Revenge of the Sith Had a Crazy Marketing Campaign

Four of the Coolest Things Star Wars did to Promote Revenge of the Sith

The year was 2005, and if you were a fan of Star Wars, then it was the best time to be alive. The previous November, the first teaser trailer dropped for Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, promising a release date for May 19th, 2005. Since this was meant to not only wrap up the Star Wars Prequels, but the film series itself, LucasFilm went all out to promote it. From commercials and advertisements to even a segment on 60 Minutes, they wanted to let people know that this was it; the grand finale to this epic. If you were a Star Wars fan, though, the thing that made 2005 the year of Star Wars was the sheer amount of tie-in content that we got. While much of was stricken from canon by Disney, those who grew up on it cannot deny the role it served in hyping the movie.

With Revenge of the Sith recently returning to theaters to celebrate its 20th anniversary, people are feeling nostalgic about the movie. Hence why now is the perfect time to look back on the best tie-in content we got for Star Wars that faithful year. And there was plenty to enjoy.

Star Wars: Labyrinth of Evil

While Darth Sidious’ ultimate victory seemed to be a canon event in Revenge of the Sith, the reality is that there were moments where he almost got caught. In the new canon, it was Ahsoka’s fight with Maul that tipped her off that Darth Sidious was after Anakin. Yet thanks to Master Windu’s arrogance, she withheld that evidence, ensuring that things play out as they did. However, in the original Expanded Universe, the Jedi got even closer than that, with it being the subject of James Luceno’s novel, Star Wars: Labyrinth of Evil.

The novel begins with Anakin and Obi-Wan attempting to capture Viceroy Nute Gunray on his homeworld of Cato Nemodia, only for the businessman to escape once more. In the process, though, he left behind the mechno-chair that he uses to contact Darth Sidious. When the Jedi capture it, they find themselves with a possible clue that could lead them to Sidious himself. What follows is a galaxy-spanning investigation as the Jedi attempt to follow the trail back to the dark lord in the hopes of ending the threat for good.

If Ashoka’s refusal to tell the Jedi what she learned was frustrating, then the events that take place in this novel are outright infuriating. The novel shows just how close the Jedi got to uncovering the identity of Darth Sidious, only for it to take a backseat thanks to the Battle of Coruscant. It makes the battle feel like the equivalent of Sidious hitting the panic button, thus dooming the Republic and the Jedi along with it! Absolutely frustrating, but still worth the read!

Star Wars: Clone Wars Microseries Volume Two

Before Dave Filoni gave us The Clone Wars in 2008, legendary animator Genndy Tartakovsky gave us the Clone Wars microseries in 2003. Set in the time between Episodes II & III, these short animations gave fans a glimpse at the conflict that was the Clone Wars. While the entire series counts as a tie-in, it was the show’s second volume that aligns closer with Revenge of the Sith. While Anakin goes on a journey that gives him a glimpse of what his future holds, the main draw is the massive Battle of Coruscant leads to Palpatine’s abduction, setting the stage for the start of Episode III.

Tartakovsky is a master at telling stories without using any dialogue, and this volume gave him a chance to flex that creativity. From the Jedi’s desperate attempts to outrun General Grevious to the sight of Yoda and Mace fighting side by side, this volume has some of the best action in the entire franchise. And since Disney has yet to give us their own version of the battle, then the parts from this volume pertaining to it could easily be remade into canon.

LEGO Star Wars

Since they partnered together in 1999, LEGO had been making a killing on Star Wars Merchandise. With the imminent release of Revenge of the Sith, the famed toy company saw no need to bring that gravy train to a halt, releasing a number of sets for the film. One of the coolest was the ultimate lightsaber duel, a set that would allow kids to recreate Anakin and Obi-Wan’s famous duel on Mustafar, complete with movable platforms and minifigures with light-up lightsabers.

The crown jewel, though, had to be the LEGO Star Wars video game. Released in March 2005, the game not only let players experience the first two movies of the prequel trilogy, but even gave them a sneak preview of the then-upcoming Revenge of the Sith. And, yes, it was as funny as one would expect a LEGO game to be.

It wouldn’t be the only Star Wars game to come out that year, though.

All the Star Wars Games

2005 was really the year that Star Wars peaked in video games, with multiple companies releasing multiple games meant to build off the hype for Revenge of the Sith.

In March of that year, LucasArts released Star Wars: Republic Commando on the Xbox Windows. That game followed the fights of Delta Squad, an elite black-ops team that operated from behind the scenes, and was very similar to Call of Duty and Halo.

In October, Pandemic Studios released its sequel to Battlefront, Battlefront II. Not only did it offer an improved gameplay experience and multiple game modes, it also featured a story mode that spanned from the prequels all the way to the classic trilogy, all of it told from the perspective of the 501st Legion.

The real crown jewel, though, had to be the tie-in game for Revenge of the Sith. Released two weeks before the film premiered in theaters across every platform besides Windows, this game allowed players to experience the upcoming film for themselves playing as both Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi. The PS2 version even included cutscenes from the film itself, meaning players could see part of the film before it even came out in theaters. And the gameplay itself was fairly solid!