On Saturday, February 17, LucasArts turned the Sony Metreon in San Francisco into Starfighter central with the unveiling of the much-anticipated PlayStation 2 title to a very appreciative audience.

"The premiere at the Metreon was the first event of its kind for LucasArts," says Tim Moore, LucasArts' Channel Marketing Manager. "It was a company-wide celebration, a public game preview, and a fan appreciation day all rolled into one. The best part was watching the Starfighter development team interact with the fans. I couldn't decide who was more excited!"

The line-up for the 10 a.m. launch began a full two hours earlier, and an estimated 200 fans were there when the doors opened. Once inside, they were the first people to play the flight adventure game. "The ooh's and aah's were definitely plentiful and great to hear," says Meredith Cahill, LucasArts' Director of Sales. "It was also very cool to hear people say that now they need to go buy a PS2!"

"Now I remember why I do this," smiles Harley Baldwin, one of Star Wars: Starfighter's Level Designers. "All those people -- aged four to fifty -- running around, driving their parents, wives and husbands crazy, standing in line over and over again. It was great."

Here are some pictures from that event. For more information about the development of Starfighter, check out this feature article, and visit the official LucasArts site.

Fans line up outside the Metreon to be the first to play the eagerly awaited Starfighter
Players immerse themselves in the huge action-packed flight environments
Jedi and Rebel pilots arrive in full wardrobe and gear to take on the Trade Federation