Review: New Baby Yoda & Mandalorian Mission Makes Millennium Falcon Smugglers Run Worth Re-Riding!

There’s a new Baby Yoda and Mandalorian mission on Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Hollywood Studios and Disneyland. This ride review shares photos, how the Mando & Grogu gameplay compares to its predecessor, how MFSR now ranks in terms of similar Walt Disney World attractions, and more.

Approximately seven years after the attraction originally opened, Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run now allows guests to control the iconic hunk of junk like never before. One highlight of this is a new gameplay addition that allows the engineer positions to care for and communicate with Baby Yoda during the mission. (There’s even a new secret Grogu Mode!)

The attraction has a new storyline, in which Hondo Ohnaka has gotten wind of a deal going down on Tatooine between ex-Imperial officers and a band of pirates. There’s a bounty for their capture, so you’ll borrow the iconic ship and team up with Mando and Grogu to track them down and explore the galaxy.

The mission departs Batuu bound for Tatooine, and for the first time, the crew is in control of their destination after leaving Tatooine. Guests will choose among adventures on Bespin, the wreckage of the second Death Star around Endor, or the bustling city-planet, Coruscant.

That’s the core premise of the new mission. Now let’s dig into how Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run has changed, and what’s still the same…

Let’s start with the good. Everything that worked before with Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run remains intact. The attraction is figuratively and literally transportive. The famous starship from ground level remains the visual icon of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, and winding inside the hangar that leads to the ship remains engaging as ever.

It’s difficult not to be blown away by the detail and buy into the conceit that you’re inside an authentic port from the Star Wars universe, and subsequently, the Millennium Falcon itself. It’s convincing, and ample to achieve suspension of disbelief.

For me, this is where Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run has always succeeded. Guests enter a queue, walk through an ornately and convincingly-detailed spaceport, and then board the decks of a perfectly-reconstructed Millennium Falcon. It’s richly-crafted but easy to follow, and the end result is that you don’t question a thing. You are on board the Millennium Falcon.

As before, you meet Hondo Ohnaka (I guess from some cartoon or something) in the pre-show, who sets up the mission premise. Even without having watched the Clone Wars, this next-gen Audio Animatronics figure continues to impress and Hondo is a fun and funny character. Perhaps an unpopular opinion, but I’m glad he’s still part of this.

From there, it’s on to a holding area and a series of corridors that make it feel more casual–like the actual Millennium Falcon, as opposed to a queue. The ride itself takes place in an interactive Millennium Falcon flight simulator. Stepping foot in that cockpit never gets old, and that’s what makes this wish fulfillment experience. Even as a more casual guest, this is a goosebumps moment. And one that I feel doesn’t get enough credit due to what follows.

The enveloping attraction before the ride-through is what has always worked best about Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run; it’s still fantastic and would be praised more widely if the ride-through realized its potential. The problem has been that the gameplay dragged down the overall experience with the original mission.

In terms of logistics, Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run is largely as before. Up to six guests form a crew and enter the legendary cockpit, filling three roles: pilot, gunner, and engineer.

The pilots have flight responsibilities, gunners shoot at targets, and engineers are tasked with fixing damage incurred along the way. Gunner is my favorite position as it provides the most balanced option and allows you to enjoy the experience without the pressure of pilot.

Once the consensus worst position, the engineer role has been overhauled with expanded responsibilities. The left and right engineers are responsible for tracking enemy ships, picking the planet destination, and collecting cargo to earn credits. They are also the babysitters of Baby Yoda, but that’s more of an honorary title. You basically just have a baby monitor for the little fella.

Gameplay Improvements

The original Smugglers Run was the Star Wars equivalent of working for UPS. Hardcore fans might’ve enjoyed the coaxium fetch quest, but the gameplay was just not compelling for most guests.

The biggest complaints always revolved around the engineer position. The good news is that this role is improved. The bad news is that the role still isn’t as robust as pilot or gunner, and both of those positions arguably improved to greater degrees with the new mission than did engineer.

Expanding the engineer role to allow them to interact with and care for Grogu is good. There are a lot of people who will happily jump at the opportunity to babysit Baby Yoda, especially those who don’t really care for a gamified experience.

The only issue is that Grogu appears on the small instrument control panel, so if you’re paying attention to him, you’re missing the action outside the ship. And the action is actually awesome now! By contrast, Baby Yoda is causing cute mischief, but isn’t as visually engaging.

This is ultimately a good problem to have, and it means that the other enhancements to engineer need to be more worthwhile. And they are. Engineers now feel like they’re playing a pivotal role, with mission-critical positions. There are going to be a lot of early hot takes that engineer went from the worst position to the best. This is nonsense.

