Star Wars Episode I: Racer

The adrenaline-fueled podracing from the film turned into an extensive, addictive racing game.

The podrace from Episode I is one of the most adrenaline-fueled scenes in the entire saga, and Star Wars Episode I: Racer let you experience it firsthand, at full speed and with gritted teeth. This racing game on the Nintendo 64 forged a few minutes of film into an expansive, addictive experience full of whizzing through deserts, canyons, and tunnels.

Podracing here is not just cosmetic. You steer bizarre machines pulled by a pair of massive jet engines and try to keep them on the track at extreme speeds, which places an enormous emphasis on reflexes, anticipating corners, and the nerve to hit the throttle even where a more sensible pilot would ease off. The sense of speed is essential here, and it is exactly what makes every lap a tense ride on the edge.

The game offers a varied palette of tracks inspired by different worlds and planets, so you are not racing in the same place over and over but rather tearing through diverse environments with their own hazards and shortcuts. Added to this is the ability to upgrade your machines, giving the racing a light touch of building and tuning, as you gradually transform your pod into a faster and more manageable machine.

For Star Wars fans it was an enticing chance to step directly into one of the most action-packed scenes of the new trilogy and play with it for as long as they wanted. The combination of a familiar license with pure racing fun and an emphasis on speed made it a title that entertained even players who otherwise had no attachment to the saga.

Anyone who loves fast, futuristic racing and wants to taste the feeling of a Tatooine podracer pilot will find a hefty dose of adrenaline here.

Why play: For pure speed, varied tracks, and the chance to fully relive the iconic Star Wars podrace at the controls of your own machine.

The same title elsewhere (2)

On the Nintendo 64 the podrace got fully three-dimensional tracks, smooth engine motion and the frantic feel of the film's chase scene, which is why this version is usually the one recommended. The Game Boy Color needed a completely different approach: the 3D world was replaced by a simplified top-down view, tracks are shorter and less detailed, and the music and sound effects reflect the handheld's more limited sound chip. Controls are necessarily stripped down and the sense of speed from the N64 version is gone, yet it still manages to translate the basic idea of podracing into a pocket-sized game that worked as a quick diversion on the go rather than a substitute for the full console experience.

The same title elsewhere (2)

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