Ranked: The 10 best Star Wars games you can play today

Star Wars Battlefront II

Along with its iconic movies, the Star Wars franchise has spawned dozens of video games over the last 30 years.
Electronic Arts recently announced that the next Star Wars game, "Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order," will launch on November 15, 2019 for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC.
To help pass the time until "Fallen Order" arrives, we've ranked the 10 best "Star Wars" games. Games that are no longer available for purchase were not considered.

While the original "Star Wars" film trilogy cemented the series' legacy, the video games and books in the Star Wars extended universe helped fuel the massive fandom that continues to thrive today.

Star Wars creator George Lucas founded Lucasfilm Games in 1982, prior to the release of "Return of the Jedi." The game development branch of Lucas's company was eventually renamed LucasArts, and went on to publish dozens of games for computers, home video game, consoles, and arcades.

With no parent company to limit "Star Wars" video game partnerships, LucasArts was free to publish games in a wide variety of genres. Early "Star Wars" games included "Dark Forces," a first person shooter for PC; "Rebel Assault," a space combat game; and trio of adventure games recreating the original "Star Wars" trilogy on Super Nintendo.

Disney acquired Lucasfilm for $4 billion in 2012, but decided to close the company's internal video game studio. Disney then licensed the "Star Wars" brand to Electronic Arts, one of the largest video game makers in North America. Electronic Arts has delivered two "Star Wars" games so far using the exclusive license, "Battlefront" and "Battlefront II," and a third is on the way later this year.

Electronic Arts recently revealed that the next Star Wars game will be a single-player adventure game called "Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order." The game will be developed by EA subsidiary Respawn Entertainment, the developers behind "Apex Legends" and "Titanfall." "Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order" is due out on November 15th for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.

Before "Fallen Order" arrives, we thought it would be fun to take a look back at the best Star Wars games over the years, ranked from worst to best:

10) "Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire" (1996)

"Shadows of the Empire" was an exclusive title for the Nintendo 64. Set between "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Return of the Jedi," the game stars bounty hunter Dash Render and employs a few different styles of gameplay.

The game is primarily a third person shooter, with specific levels designed for piloting vehicles. Unfortunately the graphics and controls don't hold up too well compared to modern games, but there are a few moments that made "Shadows of the Empire" a memorable experience.

For example, players get to pilot a snowspeeder during a fun recreation of the Battle of Hoth from "Empire Strikes Back." Later, Dash uses a jetpack to duel Boba Fett during an attempt to rescue Han Solo.

9) "Star Wars: X-Wing Alliance" (1999)

"X-Wing Alliance" is the third and final game in the "X-Wing " series of space flying simulators. The game is entirely focused on piloting the many starcrafts in the "Star Wars" universe, and takes place exclusively from the inside of the cockpit.

Players can choose from recognizable ships like the X-Wing and TIE Interceptor and playthrough more than 50 single player missions. Multiplayer dogfights are also available for up to eight players.

8) "Star Wars: Republic Commando" (2005)

"Star Wars: Republic Commando" is a first person game with an emphasis on squad mechanics. Players control an elite squad of soldiers during the Clone Wars, the conflict between the Republic and the Trade Federation depicted in "Star Wars" Episodes II & III."

While the gunplay in "Republic Commando" pretty run of the mill by modern standards, the amount of strategic control players can exert over their AI control squadmates is impressive. Players can give their teammates specific commands based on the situation, or give them general objectives, like guarding a particular location.

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