older Star Wars games like Empire at War, Republic Commando, and the classic Battlefront games become nostalgic priceless treasures.”
“The advertising shows the expansion, but that isn't visible in any of the options I've seen - just the original version (which is fine for me, but a bit misleading).”
“If you're short on cash, grab it on a sale.”
“At a time when newer Star Wars games are usually live-service or mobile games with predatory microtransactions, older Star Wars games like Empire at War become nostalgic treasures.”
- character development1 mentions
- 200 % positive mentions
- -100 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Character development in the game is enhanced by strong voice acting, detailed character design, and rich references to the expanded Star Wars universe, which collectively create an engaging experience for fans. Players particularly enjoy the thrill of commanding iconic units like Vader's Star Destroyer in epic space battles, adding depth to their connection with the characters.
“The voice acting, character design, references to the expanded universe, and multitude of units make this game a ton of fun for a seasoned Star Wars veteran.”
“Nothing beats getting into a space battle and bringing in the Executor, Vader's mammoth Star Destroyer, and ripping your enemies in two.”
