Lucasfilm and LucasArts studio is gearing up to unveil its latest Star Wars title at E3 next week, and we’ll be there telling you all about it.

Earlier this month, the studio registered a few domain names like starwars1313.com, sw1313.com, and 1313starwars.com leaving many to believe these indicated a new game in the works. This same trademark was also filed back in 2006 when Star Wars was working on the video game The Force Unleashed.

Could 1313 also hint at a possible Bobba Fett movie and perhaps video game tie-in? CT-1313 was an alias the bounty trooper went by, after all. We’ll give all the answers in just a few days.

Microsoft and Lucas Arts have announced that Star Wars Kinect, along with the special edition Star Wars Xbox 360 will release on April 3.

The console, along with the game were delayed late last year after the game received majorly negative critical reception. Here’s hoping it’s tuned up from our time with it at last year’s E3.

EA’s stock prices appear to be in a bit of trouble, and it’s reportedly due in large part to the performance of EA’s long anticipated MMORPG Star Wars: The Old republic.

The company’s shares fell almost 3% to $17.75 after stock analyst Todd Mitchell, working with  Brean Murray Carret & Co, released a briefing on the company’s performance, citing an unimpressive December 20 launch of the mega MMO. ”Initial sales appear to be below expectations, and casual observation of early play is causing us to rethink our assumptions,” Murray said in a note to his clients.

You’ve been waiting a long time for Star Wars: The Old Republic and now…you could be waiting even longer.

Speaking to a group of investors, EA CFO Eric Brown revealed that a release date won’t be announced until late October; “In terms of timing we haven’t given a street date yet,” Brown said. “We won’t do so for some time, possibly at our next upcoming earnings call towards the end of October.”

Then Brown confirmed what gamers have feared for quite some time, the long awaited, long in development game could slip to next year. “”We did hold out a slight possibility that it could slip to our March quarter,” he said, “and the factors that would cause a slip is, for example, us not being completely satisfied with the scalability testing, and wanting to tune it for several extra weeks.”

Bioware’s Stephen Reid has said that the comments were not supposed to be made public, but stands by Brown’s comments, saying that the slip to next year is only a possibility and not a promise.

If the game does get delayed, it won’t be the first Star Wars title to be delayed this month, Star Wars Kinect was recently pushed back to the first quarter of 2012.

Kepler-16b orbits two suns, just like Tatooine

Remember one of the opening scenes from “A New Hope” where Luke kicks the dirt and looks out at Tatooine’s double suns setting in the distance? Well scientists have found a planet that fit the bill.

The NASA Kepler spacecraft has identified a planet — very creatively named Planet Kepler-16b — that orbits two suns.

It was the first time that we Earthlings have observed what is known as a circumbinary planet.

But Kepler-16b is also an oddball because it falls within a radius of the double-star system that scientists thought was too close for a planet to form.

The planet orbits its stars every 229 days.

Earlier this month we told you about Anthony Daniels, the actor who played C3P0 in the Star Wars movies tweeting about the MIA Star Wars Kinect game, now thanks to an apparent survey obtained by Kotaku, we may be getting our first look at some of the game’s features.

Reportedly the survey, which also features a number of storyboard panels for an apparent commercial indicates that the game would feature light saber fighting, pod racing ( to be controlled similarly to Joyride) an perhaps the coolest possible feature; the game could let you stomp around as one of the most badass creatures from the Star Wars universe, The Rancor.

You may remember the Star Wars Kinect demo presented by Microsoft at last year’s E3 conference, which featured a, let’s say less than thrilling light saber battle with Darth Vader. Reportedly, the game has been retooled, and we’ll be getting our first look in June at this year’s E3.

Actor Anthony Daniels is well known to the world as the voice, and body behind C-3PO (Human Cyborg Relations) from the Star Wars films, but he could be known as something else, one of the first to see the actual Star Wars Kinect game.

The British born actor tweeted “I have played Star Wars Kinect. You haven’t. You can’t wait. I can’t say anything more” before taking it down, possibly due to a non disclosure agreement with Lucas Arts.

Those who watched E3 last year will remember a Star Wars Kinect tech demo shown off during the publisher’s press conference, but it was never heard from again, well you know besides being pretty much laughed at and all. Could we be seeing another redone version of the Star Wars Kinect title in time for this year’s E3?

Stick with Blast for more information.

He’s Han Solo. He’s Indiana Jones. Now, he’s a game developer. Oh Harrison Ford, is there anything you can’t do?

Ford, has teamed up with developer Talkie and Conversation International to create city building sim Ecotopia. So what’s so different about Ecotopia from other city building games currently on Facebook? The focus is not only on building the player’s created city, but doing so in a green way. In fact, the game’s developers say that players will be rewarded with in game incentives for real world green acts (once they’re verified).

“As we work to address the most fundamental issues facing humanity,” says Ford, “I think Ecotopia will help get people involved in a way that is fun, educational, and meaningful.”

Jenny Craig, Inc. today announced that actress Carrie Fisher is its latest celebrity client and spokesperson.

Fisher is best known as Princess Leia in the original Star Wars trilogy, and now her New Year’s resolution is to lose 30 pounds.

Fisher has struggled with her weight for the past three years and tried numerous diets to lose weight, but gained it all back so she decided to join Jenny Craig to change her lifestyle. She commented, “A day comes when you can no longer face not wanting to leave the house because you don’t like the way you look. A day comes when you want to stop apologizing for it. When you want to make a decision to live the rest of your life in a healthy way. I haven’t been able to enjoy what otherwise is a good part of my life because so much of what’s on my mind is about my weight.”

Fisher will appear in Jenny Craig’s new advertising campaign that launches in February. She is also going to utilize Jenny Craig’s new Metabolic Max program.

She said regarding the program, “Jenny Craig’s Metabolic Max program has changed the way I view losing weight. With the Armband, I can monitor how many calories I’m eating, and measure how many calories I’m burning, so there are no excuses. It is like having my consultant on my arm at all times! It is tailored to my personal needs so that I am able to maximize my healthy weight loss efforts. I started the program a few days after Thanksgiving and I’ve already lost 12 pounds in six weeks!”

As seen in the new Endor DLC for Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2. For shame….

So Kinect has been out for just over a month now, and we reviewed it, giving it a solid B. What’s most interesting though is what some have been able to do with it when they get under the hood. From Mario controllers to man boob generators, these are our favorite Kinect mods we’ve seen so far.

5. Kinect as a way to play Mario

Gaming’s newest technology mixed with one of its oldest games. The developer reworked Kinect to work with an NES emulator to control the original Super Mario Bros impressively.  It looks like a pain to run in place to move, but a definitely interesting idea.

4. Kinect controls Windows 7

Okay, so the video of this hack is really cheesy, but the tech behind it is pretty damn cool. Being able to control and explore Microsoft’s maps applications with your own movement is inarguably cool, and it adds the ability to perform simple tasks without the need of a mouse or touch screen.

3.  Kinect as an interactive shadow puppet

This could be the most technically impressive Kinect hack of the bunch. All you have to do is create a simple shadow puppet form with your hand and Kinect will turn it into a fully interactive animal for you to control on your wall. There may be a slight delay in a few of the movements, but it’s a mostly impressive application.

