May the Force be with you: Star Wars Battle Pod revealed

For all of our advances in console and PC hardware, there’s still something attractive about the good old-fashioned arcade that vomits out lights and sounds like it’s going out of style. And that could be because arcades sure as hell know how to create a singular experience based on a particular game. Take for instance the new Star Wars Battle Pod arcade games. Now that’s one game that I’d like to do a Kessel Run in.

And you can thank Bandai Namco for the dark side delight above you. According to the developers, Star Wars Battle Pods will be out in the US in January 2015, and hitting the rest of the world throughout the year. Here’s the official synopsis of what these devices contain:

Featuring arcade-exclusive gameplay on a unique dome screen enveloping your entire area of sight, Star Wars: Battle Pod will first be available with a US launch in January 2015 and the global launch to follow. Star Wars: Battle Pod will be available in participating arcades around the country. The game includes five stages that recreate the fiercest battle scenes from the original Star Wars trilogy.

Loaded with features and unique gameplay elements, players can experience the impact of the explosions and destruction that will leave them with a sense of actually piloting and taking part in action-packed scenes from the films. Enabling the player to be surrounded by gameplay images and experiences on the dome screen, players will truly take command of the vehicles that appear in the films such as X-wings, snowspeeders, speederbikes, the Millennium Falcon and TIE Advanced.

Man, controllers my bulbous fat ass, this is how some games are meant to be played. While arcade owners gleefully rub their hands together at the thought of a never-ending stream of tokens filling up the units. Of course, that could just be because PE arcades are notorious hives of scum, villainy and unusually sticky floors.

Last Updated: October 15, 2014