Star Wars: Battle for Naboo [E]

Running on an enhanced Star Wars: Rogue Squadron engine, the nice game developers at Factor 5 have taken one last stab at the aging Nintendo 64 system with yet another entry into the wide world of Lucas. At times fun, but at more times frustrating, Star Wars: Episode I, Battle for Naboo has plenty going for it. Unfortunately, these good deeds are deeply overshadowed by a darker side.

Were you one of the millions who enjoyed the very popular Rogue Squadron? If you were, then get ready for more of the same, only this time wrapped around a lucrative Episode I license. This should appeal to newly christened fans and hardball line campers alike, as there's more of a concrete story line to follow than in the sidelined plot of RS.

Just as in the aforementioned classic, Battle for Naboo revolves around the collection of gold medals. New vehicles abound, and there's more than enough variety in the game's locales. The ability to switch craft at any time during the missions doesn't hurt the replay factor, either. If you discover the flash speeder doesn't have enough firepower to finish off that AT-AT tank, you can simply enter a different hanger and take control of a police cruiser.

The graphics are astounding, even better than what RS showcased. The game displays fantastic details everywhere--even the explosions are incredible. The sound, though, is very disappointing, especially when you consider that Factor 5 is behind the scenes. To the curious, Factor 5 has been one of the pioneers of gaming audio for a while now; the company was even chosen to helm the sound capabilities of Nintendo's next-generation GameCube console. With all of Factor 5's credentials, one might expect stellar sound. In many instances, the sound comes out muffled and the voice-overs are distorted.

The control and maneuvering should have been given more fine-tuning as well. This type of game relies on precise c