One of the most interesting aspects of Star Wars Episode II was the Republic clone army, composed of thousands of soldiers modeled after the feared interstellar bounty hunter Jango Fett. Star Wars Republic Commando, which is coming to the PC and Xbox this fall, will let you play as a small squad of these operatives, in a series of high-stakes behind-enemy-lines missions. Sixteen-player multiplayer will also be available on both platforms, but getting to control a squad of elite clone troopers all by your lonesome sounds like it's going to be the main attraction.

　　Republic Commando boasts what's called "one touch squad control," implying that issuing orders to squads of up to four clone troopers is going to be easy. That doesn't mean the game will be easy, though, and its 14 different levels will take players to locations like the wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk, the dusty planet of Geonosis (which was the scene of the climactic battle of Episode II), and the innards of one of those gigantic Separatist core ships. Enemies in these levels will include super battle droids, the roly-poly-style droidekas, the buglike geonosians, and the reptilian trandoshans. Players will even get to square off against the guards of Episode III's multiarmed villain, General Grievous. Of course, the clone troopers themselves will be heavily armed, with more than a dozen weapons to choose from, including the standard-issue DC-17m Interchangeable Combat Weapon System, as well as a variety of weapons salvaged from the enemy. Realistic physics and graphics powered by the Unreal engine should ensure that all the blasting goes over quite smoothly and attractively.

　　Republic Commando will feature the voice of Temuera Morrison, who played Jango Fett in Episode II and therefore is responsible for what all those clone troopers ought to sound like. The game itself sounds promising, and we're looking forward to getting our hands on the latest build and getting a feel for how it really plays. We'll be bringing you more details as soon as possible.