The Phantom Menace, despite earlier reports, is not an adventure game. It is a third-person action game in the vein of Tomb Raider or Heretic II, with a slightly altered perspective. The game closely follows the plot of its motion picture counterpart, though the levels themselves mostly take place between major plot points of the film. You control four of the major characters (Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, Queen Amidala, Captain Panaka), running about and accomplishing small tasks that let you progress to the next level.

The game starts off promisingly. You are in control of the young Obi-Wan aboard a Trade Federation ship. You run around, fight droids, and push buttons (in later levels this list of requirements will include pulling blocks and jumping). The game looks good, with lots of color and nice lighting effects. It sounds good as well, with the original film score and solid voice acting that sounds enough like the real actors to be convincing. In the early levels, you only face a handful of enemies, and the game seems like it may be a simplified Jedi Knight-like escapade.



200 MHz or faster CPU
Windows 95 or 98
32 MB RAM
Quad speed IDE or SCSI CD-ROM drive
4 MB PCI or AGP Direct3D graphics accelerator
16-bit soundcard
DirectX 6.1 (included on the CD)
Windows 95/98-compatible keyboard
Supports gamepads and joysticks
Your system may require the latest Windows 95/98 drivers for your particular hardware