[xbox 360] My review of the game *Spoilers*

[Quilled Mind]

I played for a few hours and got past Paratus and here is my review so far.

 

Let me start by saying that I've played quite a lot of video games over the years so I'm not a terrible player by any means but this is the first time I've ever played a Star Wars game where I've wanted to bite my controller in half and throw the pieces through the television.

I HATE HATE HATE the gameplay and controls. It's that stupid fast jerky anime-style ninja gameplay where your character can accidentally zip off a ledge for no reason at all, just because it was still going through with an attack combo or something. It has platform jumping aspects to it but it is nearly impossible to do so with the retarded overly sensitive movements. When you have jumping climbing games out like Assassin's Creed or even Uncharted 2 (or even 90's Tombraider), this game feels like it is made by scientists for the strict reason of making society want to kill things due to intense stress.

The buttons for doing anything are another matter that I don't wish to describe because it makes me angry.

The game has no immersive aspect at all. I found myself well into the second act going, "What the hell is the point of all of this and what did I just do right before this?" I guess you're Vader's kidnapped foster son who has to constantly prove himself by getting sent on bull**** missions that Vader expects you to die in but you spend the whole time getting caught between stormtrooper and rebel gunfights, scrap junk getting thrown at you, and stupid nothing garbage crap damn stupid damn damn.

It's linear stupidness.

Backgrounds look awesome and the idea of where you are most of the time is cool. I think they sold the idea on all of that. Like the guys who create the concept art and background matte stuff should get awards but the human characters don't look human, they seem to have reverted to 2003 in the video game human look.

All of the problems with the game could be tolerable if everything was slowed down a knotch but since everything is at Jedi speed, everything feels fast, uncontrollable, jerky, and what I hate most, improper physics due to retarded gameplay. Like one part where I had to use the Force to bend giant pieces of scrap metal sticking out of the sides of the walls in order to create platforms to jump to one-by-one...it took me 10-15 times to actually land the jump because the physics and controls suck and when you die in the game, you get sent back to the checkpoint that is 20 minutes behind you. One time I decided to bend one of the metal pieces really low in order to get a much flatter and straighter take off to the next piece, and in game mechanic terms, the piece was considered to low to the bottom of the game that they figured I had fallen into that every game bottomless pit aspect and killed me for no reason, even though I was perfectly safe on the platform. I nearly popped.

The main character isn't engaging AT ALL. You can't care and you don't know why anything is happening at all other than me deducing on my own (not actually said in the game of course) that Vader lost Padme and his child(ren) so he has taken on a foster kid to fill that gap, but training him in the ways of the Darkside in order to kill the Emperor and take over the galaxy as father and foster son. I guess. Stupid.

You have to find secret hidden holocrons in order to gain points (though I have no idea what they are used for yet or if that means experience points), temporary increases in damage or health or whatever, and sometimes on rare occasion to gain a new lightsaber crystal or some other rarity. But the holocrons aren't easy to find or get to half of the time. I had to use the Force to stack 80 pieces of garbage, just to create steps up to some holocron that was about 500 feet up. And don't think for one minute that using the Force is an easy flawless task, it's like those vending games where you move that claw around inside a giant glass box and try to pick up the toy you like but it keeps dropping...that's the Force in the game. It gets even worse when you try to throw objects at things without targeting them first...it really is less precise than throwing snowballs at moving cars with your scarf covering your eyes.

I love pretty much every Star Wars even if they had problems because I could justify them just because they were at least still in the Star Wars universe...but this game makes me want to break things.

I haven't finished it yet but it better have a satisfying end or else I think I'll actually turn to the Darkside.

I have one word to describe my experience of The Force Unleashed...frustrating.

[Lord Foley]

Since I love this game, I guess I'll come to its defense.

 

1. I will concede right away that sometimes I got pissed at falling off of ledges because Starkiller feels the need to keep stepping forward as he attacks. That's a pain, but it wasn't exactly ruining the experience for me because I just decided it was a bad idea to attack towards a ledge I'm close to. As for the environment navigation being compared to Assassin's creed, this is just not that kind of game. I'd certainly enjoy being able to explore a little more in the sequel, but I definitely didn't feel like it was missing.

 

2. I don't know what to tell you about immersion. The cutscenes of the game make the plot pretty clear and the environments are gorgeous. It might seem like not much is going on yet because you just beat the second level. Try playing the whole game. Linear stupidness is pretty much any game with levels. As for humans not looking human, I think they do and don't really know what you're getting at there.

 

3. Physics 101- don't jump on slanty things. I got killed the same way, with the platform being too low, and it made me pretty mad all of one time. It's a stupid glitch, but perfectly avoidable.

 

4. If you had watched the cutscenes, you would know at this point that Vader is training Starkiller in killing Jedi so that they can defeat the Emperor together.

 

5. The holocrons are supposed to be hard to get. They're bonuses.

[Quilled Mind]

Since I love this game, I guess I'll come to its defense.

