Star Wars: The Force Unleashed Catch-All

Meh, all the gameplay complaints (which we saw first hand with the demo) means I'll be pushing this one back to my X-Mas list.

OXM UK gave it 8/10. Oddly, they didn't even mention the QTEs. Their demerits were bad camera controls and clunky controls. However, it was a very positive review.

Game Trailers review is up.

Sounds like a rental or second hand purchase at best.

Wired.

Who knew that throwing Stormtroopers around like they were rag dolls could be so... boring?

Well, I'm at least going to rent it. I thought the demo was really fun. I've got it at the top of my Gamefly queue.

So sad to watch Star Wars die a little bit more again. I'll probably still pick it up but I'll keep the Kleenex close at hand.

Gamespot gives it a 7.5, which by my scale means that it's worth a buy, but only just barely. (If they'd given it a 7, or even a 6.5, then I'd be all over it)

This part is what could sell it for me:

Once you've completed the game and are the all-powerful Dark Jedi you've always wanted to be, it's remarkably fulfilling to return to Force Unleashed's earlier, better levels to try out the powers and combos you didn't possess on your first play-through of them. Or perhaps you want to experience the second of the game's two endings (a reasonable goal, since one of them is bound to get fans talking) while wearing one of the unlockable costumes. But most players will find that aside from a return to the better areas, once is enough. When the game caters to its strengths, it soars; when it deviates, it flounders. Regardless, it's still a more than worthy entry in a long line of licensed Star Wars games, and a good action game in its own right.

The ability to replay my favorite missions with powers I've leveled up from later parts in the game is a big selling point for me. All of my favorite games have featured something similar to that.

Sad to hear about the star destroyer sequence, though. I know a lot of people were looking forward to it.

I'll probably end up getting it, but I'll wait for the price drop.

SirRockford wrote:

Well, I'm at least going to rent it. I thought the demo was really fun.

Then this article was written for you.

Spunior wrote:
SirRockford wrote:

Well, I'm at least going to rent it. I thought the demo was really fun.

Then this article was written for you.

Pretty much how I figured the game would play. On top of which I didn't think the saber fightng was well done at all. I almost wish they would have left the saber out completely and just unleashed the force as the title indicates.

Spunior wrote:
SirRockford wrote:

Well, I'm at least going to rent it. I thought the demo was really fun.

Then this article was written for you.

Well, at least I'm just renting it.

My bid agent 47.

I wish they just released the original tech demos from years ago in playable form. Would've made a pretty fun little toy. Like GMod with Force powers. Instead we get another Psi-Ops, but with much less Force.

MechaSlinky wrote:

Instead we get another Psi-Ops, but with much less Force.

I'd happily take another Psi-Ops over this game, at least based on the demo.

*edit*
Hopefully that impression doesn't hold, as the game's on the way from Gamefly.

Spunior wrote:
SirRockford wrote:

Well, I'm at least going to rent it. I thought the demo was really fun.

Then this article was written for you.

So, if I understand the author's impressions, he's mad because he leveled up the wrong skills?

I get his concerns about having to stand still to use the force grab, but that was in the demo too. Saying "this game doesn't play like the demo because I didn't make decisions in the game that would have made it play like the demo" doesn't hold much water for me.

The game may still stink, but I don't buy his reasons for why it stinks.

doubtingthomas396 wrote:
Spunior wrote:
SirRockford wrote:

Well, I'm at least going to rent it. I thought the demo was really fun.

Then this article was written for you.

So, if I understand the author's impressions, he's mad because he leveled up the wrong skills?

I get his concerns about having to stand still to use the force grab, but that was in the demo too. Saying "this game doesn't play like the demo because I didn't make decisions in the game that would have made it play like the demo" doesn't hold much water for me.

The game may still stink, but I don't buy his reasons for why it stinks.

Actually, it makes a lot of sense.

If throwing storm troopers and other things around makes the game that much harder, and in turn that much less fun, then why go that route? By making what should be the draw of the game that much harder to get into, you do diminish the game as a whole.

AnimeJ wrote:
doubtingthomas396 wrote:
Spunior wrote:
SirRockford wrote:

Well, I'm at least going to rent it. I thought the demo was really fun.

Then this article was written for you.

So, if I understand the author's impressions, he's mad because he leveled up the wrong skills?

I get his concerns about having to stand still to use the force grab, but that was in the demo too. Saying "this game doesn't play like the demo because I didn't make decisions in the game that would have made it play like the demo" doesn't hold much water for me.

The game may still stink, but I don't buy his reasons for why it stinks.

Actually, it makes a lot of sense.

If throwing storm troopers and other things around makes the game that much harder, and in turn that much less fun, then why go that route? By making what should be the draw of the game that much harder to get into, you do diminish the game as a whole.

I see where you're coming from, but it reminds me of the criticism of Metal Gear Solid 4 that I heard on the podcast. I think it was Rob that said this, but it might have been Sean: the game becomes much easier if you completely ignore the stealth mechanics and just run from one checkpoint to the next because the alarms reset when you hit the checkpoint. Shawn rightly pointed out that sure, you could do that, but you'd be missing the point.

The reviewer is basically saying that the game is too hard to play the way he wanted to play it, so therefore it's a bad game. It's like condemning MGS4 for being a bad jogging simulator because it's easier to run through levels than to actually sneak through them.