2. Drawing in 3D with Kinect

If the technology in this Kinect hack could be opened up to media editing, it could create a world of  new possibilities for companies like Kodak who allow users to edit their pictures online.

1. Kinect gives you a light saber

Come on. How awesome is that?!

Irvin Kershner, best known as a director of “Empire Strikes Back,” died in Los Angeles after struggling with lung cancer, Saturday. He was 87.

He was also the only person to have directed both a Star Wars movie and a James Bond movie.

Kershner leaves two sons. Funeral arrangements were not announced yet.

Remember that pretty cool Star Wars Kinect demo Microsoft showed off during this year’s E3? Remember how excited everyone got that a possible core game was coming to the platform? Remember how it wasn’t released with the launch lineup last year? Yeah, you’re going to be waiting a really long time.

In a recent interview with the BBC, Kinect’s lead designer Kudo Tsunoda mentioned that the two games he’s most looking forward to are an upcoming Forza project and the Star Wars game — then he dropped the bomb that gamers were hoping they wouldn’t hear.

“We have a Kinect Star Wars game coming out for next holiday,the designer said. “I’ve seen a bunch of the game and it’s super compelling. Another one next year is Forza.”

You know what really annoys me? Those episodes of TV shows where something huge happens, that’s sure to effect the entire show’s cannon, only to reveal that it’s all a dream at the end. Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2 feels an awful lot like one of these cheap TV moments. Spoiler alert – Starkiller, the protagonist from the original Force Unleashed game and Darth Vader’s secret apprentice, takes his own life for the better of the rebellion. Yet, there he is as we open up The Force Unleashed 2. Yeah, apparently, Darth Vader’s got clones.

Ultimately, The Force Unleashed 2 is a similarly disappointing experience altogether. Though it starts off with a bang, and features some amazing art direction, the tale of one of Starkiller’s clone’s quest seemingly hits a brick wall before it really starts to gain any momentum. Still, you can’t deny the fun you’ll mindlessly killing fleets of storm troopers and abusing your force powers. The Force Unleashed 2 may not be The Empire Strikes Back, but it’s no Phantom Menace either.

Taking place about seven months after the events of the first game, and a full year before what we ultimately know as the first Star Wars movie; a New Hope, The Force Unleashed 2 opens up with Starkiller ( or quite possibly a Starkiller clone) escaping from captivity on Kamino. You take out the Storm Troopers guarding your cell, and set off on a quest to find out the truth about your existence and who you really are. Of course, it won’t be that easy, as you’ll not only have to take on the entire Empire, but deal with the fact that Darth Vader has hired Boba Fett to track you down.

If Force Unleashed 2 succeeds at one thing, it’s the game’s ability to make you feel like a badass Jedi master. It’s insanely fun to wind-up a huge force push and let loose on an entire squad of Storm Troopers as if they were bowling pins. That’s really just the start though; you’ll be able to let loose an entire array of awesome Jedi powers, including Force Lightning and levitation. If you’re like me though, you’ll find the most fun out of using the awesome Jedi Mind Trick ability.  Call me sadistic, but it’s just plain fun to watch an enemy Storm Trooper dive head first to his doom into an energy field. Of course, these powers are almost exactly the same as the ones from the original; they just feel a bit more powerful in the sequel.

These abilities still have their downfalls though, namely with the telekinesis ability.  Much like in the first game, you’ll often be tasked with picking up an object or enemy with this ability, but will have a  frustrating experience thanks to a shoddy targeting system. Yes, it seems easy to pick up that bin over there to tae out the control panel, but the game seems incapable of doing such pedestrian tasks.

As fun as these abilities are though, they don’t offer much in terms of gameplay, as the Force Unleashed 2’s core mechanics wear thin incredibly quickly. To boil the game down to its most basic description, you’ll find yourself laying waste to storm troopers, walkers, droids and the occasional boss fight. Repeat ad nauseum. I couldn’t help myself but be reminded of old games like Final Fight and Double Dragon as I fought off the hordes of nearly identical bad guys. It’s mostly disappointing because the original game featured everything from wookies to Jawas. Why not include them in the sequel?

Save for a few moments, The Force Unleashed 2 is a pretty linear experience, and you won’t have much variation from the path the game wants you to take. A few of the quicktime events and boss battles are a bit tricky, but nothing was incredibly taxing and there’s no upgrading abilities here, so the Starkiller you start with, is the same that you end with – luckily though many of the enemies feel exactly the same throughout the title, meaning you’re not going to have a ton of trouble clearing it.

One standout area for the game though is clearly in its production values. Save for Darth Vader ( I couldn’t help but think of the Chad Vader series of viral videos when he was on screen), the voice acting is top notch, and you’ll be treated to one gorgeous set piece after another. The best moments of these set pieces are found in the game’s quick time events, which often require you to use force push to dodge enemies and debris. These moments are easily the best of the game, and the will keep you on the edge of your seat, even if the rest of the game doesn’t.

Blast Factor: Star Wars the Force Unleashed 2 isn’t a better game than its predecessor, nor is it a worse one – it simply is. Star Wars fans looking for a true saga experience are encouraged to wait for The Old Republic next year, but if you’re just looking to feel like a badass Jedi Knight who kills nameless enemies and asks questions later – you can’t go wrong with this uninspired, but fun sequel.

Attention Star Wars fans:

Do you have an extra quarter-million lying around?

The Darth Vader costume from “The Empire Strikes Back,” goes on sale at Christie’s in London on November 25, according to the Associated Press.

Also, here is another item for sale: James Bond’s silver Aston Martin DB5, which was driven by Sean Connery in “Goldfinger” and “Thunderball.” It will go up for auction Wednesday at RM Auctions Automobiles. It’s expected to go for about $5.5 million.

“Titanic," like the “Star Wars” movies, is getting the 3D treatment.

According to the Washington Post, one of the highest grossing films of all time is scheduled to be converted to 3D in time for a 2012 theatrical re-release.

Paramount is looking to roll their James Cameron blockbuster into theaters around the same that Darth Vader and Co. are scheduled to make their triumphant return in 3D. It will be between February and April of 2012.

April 15, 2012, marks the 100th anniversary of Titanic slipping into the icy Atlantic, and Paramount marks its own centennial the same month.

Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures, a free-to-play browser-based virtual world based on the Star Wars: The Clone Wars TV show, is now available to play at www.CloneWarsAdventures.com. Clone Wars Adventures, developed and published by Sony Online Entertainment, is a family-friendly game where players are able to battle alongside fan favorite Star Wars characters such as Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and others.

Clone Wars Adventures is aimed to serve as the ultimate virtual destination for fans of the TV series; players will be able to play a variety of minigames such as Droid Programming or Speeder Bike Racing, as well as participate in daily activities, events, and competitions. New content will be updated following new episodes of the TV series so that the game can be “seamlessly integrated” with the show.

