Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire by LucasArts launched for Nintendo 64 in December of 1996, receiving a Windows port the following year. Developed in parallel with the novel by Steve Perry, the story is situated between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Mercenary Dash Rendar assists the Rebel Alliance in the Battle of Hoth, leading to an elaborate mission in aiding Luke Skywalker's rescue of Princess Leia.
The CD and vinyl LP by Grammy-nominated composer Joel McNeely, currently ships from the publisher, while the vinyl is in stock at distributor PixelCrib in Australia. All ten tracks from the original score are streaming on YouTube Music, Spotify, and Amazon Music Unlimited, published by Varèse Sarabande.
From the Varèse Sarabande Records product page:
Varèse Sarabande Records is thrilled to announce the first-ever LP release of the music for Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire by Grammy-nominated composer Joel McNeely.Varèse Sarabande Records - Star Wars: Shadows Of The Empire Original Game Soundtrack - LP / CD
Alongside the Shadows of the Empire multimedia project, (which included a novel, comic book and video game), a full soundtrack was composed by Joel McNeely and recorded with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. Samples of the soundtrack were used in both versions of the Shadows of the Empire game, with the Windows version containing many of the full tracks. The album art features the main Star Wars characters and was created by legendary illustrator Drew Struzan (Blade Runner, Indiana Jones, Back to the Future).
PixelCrib - Star Wars: Shadows Of The Empire Original Game Soundtrack LP
YouTube Music - Star Wars: Shadows Of The Empire Original Game Soundtrack (Streaming)
We have a long history with Star Wars! Nearly 30 years ago, the RSNO and RSNO Chorus recorded the album Shadows of the Empire (for the Varese Sarabande label), set between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
— Royal Scottish National Orchestra (@RSNO) September 20, 2025
Lucasfilm's Shadows of the Empire comprised… pic.twitter.com/MbfM7oYdVS