Product Details
 | Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II |
| List Price: | $39.99 |
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Product Description
The Star Wars Saga continues with Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II, the highly anticipated sequel to the fastest-selling Star Wars game ever created, which has sold more than seven million copies worldwide. In Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, the world was introduced to Darth Vader’s now fugitive apprentice, Starkiller—the unlikely hero who would ignite the flames of rebellion in a galaxy so desperately in need of a champion. In the sequel, Starkiller returns with over-the-top Force powers and embarks on a journey to discover his own identity and to reunite with his one true love, Juno Eclipse. In Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II, Starkiller is once again the pawn of Darth Vader—but instead of training his protégée as a ruthless assassin, the dark lord is attempting to clone his former apprentice in an attempt to create the Ultimate Sith warrior. The chase is on – Starkiller is in pursuit of Juno and Darth Vader is hunting for Starkiller. With all-new devastating Force powers and the ability to dual-wield lightsabers, Starkiller cuts a swath through deadly new enemies across exciting worlds from the Star Wars films - all in his desperate search for answers to his past.Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #579 in Video Games
- Brand: Lucas Arts
- Model: 34118
- Released on: 2010-10-26
- ESRB Rating: Teen
- Platforms: Windows Vista, Windows XP
- Format: DVD-ROM
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: .30 pounds
Features
- Fight through challenge levels designed to test and hone your fighting and Force power skills while you skillfully manage your combat techniques to defeat brand-new enemies, which will culminate in epic boss battles
- Continue the galaxy-altering journey of Starkiller, Darth Vader's fugitive apprentice, that shapes the key events between Star Wars: Episode III and Episode IV
- Unleash the Force with more power and precision through improved controls and new powers, such as the deceptive Mind Trick, which turns enemies against their allies
- Discover the true power of Starkiller with Force Fury, where his attacks and Force powers are exponentially increased
- Take combat to the next level with the ability to wield dual lightsabers and punish enemies with all-new combo attacks as well as expanded customization options such as new costumes and power-enhancing lightsaber crystals
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Product Description
Customer Reviews
Short, Uninspired, and Buggy
I didn't expect too much
going into this game. I played the first Force Unleashed on the console,
and while that game had some problems, it was still very fun at times.
However, Force Unleashed 2 fails to fix the problems of the original,
and introduces a host of new issues.
I think my main issue with
this game was its length. Even playing the game on hard, with numerous
restarts due to technical issues, and having to wait through the
annoying, unskippable logo movies, the game still was over in just a few
hours. It felt much shorter than the first game, and was not even worth
the discounted [...] price. The gameplay, while still pretty fun at
times, got very repetitive, simply because I tended to use the same
tactic (grip object or stormtroopers, lightning, and throw) on
practically every enemy in the game. The saber combat, another weak area
of the first game, was not improved at all. I found myself using the
same attack over and over again (slash, slash, lightning). The longer
moves were easily blocked or interrupted, and I had to force myself to
use them just for the sake of variety.
I also experienced a
number of serious technical issues, from pre-rendered cut-scenes
frequently failing to play, to crashes during loading, to completely
broken physics where stormtroopers would float in mid-air like it was in
zero-gravity. In addition, the game is capped at 30 frames per second,
making everything feel a bit choppy. These problems seriously detracted
from what would already have been a mediocre game.
All in all,
I've found the Force Unleashed to be wholly inferior to Jedi Knight 2
and Jedi Academy. It's proof that all the fancy technologies in the
world like DMM, Euphoria, and Havok can't replace solid game mechanics
and a strong story.
All too easy...
I have a midrange
general-purpose PC (2.8GHZ Intel Core i7, 4GB RAM, ATI Radeon HD4350
video card, running Win 7 Ultimate 64bit). I had some performance issues
at maximum resolution even using the lowest graphics settings, but at
lower resolutions, even with maximum graphics settings, I had no
problems at all. The lower resolutions still look fine, and it doesn't
bother me to use them since the highest resolution of the game is lower
than what my monitor is capable of displaying anyway. The graphics and
effects look good, and the game generally runs smoothly and quickly.
This game has not yet crashed (which is a first for me with LucasArts
games...). I'm using a XBox 360 controller with my PC and all the
controls seem to be fine. Using a keyboard and mouse might be weird.
Working with force gripped objects seems easier than in TFU1. Targeting
also seems to be better. There is no DRM on this game either which is
always a plus. I would give this game a 3.75/5 (as a comparison, I would
give The Force Unleashed I 3/5). This is a simple game created for
casual gamers and was created no doubt with a limited budget and under
tight deadline to maximize Q4 revenue (as most games are).
If you
liked TFU1, you will probably like this game. If you did not like TFU1,
you probably won't like this game.