“Clone Wars Adventures is authentic, easily accessible and action-packed,” said Mary Bihr, Global VP of Publishing, LucasArts. “We look forward to working with SOE to enrich the Clone Wars Adventures experience with new content as the TV series progresses.”

While Clone Wars Adventures will be free-to-play, like many other browser games it will feature a subscription level known as a Jedi Membership for $5.99 a month, in addition to offering players items such as legendary Star Wars outfits that will be available though micro-transactions using Station Cash, SOE’s virtual currency.

To play Clone Wars Adventures now please visit: http://www.CloneWarsAdventures.com/.

Sony Online Entertainment announced today that a free-to-play game based on Cartoon Network’s Star Wars: The Clone Wars is currently under development by the studio that’s given gamers Star Wars Galaxies, Free Realms, and some game you might have heard of before, called EverQuest. Titled Clone Wars Adventures, it’s a new MMO that will offer both free and subscription-based models, and will be out this fall on the PC.

“Clone Wars Adventures is the ultimate destination for fans of The Clone Wars series and will bring the action and excitement of the show to players online so they can experience The Clone Wars universe firsthand" said John Smedley, president of Sony Online Entertainment. "We’ve worked with LucasArts and Lucasfilm to create a virtual world that is seamlessly integrated with the TV series and a true extension of the show. It’s also just flat-out fun to play."

With Clone Wars Adventures a new generation of Star Wars fans can become the next great hero of the Republic and take their rightful place alongside the Jedi, Padawan and Clone Troopers.  Players can speed through space in a starfighter, take out waves of battle droids in Tower Defense or test their brains with challenging Droid Programming puzzles.  Players can also purchase legendary Star Wars outfits, items and accessories through micro-transactions using Station Cash, SOE’s virtual currency.

Features:

• Extend the Fantasy: Kids no longer have to wait until the next exciting episode of Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated TV series to continue exploring and enjoying the Star Wars universe.  With Clone Wars Adventures, kids can go online to experience exciting thrills as you duel iconic adversaries with your own custom lightsaber, speed through the galaxy in your starfighter, defeat enemies and take down starships.  Adventure online to discover your destiny!
• Play Free or Upgrade: Clone Wars Adventures is a free-to-play game, but players who want to take the galactic action to the next level can purchase a monthly membership.  Players can also buy cool Star Wars universe items from within the game through micro-transactions using Station Cash.
• Minigames & More: From Droid Programming to Speeder Bike Racing, Clone Wars Adventures puts you in the driver seat to experience epic action in immersive minigames that take you to your favorite locations in the galaxy.  Become the proud owner of a tricked out Droid pet or throw a party in your player house – the fun is endless!
• Fun With Friends: Whether you are on adventures with old friends or competing for leaderboard status with new ones, Clone Wars Adventures is a lively virtual world that connects players in fun and safe ways.  Show off your achievements in your Trophy Room, use safe chat and emoticons to express yourself and celebrate in-world events with the entire galaxy!
• Embedded Card Game: Clone Wars Adventures card battles lets players pit a variety of fun characters, creatures and vehicles from The Clone Wars television show against one another in a unique, fast-paced combat similar to the gameplay styles of traditional games such as War and Concentration.
• Kid-Friendly: Parental controls allow for the customization of safety options, including pre-canned chat and playtime settings for younger players.

May the Fourth be with you. Right in time for Star Wars day, a release date for Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II has been set.

LucasArts today revealed, via the game’s Facebook page of all places, that the sequel to 2008 original, will hit shelves October 26, 2010.

It’ll arrive on Xbox 360, PS3, Nintendo DS, Wii, PSP on that date, but we can be damn sure we’ll see more of it this June in Los Angeles at E3 2010.

If you ever wondered what the cross-breed of Pokemon and Star Wars would look like, wonder no more, as we have documented evidence of just such an unnatural occurence.

Flickr user tranive went to the lab and returned with these stunningly perfect results.

For shots of each individual, head to tranive’s Flickr page. It’s well worth a look.

via Kotaku

Hey Star Wars fans, gear from the critically acclaimed and multi-million selling “The Force Unleashed” is now available in the Xbox 360 Avatar Marketplace.

Available for paid download is everything from Stormtrooper outfits to a Starkiller Lightsaber to an Imperial Officer outfit and much more.

The gear will run you anywhere from 80 Microsoft Points ($1) for a simple t-shirt to 400 MS Points ($5) for the aforementioned Lightsaber.

Maybe consider consulting Yoda before purchasing?

Full list of available items at the Xbox Live Web Marketplace Force Unleashed page.

LucasArts and Traveler’s Tales embark upon another noble space quest in LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars, the latest LEGO-themed game announced today.

It’ll be based on the popular cartoon program, which is a highly-stylized bridge between the events of the films “Attack of the Clones” and “Revenge of the Sith,” and if it follows in the now normative trend of excellence, we can expect a hilarious fun time in the impending adventure.

“LucasArts continues to set the bar for next-generation family entertainment,” said Darrell Rodriguez, president of LucasArts. “The LEGO Star Wars franchise is a massive hit with fans, bringing in sales of over 20 million units worldwide. We’re thrilled to extend this experience to LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars, delivering the humor and fun players expect from this award winning franchise.”

The game will feature all the characters you know and love from the television show and follow the events of the first two seasons, as well as introduce a new level builder as well head-to-head combat moves and more bells and whistles to be announced later.

What’s interesting about this one, as opposed to other LEGO-based titles, is that this game will be built off a franchise whose characters are already cartoon and stylized. How will that transition work? Your guess is as good as mine.

LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars comes to Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, DS, PSP, Wii and PC at a to-be-determined date this Fall.

The Star Wars franchise; from film to video games and everything in between is a gargantuan beast, and it’s one that made the original cast of the movies mighty famous. But Mark Hamill, the man we know as Luke Skywalker has never, believe it or not, provided voice work for Luke in any Star Wars video game.

It’s not like the man doesn’t know his way around a mic and voice-work. His voice has appeared on everything from episodes of television shows Robot Chicken and Futurama, and video games including this summer’s runaway hit Batman Arkham Asylum, in which he voiced The Joker.

So why no Star Wars voice-work?

In an interview with PC Zone, the man, the myth, the legend said:

“When I played Luke from 1977 to 1983, games were in their infancy, I talked about turning a page and starting a new chapter. Those movies had a beginning, middle and end, and everyone sort of moved on… I don’t really know how to answer that, because I’ve never been asked to do it. That’s fine, though.”

Hamill, now 58, went on to say he’s too old for the role now.

“If you’re playing Luke the way he was in the films — from his late teens to mid-’20s — I’ve outgrown the role.”

Now it makes sense.

Source: Kotaku

When BioWare and Electronic Arts release Star Wars: The Old Republic, the massively-scaled and fully-encompassing MMORPG sometime this year (2010 finally!), it will steal the lives away from millions upon millions, and this is why.

Here’s an interview, from the guys at GiantBomb with more guys from BioWare, chatting, at length, about the MMO.

Let us know, in the comments, what you’re excited about with this title. It will likely draw me back to the MMO-world. Here. We. Go.

