Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (2008 Video Game)
8/10
Let the force flow through you
26 September 2008
Warning: Spoilers
Well here it is! PS3 Played version

I was surprisingly impressed with what I played! There straight off - its a good game! Now why - well please read on!

To start off with - the era. The untapped era between episodes 3 & 4! Its great. Its in a very dark time when the Empire is expanding and conquering. It tells the story of Darth Vaders secret apprentice - known only as 'Starkiller'. Most star wars fans will know the irony of that name - it being the original screenplay name for 'Skywalker', before Lucas changed it. - No starkiller is not related to Vader before anyone thinks it - its just a cool in-gag! Starkiller is a powerful force user, corrupted and sworn to Vader, in the hopes that Vader and his apprentice will overthrow the Emporer. But Starkiller must be kept secret and allow no one to know of his existence. So basically anyone sees you alive - must die!

Whats great is the story. OK most of the story. There are let downs and I think the writers did forget to watch 'A New Hope' to tie some of it together! But on the whole its OK. The story of Starkiller hunting Jedi is quite simple, but where it gets interesting is the point where 'you decide your own destiny' - especially with the Sith betraying one another. Are you working for Vader, for yourself? Who's side are you on, who are you manipulating etc. Its great - I was never sure if it was all Starkillers own masterplan for himself against Vader and the emporer, was he legit, was he working for Vader!? Its great, with excellent cutscenes. Some parts players may seem far fetched and a bit of a let down with key characters, especially when the game ends. Your left thinking, "ok, that doesn't make sense, or wtf!?" There are a few of these moments in there, but enjoy. The Star Destroyer force level is great - albeit it could of been explained a little better - as I wasn't sure where I was going with it the first time round!

Story 8/10 Vader discovers a boy with an incredible connection to the force. Secretly taking him into his charge, Vader trains the boy in the darkside of the force. Years later, Vader sends his apprentice 'starkiller' to hunt and destroy surviving members of the Jedi Knights. Starkillers loyalties are divided for his feelings for his pilot 'Juno Eclipse', and his new friends. The Rebel Alliance is beginning to be born and Starkiller must decide where his fate lays - with the treacherous Sith or the growing band of freedom fighter, and the last of the Jedi.

Graphics 9/10 Awesome. Really made excellent use of the next gen abilities. The levels are alive. Your character looks amazing. The saber looks great, the cutscenes are fantastic. The destructive environments are cool.

Sounds 10/10 Perfect star wars music throughout, from episodes 1-6, plus a whole load of new tracks. The sabers, blasters etc are all perfectly spot on. The voice acting is very good. Darth Vaders is a little dodgy, but listen to Palpatine - its almost perfect. Starkiller is well done.

Gameplay 8/10 Fun to walk around, blasting, electrocuting, throwing, sabering enemies about. Sadly its more fun to do it when your more powered up, so first time through when your not so powerful its not quite as much fun, - but fun none-the less. The parts where you can slice an ATST vertically in two is great, and you can take on Rancors with a little more ease - the way you would think Sidious, Dooku, Vader, Mual etc would if they were there. None of this crazy ridiculous enemies. The boss fights are challenging and require varying tactics and powers, making them more fun. One little let down is with the games selling point. You can blast your way through doors etc. This would be cooler than it is, if you had a choice. If you had 3 options to progress say - eg 1) slice the door, 2) blast the door or 3) open the door. This would be a lot more fun. But seeing as you can only blast it open, its no different than opening, you still go the same way regardless - so it just a fancy gimmick.

Replay Value 5/10 I have completed this on 2 difficulty levels and only missing 1 or 2 orbs on each level. All the training missions are done and Im powered right up. Apart from going back and walking through each level again and slaughtering troopers - which is fun, there is nothing new to unlock etc. I can play with new saber colours (green, blue, red, yellow, purple, gold) and new costumes, but the same basic game I completed twice will still be there. So much to bring me back.

Overall 8/10 This is worth buying, though for its game type it would always have a short lifespan. But the time you invest in playing and the shear fun of blasting enemies through walls, slicing ATSTs in half, duelling with Vader and Darth Maul (yes thats right) and being a Sith lord and the good story, its a worthy game to play. Don't expect to be playing this in weeks to come thinking there will be something new - as once you seen all there is, thats everything! But to return to a galaxy far far away, - and with Vader, the Empire as the villains again - it was great - like visiting old friends - and blasting them through walls before frying them!
9 out of 9 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

Recently Viewed