Star Wars: Rebel Assault II: The Hidden Empire
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Star Wars: Rebel Assault II:
The Hidden EmpireProduction information
Developer(s)
Publisher(s)
Game engine
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Platform(s)
Chronological information
Previous
Opening crawl[]
| Episode II THE HIDDEN EMPIRE |
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By destroying the Death Star, Rebel Forcesproved themselves a serious threat to theGALACTIC EMPIRE.Darth Vader, enraged by his defeat, becameobsessed with the Alliance's elimination.Toward this end, his forces have scoured theGalaxy for a new weapon; a weapon Vaderhopes can catch the Alliance off guard andgive the Empire undisputed rule of theGalaxy... |
Plot summary[]
After the destruction of theDeath Star, Darth Vader has begun developing a new secret weapon for the Galactic Empire. Meanwhile, in theRebel Alliance, some rumors of "ghost ships" attacking Rebel patrols have spread among the ranks.
Rebel pilotKirby with his wingman,Rookie One, receive a distress call from aCorellian Transport, while attacked byTIE Fighters. The pilot had crucial information about theGalactic Empire's new project. After the first wave of TIEs, laser shots come from nowhere and shoot Kirby down. Rookie One is left alone and lands on the planetDreighton where he goes to rescue the captured transport and escape with it.
Back atPinnacle Base,AdmiralGial Ackbar helps the pilots understand the message from the freighter. In the Corellian Transport's records, the Alliance learn about a secret Imperial mining facility in the asteroidBelt of Arah and a squadron ofX-wings moves to destroy it. During that mission, the X-Wing squadron discovers that the Empire was not simply mining ore, but is instead supplying rare metals required to manufacture a stealth version of the TIE Fighter; the new V38 "Phantom" equipped with acloaking device invented by Grand Admiral Sarn, allowing them to move through space neither spotted on sensors nor by any pilot until they were ready to strike. After destroying the facility, Maarek is killed along with Rookie One's wingman. Rookie One narrowly escapes into hyperspace. Back at Pinnacle Base, Admiral Ackbar comes up with a plan for 2 people to infiltrate the facility building the Phantom P-38s at Imdaar Alpha.
Rookie One takes a crash course in TIE piloting from Admiral Krane. Then, they head out to the jump point.Rookie One teams up withRu Murleen on the planetImdaar. They fly to an Imperial Landing Platform on the far side of the swamp on Swoop Bikes. Disguised as stormtroopers, they infiltrate the Super Star DestroyerTerror. Stealing aTIE Phantom, they manage to destroy both theTerror and theTIE Phantom manufacturing plant.
Though they were able to return the stolen TIE Phantom to a nearby base, the Rebellion was unable to take advantage of the stealth technology, after a self-destruct destroyed their stolen ship.
Development[]
This part of the series contained mostly original filming with actors and stunts, while the scenery and the space scenes were 3D-rendered. According toLucasArts' magazineThe Adventurer, this game was the first media (apart fromCaravan of Courage) to incorporate live-action actors and footage in theStar Wars universe since theReturn of the Jedi.[4]
In what would foreshadow the filming style of theprequel trilogy, the actors were mainly shot against bluescreens. Most of the environment seen inRebel Assault II was computer generated; not even the cockpits of thestarfighters were constructed sets. Instead, the actors were placed on a bobbing seat-like construct and filmed, while the cockpit (including the proper ship movement) was added in post-production.[5]
Thestormtrooper armor, weapons, helmets and suits, andDarth Vader's costume worn by the actors were not made specifically for the game, but were the actual props seen in the original trilogy. They were taken from the archive storage ofLucasfilm, and worn for the first time in 18 years.[5]
Continuity[]
WhileStar Wars: Rebel Assault had one portion of gameplay (Rookie One's trench run) deemed as S-canon, its sequel avoided any such difficulties by having a completely original plot. Rookie One's recollections of some of the events of the first two levels of the game appeared in "Excerpts from the Journal of a Rebel Pilot," published inStar Wars Insider 27, while theTIE Phantom has been thence adopted to other sources, and described byStar Wars Insider 66.
The game also established the playerRookie One as a male, something its predecessor had left open. He commands ships not appearing in the previous game, like aYT-1300 light freighter, aB-wing starfighter and aBTL Y-wing starfighter, and encounters new opponents, likeTIE/IN interceptors.
Media[]
Cover gallery[]
Credits[]
| Cast | Uncredited cast | Crew | Uncredited crew | Special thanks |
Cast
  Jamison Jones as Rookie One
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Crew
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Special thanks
Appearances[]
| Characters | Organisms | Droid models | Events | Locations |
| Organizations and titles | Sentient species | Vehicles and vessels | Weapons and technology | Miscellanea |
Characters
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Organisms
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Droid models
Events
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Locations
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Organizations and titles
Sentient species
Vehicles and vessels
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Weapons and technology
Miscellanea
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Sources[]
"Around the Galaxy" —Star Wars Galaxy Magazine 4- "Game Room: Rebel Rouser" —Star Wars Galaxy Magazine 5
- "Excerpts from the Journal of a Rebel Pilot" —Star Wars Insider 27
- The Secrets of Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire
- "Game Room: Darth Vader's Plenty Game" —Star Wars Galaxy Magazine 11
- "Atari Wars: AStar Wars Video Game History" —Star Wars Insider 40
- "Red Five, I'm Going In: The History ofStar Wars Video Games" —Star Wars Insider 65
- Star Wars in the UK: The '90s onStarWars.com(backup link)
- Star Wars: Force for Change Announces NewStar Wars Humble Bundle III to Benefit UNICEF onStarWars.com(backup link)
Notes and references[]
- ↑
20th Anniversary History, Part Three, Broadening Horizons, 1995-1998 onLucasArts'sofficial website(original site is defunct) - ↑ rebel+assault+II&s.x=0&s.y=0&s=search onUSK (backup link archived onDecember 20,2009)
- ↑The New Essential Chronology
- ↑The Adventurer 10
- ↑5.05.1 Rebel Assault II - Live Action Video onLucasArts'sofficial website(original site is defunct)