A snow storm made this West Chesterfield, N.H. reader’s mini gas grill look like Darth Vader

It’s actually an uncanny resemblance. Thankfully, the snow did not make the grill look like Jesus, or we’d have a serious religious phenomenon on our hands in New Hampshire.

I suppose I had a weird video game upbringing.

Between friends’ houses and arcades, I played everything growing up, but what I had at my house was different. I owned an NES, but a Genesis instead of SNES. I owned a Dreamcast and a PlayStation but an Xbox instead of PlayStation 2. Now I focus on PlayStation 3 instead of 360, but occasionally play Wii.

Though I admit I mostly play Wii for Virtual Console lately. And I recently bought the retro video game player on Think Geek.

And all along, I always loved PC games. It was a victory to figure out the perfect Autoexec.bat and Config.sys file so that I could get most of the games to run on my old 486SX PC that ran Windows 3.1 — it came with 4MB of RAM, but we upgraded it to a whopping 8MB and added a CD-ROM drive.

One thing I did miss out on: I didn’t play the Final Fantasy series growing up.

There have been some amazing games made lately, but nothing has ever sucked me into a virtual world like some of the games I played when I was young. Even with the realistic sounds and graphics of today’s games, it was the nuances of childhood games that stuck.

Here is my list of the 10 games I played the most.

10. The “Strike” franchise (Genesis)

Jungle Strike, Urban Strike and Desert Strike. Three buttons, three weapons. You move, shoot, reload and hope for an armor crate eventually.

The games are the purest example of simplicity. There’s some story mixed in, but really these are arcade games. They’re fun, challenging, addictive, and satisfying.

9. Contra (NES)

Up up, down down, left right, left right, B-A-B-A, Start. That got you 30 lives, instead of the impossible three that you started with.

Though, I beat the game on 4 lives on the Think Geek retro player recently. It’s like riding a bike. Just get that first “Spread” weapon and never lose it.

Contra is a shooting-based platformer with sequels that range from impossibly difficult to absurdly bad. But the original stands as one of the best games ever made, and it was one of the first multiplayer action games that felt rewarding enough to repeat.

Because everyone wants to relive that ride home in a helicopter.

8. Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES)

Do I really need to explain much here? The platformer genre never got any better after this. The Mario Bros. were in their golden age here.

Mushroom houses, whistles, hammer brothers, sand, water, fire and floating gunships combine to send you on a trip you’ll not soon forget.

This was also a big game to hit with Game Genie codes, especially in — I think it was — World 4 with all the sky levels.

7. Shining Force II (Genesis)

Shining Force will make the list twice. Remember, this is a list of games I dedicated the most time to. Shining Force II was a lot harder than the original Shining Force. It wasn’t as intuitive, and though I played the original a lot more often, it was the sequel that eluded me for a long time, especially after the Sega Channel dropped the game from its list.

For the longest time, I couldn’t get past a certain point where I had to interact with a hollow oak tree to obtain an ancient caravan that would let me progress further in the game. It was a shock when I finally figured it out.

6. Fighters Anthology (PC/DOS)

The entire PC combat flight simulation genre came to an apex here. Jane’s and Electronic Arts had success with both Navy Fighters and Advanced Tactical Fighter. So when they combined the games into one title and added several more campaigns, the result was a three-inch thick box with an (unnecessary) novel-sized manual and two CD-ROMs.

The game was sick. You could spend days flying around Vietnam, Russia, Ukraine, China and even Cuba. You career spanned some 50 years, from F-4′s in Nam to F-14s in a 1998 Russian invasion of Ukraine to F-22′s and X-31′s in Egypt in the early 21st century.

The game also had a rich following from third parties who developed an assortment of modifications, including new plans, weapons, buildings and even nukes.

5. Shining Force (Genesis)

This game, too, disappeared from Sega Channel. It disappeared before I could beat it. Years later, I would trade in some then worthless Dreamcast games for the Shining Force cartridge.

It was actually emotional to beat this game. The strategy, the sacrifice. The game told a story and forced the imagination into overdrive.

4. Doom and Doom 2(PC/DOS)

I still play these next four games whenever I can. Doom started it all for me. It was the first game I ever installed from a CD-ROM.

I played the shareware first episode of Doom for months. It was only nine levels (I forget if the bonus level was in the shareware), but there was something about shooting imps and shotgun-toting former human sergeants that’s still addicting.

We didn’t get The Ultimate Doom, which included the three original Doom episodes and a fourth called “Thy Flesh Consumed,” until years after we bought Doom 2.

Enter Doom 2. Now there’s 32 levels.

The levels were better, the enemies were more plentiful and there were two new weapons. I’d brag — I have gone through the entire game without cheats on Nightmare. I probably can’t do it anymore.

The only way we ever improved on Doom 2 was by playing Doom 2 for Windows 95 over our home network, without lag.

Be thankful kids, Doom’s deathmatch paved a blood-stained road that leads right to your Slayer matches in Halo 3.

3. Phantasy Star IV

There’s a healthy mix of action and RPG in this mix of games, but nothing (except maybe the next title) can possibly match the depth I found in Phantasy Star IV.

Not only was the game a graphical wonder with depth of character development and attack technique, but it was a wicked long game to beat. The game goes on forever, and you can’t just skip through it. You have to fight every battle and gain every character level to even have a chance at taking on the final boss.

Phantasy Star IV is also in this sort of cyberpunk post-modern fantasy world with remnants of ancient, advanced technology despite the primitive, agrarian lifestyle of the characters. That makes more sense if you played Phantasy Star I-III, but the fourth installment was the best.

It was such a perfectly made game. It was stylized but not over the top. It had dialog you could understand. It had character development. I dare you not to shed a tear when Alys dies.

2. Shadowrun (Genesis)

Karma is something you earn.

I still wish there was a 16-bit sequel to Shadowrun. I didn’t like the popular SNES Shadowrun RPG. It was the totally different Genesis game that owned me.

It’s all about depth. Character development, conversations and interactions, weapons, magic, guns, computers, dragons, elves, trolls and evil mega corporations in 21st century Seattle result in one of my favorite games and #2 on my most played list. You could even ignore the plot and become a mercenary or freelance computer hacker.

This was Shadowrun. There was as much reading as there was shooting. Don’t even talk to me about the newer Xbox 360/PC game that happens to be called Shadowrun. It’s a disgrace. It’s pitiful. It’s sacrilegious.

1. Tie Fighter Collector’s Edition (PC/DOS)

The hair on the back of my neck stood up and a fight or flight response triggered the first time Admiral Harkov betrayed me to die in a Rebel minefield while flying Tie Interceptor Gamma 1.

I was doomed. The Victory Class Star Destroyer Protector was firing on me and a Rebel cruiser dropped out of hyperspace to back up the traitors. I, a loyal Imperial naval aviator, was singled out for a creative extermination.

Then the cavalry came. The Modified Frigate Osprey, carrying shielded Tie Interceptors from Theta group arrived to pick me up from the clutches of certain death.

I was born after the original Star Wars trilogy and way before Episodes I-III. I didn’t read the books growing up. It was this game, which still ranks as one of the best computer games ever released, that gave me my Star Wars education and left me rooting for the Empire from then onward.