 

1. I will concede right away that sometimes I got pissed at falling off of ledges because Starkiller feels the need to keep stepping forward as he attacks. That's a pain, but it wasn't exactly ruining the experience for me because I just decided it was a bad idea to attack towards a ledge I'm close to. As for the environment navigation being compared to Assassin's creed, this is just not that kind of game. I'd certainly enjoy being able to explore a little more in the sequel, but I definitely didn't feel like it was missing.

 

2. I don't know what to tell you about immersion. The cutscenes of the game make the plot pretty clear and the environments are gorgeous. It might seem like not much is going on yet because you just beat the second level. Try playing the whole game. Linear stupidness is pretty much any game with levels. As for humans not looking human, I think they do and don't really know what you're getting at there.

 

3. Physics 101- don't jump on slanty things. I got killed the same way, with the platform being too low, and it made me pretty mad all of one time. It's a stupid glitch, but perfectly avoidable.

 

4. If you had watched the cutscenes, you would know at this point that Vader is training Starkiller in killing Jedi so that they can defeat the Emperor together.

 

5. The holocrons are supposed to be hard to get. They're bonuses.

 

Yep. Thanks for replying.

I understand that this post isn't completely relevant due to the game being nearly 2 years old now but I just started playing it recently.

I'm very used to playing RPGs with dozens and dozens of hours worth of gameplay and storylines...so Force Unleashed just felt really shallow in comparison.

I've surpassed the half-way mark now, after writing the initial post and not much of my opinion has changed other than the the cut scene where Vader whoops you is kind of cool.

Yes, I agree with you about everything you said and I knew that Vader was training you to defeat the Emperor together but it isn't enough to make for a main plot. That's a side note, not a main plot for a game.

I really think people who like games like Dynasty Warriors, X-Men, and Final Fantasy are probably the people who like this gameplay. It's the style I sort of hate obviously from my post. Third person zippy hack and slash with little to no immersive story compared to other Star Wars games.

[XianTsu]

Well, I just got it because I just found out it existed now on PC as well.

 

My marks are: First of, this can't be considered a GAME. Reason is, that a: you have NO control over the game aspect: your told to go "this way", "kill that", and at the end even "die here, like this!!!". Wha? Come on, if you cannot choose your path, why made the 'game'??? To me it looks more like a show-off of the bloody engine more, than it is a game. The story too, is very, well, clumsily made, imho.

 

b) The game play itself, is, as told, very uncontrollable. Whomever tested this game was either a super player, or a cheater. I died most of the time due to falling off ledges (in the hard mode), overstepping a combat move, ... Out of misery I retried in "normal mode".

 

For me personally, it was the worst spend money ever, I I so hope SW-TFU2 will be a LOT better, for their sakes!

 

More Kotor SP if you please...

[Rigjarl]

Gentlemen PLEASE;

 

The force unleashed is not a role playing game, it is not intended to get you into the role of a jedi making decissions through the galaxy. Of course, it is just a beat´em´up. So no more complains about it being linear and without story. I would say it has more story than many other games, full of stupid nowhere to go misssions, just to justify 100 hours of gaming.

 

This game intention is to make you feel the blood and adrenaline rushing through, just by mere combat, and to have an idea of what is the dark side full offensive potential. It is unique and revolutionary in the way you can use and take advantage of the environtment. Also the jedi powers are much more better and able than say "the revenge of the sith" for PS2. Of course it has budgets and flaws, and I guess everyone hates that platform part to get the sith robe in Raxus first stage (one of the coolest by far in my opinion).

 

About the controls they are intuitive, and very simple to get acquainted with. The only thing I complain about them is the speed. I agree it should be a little less fast.

 

I find this game one of the best ones lucas arts has made. The story gets deeper into the Star wars Universe, it is not an excuse to make a game, and I have played it over and over, so a second game is a long desired wish.

 

But I am not blind to its flaws of course. I hope in this second one they fix some of the main problems, wich for me are.

- Targeting system. Easy, simple, and just that. Sometimes you get pissed because you can´t waste your time trying to target a specific enemy (specially when swarmed by a horde)

- Levels variety. That really got me mad, with nine stages, two of them repeated? That was like being insulted (and I did not even count Kashyyik, which already was in the prologue) Are there not systems in star wars to explore? Coruscant, Malastare, Ord mantell and many more...

- Powers impact. Main powers are truly awesome, but the rest have very low impact. There is no choke, no mind affecting, and the like.

- Downloads. Three additional stages, not bad, but could get better. Also not been able to use the clothings from the last two in the main game is a pity, specially the darth one from Hoth.

 

I am sorry, but to play an RPG, KOTOR is awesome, but this kind of game is entirely different. It is action without too many thougths. Sometimes it is like feeling "mushin" if I can apply the japanesse term. And no RPG can give you that feeling.

 

Last forgive my english, I am non-native. =D

[truJedi]

I loved it ! even though there were some small things like the targeting system that annoyed me . But as for the sith robe ....really lol i didnt think it was that hard to get lol

i think i got it in the first or second go . And yes , it isnt an rpg game so its not going to be as in depth storywise, but i still though it was pretty amazing the way it made me feel while i was playing. You feel in control and and powerful , which is what i think they tried to get across to people. Wanted you to feel the force flow through you haha