Review: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed [Demo]
Oh. My. God.
The demo for Star Wars: The Force Unleashed launched today for the PS3 and Xbox 360 consoles in their respective online stores.
I had the opportunity to play this demo several times through already, and I must admit: this is (so far) one of the best Star Wars games I’ve seen to date. A hard title to make, considering in the arena with it are games like Knights of the Old Republic (I and II), Republic Commando, Jedi Knight II: Jedi Academy, and Masters of Teras Kasi. Of course, the last one in that list is a joke, for those of you who know about Masters of Teras Kasi.
The Force Unleashed demo is fantastic. The demo left me drooling for more. I wanted to be able to smash through the entirety of the very active, very filled TIE Fighter factory it placed me in. The combat system, huge amount of combos, the great animatics, the nice array of Force powers, and the sheer amount offun involved in just this little demo are enough to sell me on the game already.
My favorite aspect of the game has to be the combat system. It’s a hack ‘n’ slash-style system, with the lightsaber attack mapped to X, Force lightning mapped to Y, Force push mapped to B, jump mapped to A (you can double jump by tapping A twice), and Force grab mapped to the right trigger. The beauty of this is that you can chain your different abilities together. For example, tapping X-Y infuses your lightsaber with Force lightning, strengthening it’s attack. X-Y-Y does a more devastating saber attack with Force lightning involved. X-B attacks with the lightsaber, then with a Force push, launching your opponent far and high, usually into a nearby wall.
The controls are very tightly designed, and very responsive, so it was not frustrating at all to learn the commands needed to send Stormtroopers flying into explosive barrels or off the edge of platforms. The animation in the game is fantastic. A Stormtrooper being lifted by your Force grab near another Stormtrooper will often lead him to cling desperately to his nearby ally, causing both to be lifted off the ground and easily disposed of. The physics are impressive, and give quite a realistic feel to such an outlandish Sci-Fi game.
The only complaint of the demo I have thus far is that it’s too short! It takes me about ten to fifteen minutes (if even that) to complete the demo on Sith Warrior mode. Were it longer, though, I’d probably not be here writing this review, now would I?
My rating for this demo is 10/10. A rarity, but a necessity in this case. This demo is a must-try!
I will write a full review of The Force Unleashed when it launches in September!
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Star Wars: The Force Unleashed demo out tomorrow!
Vader's apprentice = unhappy
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed’s demo releases on the Xbox Live Marketplace and the PlayStation Network Store tomorrow! Expect a review of both versions of the demo on my site very soon!
No commentsReview: Too Human (Demo) (Xbox 360)
Uninspired and uninspiring.
While there are many words to describe Too Human, “fantastic” or “awe-inspiring” are not ones that you’ll find in this review of the demo that was released on the Xbox Live Marketplace.
While the visual are okay, the combat system of Too Human feels too boring to even justify it being in a game. Couple the combat system with a wacky control scheme (my guy ended up facing the wrong way while firing more often than hitting the target) and you have a recipe for turning what could potentially be a grade-A title into another B-class shot of mediocrity.
The cut-scenes can be skipped, which definitely ups the points in my book, since most of the demo is showing off where you’re walking around (which I presume is supposed to be a gorgeous backdrop), which looks like an uninspired castle-cave mixture. The soldiers you’re with keep mentioning that the cold and barren-looking place you’re in is abandoned, even though you keep getting assaulted by waves of mechanized enemies.
What’s more, the troops I was with repeated themselves a couple times, something about “making every shot count.” This was an issue with the original Halo on the Xbox, where the repetition all but drove me insane. But I digress.
Let me get back to the issue at hand: the combat system. The system involves using the right thumbstick to hack and slash using your sword, and while holding the L and R triggers (each fires a separate weapon), using the right thumbstick targets whoever’s in front of you. This is great, when it works. But my issue was while firing guns, when I’d change my target to the left, my guy would lose target and start shooting at nothing. Even more irritating, the sword play is incredibly boring to watch, and when you try to slash at a distant enemy, you do this idiotic-looking glide/skating motion that is poorly designed, to say the least.
For a demo, it definitely is not worth the amount of time it took to download. I’d say if you were looking forward to this game, the demo will let you down severely.
I’m not going to give this a number score just yet, since the full version isn’t out. If the combat system of the actual release is the same, expect to see this turn into a review for the full version.
Edit: I’ve decided to give this one a number score, since the full game is almost no different than the demo, unfortunately. I give it a 6/10, mainly for the lack of a decent combat system and the terrible dialogue.
No commentsMetrocon 2008
Metrocon logo
I’ve returned from Metrocon 2008 at the Tampa Convention Center in Tampa, Florida. I did a huge amount of picture taking and idea gathering (as well as some goodies that I may use in contests here on the site). I’ll be posting my pictures soon in a gallery somewhere, so keep an eye out for it!
This was a cool convention, and it’s Florida’s largest Anime convention. While I’m not a huge anime fan, they did have their fair share of game cosplayers/costumes and game fandom there that kept me satisfied.
Anywho, I’m back from the three-day foray, and I’m quite pleased!