Spring Break
"The Force Unleashed," a glitchy game, great story
New "Star Wars" game fills in gap between trilogies
By: Eric Joyce
Issue date: 9/19/08 Section: Lifeline
Editor's Note: There are nine versions of this title for various consoles and handhelds. This review represents the Playstation 3 version of the game, which is nearly identical to the Xbox 360 version.
It is a hard life for "Star Wars" video game fans, with titles ranging from near masterpieces to utter wastes of money.
LucasArts' newest addition to the franchise, "Star Wars: The Force Unleashed," lands somewhere between the two.
Set between the events of "Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith" and "Episode IV: A New Hope," the story of "The Force Unleashed" revolves around Darth Vader's secret apprentice, codenamed Starkiller, as he is sent across the galaxy tracking down and killing the remaining Jedi.
Throughout his journey Starkiller learns more about the Jedi, himself, and other pivotal events that ultimately yield to the original "Star Wars" film trilogy.
"The Force Unleashed" is a hack-and-slash title at its core reminiscent of games such as "God of War," "Devil May Cry," and "Heavenly Sword."
As Starkiller, you wield a lightsaber as your primary weapon, but you also utilize various Force powers such as Force lightning, push, and throw.
Additional combos involving lightsaber attacks and force powers can be attained via the game's leveling system. This works like a role-playing game by allowing you to accumulate force points by dispatching enemies and using Force spheres to upgrade your combos, strengthen force powers, and improve Starkiller's attributes such as greater health or strength.
These characteristics are overused and lack originality within the genre, as are the game's finishing moves on various bosses and large enemies which comes down to nothing more than pushing buttons in sequence with on-screen prompts.
Regardless, the control scheme of "The Force Unleashed" feels natural and is easy to learn, however Starkiller has to face and lock-onto enemies and objects in order to use force powers.
It is a hard life for "Star Wars" video game fans, with titles ranging from near masterpieces to utter wastes of money.
LucasArts' newest addition to the franchise, "Star Wars: The Force Unleashed," lands somewhere between the two.
Set between the events of "Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith" and "Episode IV: A New Hope," the story of "The Force Unleashed" revolves around Darth Vader's secret apprentice, codenamed Starkiller, as he is sent across the galaxy tracking down and killing the remaining Jedi.
Throughout his journey Starkiller learns more about the Jedi, himself, and other pivotal events that ultimately yield to the original "Star Wars" film trilogy.
"The Force Unleashed" is a hack-and-slash title at its core reminiscent of games such as "God of War," "Devil May Cry," and "Heavenly Sword."
As Starkiller, you wield a lightsaber as your primary weapon, but you also utilize various Force powers such as Force lightning, push, and throw.
Additional combos involving lightsaber attacks and force powers can be attained via the game's leveling system. This works like a role-playing game by allowing you to accumulate force points by dispatching enemies and using Force spheres to upgrade your combos, strengthen force powers, and improve Starkiller's attributes such as greater health or strength.
These characteristics are overused and lack originality within the genre, as are the game's finishing moves on various bosses and large enemies which comes down to nothing more than pushing buttons in sequence with on-screen prompts.
Regardless, the control scheme of "The Force Unleashed" feels natural and is easy to learn, however Starkiller has to face and lock-onto enemies and objects in order to use force powers.
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