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The best Star Wars games will, like the esteemed movie series itself, divide opinion. If you know your Lego iterations from your EA and Bioware slants, you’ll already know how varied the galaxy far, far away is in video game form – all of which makes gathering the best of the best into one cohesive list no easy feat. From classics such as TIE fighter to the more modern slants such as Respawn’s Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order, here is our top 10 ranking of the best Star Wars games out there right now, Read on, you shall. May the force be with you, etc.
The best Star Wars games are…
10. Star Wars Battlefront 2
If you’re looking to feel like you’re actually amidst a battle in a galaxy far, far away there are few better places to turn than Star Wars Battlefront 2. (opens in new tab)While the story campaign is short and somewhat underwhelming, and there’s no longer dev support for it (RIP), what you’re really here for is glorious multiplayer that’s as polished as Darth Vader’s helmet. The star of the show this time around is the Starfighter Assault mode that sees you taking the ‘attack and defend’ mantra from the original Star Wars Battlefront (opens in new tab)‘s Walker Assault and firing it into space. Hurtling through space above Endor is thrilling business, dodging the debris of the ruined Deathstar, and makes for constantly cinematic, if chaotic entertainment. Galactic Assault too stuns with its enormous 32 player battles. After a rockier launch than the cliffs of Ahch-To, Battlefront 2 has evolved since it’s launch to become of one of the most accessible shooters for Star Wars fans.
9. Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
After 17 years perfecting its formula, developer Traveller’s Tales has returned to the game that started it all and decided to redo LEGO Star Wars. But ‘redo’ doesn’t do justice to the ambition here. This is a completely new game, recreating not only the original trilogy of films in LEGO form, but all nine films from the yellow text of A New Hope, through the “I am the senate” posturing of the prequel trilogy to the final shot from The Rise of Skywalker (complete with a brilliantly cutting sight gag). It’s all here. Not just the action sequences you know and love, but the towns, forests, and swamps around them, all bustling with LEGO-ised life and absolutely packed with Star Wars lore, puzzles, and challenges. When a game goes all-in like this, Yoda was right. It’s do, or do not; there is no try. And Traveller’s Tales really, really did it.
8. Star Wars: Squadrons
If you thought you couldn’t get a great starfighter game after Star Wars: TIE Fighter (and the excellent X-Wing series), you were wrong. Star Wars: Squadrons is a wildly fun space combat game from EA that is even better in VR. You’ll be able to get into the cockpit of a complex starfighter, turning knobs and pressing buttons like a real pilot as you take part in space battles across the galaxy. Multiplayer matches are a ton of fun, and a fairly engaging story lets you choose sides in the war for the galaxy’s soul: do you go for the New Republic or side with the Empire? Whatever you choose, Star Wars: Squadrons is a spectacle you’ll never forget.
7. Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga
This action-adventure puzzler may be targeted at a younger audience, but there’s no shortage of references and gags that appeal to grown-ups, too. Swinging our lightsaber haphazardly and breaking things is a blast, especially with the movie-authentic sound effects and music contrasting with the brilliant slapstick action. Inadvertently smacking our co-op partner and watching them explode into Lego bits is always pretty damn entertaining too. Don’t want to play as Luke Skywalker? Fine, swap over to one of the other 50-odd characters and mess around with their own unique abilities. Lego Star Wars 2 satisfies our eternal hunger for flashy lightsaber battles, and our equally eternal need to build Lego contraptions, all in one go. The Complete Saga takes you through the events of all six movies, allowing you to relive everything from the dramatic dual of the fates, to the destruction of the second Death Star. It doesn’t get much better than that.
6. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
If there’s a moment that sums up the simple appeal of this excellent Star Wars adventure, it’s when you first discover you can force pull enemies onto the hot end of Cal’s lightsaber. Few Star Wars games have really embodied the raw power of being a Jedi, but Fallen Order manages it. Add on intricate level design that makes exploring the game’s collection of planets a joy, and this is EA’s best Star Wars game since they started making them. We can’t wait for the sequel.
