Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron Review

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(More customer reviews)As this game's lengthy title suggests, Renegade Squadron is just the latest in a long-running line of Battlefront games, which in turn owe a lot to the Battlefield WWII games. It's all about running around a virtual battlefield with different soldiers and their vehicles -- and is about as close to playing with Star Wars toys as you'll get in a video game, even more so than the Lego games. Claims that this is exclusive to the PSP are technically true, but remember that the same kind of game is available elsewhere on the PS2, XBOX, Windows, and Macintosh, in arguably better form (Star Wars Battlefront II).
The PSP already has a similar game to this, in the form of Star Wars Battlefront II (2005). That well-intentioned port pushed the PSP farther than it could go, with clunky controls, slow framerates, and local-only multiplayer, which was the kiss of death for a game primarily designed for online play. It still sold well and can be found cheaply, but Renegade renders it irrelevant. In single-player mode, Renegade Squadron is one of the first game to use the full 333 MHz of the PSP's clockspeed. In multiplayer mode, it drops to the usual 222 MHz to conserve power, but because of a few smart design choices, raw power isn't absolutely needed for a great experience.
What's new here? The biggest change is in the controls, which are greatly improved over the PSP version of Star Wars Battlefront II. When you're on the ground, you can holding down the R button to lock your sights on an enemy, letting you circle around him without losing your aim. While you're flying around in space (in X-Wing and TIE Fighters, as well as the Millenium Falcon), you can autoselect a target with one button, and pressing another will enable an autopilot to point you in the right direction. Since the autopilot follows lines of sight only, you'll still need to use your brain to maneuver the 3D objects in the space scenes. These changes are well-suited to the handheld, and while they make things easier, the tactical challenges are still present. I'd rather fight against my onscreen enemies than the controls of a game!
The other main difference between Renegade Squadron and the previous iteration on PSP is the inclusion of Infrastructure multiplayer. In other words, you can play on the internet with strangers, using a Gamespy-powered server explorer, much like the console and computer versions of the game. I didn't notice any significant lag when playing online, and there were plenty of opponents.
Other nice touches: the short (took me about 3 hours) campaign story is typical Star Wars, interwoven with events and characters from the films. You rescue Ackbar, you fake out the Emperor, and there's a lot of Han Solo fan service such as "Greedo shot first" in-jokes. Like most SW stories, it doesn't take many risks, except for the scene where you infiltrate the Emperor's home and smash up his holy relics, Taliban style. It's told with beautifully painted panels, which are partially animated (more than a pop-up book, less than a cartoon). Voiceovers and sound effects are of typically high LucasArts quality. Character customization is simple yet richly integrated into gameplay, forcing you to to choose the balance of health, firepower, speed, and other attributes based upon the needs of each mission.
If you've enjoyed other versions of Star Wars Battlefront, is this worth getting? In my opinion, the fixed controls and fully developed multiplayer makes this the best portable version of this kind of game yet. It can't compete with PC and console versions (with higher resolutions, better controls, and more robust online play with voice and keyboard support), but it's easily the best Star Wars game to come along since SWBF2. It's a great little game and if you're a Star Wars fan with a PSP, you should have it already. If you don't yet have a PSP, there's a white, slim PSP with a Darth Vader silkscreen packed in with this game, too!

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Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron for PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system is the previously untold story of a ragtag ensemble of battle-hardened rogues and scoundrels assembled by Han Solo. Gathered to execute some of the most secretive operations in the Rebel Alliance's war against the Galactic Empire the Renegade Squadron participates in battles spanning the galaxy. From the Valley of the Sith on Korriban to a dogfight in space through the remains of Alderaan Solo directs the team on missions of sabotage rescue and retrieval.For the first time on the PSP system Star Wars Battlefront players can team up or compete online with friends all over the world.In Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron robust customization options replace the class system seen in previous Star Wars Battlefront titles allowing for millions of possible unique combatants. With weapons equipment and abilities that players select themselves no two allies will likely ever look or perform exactly the same.Format: SONY PSP Genre:ACTION/ADVENTURE (VG) Age:023272331399 UPC:023272331399 Manufacturer No:33139

