"Rise of the Empire" is the closest thing Battlefront II has to a full-fledged singleplayer campaign, as you work your way through the Clone Wars and all the way up through the Battle of Hoth from Empire Strikes Back, as the 501st division of clone troopers. Actor Temuera Morrison, who played Jango Fett and the Clone Troopers in the films, narrarates the cut scenes in a rather heavy-handed, noir style prose. Though it's a bit overdone, it's a welcome addition to the more proceedural tone of the first game.

"Instant Action" is just as fun as ever, allowing you to freely choose which maps you want to play and how you want to play them. You essentially create a "play list" and then have at it. Instant Action comes with a variety of modes, including the traditional fighting campaign, where you fight the opposing team for control of various command posts scattered throughout the map. Capture the Flag is also present, and just as challengingly fun as ever.

"Rise of the Empire" is the closest thing Battlefront II has to a full-fledged singleplayer campaign, as you work your way through the Clone Wars and all the way up through the Battle of Hoth from Empire Strikes Back, as the 501st division of clone troopers. Actor Temuera Morrison, who played Jango Fett and the Clone Troopers in the films, narrarates the cut scenes in a rather heavy-handed, noir style prose. Though it's a bit overdone, it's a welcome addition to the more proceedural tone of the first game.

"Instant Action" is just as fun as ever, allowing you to freely choose which maps you want to play and how you want to play them. You essentially create a "play list" and then have at it. Instant Action comes with a variety of modes, including the traditional fighting campaign, where you fight the opposing team for control of various command posts scattered throughout the map. Capture the Flag is also present, and just as challengingly fun as ever.

But there are a few new twists as well. The "Assault" mode in the Mos Eisley map is one of the funnest twists -- allow you to play as virtually any major hero or villain from all six movies. In fact, the entire map is filled with nothing but the major heroes and villians, and often more than one copy of them. (It's remarkably intimidating to be staring down two Darth Vaders at once.)

Another favorite is the "Hunt" mode, which allows you to hunt down indigenous species from various worlds. The game makers obviously designed this mode with tongue planted joyously in cheek; the "indigenous species" in question are the most reviled of all Star Wars species: the Ewoks on Endor, the Gungans on Naboo, etc. You can just imagine the meeting that went on at Pandemic Studios the day this was dreamed up: "How much will players love us if we let them kill Ewoks and Gungans with abandon!?" And they weren't wrong -- there are no other options within the game that offer the kind of deliciously mindless bliss as the all-out destruction of "Hunt."

The third major mode of gameplay is "Galactic Conquest," which is a great deal more complex from that found in the original game. Another nice twist to the game is the inclusion of space-based maps, and the ability to fight in all the major ships from the films. It's tremendously fun piloting an X-Wing, ARC Fighter, TIE Fighter, Jedi Starfighter, Gunship, and all the other famous space fighters. Kudos to game maker Pandemic for allowing players the option of landing in enemy hanger bays and fighting their way to the destruction of opposing capital ships on foot.

But despite all this, the best upgrade has to be the addition of playable Jedi characters. But unlike the other playable soldiers, the Jedi are a reward for skillful playing, and they come with a time limit. Only one Jedi is available per team per map, so it's often the most adept player who is awarded with the opportunity to play as a famous Jedi character. From Luke Skywalker to Mace Windu, Darth Vader to Yoda, they're all here and sooner or later you get the opportunity to try them all out. Each Jedi has their own style and flourish; Dark Jedi get Force Choke or Force Lightning, while good Jedi get Force Push and Force Pull.

But hey, forget all those technicalities. You won't find a much cooler experience in modern gaming than slicing your way through a battlefield of hardened opponents, dominating the entire fight.

And that doesn't even cover the multiplayer aspects, which are equally rewarding, if not moreso, with human players to battle against instead of A.I. For those who just want to "blow stuff up," Battlefront II offers plenty of terrific, cinematic opportunities to do just that. But if you want to take your game to the next level, the game rewards players willing to invest time into building their skills.

It's the best of every world, and this reviewer can't get enough of it.