For me, this is a fun game,
but only just, and not worth a 4+ rating. As other reviewers have said,
like TFU1, this game is much too short and much too easy even at maximum
difficulty. The overall feeling comes off as an unfinished game and
there is definitely a lack of replay value. However, when assuming that
this game is meant for casual gamers who may also have short attention
spans and limited patience, it makes sense that the game would be this
way, at the expense, of course, of more-than-casual gamers. I think that
LucasArts underestimates its fans in this regard (just as the gaming
industry generally underestimates gamers). Pressing single buttons for
finishing boss battles and finishing off larger enemies (like the
walkers) is annoying and repetitive (couldn't they randomize the
buttons, require combos, and/or speed it up for added pressure?). Why
not just let players finish off enemies using regular gameplay controls
(you can with those walkers) and then follow up with the CGI sequence?
That way they can experience the fun of the battle and then watch and
enjoy the sequence without worrying about interaction. While this aspect
of gameplay is not a gamebreaker, to me it is worth at least minus 1/4
of a star, and game length at least minus 1 star. To be fair, I think
some of the sequences would be difficult or perhaps impossible to play
using normal gameplay (e.g. the gorog battle, "landing" the Salvation,
etc). Still, I'm sure something could be done differently to improve
playing.
Should the fine peeps at LucasArts read my comments
here, I would like to say to them that the real problem of this game
series is the following:
The story of the series is one of the
worst examples of retroactive continuity that I've ever seen, even for
something from the LucasArts brand. I really like Starkiller as a
character but he would have been a much better character in another
context. Nobody really cares anymore about what happened during the
clone wars or between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope. Enthusiasm for
that part of the Star Wars series has already been more or less snuffed
by the botched prequels and reworked originals. However, the expanded
universe is rich with good ideas and there are plenty of other
interesting stories that could be told which occur outside the timeline
of the movies. The Knights of the Old Republic series is a great example
of this. Start making more games (and maybe movies) with that content.
Personally,
and I'm sure I'm not alone on this, the game I would like to see would
have the the graphics and action of TFU1 and 2 (lightsaber combat and
using force powers is fun in these games), a long, non-linear, and
compelling story like KotOR1 and 2, an open and dynamic world (maybe
like Grand Theft Auto III or IV but even bigger - there's a whole galaxy
to explore), full character and weapon customization (KotOR2 was pretty
good at this), and a diverse set of enemies which increase in
difficulty as the player increases in ability so that battle is always
battle rather than a one-sided slaughter by a max leveled player who has
essentially achieved godhood. Oh, and get rid of the button combo
during CGI play sequences and never look back... All of the elements to
create this kind of Star Wars game already exist, they just need to be
put into one game. Replay value of such a game would be great, LucasArts
would make bank, and we players would thank them for it.
Force Combat - Dead Story
Cinematic Cut Scenes:
These
were amazing. Some character expressions were odd - but overall it
looked beautiful and flowed smoothly. Be aware - this game is not for a
low end computer. The cut scenes need a computer with decent RAM and a
good video card.
Story:
Although the cut scenes were beautiful
and exciting - after seeing them once there isn't much draw to watch
them again. It was also painfully short. They have a wonderful
foundation for the plot and interesting characters with excellent voice
actors. But they sacrificed story for action. Always a bad choice.
Music:
I
was disappointed with the music. They recycled the music from the
movies. I expected the Star Wars themes to make their appearance. But
this game has no original musical material. Very sad - Starkiller should
have his own theme. Especially since his character has such a
dark/light internal conflict.
Combat:
Nothing is more fun than
combat with force powers and light-sabers. There is something so fluid
and graceful about Jedi combat that we are still not sick of it -
decades after we first saw Obi-Wan fight Darth Vader.
But the
combat has too many buttons (especially on PC) - it's not accessible and
it's hard to use all the powers fluidly.
Batman:Arkham Asylum had
combat that was accessible - and it took about one play-through to
master - it made you really feel like you were as skilled as Batman.
I
wanted to have that same sense of empowering the gamer...feeling like
you really are a Jedi fighting Vader.
The combat is repetitive.
Storm Troopers die very easily and Starkiller seems overpowered at the
beginning. Upgrading force powers would be more fun if you noticed a
large difference in them. Boss battles last forever and they aren't
especially difficult. Of course that could vary depending on the player.
Challenges:
While
the game feels easy - the extra challenges included are horribly
punishing. It's hard to even get bronze level on many of them. This is
bizarre especially considering the overall ease of the game.
Conclusion:
If
you like light-saber combat and force powers this game will be
satisfying. Especially if you own a console. On PC - it'll take a while
to warm up to the system. But there isn't much in this game beyond your
light-saber and force powers.
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