Engineer is still the worst position. It’s no longer a pointless one and it’s actually fun, but not as fun as pilot or gunner. It’s a good option for anyone who wants a bit of engagement, but isn’t super interested in gameplay. It’s difficult to credibly claim anything here is superior to piloting the Millennium Falcon or targeting TIE fighters. C’mon, let’s be serious.

The pilot role has also improved, largely by virtue of a few flight path decisions that can be made in each voyage. Think of these like shortcuts in Mario Kart, except not faster or intended to be secret. Just branching paths giving you a bit of control to chart your own course or choose your own adventure. It’s a nice touch.

The pilot controls also feel less sensitive to me, although honestly, this could just be in my head. Thinking back, I can’t recall the last time I was pilot. I’m usually doing Smugglers Run as a Single/Double Rider, and even when I’m given the pilot position, I usually ask the parents of any kids aboard the crew if they want it.

Although it’s materially unchanged, the gunner role is another big improvement with the Mando mission update. As we’ve said before, the old asteroid field delay scene offered the best gameplay in the original Smugglers Run. Now, everything in this mission is better than that. Gunner is a lot of fun as a result, and blasting TIE fighters will never get old.

Each individual position now offers better interactivity, but the whole is still less than the sum of its parts. It’s satisfying, simple, and straightforward. It’s more fun, which is obviously a big win.

The problem for me is that the gameplay still lacks depth unless you manage to assemble a crew of at least 3-4 people who are all really capable and work together in the gunner and pilot positions. Even in manual mode, you’re not truly targeting the TIE fighters as gunner. You’re shooting up and down, and dependent upon the navigation of the pilots.

Although I prefer the gunner position, pilot remains the one with the most autonomy. Other interactive attractions are collaborative in nature, with Toy Story Mania being a prime example. But none are as dependent upon other guests as Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run. That’s baked into the system, and the gameplay is always going to be a bit superficial as a result.

Even with all of the improvements, which add a lot to the experience, I still found the recent gameplay updates to Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin at Magic Kingdom to be more satisfying.

That recharged ride now has a downright addictive gameplay loop, and I don’t think the same can be said for Smugglers Run. It’s better, but the ride is still dependent on the scenery and complete package. Thankfully, the visuals improved, too!

The other half of the Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run enhancements are three new destination. On each mission, one randomized engineer on board will choose your crew’s next, brand-new flight destination following the chase on Tatooine: Bespin, the wreckage of the second Death Star around Endor, or the bustling city-planet, Coruscant. Let’s discuss each in turn…

New Destination: Bespin

As you arrive just outside of the iconic Cloud City, the chase through the skies of Bespin is on.

Here, your crew will pursue an Imperial officer in their Zeta-class Shuttle, dodging freighters carrying large Tibanna gas canisters and navigating around passing tug-ships through the skies. During this portion of the mission, gunners will be especially busy, with a horde of TIE fighters swarming the skies and with a highly destructible environment always surrounding the Falcon.

Bespin is a distant third place for me among the new destinations, and it seems I’m not alone in that assessment. There are some gorgeous visuals and the dogfight with TIE fighters is action-packed and tense, but this still isn’t as memorable as the top two destinations. It is, however, better than the fetch-quest for coaxium through tight and forgettable corridors from before.

New Destination: Coruscant

Arriving above the bustling Uscru Entertainment District on Coruscant at night calls for intense teamwork to track down your prized possession. Surrounded by dense civilian traffic, your crew will attempt to hunt down an Imperial officer in a Sentinel Assault Shuttle, weaving through an illuminated skyline, ducking in and out of tunnels, and avoiding TIE fighter fire.

As you fly through the city and the chase intensifies, engineers will be tasked with grabbing and collecting crates from the target ship while keeping the Falcon running smoothly under the glow of the city’s lights. This mission can take an unexpected turn, requiring your crew to reboot key systems and stay in sync with Mando and Grogu.

Coruscant is my favorite destination, but admittedly, I say that as someone who isn’t the biggest Star Wars fan. The bright city lights are entrancing, and this strikes me as the most mesmerizing and detailed destination. There’s a lot to see and hear, and branching paths that add to re-rideability.

Cantina music is triggered if you go down one route, and that adds levity to an otherwise white-knuckled mission. Our crew spotted Easter Eggs for the Halcyon (Galactic Starcruiser), as well as references to a lot in the Star Wars universe. Coruscant is just a lot of fun, and a nice contrast to Tatooine. The scenery reminded me a bit of Blade Runner, the better Harrison Ford movie. (Just needs more neon.)

