About the computer games: Rebellion is actually an excellent strategy game, and I spent way too much time in Tie Fighter back in the day. Those X-Wings were a real pain, with their fancy shields and stuff. My son, who is a prequel kid, swears by the Knights of the Old Republic games.
All those upcoming books are very good, but the Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire was a great history of the SW universe. I just wish they'd been able to flesh out more of the New Republic era but, of course....
I really enjoyed New Jedi Order and the subsequent series. Fun fact: before I read Vector Prime I asked a co-worker if he had read them and he replied, “no, but I know that x happens and y happens blah blah blah” and I was like, “okay, thank you for those major spoilers”. Still enjoyed them though.
It’s funny you mention that. When I decided a couple years ago I was going to do the NJO books, I went up to my local half-price books to see what they had. I think I found the first 5-6 of them, and as I’m talking with the cashier, he says “you know they drop a moon on Chewbacca?”
No, I didn’t. Thanks, asshole.
I did already know that Chewie died, so it wasn’t a huge deal. But come on.
"I’ve mentioned before one of my favorite things about Star Wars is that lightsabers are as deadly or as ineffective as the story needs them to be." Crazy -- this is my least favorite part. Make Lightsabers Deadly Again!
BTW, the iOS port of KOTOR is awful. Just clunky and not fun.
If I may quote my own fan fiction history of the Great Sith War:
"Contrary to popular lore, Jedi duels were typically very brief. Even a glancing blow from a lightsaber will send its target into traumatic shock; the intense heat essentially bursts anything underneath into a super-steam ruined mess. The magi fell to one such attack: as Kun apparently reeled from yet another enormous strike, he suddenly darted to the side. The footage shows what looks like barely a touch from Kun’s blazing green blade, flicked in and out in an eyeblink. Yet that simple touch was directly over the magi’s liver. Steam hissed out of the wound as the magi trembled, still on his feet despite the catastrophic damage. But staying upright was all he could do. Kun’s next strike batted the magi’s saber away effortlessly, and then his cauterized head rolled to the floor."
If you haven’t checked out Kempshall’s 2022 book, Death Stars and Democracy, I really recommend it! It is an academic work, so it is pretty easy to read bits and pieces of it. I read the whole thing when I was researching for this conference I am doing later this year, and I think it helped me really appreciate the sociopolitical influences on the franchise (especially the EU and the influences from the Yugoslav wars)
About the computer games: Rebellion is actually an excellent strategy game, and I spent way too much time in Tie Fighter back in the day. Those X-Wings were a real pain, with their fancy shields and stuff. My son, who is a prequel kid, swears by the Knights of the Old Republic games.
I don’t think I ever played Rebellion but those old X-Wing and TIE Fighter games from back in the day were a lot of fun.
All those upcoming books are very good, but the Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire was a great history of the SW universe. I just wish they'd been able to flesh out more of the New Republic era but, of course....
Good to hear. I am really looking forward to getting into that one.
I really enjoyed New Jedi Order and the subsequent series. Fun fact: before I read Vector Prime I asked a co-worker if he had read them and he replied, “no, but I know that x happens and y happens blah blah blah” and I was like, “okay, thank you for those major spoilers”. Still enjoyed them though.
It’s funny you mention that. When I decided a couple years ago I was going to do the NJO books, I went up to my local half-price books to see what they had. I think I found the first 5-6 of them, and as I’m talking with the cashier, he says “you know they drop a moon on Chewbacca?”
No, I didn’t. Thanks, asshole.
I did already know that Chewie died, so it wasn’t a huge deal. But come on.
The iOs port of KOTOR is great; nice on a tablet screen. You know they also have a port of KOTOR2. 👀
That game. I swear, every time, that really I want to play this game. And it wrecks me and breaks me.
I do have KOTOR I and II in my Steam library. I’ll go through and play them every 3-4 years. It just remains a master class in Star Wars storytelling.
"I’ve mentioned before one of my favorite things about Star Wars is that lightsabers are as deadly or as ineffective as the story needs them to be." Crazy -- this is my least favorite part. Make Lightsabers Deadly Again!
BTW, the iOS port of KOTOR is awful. Just clunky and not fun.
Ha, I know that @Kazmierz Ballaski has very strong opinions that lightsabers need to be more deadly.
If I may quote my own fan fiction history of the Great Sith War:
"Contrary to popular lore, Jedi duels were typically very brief. Even a glancing blow from a lightsaber will send its target into traumatic shock; the intense heat essentially bursts anything underneath into a super-steam ruined mess. The magi fell to one such attack: as Kun apparently reeled from yet another enormous strike, he suddenly darted to the side. The footage shows what looks like barely a touch from Kun’s blazing green blade, flicked in and out in an eyeblink. Yet that simple touch was directly over the magi’s liver. Steam hissed out of the wound as the magi trembled, still on his feet despite the catastrophic damage. But staying upright was all he could do. Kun’s next strike batted the magi’s saber away effortlessly, and then his cauterized head rolled to the floor."
If you haven’t checked out Kempshall’s 2022 book, Death Stars and Democracy, I really recommend it! It is an academic work, so it is pretty easy to read bits and pieces of it. I read the whole thing when I was researching for this conference I am doing later this year, and I think it helped me really appreciate the sociopolitical influences on the franchise (especially the EU and the influences from the Yugoslav wars)
I’ve never heard of that book but I am definitely going to check it out!