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Let's Play Dark Forces


jrrtoken

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Star Wars: Dark Forces

 

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During this entire thread, I hope to create a sort of companion to Dark Forces. It's more or less a playthrough, but with Useless Trivia™, with my own thoughts about the game. More importantly, it's nostalgia for people who've played it, but something new for those who haven't. Simply put, it's just a product of boredom.

 

But first,

 

What's Dark Forces?

Star Wars: Dark Forces is a first-person shooter developed and published by LucasArts in 1995. During that time, Doom by id Software made quite a splash in PC gaming, and was the de facto watershed of the modern 3D FPS as we know it. Of course, Doom wasn't entirely 100% 3D, but more of a pseudo-3D, 2.5D, if you will.

 

Anyway, Doom was the new s***. Therefore, almost every game developer on the planet proceeded to create FPS of their own based on the successes of Doom. A lot of them sucked, but others, like Dark Forces, added gameplay mechanics to the FPS franchise which are still present in FPSs of today. Yet, most innovation from other developers were usually ignored by critics, and in turn created a new derogatory label for FPSs that immediately followed Doom: "Doom clone".

 

So, at first, most people labeled Dark Forces as simply a cash-in for the SW franchise. Although that's true, it added and tweaked much that was Doom, and spawned its own franchise that bloomed into something entirely different than Doom and Quake. We'll get into the differences later, but now it's best to actually start the game, and reserve questions for later.

 

Table of Contents

Prologue: The Olden Days of the Cutscene

Mission 1: Secret Base (or Kyle's First Day)

Prologue Redux: Puttin' the "Dark" back in Dark Forces

 

 

Prologue: The Olden Days of the Cutscene

 

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*shwilll SHWAAAMMMMP*

 

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Ah, good ol' LucasArts.

 

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Dammit, what's wrong with my monitor now?

 

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That's better.

 

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...

 

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Finally.

 

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Continued

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Continued from

 

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:zz1:

 

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Planet Earth is blue, and there's nothing I can do...

 

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That's obviously Soviet design.

 

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This is one of the best parts of the title sequence, the "GEARUP" scene. It's this badass Batman & Robin-esque scene which has some Kyle Katarn lookalike in faux-FMV. Oddly enough, this was cut from the original game, but was part of the 3-level demo, which was also included on the same disc as DF. So, just dropping the file into the right folder enables it.

 

Continued

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Oh, cool. :)

 

It's been so long since I've played this game that I've forgotten most of the details. This should be interesting. Hopefully my dialup connection won't keep me from enjoying this LP.

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Continued from

 

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The main theme was always a wonderful tune. It's a variation of the Imperial March but it's distinct in its own right.

 

I don't want to watch all of the credits, so my Escape key gets used again.

 

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Hello, what's this? It's sort of odd that they prompt you for your username, or in this case "Agent Name" right at the start. It's not bad or good, just rather abrupt.

 

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This is also one of the few times in games where they try to use "realistic" GUIs, as if you really had some computer on you in the game which chose your identity and mindset. It's been used since DF on many many other games, but this is one of the first examples of this sort of art direction.

 

Also, note the really creative level name. Lots of innovation going on there.

 

Mission 1: Secret Base (or Kyle's First Day)

 

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Ah yes, the briefing screen. Unlike Doom, Dark Forces actually has a plot, and therefore, backstory is a welcome addition to FPSs. There's also the silhouette of Mon Mothma in the back. Apparently they wanted to make clear who was talking to you, instead of simply a block of text.

 

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That's one thing I didn't really understand. Kyle Katarn, a former Imperial, is hired by the Rebellion to infiltrate into a barely known Imperial base and steal the blueprints to the Empire's secret weapon. I guess Mon Mothma didn't realize that Kyle could simply act as an informant to the Empire and end the Rebellion in a day. Oh well.

 

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That's one thing that I thought was cool. The first level is pretty much one whole immediate prequel to A New Hope.

 

Continued

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One thing I noticed at first glance about the Moldy Crow is just how badass it looks. Not only dis it a Millennium Falcon/X-Wing hybrid, but it also looks like it has at least 20 cannons on it. It's like a flying tin can of whoop ass.

 

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:indif:

 

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So we spawned in an elevator shaft, and we fell down. Okay.

 

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This is the first example of the brilliant level design in this game. Every level feels incredibly realistic and well thought out, for the most part. The columns, for example, are a nice touch, as well as the excellent texture work.

