There are very few stories in the world that can truly be described as "timeless". Yet if you grab anyone of any age off the street and ask them what a Jedi is, the odds are pretty good that they'll know the answer. Each of the past three generations has had its own Star Wars experience, beginning with the debut of A New Hope back in 1977. The most recent generation of padawans have been learning the ways of The Force through Lucasfilms' Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series. Now, LucasArts and Sony Online Entertainment are bringing all that excitement to gamers with the release of the new free-to-play MMO, Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures on the PC.

This isn't the first time Sony Online Entertainment has played in the Star Wars sandbox. The company was previously responsible for the Star Wars Galaxies MMO game. With Clone Wars Adventures, though, SOE decided to ditch the heavy handed approach and appeal to the more casual crowd. The game follows the free-to-play formula already in place with SOE's hit Free Realms title. Like Free Realms, players create a custom character for Clone Wars Adventures and jump right into the fray.

The main world of Clone Wars Adventures serves as a hub, where players can interact with each other, purchase new accessories, or play any one of the game's twenty or so minigames. There's something for everyone here too. For action junkies, you can do some dogfights in Starfighter, take on Lightsaber Duels, or get in a little target practice with Blaster Training. Those of you looking to exercise your brains can try to spot the differences in Force Perception, manage a little Droid Programming, or become one with the Force in Crystal Attunement. A personal favorite of mine, though, is Stunt Gungan, where the player launches Star Wars whipping boy, Jar Jar Binks, through the air and into all manner of explosives just to see how far he can go. Hey, it's definitely perfect for a little therapeutic stress release.

Playing the minigames earns players credits, which can in turn be used in the Shop to buy various accessories to further customize their Clone Wars Adventures experience. You can use credits to buy anything from new clothes for your character to furniture for your living space, and vehicles for your garage. You can even buy a pet droid to follow you around in your adventures. Trust me on this, you haven't seen anything until you've seen a miniature AT-AT stand on its hind legs and break out in the Running Man. Of course, if you feel like shelling out some real dough on the game, you can pick up a monthly Jedi Membership or buy some of Sony's Station Cash currency to access exclusive goodies like new games and special gear or living quarters. There are plenty of reasons to drop a few bucks on this "free-to-play" game, but thankfully there's plenty of content even for penny pinchers out there.

All is not stellar in this galaxy far, far away though. Clone Wars Adventures still falls to the Dark Side from time to time due to occasional glitches. I've run into one or two crashes since the game launched last week, and SOE is still working a few kinks out of the system. For example, as of this writing, there was a persistent glitch which showed players' profiles listed as offline. It's being worked on, but it's safe to assume it won't be the last bug to creep up, due to the persistent nature of the MMO environment. Also, the overall experience feels like it comes up a little short in scale when measured against the epic scope of the Star Wars mythology. But once again this is likely to change as more content is added over time. After all, even Free Realms felt a little small when it started up a year ago, but filled out nicely in time.

Whether you're still arguing that Han shot first or get into a heated debate over Cody or Rex being the coolest clone trooper, if you're a Star Wars fan, you'll find something to like in Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures. Sure, you may have to cope with a couple of minor disturbances in the Force as the game goes through some growing pains. However, considering the game's free-to-play model, you'd have to be some kind of a nerf herder not to give it a shot.

Final Score: B