| Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | LucasArts, Factor 5 |
| Publisher(s) | LucasArts, Activision |
| Year released | 2001 |
| System(s) | Nintendo GameCube |
| Preceded by | Star Wars: Rogue Squadron |
| Followed by | Star Wars Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike |
| Series | Star Wars: Rogue Squadron |
| Genre(s) | Flight simulation, Action |
|---|---|
| Players | 1 |
| Modes | Single player |
| Rating(s) |  |
Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader is the first Star Wars Rogue Squadron game to appear on the Nintendo GameCube.
The game follows Star Wars Rogue Squadron, which, under the command of Luke Skywalker and Wedge Antilles, uses starfighters to engage and defeat the Galactic Empire. The game is set during the original Star Wars trilogy and recreates battles that take place during those films. Some levels are based on Star Wars novels and comic books from the 1980s. The game features a "making-of" documentary. According to this documentary, the game was assembled in roughly eight months.
Rogue Leader was developed as a sequel to Star Wars: Rogue Squadron. It features significantly improved graphics and a new tactics menu that allows the player to form up their squadron or set a target for their squadron. The game features more unlockable content. This is one of the few GameCube titles to make extensive use of bump mapping and other advanced multitexturing effects.
Rogue Leader won the E3 2001 Game Critics Award for Best Action Game.
A sequel, Star Wars Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike, was released in 2003. The sequel includes a co-operative version of Rogue Leader.
Rogue Leader was among the highest rated Nintendo GameCube launch titles, and praised for its gameplay and graphics. Rogue Leader was also the most successful third-party game of the GameCube launch (and the second overall, behind Nintendo's Luigi's Mansion), being the 7th best-selling game of November 2001. The game is now available in the Player's Choice line.