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PSP Star Wars Battlefront Renegade Squadron Entertainment Pack - Ceramic White Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)So I have owned the Sony PSP Star Wars Battlefront Renegade Squadron Entertainment Pack - Ceramic White for about 3 weeks now. I never owned the original PSP, and mostly got this for "remote play" capabilities with the PS3 (e.g. remote access to your PS3 using the PSP and a wifi connection). Simply put, the PSP is AWESOME. Seriously.
The Good:
1. Aesthetics/Design/Construction.
The white slim looks and feels great. I briefly owned the black slim before returning it and getting the white one. The black looked slick, but it was a real fingerprint magnet. The white looks better, very sleek and clean. Fingerprints do not show up on it much either, which is great. The silver slim was just too cheap looking, like the silver was spray painted on, so I never considered it. Nice how the back is totally flat also, unlike the old psp. The non-spring door battery cover is fine. I was worried after reading reviews of how it is cheap feeling and fragile, but it's just fine. It is easy to open/close, gives a nice "snap" when it opens or closes, won't break if you're not rough with it (care is required), and eliminates worries about the spring door mechanism from malfunctioning. I never had an original PSP 1000, but the slim feels solid and not cheap at all to me.
2. Screen.
Very bright, nice 480x272 resolution. Movies and games just look great on it.
3. Music.
MP3s (and WMA supported also) sound great on the PSP. The visualization has about six different "patterns" that are interesting. The interface looks good, better in fact than the music player interface on the PS3, and features all the important info, and can be toggled on/off also. Recent firmware now allows for music to be played back while viewing photos.
4. Video.
Ability to run full 480x272 video off of files stored on the memory stick was a contentious issue in the first couple years, as Sony had evidently crippled video file on the memory stick to a max resolution of 320x240 in order to "encourage" users to buy overpriced UMDs. Several months ago, Sony saw the error of its ways and relented to user requests and now the PSP is fully able to play back 480x272 (the PSP's native resolution) video off of videos stored on your memory stick. Using the freeware "psp video 9," you can create video files ranging from 700mb (~1.5hrs video) to 1gb (~2hrs) that look and sound as good as a UMD movie.
Functionality is great too, with the newer firmwares you can search through your video file for scenes by varying intervals (1,2, or 5 minute), which is great since your own video files will be a single file. This is really not to be underestimated in its usefulness, plus it is really cool to use!
5. Photos.
The photo viewer is pretty cool as well, but could use a bit more customization. You can view standard file types (jpg, gif, bmp, and tiff I believe) and have a few slideshow and zoom options. The background of photos that are not 480x272 resolution is white, which cannot be changed to another color (like black), which is not a big deal but I hope Sony will allow you to use a black background in the future.
6. Games.
This is of course the main feature of the PSP. I wasn't expecting the games to be too good, but there are quite a few very good games. So far, my favorites are: Silent Hill Origins, Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops, Grand Theft Auto: Liberty/Vice City Stories, NBA 08, Outrun 2006, Burnout Legends, FIFA 08, Madden 08, Legend of Heroes, Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron, Daxter, Wipeout Pure, and Siphon Filter: Dark Mirror. You would be amazed at the graphics, gameplay, story, audio (music/voiceovers) this little system is capable of! Some of these are just great games.
7. Remote Play/Location Free Player.
This is the original reason I bought the PSP, to remotely (via wifi) connect to my PS3 and access the music, video, photos, and even games on it. When it works, it is just really really cool. The PS3 interface shows up on the PSP screen (which can be adjusted for quality based on the bandwidth you want to set it to -- there are five different settings), and you can play movies, trailers, photos, audio, even some games (like Lair!) on your PSP. I haven't used Location Free player yet, but basically it is like using a Slingbox on the PSP, so that you can watch TV, access your DVR, etc., on your PSP using a wifi connection. I plan to try it someday for sure.
8. Internet.
You can use the browser to surf the internet on the PSP when you have access to wifi. It works well enough, and the key input system is pretty decent for a non-QWERTY/touchscreen input system.
9. Functionality/Performance.
The much maligned battery life, is really not that bad at all. Using the PSP to listen to mp3s, watch videos, play games, I get about 3-4 hours of usage (depending on how much video/games I watch/play), which gets me through average usage easily. For longer trips, I have the 2200mAh (oem) extended battery which works great and will give me roughly 6-8 hours of usage. Incredible. The battery will stick out the back, but you can go to dealextreme-dot-com and buy a bigger battery cover (black or white) for less than four dollars. Sony will evidently release an official extended battery kit with a bigger battery cover in black and silver (no white though, booo!) for about 45 dollars sometime in the next month or so.
During gameplay, I have never had any slowdown of framerate or crashing EVER. Not once on over 14 games that I now own. Great performance. Videos and music also perform flawlessly. Load times are not that bad, and don't bother me much as it is only in the beginning mostly, and so gameplay during games is very quick.
The XMB (cross media bar) user interface is fantastic and so easy to use and rather stylish as well. Love using it. Video out to your TV is a cool feature that I have not yet used.
The Not-so-good:
1. Fingerprint magnet (black PSP). White one has no issues with this.
2. Cannot change background color to black when viewing photos.
3. Wifi is 802.11b only, no 802.11g (faster) support... yet.
4. Remote play is hit or miss regarding connectivity. Still not easy to connect to the PS3. Hopefully, Sony will improve upon this with updates. Remote on/off of the PS3 works well enough though.
5. Soon to be released extended battery kit will not include a white cover. No biggie, just go to dealextreme-dot-com to find a white one from Hong Kong (cheap too).
6. Limited audio/video codec support, including no DIVX/XVID support yet for videos or AAC for audio. But using PSP Video 9 (freeware) to convert videos works just fine to convert videos of most types into viewable 480x272 (or less if you want) mp4 video.
7. UMD spinning noise is a bit loud/harsh on the ears, but luckily it spins rarely and usually at the beginning of the game or rarely during gameplay (e.g. loading new levels, etc.).
8. Volume on audio/video playback from memory stick is TOO QUIET! Setting "dynamic normalization" under "audio" settings helps it get louder, but still it's too soft. The volume from the speakers is okay but I always use headphones so I cannot really judge it.
9. Expensive assessories. Getting a couple extended batteries, a battery charger, a nice protective case, a screen protector, some UMD cases, headphones, wrist strap, a few games, a nice memory stick pro duo (I got the 8gb one -- you won't want less than that), and the price quickly jumps up to almost PS3 range (easily over 500 dollars).
10. Cool accessories only available in Japan, including a camera, GPS, and DMB (mobile television). I don't really miss those though. Bottom Line:
As you can judge from my lengthy review, I love my new white PSP slim. It is so fun, versatile, and cool (remote play will impress your friends and family) that you will not regret plopping down some serious cash to build up your PSP slim system!

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Featuring a limited edition, Ceramic White, Darth Vader silkscreened PSP system and the hit game Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade SquadronTM, the Star Wars Battlefront Entertainment Pack provides the ultimate collectible, all-in-one portable entertainment experience in one low-priced pack

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