 

Also note our starting weapon, and how it changed its brightness when walking in and out of the shaft. I'll get into greater detail into that later on, but it's always the little graphical details that can truly show how better DF was graphically to Doom.

 

The Bryar pistol has only one configuration: slow. In Outcast, they added a cool "charge" function as the secondary fire, but overall, I think that the best use of the Bryar was in DF2:

 

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See what I mean?

 

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Upon hitting Escape, we have the realistic menu scheme again. Dig the "Quit to DOS" item. You don't see that everyday.

 

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Upon clicking "Configuration", we get the usual Options menu in games. It's all pretty standard for most games of that era, but one thing stands out. "Super Shield" is really a toggle for invincibility. I don't know what the developers were thinking, but giving the player the standard option to cheat was a hell of a decision. Maybe they thought that it was great for speed running, but it's still odd.

 

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If you hit F1, you also get the Journal, which lets you see the map, objectives, inventory, weaponry, etc.

 

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The HUD is also interesting. You have the green Shield meter, which goes up to 200, and is more or less the standard health function in the game. There's also the red Health, which is a reserve backup system, and once you've run out of health, you dead, instead of running out of shield power.

 

DF also had a pseudo-damage system. Shields could block blaster fire only; any physical attack automatically drains health.

 

Also, see the primary melee weapon, AKA, a "Fist". One thing I don't understand is that Kyle can only punch with his left hand.

 

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In DF2 and Outcast Kyle punches with two fists, but for some reason, his right arm isn't his punching arm in this game. Maybe his left arm is mechanically prosthetic like Luke's, and therefore, is better at punching. Or maybe the developers made a mistake.

 

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Fresh blood...

 

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This is the first example of the brilliant level design in this game. Every level feels incredibly realistic and well thought out, for the most part. The columns, for example, are a nice touch, as well as the excellent texture work.

 

Also note our starting weapon, and how it changed its brightness when walking in and out of the shaft. I'll get into greater detail into that later on, but it's always the little graphical details that can truly show how better DF was graphically to Doom.

 

THIS was graphical excellence for the times. I totally agree with you, my friend. It pwned Doom.

 

In DF2 and Outcast Kyle punches with two fists, but for some reason, his right arm isn't his punching arm in this game. Maybe his left arm is mechanically prosthetic like Luke's, and therefore, is better at punching. Or maybe the developers made a mistake.

 

HEY?! What's wrong with being Left Handed?! I DEMAND to know. I'm left handed!

 

Anyway...Kyle punches in Jedi Outcast? Weird, I've never been able to get him to do that.

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Continued from

 

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Well, as far as difficulty goes, these guys were pansies. Of course, it is on Easy for a reason...

 

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The death sprites are pretty detailed, but I don't understand what's the blue canister...

 

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Oh, ammo. Gotcha.

 

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Goodie, more oddly shaped pick-ups.

 

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:confused:

 

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That's shield power? It doesn't look like any battery that I've seen. Looks more like a utility belt.

 

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Anyway, some jackass has been shooting at me, so it's time to make him deceased.

 

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Dammit.

 

:gunleap:

 

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Looks like he had something good on him after all. Say hello to the Imperial Stormtrooper Rifle, everyone. This is the standard repeater in DF, as well as every other JK game. There's better guns than this, but this is quite effective at the moment.

 

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Jesus, they pop out of nowhere.

 

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You gotta love the flying cap.

 

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Continued

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More utility belts and tin cans.

 

I'm going to skip ahead a bit to that switch that we previously saw.

 

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It obviously opens the door next to us, but why does it need to be the size of my head? It's obviously just a switch, not a terminal.

 

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hehehehe

 

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Oddly enough, Imperials have an odd hierarchy in difficulty. When killing someone with the rifle, it takes one round for an officer (brown clothes), two for a stormtrooper, and three for commandos (black clothing). But, that doesn't make sense, though.

 

Stormtroopers have a full suit of armor protecting them, while the commandos wear some kind of smock and a dinky hardhat. You'd think that the difficulty would be switched around...

 

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Door #1...

 

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Door #2.

 

Two it is.

 

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These guys are smart; they'd rather kill themselves than be shot by me.

 

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Elevator time.

 

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Again, more of those guys that appear out of nowhere and start shooting at you. Naturally, I made them deceased.

 

Oh, and what the hell is that thing?

