Even as someone who grew up with the original trilogy, I find it hard to think of Star Wars now without the blocky Lego versions of its heroes and villains. As a TV show, Lego Star Wars has a character all of its own. Now the latest Star Wars film has got the treatment with the official Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens game. It’s out for consoles, but also for iPhone and iPad: I’ve been playing both over the last weekend, and they’re great fun for Star Wars (and Lego) fans young and old. “Play as heroic characters from the movie, including Rey, Finn, Poe Dameron, Han Solo, Chewbacca, C-3PO and BB-8, as well as Kylo Ren and General Hux,” explains its App Store listing. Like other Lego games, the gameplay is a mix of battling and building, with lots of recognisable scenes from The Force Awakens for your children to play through – including airborne dogfighting and blaster battles. A big selling point is the promise of “previously untold story levels” set in the time leading up to The Force Awakens, to help kids understand the backdrop to the film.
On iOS, Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens is a free download, so your children can try the game’s first level and get to grips with the controls before deciding whether it’s worth buying. That costs £4.99 as an in-app purchase, although there’s also an ‘All Content Season Pass’ option for £7.99, which will provide access to new levels and characters as they’re added to the game in updates over the coming months. I’m still working my way through the game, but from what I’ve seen so far the gameplay is varied and fun, with the building and fighting controls explained well for younger fans. Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens is a free download for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store. Read about more Star Wars apps for kids on Apps Playground.Star Wars fans around the world are daring to hope that new film The Force Awakens will be as good as its promo clip makes it look – or at least better than The Phantom Menace. Early ticket sales suggest optimism on that point.
But with two months to go until the new movie premieres, how can you fill the time? Unsurprisingly, there are apps for that. In fact, Star Wars has generated a whole mini-industry of mobile games and apps in its own right. Here are 10 of the best to fuel your Force fetish in the runup to Christmas. Where you see “IAP”, that means in-app purchases. Star Wars (Free)Android / iOSThere are plenty of ways to keep tabs on Star Wars news and clips: Facebook, Twitter and YouTube for starters. Yet the official Star Wars app may be worth a slot on your homescreen, in the short term at least. It pulls in social updates and news, while adding historical trivia, videos and the obligatory themed selfie filters. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (£7.99)Android / iOSWith decades of Star Wars games to draw on, this is still regularly hailed by hardcore fans as the best of the lot. Originally a PC and console game in 2003, it has since returned in a faithful mobile port. Best enjoyed on a tablet, it’s a deep, rewarding RPG set in the Star Wars universe, with freedom to plot your own party and path.
Star Wars: Uprising (Free + IAP)Android / iOSThis is the most recent Star Wars game for mobile devices, made by movie specialist Kabam – which previously turned The Hobbit, The Lord of The Rings and Fast & Furious into popular games. It’s another RPG that plugs the gap between episodes VI and VII of Star Wars, as you create a character and set out to make your fortune with a mix of solo and online co-operative play. Star Wars Scene Maker (Free + IAP)iOSThis is a marvellous creative app for young Star Wars fans, helping them to create scenes from the film franchise with their favourite characters and music – and to supply the voice dialogue themselves. Yes, the famous credits are included too. It’s like a virtual puppet theatre, with a range of themed scenery packs available to buy as in-app purchases. Star Wars: Commander - Worlds in Conflict (Free + IAP)Android / iOS / Windows PhoneThe game that generated a thousand Clash of Clones jokes when it was released, based on its similarity to mobile hit Clash of Clans.
It’s true that its blend of base-building and raiding is very reminiscent of that game, but with plenty of iconic characters and vehicles to root this firmly in Star Wars territory. Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga (Free + IAP)Android / iOSThe Lego Star Wars games are as polished as the television series, and offer another playable way in to the franchise for children. This brings together all the mobile Lego Star Wars games, with the constituent parts bought using in-app purchases. It’s a sprawling game with masses of characters and missions to explore. Angry Birds Star Wars II (Free + IAP)Android / iOS / Windows PhoneAngry Birds’ star may have waned a little over the last two years, but it’s worth remembering the excellent job that developer Rovio did with both of its official Star Wars tie-ins. Start with the second, which applies the familiar bird-slinging formula to the Star Wars universe, with lots of little touches that fans will love. Star Wars Journeys: Beginnings (Free + IAP)iOSAnother app that’s intended for children, even if adults will want to sneak the odd go too.
It’s a mixture of gameplay and storytelling, taking kids through the prequel trilogy of Star Wars with pod racing, arena battles and – something that parents will appreciate – a fair amount of reading. BB-8 App Enabled Droid Powered by Sphero (Free)Android / iOSThe massive caveat here is that you’ll need to spend £135 on Sphero’s BB-8 drone toy to use this app, so it’s one for fans with deep pockets only. Even so, the robot toy has been winning rave reviews, based on the new droid character in The Force Awakens. The app controls the toy’s movements, as well as turning your video clips into virtual holograms. Star Wars: Card Trader (Free + IAP)Android / iOSFinally, the idea of an app to collect digital (ie not real) trading cards may seem bizarre. But Topps’ Card Trader app has been warmly welcomed by app store reviewers for its collection of Star Wars cards right back to the original sets in the early 1980s. It’s part trading game and part historical rabbit hole.