Tie Fighter Collector’s CD puts you in the cockpit of the Empire and immerses the player in a world of intrigue, open war and piracy. The full voice acting (one of the first games to do it) and sound effects are forever burned into my mind. And when the throes of dementia take me later in life and I end up spouting off “Die Rebel Scum” and “Peace between the Dimok and Ripoblus!” in my nursing home, you’ll know why.

BlackMonkeys.de, a German PC mod group finally manifested what nerd gamers have only dreamed of — a fusion of Call of Duty 4 and the famed Star Wars franchise.

Dubbed “Star Wars Mod: Galactic Warfare,” this PC mod is wonderfully assembled with clear attention paid to fine detail. Have a look.

www.BlackMonkeys.de ed.

Olivia Munn is smokin’ hot, but she is also a nerd-icon for lovers of tech, gaming, and pop-culture and today she’s offering aspiring film-makers the opportunity to have her star in their Star Wars themed geeky motion picture.

If you want to get up close and personal with Olivia you’ll want to craft a top tier pitch video, submit it to this contest page, and pray to the gods of sexiness that Olivia finds it “appropriately geeky.”

Should she enjoy your pitch and choose to greenlight the production, you’ll earn a $5,000 production budget andhave 6 hours of shooting time with Olivia, so make sure Chewy knows his lines and Leia has her hair fixed properly before you start filming!

The contest stops accepting entries September 3, so grab your friends, put your heads together, and pitch an idea to Olivia before it’s too late!

Comic-Con is only two short months away, and Gentle Giant, Ltd. is already whipping out some statuesque deliciousness for your collections.

Continuing with their Girls of “Star Wars” theme is an Oola mini-bust, plus Luke Skywalker and Ewok statues.

There also are some “Friday the 13th” goodies, which Gentle Giant said would be ready for shipping in time for Halloween ’09.

Comic-Con attendees can be sure to get a first look at some of Gentle Giant’s newest and coolest collectibles this July, and Blast will be there viewing with you.

Here is more information on their newest items:

Oola Mini-Bust at $59.99
License: “Star Wars”
Item Number: 12145
UPC: 8-71810-00757-8
Height: 6″
Release Date: Summer 2009

Oola Mini Bust

Oola the Twi’lek dancer and unfortunate slave to Jabba the Hutt. Dressed in fish net and leather, Oola was the star attraction in Jabba’s court. In the end, Oola refused to submit to Jabba’s will and met with a grizzly death at the hands of the monstrous Rancor.

Accurately detailed, hand painted to perfection and features real fabric fish net body suit. This 1:6th scale mini-bust is a limited edition that comes with a matching, numbered certificate of authenticity.

Luke Skywalker in Bespin Fatigues Statue at $145.00
License: “Star Wars”
Item Number: 9074
UPC: 8-71810-00155-2
Height: 12″
Release Date: Summer 2009

Luke Skywalker in Bespin Fatigues Statue

Luke Skywalker dressed in his Bespin fatigues and straight out of 1980′s “Empire Strikes Back.” With Light saber drawn, Luke will meet with the most difficult dilemma of his life when he learns the dark overlord, Darth Vader, is his true father.

This finely sculpted, film-accurate depiction of Luke Skywalker is cast in high quality poly-stone and features an injection-molded light saber. Strictly limited and hand-numbered with a matching certificate of authenticity. Comes fully painted and ready to display.

Wicket W. Warrick Animated Maquette at $59.99
License: “Star Wars”
Item Number: 11796
UPC: 8-71810-00758-5
Height: 4.5″
Release Date: Summer 2009

Wicket W. Warrick animated maquette

Wicket the Ewok gets the animated treatment in this stylized poly-stone statue. First seen in episode VI, “Return of the Jedi,” Wicket befriends Princess Leia Organa and helps the rebel alliance defend the forest moon of Endor from the attacking imperial forces.

Strictly limited, painted and ready to display, Wicket stands 4.5″ tall and is in scale with all of Gentle Giant’s animated “Star Wars” maquettes. Hand-numbered with matching certificate of authenticity.

“Friday the 13th” Jason Hockey Mask Ring at $15.99
License: “Friday the 13th”
Size 10 Item No: 11801
UPC: 8-71810-00748-6
Size 12 Item No: 80011
UPC: 8-71810-00753-0
Release Date:Fall 2009

"Friday the 13th" Jason Hockey Mask Ring

The iconic “Friday the 13th” Jason Voorhees hockey mask! Since 1980 Jason Voorhees and the “Friday the 13th” franchise have been slaying audiences worldwide.

This silver replica hockey mask ring comes in common men’s sizes 10 and 12. Made of a durable base alloy metal and finished with a high polish and custom antiqued accents.

Minimum quantity: 5 per stock-keeping unit.

Jason Statue at $145
License: “Friday the 13th”
Item Number: 10700
UPC: 8-71810-00495-9
Height: 7″ scale
Release Date: Fall 2009

Jason Voorhees statue

Jason Voorhees! With over 300 kills to his credit, it’s no wonder that the guy needs to sit down and take a break for a minute. Seen here in an outtake from the “Freddy vs. Jason” feature film; Jason sits atop his old childhood bed and reflects on”¦well simpler days. Note the sinister Freddy Krueger glove and trademark Fedora in the piece! A fantastic companion to Gentle Giant’s previous “Nightmare on Elm St.” statue.

This piece is hand painted and cast in a durable poly-stone material. Another strictly limited edition just in time for Halloween. Includes matching hand-numbered certificate of authenticity.

“Friday the 13th,” Jason’s Machete Pendant at $ 12.99
License: “Friday the 13th”
Item Number: 10705
UPC: 8-71810-00499-7
Height: 2″
Release Date: Fall 2009

Make a statement with the “Friday the 13th” machete pendant. Just in time for Halloween, this 2″ pendant is the perfect accessory for any horror fan. Based off the favorite weapon of slasher horror superstar Jason Voorhees. Made of base metal Alloy with inscribed “Friday the 13th” logo on one side.

What’s this, a second game announcement preceding the to-be-epic E3 2009 conference next week?‚  Indeed, only this time it’s not of a gore-fest Gladiator game, it’s the often rumored, but now confirmed, Star Wars Battlefront Elite Squadron for the handheld systems, DS and PSP, to hit shelves this fall.

LucasArts, creators of damn fine Star Wars games, is at it again, this time with lofty promises that Elite Squadron will be the “deepest and most action-packed Star Wars Battlefront game ever.”‚  Sure, that’s just marketing mumbo jumbo, but fans of the Battlefront series are a dedicated and critical bunch, so let’s just hope LucasArts knows what they’re doing, as they also announced a fresh take on the series.

That new spin is the ability to start your fight on the comfort of terra firma, then commandeer a vehicle and fight your way through space, and finally land your ship on interstellar-traveling capital starships and raise hell there, too.

Furthermore, LucasArts seems to be pushing the character customization button this time around, and pushing it a lot.‚  On the PSP you’ll have the ability to deck out your hero with tons of weapons, armor, even manipulate their species, gender, appearance, and strengths, among other unlisted (at the moment) and unlockable goodies.

