Force Material Episode LXXXVII: Jon Knoles on Shadows of the Empire, Episode I Racer and the legacy of LucasArts

LucasArts legend Jon Knoles joins us on Star Wars Day to share secrets from the making of Shadows of the Empire, Episode I Racer, Revenge of the Sith and more!

Today, Jon Knoles is a Design Director at Turn 10 Studios, where he works on the popular Forza Motorsport and Forza Horizon games. But in the ‘90s and early ‘00s, he was the resident Star Wars guru at LucasArts.

He worked on a huge array of classic titles, including the Super Star Wars series, Dark Forces, Rebel Assault II, X-Wing and TIE Fighter, and led the development of blockbuster games like Shadows of the Empire, Episode I Racer and Bounty Hunter.

Knoles joins us for a very special May the 4th episode of Force Material to discuss all things LucasArts and Lucasfilm, including:

• The creation of Dash Rendar and the origin of his infamous shoulder pads

• The epic Darth Vader game that George Lucas rejected

• The unlikely inspiration for the physics of podracing

• How the Revenge of the Sith video game inspired an iconic Revenge of the Sith scene

• The original plan for Shadows of the Empire to star Boba Fett

• Why Han Solo is a “boring video game character”

• How Shadows of the Empire almost shipped without its signature moment

• The dread he felt before the release of The Phantom Menace

• Designing the worlds of Episode I Racer

• The influence of Lone Wolf & Cub on Jango & Boba Fett

• The legacy of yesterday’s LucasArts on today’s Lucasfilm

• And much more!

Force Material is a podcast exploring the secrets and source material of Star Wars with hosts Rohan Williams and Baz McAlister. Listen and subscribe on iTunes, Spotify, iHeartRadio, TuneIn, Stitcher, PlayerFM and Castro; stay in touch with us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram; and support the show by browsing our range of shirts, hoodies, kids apparel, mugs and more at TeePublic.