The Force Moderately Leashed
Star Wars is arguably more entrenched in nerd culture than even video games. However, the seemingly no-brainer marriage of the two has notoriously been met with mixed results. The Force Unleashed is trying to change that by being the first good game from the franchise since Knights of the Old Republic. The end result is a combination of the best implementation of force powers in a game to date mixed with some of the same issues that have bogged Jedi action games for years.
While filling the robes of Darth Vader's apprentice, the player can follow the best Star Wars story since KOTOR, including the recent films. The motion capture acting in the cutscenes along with strong voice work from the cast truly engrosses you in a story that fills in the gap between the trilogies surprisingly well. The art direction is also quite stunning and unmistakably Star Wars, with plenty iconic ships and locations filling in the backgrounds. I found myself quite often just absorbing the scenery and details of each level before running into battle. The much-touted new game engines also provide some exciting and unique moments, though the effects, such as dynamically destructible objects and an AI-driven physics system, are often lost in the chaos of battles.
Unfortunately, not every aspect of the game will exceed or even meet expectations. While the feel of the force grab and throw is the best in a game to date, you will often find yourself targeting the wrong objects and throwing them into walls several feet from the intended target. While this can be forgiven to an extent in environments with many items and enemies, it becomes especially frustrating during the boss fights, where you often watch your projectiles fling right past the only foe on screen. This caused me to often abandon this tactic altogether, relying on the much easier but far less interesting strategy of wearing down enemies from a distance with lightning, then finishing them off with the couple saber combos that actually prove effective. Your character also seems to feel less powerful as you progress, with foes popping up that are randomly able to repel many of your attacks, essentially tying you to one or two combat options. These situations sadly call to mind every bad lightsaber-wielding game of the past, from Jedi Power Battles to Revenge of the Sith, without ever truly falling that far.
The Force Unleashed is a must-play for any Star Wars fan. The story is very well crafted, along with some of the most enjoyable combat a Jedi game has ever showcased. However, there are frequent occasions where the game is more than a little bogged down by repetitive and unpolished gameplay, especially during the boss sequences. While this game will certainly impress, this is not the next great Star Wars game you're looking for.
