Disney Infinity 3.0: Rise Against The Empire is the second of the Star Wars-themed sets for Disney Infinity 3.0. Rise Against The Empire is a straightforward expansion pack that doesn't change the core gameplay much. The set includes a new set of figurines, coming by default with Luke Skywalker and his sister Leia. Further add-on packs are available for Chewbacca, Darth Vader and Han Solo. Rise Against The Empire comes out swinging with some of the most popular characters in the franchise.

The original trilogy will always feel more like Star Wars than the newer films or even "The Clone Wars." There's just something about Luke, Leia and Han that resonate more than Anakin and Ahsoka, so the Rise Against the Empire set has a leg up on the competition there. Despite that bias, I feel that Rise Against The Empire is the stronger of the two sets. Those looking for a true expansion to their Star Wars experience will find a lot to like here.

The game is set in three locations from the original trilogy: Endor, Hoth and Tatooine, effectively reducing the tale to its three primary planetary locations. You go through a heavily abridged version of the film plots while completing area-specific goals. The majority of the characters make appearances, if occasionally in condensed forms. As with the other play set, the game features both on-foot and vehicle battles, with a number of trips into space offering plenty of chances to use the Millennium Falcon in all its glory. You complete missions by fighting baddies and collecting items, something which should feel pretty familiar to those who've played through the previous set.

The variety of settings really helps Rise Against The Empire. While the gameplay isn't very different from Twilight of the Republic, you're almost always progressing to something new. Condensing the original trilogy into one game gives the developers more to work with than the more limited Clone Wars setting. There are a lot of tiny details to the setting that work much better with well-established planets like Tatooine than the more forgettable ones from the prequel trilogy.

In addition, I feel the gameplay is tighter. The combat design is slightly more on point and feels less like a slog than the previous set. This is particularly noticeable in the space combat, which has a better selection of objectives for the player. The Death Star run is the highlight of the experience. It's difficult to make it bad, but the Disney Infinity version is well paced and exciting, tasking players with protecting friendly ships while avoiding Vader and firing a well-placed torpedo that destroys the space station.

There were some frustrating elements to the game, though. Each of the three sections is "gated" until you've completed certain objectives. On Tatooine, you must collect credits to pay for trips to other worlds, while Hoth encourages you to help construct the Rebel base. This means that it's possible for younger gamers to get frustrated with one area and be able to move on to the next. I don't think any of the barriers are lengthy enough to discourage a player, but parents who find their children get quickly frustrated may want to play through the game with them to help

Another odd thing is that the heavily condensed story doesn't make much sense. It assumes that most of the playable characters (including Han and Leia) are there from the start, which can lead to confusing plot points that are poorly explained or confusing. The plot feels designed as an introduction to the films, which feels odd considering how abridged they are, and that the majority of people playing Rise Against The Empire have already seen the films. I wish they'd used this chance to introduce a little for humor, as the cut scenes can be a tad dry.

Visually, the game does a great job. The original trilogy is redesigned in the Disney Infinity style, and I feel it captures the feel of the movies quite well. The cartoony redesigns of the characters are quite charming. In particular, I'm fond of the bigger, bulkier and broader Darth Vader, who has an intimidating silhouette when compared to the lanky Luke. The voice acting is a little mixed but mostly gets the job done. Leia's voice actress has to pick up a lot of the slack. It's effectively the same as the main Disney Infinity 3.0 game, so there should be no surprises here.

Disney Infinity 3.0: Rise Against The Empire is easily the better of the two Star Wars-themed packs. It has tighter environmental design and better mission structure, and although condensing an entire trilogy into one game occasionally introduces some quirks, the play set definitely adds some fun variety to the Disney Infinity experience. The disappointing abbreviated storyline and a few annoying mission design quirks can make the experience rougher than it should be, but by and large, it's a solidly made version of the classic trilogy. Both kids and adults should have a fun time playing through Rise Against The Empire.

Score: 8.0/10