Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (Xbox 360, PS3)
by Eddie Turner on October 6, 2008 3:00 AM EST- Posted in
- GPUs
Gameplay
The gameplay in The Force Unleashed is best described as glorified hack-n-slash with a focus on combat using on a variety of Star Wars' signature force powers in addition to wielding the classic lightsaber. The game can be played be played on three difficulty settings initially, with an additional level of difficulty that can be unlocked by completing the campaign. Whichever setting you choose, the level of intensity in your force powers remains the same when the game begins. This suggests an immediate need to upgrade your powers. Thankfully, the game incorporates a screen in the options menu that allows you to upgrade your powers to new levels of intensity. During the game, players will gain force points and collect glowing spheres that allow the purchase of these enhancements. Using this same system, players can unlock new lightsaber combos as well as attributes to make your saber increasingly lethal.
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Force powers in the game are what separate The Force Unleashed from other similar action games. They include force push, force lightning, force repulse, and force grip. The force push attack causes a burst of energy to thrust forward, knocking your attackers backward, allowing you to get the jump on them with your lightsaber. This is equally effective when used to knock enemies off raised platforms, sealing their fate as they plummet into the abyss below. Force lightning stuns enemies with a powerful jolt of electricity while force repulse acts as a smart bomb, killing all enemies within a certain radius of your lightsaber. Lastly, the force grip allows players to levitate objects as well as enemies, which can then function as projectile weapons.
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Of all the force powers you have at your disposal, the force grip attack is largely the most enjoyable as it allows for a degree of creativity during battle. For instance, players can pick up a nearby machine part and toss it into a horde of advancing rebel forces, causing an explosion that will send them flying into the air. On the other hand, one might choose to pick up a Stormtrooper, bang his head on the ceiling a couple of times, and then toss him into the next galaxy. Enemies grabbed with the force grip do not go quietly. In fact, many will latch onto a nearby object in an attempt to keep from being lifted. Enemies will also grab onto their nearby allies, allowing you to have some fun with both of them. And this is indeed fun... for a while.
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EddieTurner - Monday, October 6, 2008 - link
No! IT'S NOT TRUE!!!!!! . . . : )Visual - Monday, October 6, 2008 - link
no force pull... it was so much fun to pull enemies directly onto your saber in the previous jedi knights games... impale them without even swinging! well ok, no, it didnt work too much as the damage was minimal. but this game could've fixed this, instead of breaking in completely :(no force deflect! now that's an incompetent lightsaber user if i ever saw one!
how about force speed, sense, speed, absorb, speed, drain, speed, heal, speed, defense, speed, mind trick and speed? i hope they have them... if not, at least force speed should be there.
the game really doesn't sound good to me now... maybe if the wii version does a good job with the wiimote lightsaber control... but even then, it better have multiplayer duels or it is just wasting its fun potential.
(oh and, anandtech, your post comment has a broken stylesheet and the formatting buttons don't work)
Aquila76 - Tuesday, October 7, 2008 - link
They replaced that 'pull onto Saber' move with Saber Impale (Grip and Saber Toss).The powers are Push, Grip/Throw, Choke, Lightning, Deflect (this is always on to a minimal extent, but you can also go into Deflect mode and block / return nearly all the blaster shots; it also increases in skill as you progress through the game), Saber Throw, Double Jump, Dash (a short-burst form of Speed), Repulse (knocks down people & objects around you), and Maelstrom (high power Force tornado that does huge damage; a bit hard to pull off if your in heavy combat, though). Most of these can be combined (Jump & Lightning or Push, Lightning & Push makes your foe slide away from you crackling and then and Detonate upon contact with object or other foes, Push & Lightning knocks enemies down and fires an electric ball to Scorch them, etc.). There are also Lightsaber chain moves (swing L, R, then Up, etc.) and Lightsaber & Force combos (2 or 3 swings and Push or Lightning, Jump and swing, Jump then Dash then swing, etc.).
Wii version has dueling mode for the multi-player. The Wii-remote is quite possibly the best Lightsaber controller, ever. I'm surprised they didn't review the Wii version. Maybe they're gonna do it separately?
I actually rented and played the whole game straight through on Saturday. The wife was out of town, so I didn't have the nagging 'empty the trash' or 'take out the dog' or 'pay me attention' and whatever other asinine things wives normally clamor on about when we're trying to have fun. So far, this was the best 11 hours of my year! I'm going to buy this with the next Best Buy 10% off coupon I get.
fepple - Monday, October 6, 2008 - link
In some of the previous games force jumping over people then a force pull would dispatch whole groups :DEddieTurner - Monday, October 6, 2008 - link
If it's any consolation, I did detect the force head scratch, the force lean, and the force blink in the game. And I swear I saw the force nod, but I can't be sure of that one. It was late.SlyNine - Tuesday, October 7, 2008 - link
Is the force tea bagg in there ? That would be sweet.KnIgHtCoM - Monday, October 6, 2008 - link
No PC Version + No Multiplayer = FAIL9nails - Thursday, October 9, 2008 - link
I was at Target last night, saw the display on the end cap... The Xbox 360 section was nearly sold out. Wii was second. PS3 and DS were mostly full. My purchase would have been an impulse buy, but I wanted a PC version. I checked the PC shelves, but couldn't find it.So there's no PC version 'eh?
Epic Fail, indeed.
ComatoseDelirium - Tuesday, October 7, 2008 - link
Great looking game, no pc version makes it a fail in my opinion.ComatoseDelirium - Tuesday, October 7, 2008 - link
Great looking game, no pc version makes it a fail in my opinion.