Rear View: Is STAR WARS: Rebel Assault I + II Still Worth Playing?

Game Overview.

A Great Look Back At Early Star Wars Gaming.

STAR WARS: Rebel Assault I + II is a great look back at some of the most influential early games in the Star Wars video game empire, which was at its strongest during the 90s and early 2000s before basically fading away until fairly recently.

I have played most of the Star Wars games released during the late 90s and early 2000s around the time that they were released, as at one time, when I was a young teen, I would basically only play Star Wars games, so going back to these two brought back a lot of memories of the type of games that brought me so much joy as a young lad.

That said, nostalgia and actually recommending someone play these games today are two very different things.

Rebel Assault Is Fantastic For Its Time, But Rough Today

STAR WARS: Rebel Assault is a fantastic game for its time, but trying to play it now, over 30 years later, is rough.

I honestly found it very difficult to play, not because I found it overly challenging in terms of gameplay, but because my controller struggled with it. I had trouble calibrating it, and it did not seem easy to go back and recalibrate without basically resetting the whole thing.

Yes, you can work around it, but I have to look at this from the point of view of a novice gamer as well, and that kind of thing makes the game much harder to recommend today.

The cutscenes, while fine for the time, now look really dated, and I have to admit I became distracted by the way one man’s eyes seemed to disappear entirely whenever he spoke. Visually, it is dated, mechanically it is dated, and even though the intro movie made me smile, I must admit it contains some of the most pixelated footage of Star Wars: A New Hope I think I have ever seen.

At some resolutions, the pixels were so big they felt like building blocks due to the sheer size of the pixels on the screen.

Ultimately, Rebel Assault feels much more like a game for people looking for nostalgia than people looking for something to play today.

Rebel Assault Deserves A Remake

I genuinely think Rebel Assault deserves a remake. The story is good enough, although it could be improved slightly for modern audiences, and there is definitely something here that could work with better controller support, larger resolutions, updated visuals and modernised gameplay.

People love remakes, and people love Star Wars. While Reddit and Twitter users pretend that people do not like remakes and do not like Star Wars, they very much do. Both of those things are very popular.

As it stands, though, Rebel Assault was okay for what it is, but I just could not find myself wanting to spend much time with it.

Rebel Assault II Holds Up Much Better

Rebel Assault II, which is part of the same package now, is still very dated because it is around 30 years old, but it felt much more like a modern PC game. I did not feel the same over-reliance on DOSBox, and while I was using a mouse and keyboard, the controls felt fun and accurate. Shooting down TIE Fighters felt like Star Wars, and that alone made it much easier for me to enjoy.

The acting and the FMV cutscenes were, let us be nice, not that professional, but honestly that is part of the charm. It has that kitschy 90s Star Wars game feel, and it brought back so many memories of the games I played throughout the late 90s and early 2000s.

Would I play it regularly now? No, not really. Again, I think it needs a remake. It is not bad, but it is very hard to go that far back for anything other than nostalgia, with a few exceptions.

PC Games like Civilization, and Age of Empires from that era are still loads of fun despite being incredibly dated, but Rebel Assault II does not quite manage that for me.

Who Would I Actually Recommend This To?

Would I recommend this compilation to the average gamer? No, I could not. Would I recommend it to people looking for a hit of Star Wars nostalgia? Oh, absolutely.
That is really where STAR WARS: Rebel Assault I + II sits today.

It is not for everyone, and even for those I would recommend it to, I would suggest looking for a deal through a legitimate third-party seller.

I know that is a dirty word to some, but as long as the marketplace is not shady or sketchy in any way, you can often get some good deals. Honestly, a game this old just does not feel worth full price anymore, at least not without better support for modern controllers, larger resolutions and modern hardware.

A Fun Collection For The Right Person

Ultimately, STAR WARS: Rebel Assault I + II is a fun collection, and one I recommend for fans of vintage Star Wars games or 90s games in general. To be fair, you do not even need to particularly like Star Wars if you simply enjoy going back to games from that era.

However, if you are looking for an older Star Wars game and you are not specifically chasing 90s nostalgia, I would suggest starting with stuff from around the Jedi Outcast and Jedi Academy era instead. And if you can get your hands on a GameCube, the GameCube era Rogue Squadron games are *chef’s kiss* sublime.

STAR WARS: Rebel Assault I + II FAQ

STAR WARS: Rebel Assault I + II is an action game developed and published by LucasArts, it released on 12 October 1996, and is available exclusively on PC.

What Peripherals Are Supported?

STAR WARS: Rebel Assault I + II supports the following peripherals:

• ☑ PC - Controller

Is There Any Mature Content?

STAR WARS: Rebel Assault I + II is unrated and contains no offensive content.

Final Verdict.

STAR WARS: Rebel Assault I + II is not something I can recommend to the average gamer today, but for anyone looking for a hit of Star Wars nostalgia, absolutely.

Rebel Assault is rough to return to after so many years, while Rebel Assault II holds up noticeably better, but both are very much products of their time.

If you love vintage Star Wars games or 90s PC gaming, there is fun to be had here, especially on sale, but if you just want an older Star Wars game that still feels good to play today, I would start with Jedi Outcast, Jedi Academy or, if you can get your hands on a GameCube, the Rogue Squadron games.

Please Note

Rear View is a review format we use to discuss older games that are no longer receiving official updates or active developer support, and are instead being kept alive through community patches, mods, servers, or fan support.

Rear View articles should not be viewed as representative of the length, depth, or overall format of our traditional review coverage.