Sometimes, in the business of critiquing games, there comes a moment where you have to ask yourself if your expectations of the creators behind projects are too high. Are you holding people, and their work, to too great a standard? Would you be strong enough, focused enough, bold enough to make the choices that lead to this game existing in the first place? Can you really say that, in their position, you’d do better than they ever could? I think about all of that, and then games like GORDY fall into my lap to remind me that having standards is important too. Sometimes, games are hollow, ambling, and slapdash in their construction - being able to acknowledge those failings and examine them in detail helps us understand and celebrate how other games prevail where this particular experience fell short. And if there’s one thing to be said in GORDY ’s favour, it’s that it isn't lacking for teachable moments, however much I may wish it did. Developed and published by MyGrandfather Games...
Yep, it’s that time again.
Introducing Kurt Pitches…, the series where I put forth my own idea of how this or that project should be developed. Be it a film sequel, a hypothetical game idea, or the entire restructuring of a franchise, this is where I toss out my carefully concocted pitch for success.
Today’s subject in question: the much loved, long-in-hiatus Star Wars Rogue Squadron series.
BACKGROUND
From 1998 through to 2003, developer Factor 5 was tasked with the creation of the Rogue Squadron trilogy of flight combat games, set in the Star Wars universe but largely taking place before & concurrently with the events of the Original Trilogy (at that time LucasFilm and their game development subsidiary LucasArts were leery about games based directly on the films’ events).
On the whole the trilogy is beloved by fans and critics alike - despite the third game declining a bit in quality in strikingly similar fashion to Star Fox Assault - which in the present has lead to questions of WHY we haven’t gotten a new one of these things.
Setting aside the 2013 shutdown of LucasArts as a development studio (they were co-developers for ⅔ of the Rogue Squadron series, for the record), Factor 5’s disinterest in continuing with the series and eventual financial & legal difficulties lead to their effective shutdown in 2009 - and the liquidation of their assets 2 years later (in layperson terms: Factor 5, as a company, no longer exists. At all.)
So… that leaves Rogue Squadron in limbo. Disney now owns the license to Star Wars and thus has the ability to assign development responsibilities to a willing game studio. For the sake of discussion, let’s imagine a scenario in which Rogue Squadron is under development by this or that studio - HOW do we make a reboot, revitalization, or what have you work with the current Star Wars universe?
Well…
MAKE WEDGE THE LEAD CHARACTER (and give him stuff to do)
This first part seems like a given. Wedge Antilles isn’t given much to do in the core films, but he’s a recognizable face in Rogue Squadron and the old Expanded Universe is PACKED with potential tales to draw from (more on that later). Plus, making Wedge the central character would be a pretty great nostalgia grab - and if we’ve learned anything from The Force Awakens’ success, it’s that nostalgia is a REALLY powerful marketing force (no pun intended).
If you do go with this idea, developers, promise me this - would ya please give Wedge an actual character arc? You know, something beyond light banter and commanding his team? ‘Cause that’s an issue I’ve had with the old games, and I feel like this is a great opportunity to actually OUTDO the originals in one aspect.
FIND THE RIGHT DEVELOPER
Now this aspect’s tricky because it’s entirely based in guessing what Disney intends to do here. Again, assuming they move forward with a soft reboot of Rogue Squadron, they’re gonna want a developer who’s withstood the test of time and who’s done justice to other licensed properties.
In my mind the most likely candidates are Nintendo and Square Enix - with the latter being favoured because of the Kingdom Hearts connection - but the first being rooted in VERY traditional Japanese corporate culture and the second’s… spotty track record with its original properties (ESPECIALLY Final Fantasy) put up some challenges.
That having been said, yeah it’d be pretty great to see the Star Fox team tackle Star Wars - it’s the right kind of comradery-driven writing that Rogue Squadron deserves, the gameplay of Star Fox isn’t that far removed from Factor 5’s work, and the locales on display would be stylish as hell.
DRAW UPON THE LEGENDS CANON FOR IDEAS
Yes, Disney and LucasFilm have declared the Legends continuity non-canon, and yes, that sucks. But it was an efficient way to deal with an inelegant problem, and there’s promise to be had.
HOWEVER, Rogue Squadron would be one of the better places to start reintroducing some of those lost elements. I’m not saying Mara Jade, Grand Admiral Thrawn [Note: Well done, Rebels, for beating me to the punch. My hypothetical has become a reality.] and the damned Imperial Remnant have to come back, but little things could be drawn from the Legends canon to flesh out this new continuity AND reward existing fans for their continued loyalty.
Plus, the existence of this series could also serve to loop back into the films themselves - take Rogue One, for example. Stuff in that film could be referenced or built upon by Wedge & company, and vice versa; a mission gone awry for the Rogues could easily lead to increased tensions in future stories, thus making for tangible threads that bring everything together and impose believable consequences (thus making more interesting and exciting stories).
HAVE FUN WITH IT ;)
Seriously - it’s a game about flying around spaceships and blowing up other spaceships. There’s an inherent child-like whimsy that comes with the games’ thrills and legitimately great action. Find a writer and creative team who bask in the balls-to-the-wall nuttiness of the scenario… while also embracing how truly wonderful and cathartic this kind of thing is.
Tyrannical star pilots oppressing worlds, brave resistance fighters engaging in daring space battles, love, turmoil, action, drama, coupled with an abundance of explosions, quips and colourful lasers. Oh, and over-the-top death screams - bring those back.
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