For many years and gaming were like two lovers who although they didn't see each other very often had formed an unmistakable bond that neither rationality or the cold, hard light of day could ever seemingly diminish. Then something happened. A backlash amongst gamers against the previously haloed series began. Some say it was Yoda's Desktop Adventures that brought about this cooling in the relationship. Others point to the mostly risible titles that accompanied Episode I. Personally I think it truly started with Force Commander, Star Wars' first foray into the genre and a game so bad that even the king of the Jawas refused to touch it with a Gaffi stick. Since then only one other Star Wars RTS title has appeared and seeing as that was nothing more than Age of Empires with Star Wars models it doesn't really count. Now Petroglyph is trying to cast off those horrid memories and deliver the RTS game that Star Wars fans have been waiting for ever since Dune 2 was first released.

Set in the period between Episodes III and IV the takes place across two play areas and it is the interplay between them that is the game's unique selling point. Both ground and space combat are directly linked into what happens on the strategic galactic map. It is here that players can position their fleets, set up build queues across the planets already under their control and create strategies to bring more of the galaxy under their domain. Each planet can support a limited number of units and buildings and while you can marginally increase this limit Empire at War is clearly not a game where victory will be defined purely by the player's ability to spam out units faster then their opponent. There are numerous elements that will flesh out the gameplay the most obvious of which is the hero units.

Frankly it would have been shocking to hear that Petroglyph wasn't going to include characters like Vader and Solo so the presence of the hero units is a sure indication that the developers know the film's strong points. Each hero unit has their own special abilities. For example, Mon Mothma will bring down unit production costs while Han & Chewie can fly across the galaxy ignoring enemy patrols. Players can also hire spies and smugglers to siphon off money and information from the enemy so it's good to know you can always fling a few credits in the direction of a bounty hunter to try and flush these units out if they have been played against yourself.

My first experience upon loading up my first battle was a nasty flashback to Force Commander yet fortunately the fear quickly passed. Empire at War's battles look the part with crisp models and textures that have a proper Star Wars 'feel' about them. And even though the code wasn't final my machine was running things in a high level of detail without gasping and wheezing in complaint which implies the finished product will get along well with most PCs. Units tend to be collected together into fighting groups but the death of one soldier will not lead to the demise of an entire group. A satisfyingly large number if groups can be selected together so dancing between saved groups should be kept to a minimum although there may be the temptation to just lasso every unit in range and send them all charging at the objective like a rabble of pissed-up Ewoks. Combat mechanics follow the age-old rock-paper-scissors dynamic yet there are a number of other things to take into account. Chief amongst these are aerial bombardments and reinforcements.

The presence of a certain spaceship in orbit above a conflicted planet will give the player access to the bombard ability. On a generously small cooldown the planetary bombardment is a devastating attack over which minimal defences are possible. One target that might best suit a bombardment is a reinforcement point. Scattered around each map these zones allow a set number of new units to be transported to the planet's surface from space to join in the raging battle. This will make wise commanders ensure that they always have some troops left in orbit in case things don't go according to plan during the ground battle.

Both the ground and space combat battles are viewed from a fixed direction but can be zoomed in and out along ninety degrees meaning you can push the camera right up close to the action or pull all the way out for a more tactical view. This latter angle presents the map in psuedo-2D with the camera pulled all the way up in the air; an extra amount of perspective that already shows its potential. Somewhat similar to the variated zoom introduced in Civilisation IV this birds-eye view is light on visuals but will offer commanders a better overall picture of the battlefield. It is one of the few innovative ideas on show in the preview build which leads me to suspect that Empire at War will not be trying to redefine the RTS genre rather it will reposition the Star Wars licence away from the very bottom of the RTS pile that is has previously occupied.

Saying that, on top of the interplay between the three different maps one other notable feature is the way that units left over from one battle will be available for any future campaign. So while it might be easiest to rush the enemy with everything at your disposal careful shepherding of units and the proper deployment of the correct unit to tackle a certain foe should lead to an easier time of things in the long run. Therefore it's a shame that as yet there's no experience system in place to help foster an even greater bond between the player and long-serving units in the galactic struggle. To make up for this there are a large number of tech upgrades that can be researched and purchased to add distinctiveness to your units. Many units also have special abilities that can help turn the tide of battle, from infantry's 'seek cover' ability to the Y-Wings' shield-sapping 'Ion Bolt'. Spacecraft can also target individual systems on enemy vessels so if your assault is being overwhelmed by swarms of Tie Fighters it might be wise to concentrate all firepower on hangar-bays.

All other essentials also seem to be in place; voices that sound similar to the actors, laser blasts and explosions that sing out Star Wars, warning to 'keep your eyes peeled for enemy fighters' and of course Mr. Williams iconic score belts out its tunes at all the right moments. Even the menu screen - a view from inside a the cockpit of a Tie-Fighter swooping around capital ships engaged in a massive space battle - imparts that Star Wars feeling. Empire at War has obviously been built from the ground up as a Star Wars game rather than previous attempts which tried to shoehorn the universe into a game that could have been based on any old IP.

So far the RTS combat itself is leaving me a little cold. The terrain is pseudo meaning height gives no advantage and the combat itself already appears to lend itself to the old 'lasso and charge' method of tactical nuance. The depth of view in the space combat is somewhat confusing which turns missions that involve carefully flying between obstacles into a bit of a guessing game. These could be ironed out come the final release and the prospect of long-drawn out galactic struggles between two players, (typical options are joined by a full-out war fought across the and battle maps) is indeed a very appealing one. The visual and aural attraction of the battles is indeed very alluring, especially the ones between hulking Star Destroyers and weaving X-Wing fighters so it's with crossed lightsabres that I hope the gameplay matches up to the evident spectacle.

Blasting onto shelves later on this month Star Wars Empire at War already looks certain to be the best Star Wars RTS of all time. Whether it is a compelling game in its own right will be revealed in the full review.

By Sam Gibson