Star Wars: Bounty Hunter Anniversary – Released on This Day in 2002

Today marks a special milestone in Star Wars gaming history: Star Wars: Bounty Hunter was released on this day back in 2002. Yes — over two decades ago, players first stepped into the boots of Jango Fett, long before Din Djarin made Mandalorians mainstream cool.

If you were gaming in the early 2000s, this title was one of those “must-play” releases — a gritty, atmospheric action-adventure that finally let fans live out the fantasy of being a professional hunter navigating the criminal underworld of the galaxy.

Two blasters, a jetpack, and a moral compass permanently stuck on “grey area”? That’s peak Star Wars.

Why Bounty Hunter Was a Big Deal

When Star Wars: Bounty Hunter launched for the PlayStation 2 and GameCube, it offered something fans had been hungry for: a Star Wars game not built around Jedi, not built around starfighters, and not built around Rebels vs Empire. Instead, it dropped us straight into the underworld.

The game delivered:

• A full prequel-era storyline leading directly into Attack of the Clones
• Jango Fett’s official Lucasfilm-approved backstory
• The first real look at the galaxy’s criminal networks
• Jetpack combat, dual blasters, flamethrowers, and disintegrations
• A tone that felt like a mix between space-western and noir shooter

It also helped solidify Jango Fett’s legacy as more than “Boba Fett’s dad.” It made him a legitimate character with depth, motivation, and a big role in the era’s politics.

A Story That Still Holds Up

Written under the guidance of Attack of the Clones producer Jonathan Hales, the story follows Jango as he’s recruited by Count Dooku to eliminate a dangerous Dark Jedi — a mission that ultimately leads to him being selected as the template for the Grand Army of the Republic.

This wasn’t just a side story. It was canon-defining, and it remains a key part of the prequel-era lore.

And for Star Wars lore fans (and SWTOR players who live for timeline connections), Bounty Hunter still holds a unique place in the franchise.

A Gameplay Style We Still Miss

Before modern open-world games gave us sprawling planets and endless fetch quests, Bounty Hunter delivered a tight mission-based structure with surprisingly advanced mechanics for its time:

• Jetpack flight and hover-combat
• A bounties-on-every-enemy scanning system
• 360-degree blaster action
• Environmental puzzles
• Boss fights that felt massive

Was it clunky by today’s standards? Sure.
Was it incredibly fun? Absolutely.

Many fans still hope for a remake — and given how much Star Wars gaming nostalgia is trending again, it’s not impossible.

The Legacy of Star Wars: Bounty Hunter

Twenty-three years later, the influence of this game is easy to see:

• The Disney+ Mandalorian series is practically spiritual successor territory
• The tone inspired elements in The Clone Wars
• Its lore continues to appear in modern reference books and databanks
• It remains a fan favorite on retro lists, speedrun challenges, and forums

Whether you played it back in the day or discovered it later through digital re-releases, Bounty Hunter is one of those Star Wars titles that never fully left the conversation.

Celebrating Its Anniversary

So here’s to Star Wars: Bounty Hunter, released on this day in 2002 — a game that let us hunt criminals, jetpack across Coruscant, track down Dark Jedi, and make some questionable moral decisions along the way.

If you’re looking for an excuse to revisit a Star Wars classic, today is the perfect day to fire up your old console, emulator, or PS4/PS5 digital copy… and hear that jetpack ignite one more time.

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