5. Star Wars: Republic Commando
This Xbox exclusive is one of the gems in the Star Wars games library. It’s a great shooter, which is a solid foundation, but LucasArts injects some much-needed variety into the action by allowing all four members of the squad their own individual voices and personalities. All have their particular quirks, skill sets, and preferred positions. In brief, these boys (and their often excellent AI) know exactly how to get the job done. Add in a number of clever design decisions and quality visual flourishes (that windshield cleaner) and you have one of the few Star Wars titles to truly excel in its own right.
4. Star Wars: The Old Republic
Thousands of years before the Emperor and Darth Vader ruled the galaxy with an iron fist, the Old Republic stood for over a thousand generations. That rich, rarely used history serves as the perfect setting for an ever-expanding MMO. BioWare jumped headfirst into this intriguing timeline with Star Wars: The Old Republic, giving players a vast, ancient galaxy to explore, unhindered by Star Wars movie canon. In SWTOR, you choose what type of hero or villain you want to be. You can take roles like a Jedi Knight struggling to maintain peace and justice, a shady Bounty Hunter looking to cash in on their next big contract, or a dedicated Imperial agent. Between the intricate storytelling of the main story (which is entirely unique to each class), abundant side-quests, and getting to know your ever-growing crew, The Old Republic lets you build your own space adventure one encounter at a time. It’s free-to-play if you’re feeling frugal, but subscribing lets you stick solely to main story quests, effectively offering eight epic BioWare stories in one place.
And there’s a whole new host of fun to be had with the Legacy of the Sith expansion that just dropped. We talked to BioWare about it ahead of its launch, and it only got us more excited to jump back into SWTOR.
3. Jedi Knight 2: Jedi Outcast
This is the ultimate Jedi fantasy. The game that lets you run around the galaxy fighting the Empire, cutting off stormtroopers’ limbs with a lightsaber, and using all of the Force powers seen in the movies. Jedi Outcast makes you feel like a powerful Jedi Knight – something that plenty of games have tried to do but just didn’t get quite right. Everything here is spot on, from the lightsaber clashes with your red-bladed, Reborn enemies, to the memorable encounters with powerful enemies and famous allies like Luke and Lando. Multiplayer is a treat, too. Players can still be found online engaging in the usual swath of online multiplayer modes. But you can also find more dedicated groups of players taking part in movie-like, one-on-one lightsaber duels as spectators calmly look on. Yeah, that really happens. People get serious when it comes to lightsaber duels.
2. Star Wars Rogue Leader: Rogue Squadron 2
A Star Wars game was the Gamecube’s best launch title. Seriously. Rogue Leader is that good. Dropping players into the cockpits of a number of different ships from the Star Wars universe, amid some of the most memorable parts of the films (and some other battles, too), its as complete a Star Wars air-combat experience as you could want. Death Star trench run? Its in there. The Its a trap! battle above Endor? It has it. Hoth? Not only is it in the game, but its done better than any other Hoth level in any other game before. Even today, the game looks beautiful, taking you to new and classic locations that range from the Cloud City of Bespin to hidden Imperial bases. Rogue Leader is a blast to play giving you a chance to take on the Empire as you engage in dangerous frontal attacks on massive Star Destroyers and blast your way through innumerable enemy TIEs. This is the ultimate star fighter pilot experience.
1. Knights of the Old Republic
BioWare delivers one of the most compelling Star Wars narratives ever with its RPG, Knights of the Old Republic. The universe – which is set during a completely different time period, thousands of years before the events of the movies – fleshes out the Universe in ways you’d never expect. You get to explore the galaxy when the Jedi Knights numbered in the thousands, discover the secrets of the ancient Sith, and even discover things like why Sandpeople hate outsiders so much. As you progress through the story, you’ll meet some fascinating and unforgettable characters, and in typical BioWare fashion, discover their deep backstories. The Assassin Droid HK-47 holds a special place in our hearts for his degrading and threatening comments towards organic meatbags, but steadfast loyalty to his master. The malleability of the story makes playing through the game multiple times vital to the full experience, and you’ll always be happy to oblige. Knights of the Old Republic is the definitive game for Star Wars fanatics. It has everything: witty characters, good versus evil, bucket-of-bolts starships and a plot twist that will blow your reverse power flux coupling.
