Star Wars has seen plenty of representation in gaming, but all it takes is a Doom Eternal or 2016 track over clone trooper Fordo's standoff with an advancing droid force to see potential for a high-octane retro shooter among the best of Star Wars games. Appreciation for prequel and Clone Wars-era Star Wars content has only grown over time, and Genndy Tartakovsky's version of the Clone Wars back in early 2000 is no exception. While quite a number of Star Wars shooters have come out even before the Clone Wars existed, most were either too early to truly tap into the bombastic visual and audio mayhem Star Wars can offer or preferred to take a more modern and cinematic approach.
Star Wars, especially the Clone Wars, has incredible potential for an over-the-top shooter with high-tech super soldiers against disposable yet dangerous droid legions. Star Wars' ARC troopers are a natural fit for a high-speed shooter with their high-tech recon gear focused on mobility and style, but just about any clone trooper has the potential for their Doomslayer or Master Chief moment. Star Wars has had other shooters leverage the massive universe and deep lore for an engaging and exciting first-person experience, but none have quite gone all the way to the explosive commando exploits of series such as Clone Wars and The Bad Batch.
Star Wars' Clones And Droids Fit A Retro Shooter Perfectly
Star Wars' myriad settings and eras make environments and character direction fairly easy to choose from, with the Clone Wars the most likely and convenient candidate for representation. Bright and vibrant worlds exploding in thermal detonations and colorful laser blasts are perfect for a shooter already, but the Star Wars universe is full of unique and interesting characters, fodder or otherwise. Over-the-top explosive action is usually saved for force-sensitive lightsaber wielders, but Star Wars games need a commando, not Jedi. Similar to Halo 3 and its ODST spinoff, there can still be games that use units generally considered expendable or weak and turn them into power fantasies.
Star Wars' constant state of conflict not only makes a comfortable home in the shooter genre but also means a massive arsenal for a clone on a mission. From lightweight pistols to chest-mounted batteries, the laser armory of the Clone Wars is endless and varied and almost all the weapons would play wonderfully in a retro shooter. Games like Republic Commando and Battlefront demonstrate unique weapons like disintegrators and array guns and concussion rifles that would offer unique flavors and mechanics in addition to the vast laser arsenal of the Republic.
Captain Fordo's exploits in the Clone Wars miniseries can inspire a retro shooter among the likes of Doom Eternal or Dusk, but countless clones and troopers before (and after) him show what a Star Wars FPS game has the potential to really be. Fordo, Jesse, Crosshair, Cody, Hunter, Rex, Fives, and Echo have all shown the extreme swiftness and strength a bolstered clone can show in battle. Backed by a heart-pounding OST and armies of the CIS, any clone can headline in an intense high-octane action-packed retro shooter shoulder to shoulder with the titans of the genre.