Star Wars - The Force Unleashed

Call me a geek but I’ve been a Star Wars fans since the beginning. Growing up before G.I. Joes, Light Sabers and Millennium Falcons were the ‘in’ toys. The problem is the story has in all honesty gotten a little hard to follow, what with the prolog episodes, the recently released Clone Wars, and of course the games – which are what I’m here to talk about. I recently had the opportunity to combine one of my favorite gadgets (my ever-lovin’ PSP) with my favorite movie, and here’s what I think of Star Wars - The Force Unleashed (TFU) for the PSP.

Adding another insertion into what seems to be an extremely loooong prelude to the movies that got this saga rolling, The Forced Unleashed is a PSP version of the console game. The story line will be familiar to those of you who have read Nash’s review . Now while gaming may not be my forte, unlike my esteemed colleagues Avinash, Nikhil and Gagan, a total noob I’m not. I’ve played Ataris, Segas and Gameboys, and I know what I like and dislike.

This version of TFU sticks close the console version. You start off as Darth Vader and you can gradually learn to use the Force powers on the current enemies or pretty much on anything in your path, including Storm Troopers and Imperial guards. Essentially that’s what the game is all about. There are no clearly marked-out enemies, and you’ll find that you can kill just about anyone or anything that moves. Quite helpful if you’re just looking to relieve some frustration.

You then take on the role of Darth Vader’s apprentice who is sent on a variety of quests, which requires you to seek out and kill any remaining Jedi. This involves hooking up with a bomb of a pilot (ol’ Vader has good taste) whose only job is to fly you around and ask no questions. Yeah, like that’s gonna happen. The quests tend to be a bit repetitive as you find yourself shuttling between the same planets. The layouts and maps obviously remain the same, with very little variety.

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One major drawback to the game are the boss fights. Instead of progressively getting difficult, the opponents tend to vary in strength and abilities. The irregularity of the power levels when it comes to henchmen and boss fights is a put-off. Some pre-boss fights make you face the legendary Rancor, Shadow Cards, and imperial AT-ST (All terrain Scout Transport) vehicles.

Some of these fights are not very well-designed; due to the limited camera movement in a PSP there’s unfortunately a great deal of clipping, so all you might end up seeing is your Light Saber flashing around and not your character. This is your cue to get out ASAP. The action and use of combos, however, look quite good for a PSP game.

I haven’t played the console version, and though I imagine the locations will look and feel a whole lot better, I must say the PSP version’s not bad at all. The physics in the game are well-designed, and throwing stuff around or at enemies can be a blast. As you progress, you can level up after every stage by returning to your ship. The costumes you unlock are not altogether a fashion statement, but some do look pretty cool.

Power-ups are earned by killing enemies and blowing things up. You can also collect color crystals for customizing your Light Saber, and once you’ve got them all there are plenty of colors to choose from. Cubes collected will show off some of the game’s artwork from the menus.

The videos used to link the story were bit confusing at times but also quite engaging, especially with a twist at the end. I’m unfortunately unsure as to where this all falls in before parts IV, V and VI. There are characters like princess Leia who show up, even a cameo of Obi Wan – and I’m not sure why.

The Bottomline
Like I said I haven’t played the console version, but I did like the PSP TFU. It seems there’s very little difference between the two, as you can see from the console review . In fact, I would go as far as to say Avinash pegged it right; it’s a great game that looks good and is entertaining for the most part, but the repetitiveness of the locations and the irregular power levels in boss fights tend to make it annoying. All told, this is a game that fans will enjoy, despite its flaws.