With Episode III filling up cinemas around much of the world for the first time today, now is a good time for to talk about Star Wars. So it stands that it must be an excellent day to talk about three new games set in that most beloved of space opera universes. Which is exactly what the company has been doing, even if many fans will no doubt be munching on their popcorn right now, watching the emergence of Darth Vader.

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First up we have the very impressive looking RTS, Star Wars: Empire at War. Set during the period of the Galactic Rebellion, Empire at War will feature a blend of ground and space based combat. For example, if you are tasked with obliterating a rebel base you may first have to move your fleet into position and then clear a way with fighters and capital ships so your dropships can move in and land on the planet. The then switches to a more traditional viewpoint as you use a combination of troops and heavy weapons to batter the enemy into submission. Combat will range over familiar planets like Dagobah, Hoth and Tatooine with all the action driven by developer Petroglyph's custom built engine. Multiplayer is catered for with skirmishes between up to eight players, and the Rebel vs. Empire two-player conquest mode. Many favourite characters will make appearances in the game, along with a number of new units, such as Tie Crawlers, designed especially for the game. Concentrate all your firepower on the section of your local software emporium next Spring.

Star Wars: Battlefront 2 should be blasting its way onto PC, PS2, and at the end of this year. The sequel to the somewhat underwhelming team-based ups the ante with a move into the frantic life or death struggle of space combat. Balltefront 2 will also give players the chance to don the robes of a Jedi and lay down some serious excitement on your foes with the lightsabers. Gamers will also have their first chance to duke it out in a selection of the new planets seen in Revenge of the Sith. To boost the game's filmic credentials many of the cut-scenes in the game feature actual footage. Battlefront 2 is no great leap forward in the visual realm but hopes to interest players with a fleshed out single player campaign and those captivating Jedis. The PSP version will allow up to four players to fight against each other over WiFi and will also feature mini-campaigns to suit the "on-the-go" nature of Sony's sexy little handheld. So rather than slog through a multi hour campaign, players can instead slip into the boots of an Imperial sniper and do their bit to rid the galaxy of alien scum, or adopt the mindset of a mercenary and smuggle for the past Imperial blockades.

The final episode in this trilogy of new games is the imminent release of Star Wars: Galaxies: The Total Experience, the drolly titled collection of the and its two expansion packs, Jump to Lightspeed and of the Wookies. If you're into playing a passable but very un-Star Wars MMO then you might want to pick this up. It's released in the on May 24th.

By Sam Gibson