Everybody loves multiplayer, right?‚  You betcha, and in Elite Squadron on PSP you can take to the skies, or ground, in a frenzied 16 player all-out battle, or on the DS with up to four players in a smaller, but probably equally fun skirmish.

Check out the first batch of screenshots for the title below in their awesomeness for PSP, and with a sense of meh for DS.

LucasArts Battlefront: Elite Squadron

PSP

PSP

PSP

PSP

DS

DS

DS

Cartoon Network has updated it’s lineup with 19 new programs, including original movies and its own reality series.

Stuart Snyder, President and COO of Turner Broadcasting Animation and Young Adults and Kids Media Division, said in a press release “[Cartoon Network] built tremendous momentum over the last year, both on air and through our thriving digital businesses, so we’re thrilled to introduce new content that our audience cannot find anywhere else. Today marks the next big step forward in an evolution that is helping us reach our goal of becoming a dominant youth culture brand.”

John O’Hara, Executive VP and GM of Marketing has stated that he stands by the current aging form of advertising in their shows. While recent reports have them climbing personal charts, Nielson has them inching barely a smidgen of success with their “Star Wars: Clone Wars” among recent cable ratings. Cartoon Network has a lot to do to start making the impact they’re looking for in a demographic as malleable, but fickle, as children. So with new “diverse” programming lined up they expect to finally move in a new direction, hopefully toward doing some damage to the children’s power house that is Nickelodeon.

One volley includes a team-up (no pun intended) between Cartoon Network and the NBA. Boston Celtic’s guard Eddie House and his 7 year old son, Jaelen, will be featured in a ‘lifestyle’ series (read:reality show) of their own titled My Dad’s a Pro. It’s a prototype for future merging of shows involving the CN and the NBA brand.

Hot on the heels of “Total Drama Island” comes its successor, “Total Drama Action.” True to reality TV shows, “Total Drama Action” has 14 contestants facing kid-friendly challenges on an abandoned film studio back-lot, all inspired by movies.

From Cake Distribution and Fresh Animation, “Stoked,” is about surfers and their lives. Other reality series in production are “The Outsiders,” “Survive This,” “Destroy Build Destroy,” “Head Rush,” “Dude What Would Happen” and “Bobb’e Says.”

Another attempt is the original movie line up, starting with well established, “Ben Ten: Alien Swarm” and “Scooby Doo, The Mystery Begins!.”

Cartoon Network then takes a chance with a personal favorite “Firebreather” and “Tiger’s Apprentice.” Creator Phil Hester says of “Firebreather” going to Cartoon Network, “we’ve known about it for a while, and there’s actual work being done on it. We’ve seen a treatment of the screenplay so things are moving along. It’s more than just an initial pickup.

“Since it’s two hours,” Hester continues, “it’ll expand on [the mini-series] and dig deeper into certain aspects of it. It will expand certain characters that we introduce in our comic, but don’t really get into. It will expand on the back story.”

To provide more of whats been at the forefront, the Ben Ten franchise returns for “Ben Ten: Evolutions.” “The Mysterious Misadventures of Flapjack” and “Batman: The Brave and the Bold” also make a return for another season of proven entertainment.

On the scripted-live action side of things, “Unnatural History” and “Prepped” pilots will try their hand at entertaining the young adult crowd.

Blast readers would do well to keep an eye on “Firebreather.” We all know Adult Swim is lacking lately, and this could be the next big thing.

Cartoon Network is owned by Time Warner.

NEW YORK — I can still remember watching the DVD of “Clerks 2″ back in 2007. I’m a sucker for trailers, but wasn’t especially paying attention to them this time – a by-product of trying to watch a movie while being with friends. All of the sudden, I start hearing “Star Wars” references coming from the TV and realized, after watching the entirety of the “Fanboys” trailer, I had fallen in love with a movie concept.

It took until Feb. 6, 2009 for the film to be released into theaters.

Kellen Rice and I were lucky enough to catch the film while were in NYC for New York Comic-con as it is in painfully limited release. It was the right audience to see the movie with because we were surrounded by nerds just as dedicated to “Star Wars” as we were. In fact, if you have never seen “Star Wars,” this movie wouldn’t even blip on your radar. On that same trend, if you have never seen “Star Wars” (or didn’t like it), don’t bother going to see this movie.

“Fanboys” is nothing more than a loving homage to how much the actors involved (Sam Huntington, Dan Fogler, Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Kevin Smith and Kristen Bell, to name some people you’d recognize) love “Star Wars.” And they love “Star Wars.” The movie is so chock full of references that there wouldn’t be a single ounce of humor with out it.

The film is set circa 1999 (all the way down to “Lump” and thick square laptops) months before the release of “Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace.” Eric (Sam Huntington) decides that the best way to repair the three years of anger that had ruined his relationship with ex-best friend Linus (Chris Marquette) – for a reason that will remain unnamed due to how big of a spoiler it is — he and the rest of their old group of friends; Hutch (Dan Fogler) and Windows (Jay Baruchel), should travel to Skywalker Ranch and steal “The Phantom Menace” from right under George Lucas’ nose.

There were a lot of shout outs to the Star Wars culture; like questioning whether Boba Fett really was a bad ass just because he had a jet pack and recalling a three-year-long argument between Eric and Linus over whether Luke really knew Leia was his sister or not when he kissed her, as well as the ongoing Star Wars versus Star Trek feud (just watch the trailer).

But it’s the “in retrospect” moments that really give the movie its humor. There is one scene where a character played by Seth Rogen is showing off his “Star Wars” tattoos: the Empire on one shoulder and the Rebel Alliance on the other. Then he turns around, lifts the shirt off his back and reveals a huge tattoo of young Anakin Skywalker alongside Jar Jar Binks. “Jar Jar Binks, man,” he predicted, “that dude is going to be awesome!”

“Fanboys” is hysterical – if you get it. It is a film that is meant to honor, in a funny way, a film that the people behind it clearly love with all their hearts. Sure it gets outlandish at times, but the way the fan culture is described is not as off-base as those uneducated in “Star Wars” would like to believe. If you think the final scene where Eric and friends are camped out outside the movie theater for the release of the film is a bit out of proportion, just watch this:

But there was a lot of obvious love that went into the making of “Fanboys” and it makes someone who loves “Star Wars” as much as they do appreciate the fact they made the movie to begin with.

The Force clearly was with Kyle Newman and Adam Goldberg in the decision to make the movie, though it probably took a Jedi mind trick for the studio execs to get it into the theaters. Which is undoubtedly why it took three years to release.

It’s true that your eyes can deceive you, but on certain occasions, stretching out with your feelings alone is overrated.

Case in point: developer Bioware has released the first in a series of video diaries chronicling the evolution of its much-anticipated MMORPG, this time choosing to focus on the creation of the planet Tython.‚  Rather than hew to the traditional elemental design philosophy of Star Wars games past (“Hey, it’s an ice planet, kinda like–oh, never mind, it is Hoth”),‚  Bioware’s concept artists (and the designers who love them) have modeled‚  a variety of terrains in an effort to keep things fresh during the hundreds of hours they hope you’ll spend romping around their virtual playground.