New Destination: Second Death Star Above Endor

On the outskirts of a debris field surrounding the forest moon of Endor, the shattered remains of the second Death Star loom, with twisted metal and wreckage causing a dangerous path forward for your crew… and serving as a great hiding spot for a potential bounty on the loose.

As you explore the remains of this once-armed battle station, you’ll look for the Trandoshan pirate hiding amongst the debris before the ship attempts to escape. Along the way, you’ll navigate past massive fragments (including parts of a fallen Star Destroyer) while avoiding collisions in this tight, cluttered environment.

Skilled pilots are necessary as you race through floating ship pieces on the chase for the bounty, creating your very own Trench Run. The action escalates again as your crew is called upon to rescue Mando and Baby Yoda from a rogue tractor beam, thrusting the gunners back into the middle of the action to deploy a torpedo to save your crew and the duo from impending doom.

I was really excited about the prospect of visiting Endor, which involved Ewoks and zooming through a lush forest in my head. In actuality, this is all Death Star wreckage, which probably makes more sense given the size of the Millennium Falcon. This is a close second for me in terms of destinations; the visuals and gameplay are both good, but it feels a bit more one-note than Coruscant. Still, I could do either destination again and again.

New Scenery Makes a Night & Day Difference

One big criticism before was that while the mission was engaging as an interactive experience, but when treated as a passive experience, the attraction’s film was not nearly as memorable as Star Tours. There were cool visuals along the way in the original Smugglers Run, but more dull ones.

Smugglers Run was designed to be an active experience, not something you can just sit back and be engrossed in for the visuals. That would’ve been a problem even if the gameplay in all six seats was superlative (it wasn’t) because the Disney Parks are multi-generation destinations.

Attractions need to work for everyone from 8 year olds to 80 year olds. The original Smugglers Run did not; it worked for a much narrower window of guests. Now, I believe it has the requisite all ages appeal thanks to the new destinations (and let’s not overlook Tatooine, which is also a nice start–but not as good as the three locations that follow).

The new slate of second destinations is a night and day improvement. I honestly don’t know if the graphics improved, or if the scenery pops more thanks to an updated Unreal Engine, but everything in the Mandalorian mission just looks better. That could be because we’re going to prettier places.

As mentioned above, Bespin is third place for me among the new destinations, but it’s still light years ahead of the visuals in the old mission. Coruscant and the second Death Star wreckage are stunning. I cannot get enough of those destinations. If anything, that is what elevates the engineer position–the new destinations being so cool that you’re fine not mashing buttons along the way.

The visuals of the Grogu and Mandalorian mission are compelling enough to take in passively, without ever even touching the controls. That’s the big win with the Smugglers Run updates, as the ride now has shades of Star Tours that can be enjoyable without the gameplay.

Mandalorian Mission Bottom Line

When it opened, Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run was a story of squandered potential. The wish fulfillment element of stepping inside the famed ship’s cockpit was excellent, as was the queue and pre-show. But it didn’t offer much repeatability, which was a rarity for interactive attractions.

In revisiting the ride, Imagineering has improved both the interactivity and the scenery. The complete package was already pretty good, so these two upgrades increase the appeal tremendously. It still isn’t perfect, which mostly revolves around the collaborative gameplay just not being as addictive as other more individualized attractions.

Smugglers Run was previously the third-best Star Wars ride. Rise of the Resistance was (and is) the clear #1. And every time I do Star Tours, I’m reminded of how good it is. I’ve really enjoyed all of the additions over the years, which keep it relevant and fresh.

Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run is the better overall experience from start to finish, but the ride portion of Star Tours blew away the original Smugglers Run. It’s now a much closer call. They each bring something similar but different to the holochess table, and both are excellent attractions for different reasons. I’ll call it a tie for #2.

Ultimately, the biggest endorsement I can give the new Baby Yoda and Mandalorian mission is that it makes me want to re-ride Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run. This was previously an attraction we often skipped, as it lost its luster the more you were subjected to the gameplay and visuals. That’s no longer the case.

The new destinations, branching paths, and better gameplay make Smugglers Run an attraction I want to do again and again. The on-ride experience no longer falls flat–it’s actually fun! The new mission still falls short of 10/10 attraction status for me, but the complete package of the attraction is fantastic. This is no longer the Star Wars story of squandered potential, even if the gameplay remains a mixed bag.

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Your Thoughts

Are you excited to see the Mandalorian and Baby Yoda in Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run? What do you think about the expanded engineer role? Excited to be Baby Yoda’s babysitter or choose from 3 new destinations? If you’ve already experienced the Mando mission, what’d you think? Favorite of the new destinations? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment? Any questions? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!