 

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:raise:

 

Continued

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:fire3:

 

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There's this huge stretch of land around the perimeter of the base. There's a few secrets there, but nothing exciting, so we're off to the base.

 

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Now, where does that key work...

 

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Aha.

 

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Yet another cool elevator. Impressive faux-reflections made by the texture filtering.

 

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There's that upper level of the exterior base.

 

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There's those mouse droids from A New Hope. they can't hurt you, but it's fun just to kill them.

 

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Looks like he left us some droppings.

 

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A battery. Don't know what that's used for yet, but we'll find out.

 

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More of those guys shooting at us from the window.

 

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Another massive switch

 

Continued

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*SHWARRRRR*

*KA-CHUNK*

 

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Talk about non-sequitur architecture.

 

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A giant, rotating door. Makes sense.

 

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A giant lift elevator. Every Imperial base needs at least one.

 

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Complete with an industrial lever for a switch.

 

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So it leads up to the exterior upper level. This is actually pretty smart, even though it's only there to make sense. If an enemy is concealed in a far-off room, it's always best for the designers to find a way to get. There were many places in Doom where enemies would only be seen in a room via a window, but with no way to actually get there.

 

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Again, more good architecture.

 

Well, this is boring. Let's go back down those stairs by the elevator.

 

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Note how the door curiously looks like the Imperial emblem.

 

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Damn, they were expecting me.

 

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Now, where's those Death Star plans...

 

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More pushovers.

 

Continued

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Continued from

 

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This is one of the greatest effects in this game, the Death Star hologram. Entirely 3D, it's probably meant to replicate the briefing hologram in Episode VI.

 

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Around the corner...

 

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Hmm....

 

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Jackpot.

 

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Just what the hell is that?

 

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That was the blueprints? A giant red PCI card? Star Wars is supposed to have more advanced technology than us, but for storing data they need a massive hunk of exposed silicon? Don't they have 1TB flash drives the size of a fingernail by now?

 

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Kyle Katarn, resident badass, shall be represented by a smiley of equal worthiness. Since we don't have a Kyle smiley, we'll have to go with Indy.

 

:indy: "This was too easy. Now to get to my ship."

 

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Christ, what is with the Empire and giant lift elevators? Is it an inferiority complex, i.e. bigger is better?

 

Continued

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Continued from

 

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Hooray the roof.

 

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Epic death fall.

 

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Well, now what?

 

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Hot.

 

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Damn.

 

That's one sexy ship.

 

You might have noticed the "Mission Objectives Complete" message. One cool thing about DF was that once you had completed all of the objectives, you could run around the whole base at your leisure; there was no forced end to the mission. You could find any secret rooms or items hidden around the base that you might have missed.

 

Speaking of which...

 

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Hm, that passage looks familiar. I wonder...

 

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Just what I thought. Kyle landed the ship on the roof, found the elevator shaft, and jumped down it, just like in the opening.

 

 

Well, time to skedaddle to the next level...

 

Next week, that is. :)

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dark065.png

 

Goodie, more oddly shaped pick-ups.

 

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:confused:

 

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That's shield power? It doesn't look like any battery that I've seen. Looks more like a utility belt.

Hah, yeah, they're essentially shield belts... (in DF2:JK they're 3D and clearly belts)

 

And awesome thread, Dark Forces was my first real game. Sure, I probably played Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt before DF, but I consider Dark Forces to always be my beginning.

 

I was little back then (like 6-8 years old ffs), so I always used cheats to stay alive, so I still remember the God mode cheat:

 

"laimlame" <-- just type it in during the game. : D

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It does, with the notable exception of the superlaser's being located "correctly" in the northern hemisphere instead of at the equator as portrayed in the ANH animation. I guess that they didn't want to repeat that mistake.

 

I know: the model was changed after they had made the animation and they didn't want to remake it.

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Though the voice of Vader in that one scene wasn't James Earl Jones, I would still say rather impressive.

 

You know...is it just me or does this all actually look a bit more hand made--like somebody actually put effort into it and had to innovate for a lack of computer technology at their fingertips so 10+ years ago?

 

To me it does sort of look that way, like, though maybe not done to the level of detail that the original trilogy movies had...but that it definitely looks like it had some kind of physical base modeling to it...

 

Maybe I'm just crazy?

 

Either way I must thank you, PX, for a trip down memory lane. So neat seeing the old generation at its best.

:thmbup1:

Good work.

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