It depends on how much harder using the force actually is, and that's subjective. I gave up on Hitman 2 because there was a level that I flat out could not complete using the stealth mechanics. Rather than playing through like a shooter, I traded the game in and never looked back. I don't claim Hitman 2 is a bad game, just that it was too hard for me to play the way I wanted to play it, just that it's not for me.

The nice thing with SW:TFU difficulty is that you can always do what I do and jack the difficulty down a notch if the game gets too hard. Other people might think that makes me less of a man, but I really don't care what the sort of person who thinks that thinks of me.

Games should be fun. I don't know if SW:TFU is fun or not, but I don't think the MTV reviewer makes a compelling case.

SW:TFU

Those initials aren't doing the game any favors.

nsmike wrote:
SW:TFU

Those initials aren't doing the game any favors.

Truth. Every time I see that, I start giggling.

Anyone remember a little game called Black & White? I played through The Force Unleashed last night, and it reminded me eerily of that game. I found myself doing lots of the same things. Like picking up a rock, charging the rock, and throwing it so far that I can't really see where it's going, but I hope it hits it's targets. Overall, I enjoy the game, but Purge Troopers are kind of a deal breaker.

I just picked up the game this morning and I just got to the second big boss and he's annoying the crap out of me. Basically I've been walking around obliterating everyone around me then this guy shows up and I feel like I'm hacking the guy with a wet kleenex instead of a lightsaber. Frustrating boss fights aren't that much fun to me. I've never been big on dying a couple dozen times while trying to figure out the "trick" for a particular boss.

doubtingthomas396 wrote:

The reviewer is basically saying that the game is too hard to play the way he wanted to play it, so therefore it's a bad game. It's like condemning MGS4 for being a bad jogging simulator because it's easier to run through levels than to actually sneak through them.

More like because the name of the game is "force unleashed" and not "lightbat adnausium" the mechanics of the actually using the force should not be cumbersome or diminsh the fun of the game. Supposedly the force in this game is supposed to "blow your mind" and from what I have seen it just doesn't.

The reviewer was mearly stating that they have taken what was supposed to be the focus of the game and made it so annoying to use that most people wont want to, and that is the exact feeling I got from the demo. It felt like the only way to actually be effective was if I was running around hitting people with my glowstick. On top of all this they could have at least made lightsaber combat actually feel as if you were wielding a lightsaber. No limbs being cut off? Really? This energy sword that can burn streaks into the walls can't cut through 2 inches of armor, skin, and bone? Wow. Even Jedi Knight had that.

I'd say that maybe this is the over hype syndrome in effect, but the developers were the ones touting all of these cool features that weren't present in the demo, what kind of reaction did they think they would get?

I am so happy I rented instead of bought this game. It is worth playing but all of the drawbacks can lead to pure, hair-pulling frustration. Playing the "pull down the star destroyer" minigame was almost a dealbreaker. Did no-one on the development staff ever step aside and ask themselves "is this fun?". I can tell this game was a labor of love from the fantastic art direction and story which makes the gameplay that much more annoying. I so wanted to love this game. GAH!!!

This game seems to be the latest in a long line of products that look like Star Wars but don't feel like Star Wars. The last good Star Wars game was Outcast.

So my roommate picked it up, tossed it in my 360 and... black screen. It works fine on his 360. All other games work fine on my 360. Anyone ever heard of anything like this?

For those of you that have played it, how long was it? From what I've read, 6ish hours. Not a lot of content for $60 IMO.

Well, I played it for about 6 hours yesterday and I think I'm on the last stage. And yeah, the "bring down the star destroyer" part... I haven't gotten that angry at a game in a looong time. I had to make myself finish that portion and had I not been such an uber Star-Wars geek I don't think I could've made it. The cut scenes are great, I'm enjoying the story, but the boss fights and revisiting every location have really annoyed me. At least the planet revisits are to different areas of the planet but out of the thousands of locations in the Star Wars universe why am I forced to go to the same 3 planets twice? Oh well. I'm still enjoying it but I think it's more of the fanboi in me allowing that.

Thin_J wrote:

*edit*
Hopefully that impression doesn't hold, as the game's on the way from Gamefly.

Not to derail, but how the hell do you manage to get new release games from gamefly? I sent back a few games this week with SWTFU at the top of my list and they sent me my #9 pick instead! I have never, ever been able to get gamefly to send me a new title within 2 weeks of its release date. If it wasn't for my desire to replay titles I had passed by over the last few years I would have already cancelled my membership.

I call it the Polypusher Maneuver:

Empty your queue of EVERYTHING except the 1 game you want (2 if you're on 2 discs at a time) 1-3 days before the release of a new game (depending on your proximity to a shipping center) ship Gamefly your current game.

The reason you're getting unwanted games is because you have unwanted games in your queue Whatever software Gamefly uses to ship out games found your queue needing a new game and maybe the exact time it searched was before it had Star Wars available, so it went to the next one in your queue.

I will give the Polypusher Maneuver a try tonight. New games are perpetually listed as *low* availability for me. We will see if I can finally manage to rent Too Human as well.

The key is having the spot open the day or day or two before a game becomes available. Thats when the first batch of discs goes out and its when you'll need to have an open slot and only the game you want available. The technique is for brand new games on the day of release so you may have to spend a few days with an empty queue before you get Force Unleashed now.