A multiplayer masterpiece

Now that we’ve seen the dark conclusion to the epic “Star Wars” films, a gaping wound in The Force remains that only can be filled by more adventures in that galaxy far, far away.

Pandemic Studios has heard our plaintive cries and seeks to offer a soothing salve in the form of “Battlefront II,” a title that gets us more excited the more we’ve gotten to see of it. As we played through the most recent version of the game, we explored a host of new features, including the drastically improved Galactic Conquest mode and finally learning some of the dark history between “Episode III” and “IV.” And yes, we got to wield a saber as Yoda.

The main campaign of “Battlefront II” tracks the story of the 501st Legion, one of the original clone units that fought on Geonosis and later followed Vader in his fateful attack on the Jedi Temple. Through an impressively lengthy string of objective-based battles, the story offers a compelling glance into a different side of the “Star Wars” epic, much like Republic Commando did last year. Unlike in the first game, many of the fights in the campaign offer some interesting goals, rather than always being about running to take and hold a spawn point. The real joy of these missions often comes from the playable hero classes. Whether you’re striking down droids as Mace Windu or quelling a clone rebellion on Kamino as the mysterious Boba Fett, the cameo appearances of our favorite characters add tremendously to the excitement.

Galactic Conquest mode has returned, but with a dramatic facelift that adds more strategic options to the mix. You’ll start out your army with only a basic soldier class and be forced to recruit additional units with credits you win. You’ll also be asked to maneuver fleets and take the fight to the enemy through careful deployment across the galaxy.

For the more impatient gamer, Instant Action lets you jump straight in and set your options for battles. In our version, two dozen unique maps were available for immediate play, including sites from the Death Star and the volcanic surface of Mustafar. We even played one battle where we pit the full gallery of hero characters against each other, just to find out what would happen if Darth Vader and Yoda decided to duke it out.

The action itself has remained largely unchanged from before, but a few minor tweaks help to streamline play. A sprint function lets you cross the field quickly, and target tracking helps you keep an eye on your foe. You also can switch character classes at any one of your controlled command posts, fixing a frustration that bothered many gamers in the first title. The other big gameplay shift comes in the form of ship-to-ship space battles, which we have to admit to having some trouble getting used to when we tried it. Even so, flying into an enemy hangar and turning their turrets against them was every bit as satisfying as we hoped.

Through what we’re sure is only a total coincidence, “Battlefront II” is set to release the same day as the “Episode III” DVD, leaving gamers with a tough choice: Do you watch Padme and Anakin argue over which one of them loves the other more for the 20th time, or do you spend Tuesday executing Order 66 for the good of the Empire?