The video provides an in-depth look at Bioware’s creative process (as well as the sweet action figures on the desks of the creators), so wannabe artists, writers, and figurine collectors may find the content especially edifying. Everyone else‚  can content themselves with the extensive in-game footage, which demonstrates the full power of this battle sta-er, game engine.

Looks like everything is proceeding as Bioware has foreseen, but don’t take our word for it: check out the video below.

Unless you’ve been serving time in the spice mines of Kessel, you’ve probably been following Star Wars: The Old Republic’s development with as much interest as the late Senator Palpatine followed Anakin Skywalker’s. The upcoming MMORPG from developer Bioware and publisher LucasArts was unveiled last October, and has already come a long way, judging by Bioware’s latest media update. New wallpapers have also been made available, for those of you looking to decorate your datapads.

The game is set roughly 300 years after the events of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic I & II, and will feature Bioware’s usual plot-oriented approach to gameplay, centered on the eternal battle between the Jedi and those pesky Sith. Players will be able to choose sides and wield the Force (or a good blaster, if hokey religions and ancient weapons aren’t your thing) for either faction, alongside a host of AI companions. The game has thus far been confirmed only for PC, but console versions are re-port-edly under consideration (that joke’s for all you Jar Jar fans out there).‚  We won’t see the final product for some time, but there’s no reason to have a bad feeling about this one.

THQ Wireless has released Star Wars Sound Board, a Lucasfilm-licensed application that allows users to replay sound bites from the Star Wars series, they announced recently.

Quotes from characters such as Darth Vader, Yoda, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and C-3PO are included, as well as sound effects including the Lightsaber, R2-D2′s beeps, Chewbacca’s growls, and TIE Fighters flying.

Star Wars Sound Board is available now from the App Store for $1.

“I’m not homeless yet.”

It’s‚ a fairly low-key way to express the kind of professional success illustrator Grant Gould is experiencing.

Recently hired by Lucasfilm Ltd., Gould is part of a team that’s‚ working on The Clone Wars online web comics. Released in tandem with the television show, the comics will supplement the plots and characters found in the weekly episodes.

Star Wars fans are no stranger to Gould’s work. His art can be found all over the official site as well as illustrations and “How to Draw” tutorials, as well as on the Topps Revenge of the Sith Artist Sketch card series.

Gould thanks fellow artist >Tom Hodges, who is also working on the online Clone Wars comic, for his start in professional illustration in 2004. Hodges, who was working on an online strip for Hyperspace, a section of StarWars.com, told Gould about the opportunity to draw for the Topps series. As a fan of the Star Wars saga, Gould jumped at the chance to work on such a well known story.

“I enjoy drawing characters that people are familiar with, but giving them my own spin,” he said in a recent interview with Blast.

With his first professional illustrating job under his belt, Gould continued to work on other projects such as trading card sets for many popular comics and television series along with personal commissions.

“So I knew I had to make a decision — start cutting back on the illustration jobs, or quit my day job and try my hand at fulltime freelance illustration,” Gould said. “I guess I figured I’m still young enough where if I completely screw up, no harm, no foul — at least I can say I tried it out.”

“I took my chances and quit my day job, and dove headfirst into the scary world of fulltime freelance.”

Scary for many reasons,‚ not the smallest of which was the fact that Gould had little formal training and education in illustration.

“In college (Brown College in Minnesota) I had a few classes on ‘life drawing’ and such, but I would say for the most part I’m self-taught … Illustration is like any skill in that the more you do it, the more you learn and the better you get.”

Gould has had many informal‚ chances to learn, as well. “In high school, I was the guy who would draw silly cartoons and doodle Ninja Turtles in my notebooks.”

Gould was a graphic designer for about seven years and drawing in his free time before turning his attentions to illustrating full time. “I think anatomy books and tutorial books helped a lot, too, in my younger years,” he said.

Finally, Gould recognizing that the skill of observation as helped his artwork a lot. “Watching how people move, studying body shapes and faces (both in real life and in cartoons and movies), and really noticing how things fit together — I think all of it contributes to how I draw.”

And how he draws has gotten him where he is today.

“Now that I’m working on the Clone Wars online comic, it feels like I’ve graduated and am getting to play with the big boys,” Gould said.‚ He’s currently also working on a comic of his own. “I wrote and drew my own creator-owned graphic novel, and it’s coming out this November.” Wolves of Odin, as the name implies, focuses on Norse mythology with a bit of the supernatural thrown in.

“It’s genuinely exciting to wake up and work on something that you love…I think Young Grant would be very happy to see where I’m at today in my career.”

After all, he’s still not homeless.

In a recent review of George Lucas’ newest box-office hit but critical flop, “Star Wars: The Clone Wars”, I stated that as a writer, director, and creator, Lucas had not really created any new material over the past few years. To back up that statement, I have analyzed Lucas’ creative history with help from the Internet Movie Database.

As a college student at the University of Southern California, Lucas was at his most inventive. Over the course of three years, Lucas created nine short films:

1965 – Look at Life
1966 – 1:42:08: A Man and His Car
1966 – Freiheit
1966 – Herbie
1967 – Electronic Labyrinth THX 1138 4EB
1967 – Anyone Lived in a Pretty How Town
1967 – 6-18-67
1967 – The Emperor
1968 – Filmmaker

Among those was “Electronic Labyrinth THX 1138 4EB,” Lucas got the opportunity to recreate in 1971 as “THX 1138,” his first true film. The plot evolved from an Orwellian-type story of a man identified only as 1138 trying to escape a totalitarian future, to a more involved tale of “1138″ rebelling against his society’s structured rules and, by not taking the drugs used to control their emotions, accidentally impregnating LUH 3417. They get thrown into jail and plan their escape.

Coming only two years later in 1973 was “American Graffiti,” the defining story of its time. Still shown in rock history classes around the country, “American Graffiti” tells the story of two high school students’ last wild night before their first day at college. With its iconic soundtrack featuring the likes of Chuck Berry, The Beach Boys and Buddy Holly, “American Graffiti” is a 70s classic.

And then, on May 25, 1977, “Star Wars” was released. Back then, it wasn’t “Episode IV,” and an entire generation of super nerds had not spent their time ingesting the hundreds of books, videogames, comics, and films that had been spawned from Lucas’ genre-changing film. Back then, it was still just an imaginative political statement. That’s when things began to change.

After creating a follow-up to “American Graffiti” entitled “More American Graffiti,” Lucas made a sequel to his money-making and Oscar-winning Star Wars franchise called “Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back” and it was clear with its ridiculous cliff-hanger (“Luke, I am your father”) that there was going to be at least one more film in the series. But with “Star Wars IV: A New Hope” being only the fourth episode, Lucas had left himself open to create episodes one through three, and also a hypothetical seven through nine taking place after the events of “Return of the Jedi.”

