Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire, much like the recently re-released Star Wars: Rogue Squadron, used to be a pain to get your hands on. Now, though, it’s just a few clicks away.
Shadows of the Empire was a sort of Star Wars mid-quel, an attempt at bridging the gap between Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi with such memorable characters as Dark Prince Xizor and Dash Rendar’s Spaceship.
I have extremely fond memories of the game’s Nintendo 64 version. Jetpacking around the Boba Fett level, soaring over one of the most impressive Hoth levels to date, shooting enough wampas to stock an entire Bed, Bath, and Beyond with warm, bristly blankets—it was the stuff of Young Me’s Star Wars action figure fever dreams.
I also acknowledge that it wasn’t the greatest game ever, Dash Rendar was a tool, and the experience probably hasn’t aged well.
That said, I’m absolutely buying it, because nostalgia is an idiot that just wants to hug everything. It’s now easily downloadable on GOG for $4.79. So far, impressions of the port seem positive, which is good, because sometimes older games don’t get along with modern PCs so well.
How about you? Are you gonna take it for a spin, or do you prefer to let your memories of games that were less than perfect remain memories?