Recently, I finally was able to try out the latest Star Wars game, The Force Unleashed on my Xbox 360. My wife, who rented it for me, asked if I wanted the Xbox 360 or Nintendo Wii version, to which I promptly replied that I wanted the Xbox 360 one.
The Wii version, from all of the reviews I have read is inferior, so if you are thinking about purchasing or renting that one, you’ll want to double check with all of the popular review sites online before making such a purchase.
As for the Xbox 360 version, I was very impressed with certain things, and frustrated with others.
Graphics
While a fairly beautiful game, I have played many others that included better graphics. I don’t know if it was my television, the connection I use between the Xbox 360, and the television or the game itself, but it didn’t seem on par with the screenshots I had seen, nor the example I had seen on a PlayStation 3.
The graphics, while not up to par with what I had in my imagination were still decent enough to not distract from the game, and I would give them a 3.5 out of 5.
Gameplay
This is the most important part of the game experience to me. I can deal with horrible graphics and sound quality as long as the gameplay is enjoyable, and The Force Unleashed is definitely fun.
They start off on the right foot by putting you in the boots of Darth Vader himself, and you unleash some impressive force powers on the Wookiees. Grabbing a nearly seven foot tall creature in mid-air as it is leaping towards you and then throwing it hundreds of feet away was an amazing feeling.
One issue I had is the push button endings for enemies, which while it created cool events, it was still frustrating that it was for each and every boss. I would have liked to have taken a more active role in defeating them, rather than just pushing buttons at an exact time to win.
Also, as the game progressed, I really didn’t feel like the force powers I was relying on were growing with the challenge of the situation, and I was put in areas where I was required to use certain force powers in concert to get by, but I really depended on my lightsaber and my force grab, which wasn’t enough in many instances, making the game feel a little too controlled or on rails.
Gameplay runs around a 4.5 out of 5 for me.
Level Design
Beautiful worlds, amazing backgrounds, smart organization but also simple to get through. There wasn’t much space to explore, especially when on a ship, but that made it easy to get from the start point to the finish point, and usually, I wanted to move through the level as fast as possible, so that I could grow in force powers, and continue to push the story further.
The levels are beautiful but not really too innovative, but I still have to give it a 4 out of 5 because of how nice it felt not to be confused on where to go.
Story
As the secret apprentice to Darth Vader, you are fighting what, if you have any knowledge of the story, are the good guys: the Jedi Order. Of course, fairly early on there is a switch, and you start trying to help the Jedi and find out more about your past. I didn’t find it that innovative, but I enjoyed it. I found myself a bit distracted though as the main character’s face and voice is Samuel Witwer who is currently on the television show Smallville playing Doomsday.
The next chapter in the Star Wars saga, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed , tells the story of Darth Vader’s Secret Apprentice, a mysterious figure trained by the menacing Sith Lord, to hunt down the last of the Jedi.
Set in the dark times between Episodes III and IV, the story is both a continuation of the prequel trilogy – exploring the aftermath of Order 66, which called for the immediate execution of all Jedi, and focusing on the continued rise of Darth Vader – and a direct bridge to the Original Trilogy. The Force Unleashed will forever change the fate of the Galaxy and explain key plot points that directly lead into events in Star Wars: A New Hope.
The Secret Apprentice’s journey takes him across the Galaxy—from the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk to the junkyard planet Raxus Prime and the mushroom-covered planet, Felucia.
He is aided in his dangerous missions by a loyal sidekick PROXY - a prototype holodroid with amazing abilities, and an alluring Imperial pilot named Juno Eclipse.
I have to give this one a good 3 out of 5, because I really didn’t care too much about the story, I just wanted to fling more people and things with my wicked force powers. Sorry Star Wars fans.
Overall
I have to say, overall, I enjoyed Force Unleashed. I found it difficult, but fun. I enjoyed the feeling of being a super powered individual able to pick up Tie Fighters and throw them at people, blast through metal doors, and more, but there are a few things that weren’t perfect and that stops me from giving this game a perfect score. I would say in the end, it is a strong: 15 out of 20.
Cheats
A little side note for those that want to have more fun, and aren’t interested in being able to save your game. If you are renting The Force Unleashed, like I was, you’ll want to be able to try out the full range of force powers the game offers, and to do that, you just need to beat the first level and start adding in cheats.
*Note: you can’t save your game once you enable cheats!
Maximum Force powers
Enter “KATARN” as a code.
Amplified lightsaber damage
Enter “LIGHTSABER” or “COUNTDOOKU” as a code.
All Force Talents
Enter “JOCASTA” as a code to unlock all Force Talents.
All combos
Enter “MOLDYCROW” as a code to unlock all combos.
Mirrored levels
Enter “MINDTRICK” as a code.
Sith Master mode
Enter “SITHSPAWN” as a code to unlock the Sith Master difficulty.
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