At the same time, in 1981, Lucas’ good friend Steven Spielberg asked him if he wanted to team up with him and create the franchise that eventually became the Indiana Jones series (named Indiana after Lucas’ own dog). “Raiders of the Lost Ark” was followed by “Temple of Doom” in 1984 and (seemingly) concluded with “The Last Crusade” in 1989.

A promising start to a successful career.

So what happened between then and now? Sure, Lucas’ has had continued success, and has never had to scrape pennies together from his couch in Skywalker Ranch, but still, there is a certain quality drop in the films being produced. At first, George Lucas was creating some of the most important films of our time with important political statements that showed his range of creativity. But “Star Wars” stopped him. At age 33, Lucas hit his peak.

Since 1977, Lucas has worked on 13 “Star Wars” features, five “Star Wars” TV shows, 16 “Indiana Jones” features, and one “Indiana Jones” TV show. That doesn’t include the countless spin-off novels, novelizations, video games and comic books.

And he’s only worked on three other projects.

Of those three (“Captain EO” in 1986, “Willow” in 1988, and “Radioland Murders” in 1994), only “Willow” made a splash big enough to be reminisced about today. Lucas created nine individual projects over three years in college. He’s created seven individual projects over 37 years in his professional career.

Please, Lucas, we beg you: something new! Give us something powerful along the lines of “American Graffiti” or “THX 1138″. Give us something to redefine our generation by like “Star Wars” or “Indiana Jones” did in the past.

Just please, please, please stop giving us the same old shit.

Below is a list of films Lucas has worked on in his professional career. The ones with one star are Star Wars related, and the ones with two stars are Indiana Jones related.

1971 – THX 1138
1973 – American Graffiti
1977 – Star Wars IV: A New Hope*
1979 – More American Graffiti
1980 – Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back*
1981 – Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark**
1983 – Star Wars VI: Return of the Jedi*
1984 – Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom**
1984 – The Ewok Adventures*
1985 – “Ewoks” (TV series)*
1985 – “Droids” (TV series)*
1985 – Ewoks: The Battle for Endor*
1986 – The Great Heep*
1986 – Captain EO
1988 – Willow
1989 - Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade**
1989 – Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation**
1992 – Indiana Jed**
1992-1993 – “The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles” (TV series)**
1994 – Radioland Murders
1995 – Young Indiana Jones and the Attack of the Hawkmen**
1995 – Young Indiana Jones and the Treasure of the Peacock’s Eye**
1997 – Star Wars Animated Adventures: Droids*
1999 – The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Adventures in the Secret Service**
1999 – The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Masks of Evil**
1999 - The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Spring Break Adventure**
1999 – The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: The Trenches of Hell**
1999 – Star Wars: The Dark Redemption*
1999 – Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace*
2002 – Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones*
2004 – Treasure of the Hidden Planet*
2003-2005 - “Star Wars: Clone Wars” (TV series)*
2005 – Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith*
2007 – The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: My First Adventure**
2007 – The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: The Perils of Cupid**
2007 – The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Journey of Radiance**
2007 – The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Demons of Deception**
2008 – “The Clone Wars” (TV series)*
2008 – Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull**
2008 – Star Wars: The Clone Wars*
2009 – “Untitled Star Wars TV Series” (TV series)*

George Lucas just needs to stop.

With “Star Wars: The Clone Wars,” Lucas has set a new low for milking a series until it’s worthless. While the recent episodes one through three of the Star Wars saga were not the greatest pieces of film literature (Lucas even admitted in interviews that he rushed episodes one and two so he could work on three), they were still fun and profitable. “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” was mediocre but charming, and made the money that its inevitable sequel probably won’t, but it was still Harrison Ford and therefore fun. “Clone Wars” has no such saving grace.

Sure it was a film marketing towards kids, but movies such as “WALL-E” have taught us that kids movies can be for adults too. “Clone Wars” dialogue consisted of bad one-liners and nicknames such as “Skyguy” for Anakin Skywalker and “Are-twoey” for R2-D2. Plus there was the five-minute-long plot and Jabba the Hutt’s flamboyantly feminine uncle Zero (somehow Jabba managed to have a son and an uncle when Hutts are asexual in the Star Wars universe, but we won’t get into that).

Watching the action sequences felt like watching the CGI sequences of a (yes, Star Wars) video game, and not in a good way. Perhaps “Clone Wars” had once been intended to be a video game itself, but once Samuel L. Jackson and Christopher Lee signed on to do their respective voices, Lucas had decided to just steal the video game footage and offer it to a wider, higher paying audience. Fortunately with games like “Star Wars: Force Unleashed” coming out, we have something to look forward to that hasn’t been done over three times.

As for fitting into the Star Wars universe, where did Anakin’s newfound “Clone Wars” apprentice Ahsoka between when “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” ended and “Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith” began? Maybe we’ll get a comic book strip or some webisodes drawing on a dead plot line for another 10 years.

The original “Star Wars” came out in 1977. The original “Indiana Jones” came out 1981. It’s been about three decades, Lucas. Go make something new.

The only reason “Clone Wars” gets half a star is because it’s Star Wars, not because it’s quality.

Here is an official Lucas Arts trailer video for the upcoming Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, coming out on April Fools Day for Wii, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, DS and PSP.

This first Star Wars game on the new generation of consoles takes place between Episode III and A New Hope, and promises to tell a new story, unveiling elements to the Star Wars universe not previosly seen.

As its name implies, The Force Unleashed completely re-imagines the scope and scale of the Force by taking full advantage of newly developed technologies that will be seen and experienced for the first time: Digital Molecular Matter (DMM), by Pixelux Entertainment, and euphoria by NaturalMotion Ltd. Paired with the powerful Havok Physics system, these new technologies create gameplay only possible on the new generation of consoles. DMM incorporates the physical properties of anything in the environment so that everything reacts exactly like it should – wood breaks like wood, glass shatters like glass, plants on the planet Felucia bend like plants on the planet Felucia would, and more. Meanwhile, as a revolutionary behavioral-simulation engine, euphoria enables interactive characters to move, act and even think like actual human beings, adapting their behavior on the fly and resulting in a different payoff every single time.

Game features:

• Players hunt Jedi in the role of Darth Vader’s Secret Apprentice
• Unleash and upgrade the Secret Apprentice’s four core Force powers – Force push, grip, repulse and lightning – throughout the course of the game, and combine them for ultra-destructive, never-before-seen combos
• Examples of unleashing the Force in ways never thought possible:
  • The Secret Apprentice won’t just Force push enemies into walls – he’ll Force push enemies through walls
  • The Secret Apprentice won’t just Force grip foes to throw them aside – he’ll Force grip them in midair, zap them with lightning, then drop them to the ground to explode like a bomb
• In addition to new adversaries created just for the game, such as fugitive Jedi and Force-sensitive Felucians, players will also confront and associate with familiar faces from the Star Wars films, including Darth Vader
• Visit locations such as Episode III’s Wookiee homeworld Kashyyyk and the floral Felucia, the junk planet Raxus Prime, plus an Imperial TIE fighter construction facility

Get an insider’s look at game production and read and view how it all went down over at Lucas on the game’s official website.

Folks, this one’s gonna be big.