What is Rebellion?
A Review - also known as Supremacy

Star Wars Rebellion
Published by LEC
Developed by Coolhand

LEC's first real-time strategy game released in 1998. Rebellion is a unique real-time strategy game, involving not just combat but diplomacy, management, and tactics. Unlike other strategy games, you command not just an army but the whole forces of the Rebel Alliance or the Galactic Empire. Your goal: take (or take out) the enemy headquarters and capture you're enemies prized characters.

Controlling the galaxy is not an easy job. You have much to do in the galaxy. You control your forces through a galactic display, showing up to 20 sectors of the galaxy with 10 systems each. Each system has its own stats (loyalty, mining and energy slots) and forces (defenses, troops, fleets). Here you can give orders to your forces. A message center gives you the latest details on your forces.

Perhaps the best part of the Star Wars game is its depth into the Expanded Universe. From major characters such as Luke Skywalker to minor ones such as Adar Talon, the game has taken much from Star Wars sources before its time. For each side there are 30 characters, 15 capital ships, 4 fighter types, 4 special forces, and 5 troop types. 14 facilities let you build and defend yourself.

A turn in the game is one game Day. However this game is hardly turn based. Your enemy acts as you act and you never hit an end-turn button. Rather, you control how fast days go from slow to very fast.

Missions make the game: you can order characters to do diplomacy, sabotage, capture, and even assassination missions. Diplomacy will be your main tool, as you fight against your opponent to turn systems to your side. Use sabotage to destroy your enemies forces and capture to stop your enemies characters. Characters can research new ships and facilities, while facilities build up your forces. For building and construction, you use refined resources from the refineries. Refineries take unrefined resources from mines and converts them into refined resources. And more importantly, mines and refineries combine to give you maintenance points. The more maintenance points, the more your forces can grow and develop. Balancing mines and refineries on your systems with defenses in very important.

Like any other real-time strategy game, you can micromanage this one. In many cases, it is better to micromanage because the AI leaves little flexibility. It can only stock your garrisons with troops and stock your resources by building mines and refineries. While you can set difficulty to easy, medium, and hard, the enemy AI acts the same: only the starting conditions change.

Perhaps the most unique feature is a 3D tactical mode for combat. Ship combat isn't a roll of the dice but a visual 3D battle. The models aren't too realistic, but it is sure fun watching your forces trap the enemy and shred him to ribbons. Think about it has the forerunner to 3D space RTS games such as Homeworld.

There is much more of Rebellion to explore. Its major bug, no training mode... and heck, no missions nor story. Single-player and multi-player are the same: one Rebel vs one Imperial. It takes a while to learn so have the manual with you, and perhaps even Prima's strategy guide handy.

If you take your time and get into it, you will have fun playing Rebellion. And since no game is ever the same, you'll never be sure what to find next.

For more questions on Rebellion, and to find its editor RebED. Check out SWRebellion.com

Final note: this is also called Star Wars Supremacy in the UK. While it has a different title, it is still the same game. Find Rebellion at your local used computer game bin or online at any used/auction site.

Evaders99
Webmaster of SWRebellion.com/.NET


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