Very little has been revealed about Star Wars Republic Commando since the game's eye-popping debut at Microsoft's E3 press conference. This first-person shooter turned heads when the trailer appeared in a montage at the press conference. The tightly shot teaser made those who saw it jump in all the right places and worked the Star Wars faithful into a frenzy. However, following its debut, the game disappeared quicker than Yoda's corpse in Return of the Jedi, with no information appearing aside from a few screens that started making the rounds early this year. Fortunately, LucasArts has taken the wraps off the game today, announcing a fall 2004 release for the PC and Xbox. We recently had the chance to get an exclusive look at the Xbox game to find out more on this atmospheric game that offers a unique view of the Star Wars universe.

Republic Commando will give you a behind-the-scenes look at covert ops during the Clone Wars.

Star Wars Republic Commando is set during the infamous Clone Wars that kicked off at the end of Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones and will continue in the upcoming conclusion to the trilogy, Star Wars: Episode III. Given that the many battles in the Clone Wars appear to take place between the films, the internal development team working on the game has had a unique opportunity to tell a story that doesn't try to religiously adhere to a film plot. Instead, the game's narrative will offer a slice of life from the perspective of a Republic commando. As a result, you'll visit familiar locales from the trilogy that reflect well-known events but from a unique perspective. For example, one of the game's campaigns is set on Geonosis during the battle seen at the end of Attack of the Clones. However, you won't be fighting side by side with the Jedi on the battlefield as all hell breaks loose; instead, you'll be navigating nearby catacombs in the hopes of infiltrating the Geonosian base. The more covert spin on events is a direct result of the game's context. The Republic commando is a decidedly different kind of solider from the grunts seen in Attack of the Clones. The backstory to the game is that following the initial run of troops it was decided that a specialized soldier was needed for the unique circumstances that arise in a war. The end result is the star of Star Wars Republic Commando, a specially trained Navy SEAL-style operative who kicks ass in new and exciting ways.

The game's story doesn't follow the traditional structure you might expect from a game. The main narrative is basically a linear series of moments in the life of a commando in the Republic forces, which marks a first for a Star Wars game. Of all the games that have been based on the trilogies, Star Wars Republic Commando is the first to ever offer a taste of what it would be like to serve in the military. The game will send you on a series of missions spread out over three campaigns. The soldier you'll play as won't be remarkably different from the rest of his team in terms of personality; he'll just be part of the unit. As a result, it doesn't appear that there's going to be a heroic story arc that will find you single-handedly saving all creation. However, that said, you can expect to find more than a few threads in the game that will lead to the upcoming final installment in the trilogy. Republic Commando's story will serve as a bridge between Episode II and Episode III. Star Wars fans will find more than a few tidbits included in the narrative to build anticipation. For example, it appears the game will introduce General Grievous and his bodyguards, who are slated to play a part in Episode III.

The game will unfold in a no-nonsense militaristic style, which helps set a darker overall tone for the experience. Each mission will begin with a briefing of some kind. More often than not you won't get all the details on your task in the briefing. Instead, your objectives will be called in to you over your com as you progress through each mission. The briefings we saw had a dynamic "you are there" feel, which seemed to effectively capture the feel of a war movie. One of the briefings we saw opened on a Republic gunship en route to a drop-off point. As the voice-over filled us in on what the mission involved, we saw other gunships following in formation, dodging enemy fire and, in some cases, going up in flames.

You'll be in command of a squad of elite ground units attempting to carry out specialized missions.

Star Wars Republic Commando has a unique gameplay system that is a blend of Halo controls and Metroid Prime presentation with a slick squad-based mechanic. While the exact control scheme is still being fine-tuned to ensure control in the game is both responsive and intuitive, we got a feel for how it's coming together. The core mechanics of controlling your commando are what you might expect. One analog stick will move your commando, while another will let you look around. The triggers will let you use grenades and fire your primary weapon. The face buttons will have several commands mapped to them. In addition to the expected commands, such as switching weapons and using your flashlight, you'll find an all-purpose action button that will work in tandem with the targeting reticle so you can issue orders to your squad.

While any game with squad mechanics is guaranteed to feature some level of complexity, Republic Commando is shaping up to offer a very accessible system, thanks to strong AI and a slick context-sensitive order system. You'll go through the game as part of a four-man unit. You'll be in direct control of one soldier, while the other three will follow behind. The members of your squad will tag along behind you and offer cover as needed when left to their own devices. However, you can issue several different commands, such as search and destroy, form up, secure position, recall, and other situational orders, like disarm a mine.