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Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Republic Heroes (Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PSP, PlayStation 2, Windows)

common sense media says

While the force is with you, fighting with it is too hard.

parents & educators say
  • 33% say violence is an issue
  • 33% say they noticed product placement
See all 8 reviews | Review it

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that while this fast-paced action game really is about war (a word that appears twice in its title), the blasts, bangs, and booms that go on throughout the game are of the sci-fi fantasy kind. And presuming your child is already a Star Wars fan, it's nothing he or she hasn't seen before. Unfortunately, what could have been a fun romp for devotees of the Star Wars franchise, gets bogged down in technical glitches and imprecise controls.

Educational value: The path through a level is rarely a direct route. Players must figure their way through maze-like detours. There are also a few puzzles along the way for the Jedi to solve.
Positive messages: Hero characters often speak about relishing the chance to fight and cause damage to the enemies. War is treated as a necessity for peace. On the positive side, there's a real emphasis on teamwork, cooperation, loyalty, and self-sacrifice.
Positive role models: While the Clone trooper characters have a penchant for violence, they stress brotherhood, loyalty, and cooperation most of all. Characters risk their lives to help others. And the Jedi characters are paragons of heroism. 
Ease of play: While targeting and combat are rather easy to pick up, the jumping is far too imprecise for a game that has numerous platform-leaping areas. Taking control of a robot enemy—an act pivotal to gameplay—is often too difficult to pull off successfully.
Violence: Clone warriors use laser blasters and rocket launchers against enemies. Jedi knights slice up evil droids with lightsabers. There are also numerous vehicle explosions. Most, but not all of the violence is acted out upon robots. Non-robot villains that the heroes fight do not appear to die in the course of the game. Players will hear cries of pain. Smoking ruins are also shown, with mention of how a city was destroyed.
Sex: One of the female Jedis wears a midriff-revealing outfit with a bit of visible cleavage. 
Language: The only epithets are made-up ones cast against the robot villains, like "tinny" and "clanker."
Consumerism: The game exists as part of the Star Wars mega-brand, and presents an extension of the storyline in the Clone Wars Cartoon Network series.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking: Not an issue.
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More on Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Republic Heroes

What to talk about

Talk to your kids
  • Families can talk about the differences between a make-believe outer-space war and a real one. What kind of moral dilemmas could a soldier go through were his enemies flesh-and-blood. What would life be like for a real soldier at war?
  • More than once in the game, a character risks his or her own life to help his companions. The concepts of loyalty and self-sacrifice are repeated themes throughout the story. Families can talk about what they would or wouldn't be willing to do for one another.  
  • Throughout the story, younger or less experienced characters want to make riskier choices, and are reminded by their elders or superiors to stay in line and follow protocols. Which side of the argument is right or wrong isn't always clear. Families can discuss when it's important to follow orders and when, if ever, it might be better to skirt the rules. 

What's the story?

What's the story?
In STAR WARS THE CLONE WARS: REPUBLIC HEROES, the forces of the Galactic Republic, led by the heroic Jedi knights, are engaged in a vast war for supremacy with an army of battle droids controlled by the evil Separatists. As this chapter begins, the villains have set traps and ambushes around the galaxy for Republic forces, leaving the remaining heroes to not only defeat the enemies, but rush to the aid of their comrades as well. During the game, players will take on the roles of many different Jedi, as well as many of the officers of the Republic's clone army.

Is it any good?

Is it any good?
 

Rabid Star Wars:The Clone Wars fans, who tend to be elated by anything featuring the likenesses of their favorite characters, will be the best audience for this game. Gamers not heavily invested in the ever-growing plot of the Clone Wars will likely get frustrated by the unfortunately sloppy controls. The gun-toting clone trooper levels are reminiscent of countless other shooters out there, but they're far more fun than the admittedly more creative Jedi levels. The game requires the famously nimble Jedi to flip, spin, and hop around the screen like a leaf in a windstorm, but aiming your Jedi's leaps is far more difficult than aiming your clone's blaster (the control system for which actually works incredibly smoothly). 

That being said, the two-player cooperative mode provides a lot more entertainment value. And regular viewers of the Clone Wars series will be rightly impressed by how much the look and tone of the game make it feel like an episode of the TV show. The well-performed cut scenes, featuring the show's real voice actors, are arguably the game's high point. 

Game themes & details

Game Details
Available on: Nintendo Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PSP, PlayStation 2, Windows
Not available online
Genre: Action/Adventure
Developer: LucasArts
Released on: October 6, 2009
Price: 49.99
ESRB Rating: T for Fantasy Violence
Screenshots
This review was written by Christopher Healy
 
 

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What parents & educators say

6
Based on 3 parent & educator reviews:
  • 33% say violence is an issue
  • 33% say they noticed product placement
Read the reviews

Most useful reviews by all members

Ghost Rider Sky
kid, 12 years old
9
 
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helped me decide (4) | had useful details (3) | read my mind (3)
gamenerd323
adult
6
 
Bad but appropiate game.
The game is bad, just plain boring and not enjoyable, but it's appropiate for little kids. thank you common sense media for allowing us to show people what we thought of these products.
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helped me decide (4) | had useful details (3) | read my mind (2)
PaperGangster
kid, 13 years old
6
 
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helped me decide (2) | had useful details (3) | read my mind (4)
tevesh
teen, 15 years old
9
 
Not a really good game, three stars.
The game is a really short game. It is not a game where you can wander around and the camera can move so that you can not see yourself. When I was playing with a friend, he got stuck in a room and could not get out and was about done with the level. I had to resart the WHOLE level.
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helped me decide (3) | had useful details (3) | read my mind (1)
movie fan141999
kid, 12 years old
10
 
rockits and chane guns and guns light saber whats funer u can blo up bad guy but it ruls so hard but the best clone wars DS game yet sweet.
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helped me decide (2) | had useful details (2) | read my mind (2)
LegoDad
parent of 6 and 7 year old
4
 
Repetitive, but great fun for my kids ages!
The Boy loves this game and it is sooo easy (with infinate lives like all the Lego games) that he does not get frustrated with jumps or puzzles during the game. The Girl can play with him without driving him nuts and can actually be helpful for most of it. It was too easy for me, but is great for them so we all liked it.
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helped me decide (1) | had useful details (3) | read my mind (2)
Bfoxius
kid, 12 years old
7
 
Not Very Good
This is a typical run of the mill Star Wars game. The levels are repetitive, the controls are terrible, it shouldn't even be rated T! Even CommonSense says so. The only violince there is is blowing up robots with laser guns. Overall, don't buy it!
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dmeat
adult
9
 
Great Game!!!
I think it is a great game!!!
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