Star Wars the force unleashed 2, for xbox 360
Rating: 8.0/10; Great
Highly recommended for Star Wars and action fans
Force unleashed 2 is the sequel to the first game of the same name, and is a much better game overall. Like the first game it is a third person hack and slasher with heavy emphasis on using magical force powers. First I want to mention my title. You can get lightsaber crystals that grant xp for destroying objects. Whether or not this is a good thing is up to the player, but… Stuffkiller.
The camera in this game is much improved over the first. The auto adjust is annoying, though the camera as a whole is much less awkward than the first game. Turn speed is faster, but still too slow for my taste. There are a few times that the camera is fixed, though these make sense given the situation (there will never be anything behind you). You can now press a button on the analog stick to snap the camera in the direction your character is facing, but I would rather be able to do the same with lighting fast camera sensitivity.
Level design is similar to the first game, though far improved. Not only are the levels themselves more interesting (though still very linear), there is no inexplicable slipperiness, platforming can be failed without penalty and the puzzles are fewer and less annoying. Platforming is more prevalent than the first game though. There are also fixed camera sequences where you have to move fast or die, and free falling sequences where you have to avoid hitting debris. Some of the game has been simplified somewhat, with one cool thing being that lightsaber special boosters and color are now linked, and since you dual wield, you can freely have any combination of powers between your 2 sabers (though you need 2 separate crystals to have the same in both).
Combat is more an even blend of force powers and lightsaber combat than the first game, with using force grip to telekinetically pick up and throw objects and enemies being the definitive highlight of the game. I did not like how damaged objects despawn after a certain time or distance. Kind of makes it hard to kite enemies to previous areas to find stuff to throw at them, and it is slightly annoying how many times the way back is closed off. The auto targeting system is still unreliable, and the game would benefit from a crosshair/cursor, or a button to bring one up.
The biggest improvement to the game is with the combat. The combo system is much simplified with no move taking more than 2 button presses, though you can string them together in interesting ways. The controls are much more responsive and you can now move while blocking, so the combat is far more fluid and enjoyable rather than frustrating. Most of the enemies are completely new, and lack the cheap stunlocking found in the first game. You have new ways to avoid big hits that can knockdown, such as deflecting and force grip. Though knockdown is still annoying and you take full damage while knocked down, it feels more like a punishment for doing something you should not have done in the first place rather than the enemies being cheap. The bosses are also far more varied and epic. Too bad the stupid simon says quicktime events are still around, and they are worse; no longer are the prompts all in the center of the screen, you will have to watch the edges. Also, you have to do more than just press a button, and sometimes do 2 completely different things simultaneously to 2 different buttons or sticks. Quick time events are not fun and have no place in video games.
While this game’s story feels more like the newer movies (with the original game feeling more like the original trilogy), vast improvements to gameplay make this an excellent game. Whoever decided to keep the quick time events needs a punch in the face though.
Pro
- Good story and characters; just as good as the movies
- Level select, which saves difficulty and optionals found (similar to
newgame+)
- Optional difficulty levels, which can be changed while playing
- Some replayability to complete all optional content, and get both
endings
- New costume for every level, and can freely change it
- Progression system for upgrading powers
- Can adjust lightsaber crystal for a unique benefit, and change color
- Force powers are fun to use (especially force grip)
- Some enemies have projectiles that can be shot back using force grip
- Some destructible environment
- Using lighting on jetpack troopers is fun
- Decapitations and delimbing when using lightsaber (no more feeling
like a plastic toy!)
Con
- Tutorial messages, with seemingly no option to turn them off
- Camera turn speed is too slow, even at max setting
- Third person camera is sometimes awkward
- Quick time events for finishing off bosses/mini bosses (and other
situations)
- Uses checkpoint saves despite having a manual save option (better
checkpoints than first game though)
- Platforming
- Challenge missions were laggy for some reason
- No map. Mini map replaced by a button that shows what way to go
