For the most part, I trust game review sites. One always has to take them with a grain of salt when reading about Star Wars games (add one letter grade on to the score they give it), but never have I found them to be completely, utterly, jibberingly off-the-wall. This, however, is the case for the Episode III game.

For almost a month I hee'd and haw'd about getting this game. Gamespot gave it a 6.5 (a D) and IGN gave it a 4.5 (a low F). However, this is the befuddling thing - the readers gave it an 8.9 (almost an A)! Who to trust? Obviously, either the game sites or the readers have to be lying - or crazy. But which one?

Desparate for Episode III media, I eventually caved and blew the last of my bread on the game. And, I'm happy to say, it's so good that I had a silly grin on my face for two hours the first time I played it. It's better than Lego Star Wars. It's better than Clone Wars or Rogue Squadron 3. I cautiously say it's even better than Battlefront. As a matter of fact, I think it's right up there with my top three of Knights of the Old Republic, Republic Commando and Rogue Squadron 2.

Gameplay - 9.5
The most stunning and immediately apparent thing about this game is the animation. Normally animation isn't a big part of a game, but in this case it lends the lightsaber fights such a charged fluidity that it actually feels like you're watching a real duel. The combat system is complex and deep, with plenty of opportunities for clever usage of the Force (such as picking things up and hurling them into other things, great fun with battle droids - more on them later) and many, many special moves. It gives one the urge to jump up and try some of the crazy acrobatics with a stick when nobody's looking.

Not only that, but there is an unprecedented variety of things to kill in the game, keeping gameplay from getting monotonous. Both droids and clones have about six or seven different units apiece (which means that they both have more different kinds of enemies than Halo), and Jedi have about four different kinds of units. Topping this off are the various duels, which by themselves could make their own game. Each dueler fights very differently, too, so you have to keep on your toes. Simply tearing through battle droids is the best part of the game by far, though.

In addition to all this is the occasional turret minigame, but they don't really bear mentioning here. They're kind of "meh", but you'll probably spend a grand total of five minutes in the turrets for the entire duration of the game.

There is also a single player "challenge" mode which includes six or so mini-missions, often in a kind of "survival" format and lets you take up the reigns of one of the non-Obi-and-Anakin characters in the game, such as Grevious, his bodyguards, or Yoda. One exhilirating "challenge" mission pits Yoda up against about a million clone troopers, culminating in a fight with their ultra-fast assassins.

Multiplayer - 7.5
Multiplayer is fairly fun if not mind-blowing. The "versus" mode is a surprisingly complex game-within-a-game, and allows you to be many unlockable Jedi and Sith, each with their own styles. Additionally, it comes with a buttload of arenas to fight in. When you're bored with that, there's a neat (but short) co-op mode with five or so mini-levels that you can play through with a friend. The camera has some serious issues in some of these levels, taking you so high in the sky that you can't tell what you're doing. It seems like a no-brainer to simply have most of the levels in the single player game be co-op, but the mode is satisfactory as it is.

Graphics - 8
The graphics are brilliant for the most part, especially when it comes to textures and lighting. However, there are some occasional issues with aliasing (jaggies) in the distance. One gets used to it quickly, however, and the overall effect is usually film-like thanks to the animation and texturing. For the most part the game runs silky-smooth, and only once or twice have I noticed a framerate dip. It's a game that could have benefitted from light-scattering and bloom lighting, but the absence is rarely noticed. The camera is satisfactory, but once during the game a Droideka will get directly underneath it and you won't be able to tell where he is.

Sound - 9
Sound effects are wonderful, as usual. It takes a lot to mess up the sound on a Star Wars game. There's no music from Episode III that I can see (the game was developed too early in the film's production cycle), but this ends up being a blessing rather than a curse. The game utilizes tunes from throughout the saga - prequels and originals both - and they're well-chosen to compliment what's going on in the game. It makes the events portrayed feel a great deal more "connected" to the entire saga than the film does.

A mixed bag, however, is the voice work. The voiceovers seem to be done by the same sound-alikes that did the Clone Wars shorts, and delivery often falls somewhat flat. The lines range from cliche to clever to downright intriguing. Many of the things that the combatants yell at each other during the duels are fascinating insights into the mindsets of the characters, almost like extended scenes from the movie. Exemplary among these is the Mace Windu duel and the Great Duel at the end. The characters often attempt to sway the other to their side and stop fighting ("I am NOT your enemy!"), making the duelists feel even more alive and the fights more cinematic. For the hardcore, it's fascinating. For everyone else, it probably won't seem like much more than a curiosity.

Story - 6
This is my biggest beef with the game - there seems to be very little effort to keep it in continuity. I wouldn't even mind so much if it contradicted the book or other sources - but the game contradicts the film itself. Many of the duels and levels are relegated to "what if..." status, such as the duel between Anakin and Mace or the changed (but AWESOME) fight between Grevious and Obi-Wan. Other levels are screwed up just by little things that keep them from fitting within the context of the film.

For example, one of my favorite levels puts us in the shoes of pre-mask Darth Vader while he storms the Jedi Temple. While you move through the level, the sun rises in a brilliant and beautiful flare through the windows, taking you through from late night to early morning. A gorgeous piece of graphical artistry, but just plain wrong. In the movie, Anakin finishes the whole slaughter in one night, and returns to Padme in time to give her his creepy "Have no fear...everything will soon be set right, my love" line. It seems like a nitpicky thing, but it really keeps the game from feeling believable. It's a pity, because most of the flaws like this could be "set right" with just a few minor tweaks. Overall, it doesn't influence the game experience that much, though.

Replay Value - 8.5
This isn't a terribly long game. Perhaps five hours the first time through. This isn't really a problem, though, since in an action game the levels are there pretty much just to give the gameplay variety. The real meat and potatoes of the game - as in any action game with good gameplay - is in going back and playing those levels over and over again. There are so many special moves and things that it could take a dozen hours or more to figure them all out. And the best part is that there is no fluff. In Rogue Squadron 3, all the on-foot missions were pretty much throwaways, so the overall size of the game was greatly diminished. Even in Halo, most of the Flood missions were simply rehashes of the first half of the game. As a matter of fact, most "replayable" action games of this type have a significant number of missions that Just Don't Count.

Not so with this game. Probably 90% of the missions are pure gold, with a slightly lower replay value for the duels than the rest of the game. Like Battlefront, it's a short little game that can last you an very long time.

There are oodles of unlockables, including more concept art than you can shake a Bantha at and a bunch of stages and arenas to unlock. Most are unlocked pretty easily, though, and don't add much to replay value. Most of that is within in the game itself.

Conclusion - 8.6 or B+ (not an average)
Five minutes into playing this game, I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that there had to be some kind of malevolent intent behind many of the critics' reviews, expecially IGN's 4.5. I can only assume that the enemies of Lucas bribed their way into that review - it was written with a kind of blatant whiny unprofessionalism that I've never heard out of IGN before. I would encourage you to go read it, just so you can have a good laugh...they spend the entire time freaking out about problems with the game that are either minor or just plain false, and give only brief begrudged nods to the game's victories. From now on, I'm going to be reading their reviews with a rather large dosage of skepticism.

But enough negativity - this is a great game. If you're not sure about blowing $50, at least give it a rent and play through the single-player campaign once or twice. It's worth it.