If fans want to play a Star Wars game on the go, they've certainly got plenty of options. Whether Angry Birds Star Wars is their jam, Lego Star Wars is right up their alley or a good-old-fashioned Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic has more of what they're looking for, they can easily swipe their way to a galaxy far, far away on their mobile devices. And now they can add Star Wars: Commander to that ever-growing list.
Even though so many have come before, Star Wars is having somewhat of a renaissance lately with Disney's major purchase of Lucasfilm and the impending release of Episode VII in December 2015. So there's no time like the present for the franchise to up its mobile game, too.
Disney and Lucasfilm teamed up to create Star Wars: Commander, a new mobile combat strategy game released Aug. 21. The game takes a page from another popular mobile game, Clash of Clans, to allow players to build up their base and invade the enemy's territory in order to reign supreme in this Galactic Civil War. Though players begin the game independently, they are eventually able to decide whether they want to play on the side of the Rebellion or the Empire.
The game is currently free to play, but as with most games of that nature, there are in-app purchases that allow players to enhance their gameplay and that can be accessed by saving up enough crystals. As for Android users, they won't be able to command TIE Fighters just yet. Star Wars: Commander will be sold exclusively in Apple's App Store for 30 days before making its way to Google Play.
So other than fans' love of Star Wars that burns with a passion of a thousand suns, why should they spend their time playing this game? Two words: new stories. Although the game takes place in the worlds of Episodes IV, V and VI, new stories will be woven throughout the tales they already know and love.
"We're not attempting to retell the story of the movies, but to tell some side-stories of things that were going on in this period, bringing some new things to light about what was happening in the Star Wars universe, on Tatooine, and eventually on other planets," Disney Interactive's Executive Producer and Vice President of Operations Nathan Etter told The Guardian.
If fans still need a new Star Wars fix after conquering Star Wars: Commander, there are going to be so many new Star Wars products before the new movie hits theaters that will knock the Darth Vader helmet right off their heads. The animated movie Star Wars Rebels: Spark of Rebellion hits the Interwebs and the Watch Disney XD app on Sept. 29, followed by a debut on Disney Channels around the world on Oct. 3. This will be followed by the release of the new animated series Star Wars Rebels on Disney XD Oct. 13. A line of healthy foods under the Star Wars umbrella is also slated to hit shelves next year. Plus, Disney Parks are going to add more Star Wars attractions in the future.
We are all basically living in the Star Wars galaxy now.
