Game Review - The Force Unleashed (PS3)

The Force Unleashed had a lot of potential, but I feel much of it was wasted due to time constraints or resources being spread too thin. The game was released on almost every damn console there is, and I think a game’s quality ultimately suffers when attempting to release it on too many platforms. The two versions, which are identical, that were pushing the most technology behind the game are the PS3 and Xbox 360, respectively.

Set between Episodes III and IV, the game begins as you taking control of Darth Vader during the Great Jedi Purge. The Empire is hunting down the last remaining Jedi who survived Order 66. On the planet of Kashyyyk, Darth Vader finds a lone Jedi hiding among the native wookies. Vader easily defeats this Jedi in battle, but he senses much greater power from another being close by. It is then that Vader finds a young boy by the name of Galen Marek, the lone Jedi’s son. He is taken in by Vader as his secrete apprentice.

Time pushes forward several years, and Galen, now known as Starkiller, is a young man. After serving the dark lord for so long, he is finally handed a mission to kill his very first Jedi, General Rahm Koda. Before Galen sets off on his mission, he is given the order to kill everyone, Imperial troopers and Kota’s men alike, and leave behind no witnesses. No one else must know that he exists. From here on in, you control Galen for the rest of the game. As the game progresses, you will hunt down more Jedi and gain more knowledge about fulfilling your ultimate destiny.

The force powers in this game have been described as completely over-the-top. Galen does things that no other Jedi has ever done in any other Star Wars game or movie, as he is one of the most powerful force wielders to have ever lived. The real problem I have with that is you never feel that powerful, as this game has some of the cheapest enemies that you’ll ever face.

You’ll regularly fight guys that can negate most of your force powers, and you have to resort to stick and move tactics, or just use force lightning ad nauseam. You’ll often face guys later on that knock you down and hit you again as soon as you get up. Plus, the game likes to overwhelm you with as many of these cheap enemies as possible at any given moment. The snipers are the absolute worst. To say the least, it makes for some frustrating times.

The basic combat is pretty mundane stuff. You execute combos, ala Devil May Cry or God of War, but it is never as fun as either of those games. Another problem lies in the camera. It just plain sucks. You have to constantly fight with it to see what’s going on. It is also sets itself to an unchangeable wide angle when engaged in boss battles. Fighting bosses is often an annoying affair, because there is no defining strategy to beating them, and you can’t see anything from the camera being so far back.

My previous impressions with the demo left me curious about the bit with the Star Destroyer. It was without a doubt the most fumbled part of the entire game. You'll know what I'm talking about when you get to it.

While the story, presentation and technology behind the game are fairly good, the game itself leaves a bad taste in your mouth after a couple of hours. There’s also some obvious manipulation of the overall plot of the movies to tie-in The Force Unleashed. There are two available endings to the game, a good and evil ending, but only one of them is official canon for obvious reasons. The real ending felt like a total cop out to me. Overall, The Force Unleashed wasn't everything I was hoping for.