By:
LucasArts
Developed by: Raven Studios
Review by:
Lefty
April 10, 2002
A long time ago,
in a galaxy far, far away… Star Wars games were
actually fun. It didn’t matter how great the
graphics were, or how astounding the storyline
was. The only thing that mattered was that it was
a new game, and we could play as our favorite Star
Wars character. It seemed that we (Star Wars
fans) wouldn’t let it be a bad game. But we
started to grow up, and technology started to grow
up as well. For most of the gaming industry that
has been a blessing. But for us, it has been a
double-edged sword. There have been great games
from many different genres, but Star Wars games
have almost always been lacking. Now, there have
been great SW (Star Wars) games along the way, but
sadly, they have been few and far between. They
have been replaced with cheap horrific games that
only make the consumer frustrated, mad, and
ultimately, gives them the desire to finally play
a good SW game once again.
With the release
of SW Episode II now less than two months away,
LucasArts may have finally given us what we both
want and deserve in SW Jedi Knight II: Jedi
Outcast. You take the role of Kyle Katarn again,
the brave mercenary who in SW Jedi Knight: Dark
Forces II, you played to avenge the death of his
father. Because of the temptation he faced to
turn to the Dark Side, Kyle vowed to never use the
force again and turned in his lightsaber
relinquishing his role as a Jedi Knight.
It
has been nine years since that time, and Kyle is
on a routine mission for the New Republic (NR) to
the planet of Kejim with his partner Jan Ors. On
your way you receive a transmission from Mon
Mothma, the head of the NR. She relays to you
communications that have been intercepted by NR
agents from what was thought to be an abandoned
Imperial listening outpost. The transmission
includes references to the Valley of the Jedi.
You and your partner are then asked to investigate
these strange events. At doing so you find
yourself confronted with a new threat from the
Empire and a secret that will force you to
reconcile your troubled past.
SW Jedi Knight
II takes you on 24 amazing missions. LucasArts
should receive high marks for teaming with Raven
Studios and adopting the Quake III Arena engine in
this great SW game. The detail and scope of the
missions are more than amazing.
The
video quality, color depth and texture quality can
be pushed to the limits if your video card will
allow it. If not, you will miss out on an amazing
accomplishment in computer gaming. I was
surprised to see the body of a stormtrooper at the
bottom of a canyon after I shot him off of the
ledge overlooking it. The glow of your lightsaber
on both the floor and ceiling is a sight that can
take your breath away. The missions are
compounded with such detail it feels that you are
actually in the SW universe on a mission against
the Empire. Throughout the missions you will come
in contact with old SW favorites including Luke
Skywalker and Lando Calrissian. It is fantastic
to see such detail and effort put into a SW game.
The weapons
included in JKII are both familiar and new to SW
fans. They range from the familiar E-11 Blaster
Rifle (stormtrooper rifle), wookie bowcaster, and
lightsaber to the new disruptor rifle and
the
Imperial heavy repeater. As with all good first
person shooters, the weapons leave residue and
blaster marks along the walls and vehicles that
you may end up shooting. When using a lightsaber,
if you get too close to a wall or structure, you
will actually leave a burn mark where your weapon
has touched. Almost all weapons have a primary
and secondary attack, each differing between the
specific weapons.
A very big part
of JKII is the use of force powers. In single
player mode you can wield over eight force
abilities including;
Force
Push, Force Pull, Force Speed, the Jedi Mind
Trick, Force Heal, Force Grip, and Force
Lightning. Also included are the Lightsaber
Throw, Defense and Offense. When selecting the
lightsaber, your view will change from
first-person to third-person allowing you to do
evasive and acrobatic moves that you couldn’t do
in first-person. LucasArts has made up for the
lack in previous SW games with this title. They
have taken everything that was great in the
original Dark Forces and Dark Forces II and made
it one hundred times better.
The sound in
JKII is fantastic. From the hum of a lightsaber
to the blast from a wookie bowcaster, LucasArts
along with help from Raven have once again
captured the unique sound from the SW universe and
given it to us to enjoy on the PC.
Thankfully, the
fun doesn’t end with the completion of the single
player storyline. JKII includes a multiplayer
ability that can boast up to 32 players via online
or networking capabilities. If you don’t have a
high speed internet connection or don’t have any
buddies with as fast a system as you, the option
to play against a host of AI bots has been
included with this smash. In addition to the
weapons and force powers from the single player
missions, the multiplayer games include an
additional seven new force powers and six
different types of multiplayer games.
Included
are Jedi Master Free For All, Halocarbon, Capture
the Ysalamiri, Duel, Deathmatch and Capture the
Flag. Surprisingly, I have spent more time
playing against the AI bots than playing through
the storyline in JKII. Nothing beats running
through the streets of Coruscant and pushing your
enemy off of a catwalk by using the Force Push and
getting credit for the kill. Another exciting
innovation is the ability to challenge a player to
a lightsaber duel. If your opponent accepts the
challenge, you will duel without interference from
other players on the server.
All around, Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast
is a fantastic game that has once again captured
the look, feel, and sound of the Star Wars
Universe. With every day getting closer to the
opening of Episode II, JKII brings me to the mercy
of George Lucas once again. I’m kind of glad with
the problems past SW games have had, otherwise I
don’t think I would appreciate what LucasArts,
with the help of Raven Studios, has accomplished
with this must have for every Star Wars Fan and
FPS fan alike. Thanks George, my faith in
Star Wars games has been renewed. Now maybe
you can renew all of our faith with Attack of the
Clones after the hit the SW universe took with the
release of The Phantom Menace… I give this game
9.2 out of 10.
You can visit
the official Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast
website
here.
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