Return of the Jedi (1984, Atari)

Atari’s trilogy of Star Wars-themed arcade games reached its third installment in the mid-eighties — Return of the Jedi. And unlike its vector siblings, this title went its own way, which makes it the most interesting odd one out of the whole line.

Instead of the cockpit view and wireframe models, Return of the Jedi bets on an isometric, almost „third-person“ view on color sprite graphics. The player thus watches the action from the outside and controls vehicles and sequences inspired by key scenes from the film — beginning with the famous speeder chase among the trees of the moon Endor. This visual change gives the game a wholly different character than the previous two vector titles.

The gameplay combines several types of scenes into an action whole that follows the storyline of the finale of the original trilogy. The alternation of environments and vehicles keeps the pace snappy and motivates the player to advance to the next iconic moment. The emphasis on recognizable film scenes was typical of the arcade adaptations of the time and worked as a lure for anyone who had seen the film.

The game’s creation falls into the period when Atari was intensively mining the Lucasfilm license and churning out arcade adaptations tied directly to film premieres. Return of the Jedi thus fits into the wider story of how closely arcades in the eighties were intertwined with the blockbusters of the day.

Thanks to its different treatment, Return of the Jedi today stands out as a curiosity for collectors and for those who want to see how variously the same film material could be translated into an arcade game. It is a reminder of an era of experimentation with both perspective and technology.

Why play: An isometric detour from Atari’s vector trilogy that takes you on the famous speeder chase in the forests of Endor.