Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 6-10 of 136
 Great potential, but frustrating gameplay September 23, 2008
DS (Hanover, NH United States)
7 out of 12 found this review helpful
I played this game on normal difficulty, and have a considerable amount of gaming experience.
Pros:
- Fantastic visuals; every level has a lush and unique feel
- Very enjoyable 'arena' combat, using objects and the environment to defeat groups of enemies
- Great level-up system; use points to purchase new powers and combat combos
Cons:
- Very buggy enemy AI
- Poorly tuned abilities
- Extremely poorly tuned boss fights
Perhaps the most frustrating thing about this game is how good it could have been, if the developer had put a little more effort into play-testing it. So many parts of the game deserve four or five stars: the graphics, animation, music, sound effects, character development system, and even the cheesy (but fun and appropriate for Star Wars) story. All of these are fantastic.
Unfortunately, the game is simply not fun to play. Occasionally you'll encounter a more open area with several enemies. Those are rare times when you can enjoy yourself, lifting enemies, throwing things around, and generally wreaking havoc.
The rest of the time, you are:
1. Fighting enemies who literally just stand there doing nothing while you kill them. I assume this is some sort of bug, but it was happening constantly.
2. Fighting enemies that are so 'smart' that they can always block and interrupt your lengthier combos. No matter what you try, you will get interrupted, until you finally give up and switch back to alternating the same two over-powered dash attacks that you know will let you win without sustaining damage. This works, but not being able to use other abilities is no fun.
3. The boss fights are much like this, but taken to the next level. The third boss, for example, spends much of the fight completely invulnerable to any damage, while attacking you. The remainder of the time, she is incredibly effective at blocking all attacks, and can easily interrupt any of your lengthier combos. She occasionally uses an instant attack that is un-blockable, and has the potential to remove roughly a third of your hitpoints instantly, if you are knocked in the wrong direction.
What could have been fun ends up as a long, boring, obnoxious fight where you spend most of your time jumping around like crazy looking for a half-second of weakness every minute or so.
The other boss fights and cinematic sequences are pretty much the same. One sequence in particular, involving a star destroyer, could have been an incredible moment in the game. But, due to the way it was tuned, it will frustrate you so much that you may just throw the game away before completing it.
This game could have been fantastic, but the developer just didn't spend enough time testing it with real gamers, to tune the fights.
 The Force is strong with this one. September 16, 2008
M. Lemon (Phoenix, AZ)
6 out of 9 found this review helpful
This has to be the best game I've played for the XBox 360. The graphics look great (best on an HDTV). The sound is just like listening to any of the six Star Wars films. And the gameplay is very enjoyable. Finding different ways to use The Force to destroy your enemies can be very satisfying.
And now... the story. One word. Awesome. The best Star Wars story since The Empire Strikes Back.
I highly recommend this great game to anyone that owns a 360.
 Star Wars Epidsode III, 2... September 16, 2008
J. Fay (Metal Scene, UT)
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
If you've ever played the Star Wars Revenge of The Sith game, you've pretty much played Force Unleased, just another button mashing action game. Its not really bad, but it isn't anything special.
Pro's
Fun for about 2hours, a pretty solid story, AMAZING Graphics and Sounds, lots of good cameo's with great voice acting, force powers are actually pretty cool. Leveling is kind of cool, but would have like to have seen a more dynamic system. Clothing and saber options that rival Jedi Knight Academy.
Con's
Fun for about 2hours, Story felt dumbed down and shorted, it feels like an insult, like we don't care about a good solid story we just wanna kill stormtroopers in a thousand different ways. Saber fighting is combo based (yuck, I was hoping for more of a Oblivion or Jedi Knight Academy style) No Multiplayer.
Overall I'd say that it is about a 7/10, but it feels like a lot less cause the expectations were soooo high.
Freakin' great! September 18, 2008
William Honchell (Clarks Summit, PA)
6 out of 9 found this review helpful
I got it yesterday, and I was just blown away. Graphics, sound, everything. The story is fine, i just wish that you could have more say in what you do when like KOTOR 1-2. But apart from that it's a great game, force powers are great. A healing ability would be nice, during most boss and mini-boss fights you'll be hard up for health if your not careful.
Playing darth vader in the first level rocked! wookies zero, darth about 4,000.
It works on a very simple level up, boost your force powers system. But trust me the game will kick your butt even on the easy setting.
 The Rise of Starkiller September 16, 2008
William Hermann
5 out of 6 found this review helpful
In The Force Unleashed, we finally see Lord Vader in his prime. This game bridges the gap between both movie trilogies. We not only see why Vader is a symbol of the Empire's might, we experience his wrath firsthand. Vader is playable only for the first level, and although our time under the mask is brief, it is a study in Force-powered brutality. Vader is an unstoppable killing machine and his control over the dark side pushes the Force far beyond anything we've seen before.
At the conclusion of this level, control is passed from Vader to his secret apprentice, codenamed Starkiller. With Vader as his instructor, Starkiller is a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield. He's agile, amazingly aggressive, and firmly in control of the dark side. Through a beautifully sculpted control scheme that allows the Force to flow smoothly through your fingers, Starkiller is one of the saga's most talented combatants. As the game progresses, his Force powers evolve and give way to an even more impressive move set. Lightsaber and lightning become one, rancors are a minor inconvenience, and star destroyers can be taken down with the wave of a hand.
The gameplay is electric and fun, and the plethora of awesome new enemy types will make Star Wars action figure collectors salivate. You know what a royal guard can do, but what about an Imperial incinerator trooper? You will also be pleased to hear that this dark tale takes us to new planets and areas of familiar facilities I never thought I would see. All of the levels are loaded with highly destructible structures and sights you'll take a second to marvel at.
It's an amazing game, but there are disturbances in this Force-powered experience. Targeting difficulties make some battles troublesome, and blocking inconsistencies lead to some absurd deaths. The game offers a generous helping of checkpoints, so a death won't set you back too far. Still, it's hard to believe that enemies (especially some of the later bosses) can block anything you throw at them, even when you clearly have the jump on them. Some fights, especially on the higher difficulty levels, come down to dumb luck.
The story will also leave Star Wars fans puzzled. I won't spoil the plot's twists and turns, but there are some serious leaps in logic that don't add up. Why am I on this planet? Vader did this why?
The Force Unleashed clings to the classic video game design of book-ending gameplay segments with short cutscenes, which doesn't allow the story to grow in the ways it needs to. I'm not saying the game should feature Metal Gear-length clips, but more content is needed to tell a cohesive tale. Starkiller ends up being an underdeveloped character; you know his mission, and you periodically see his emotions flare, but you never really get an idea of who he is.
The Force Unleashed isn't the ultimate Star Wars game -- KOTOR is still king in my book. But, as advertised, it amplifies this mystical power in new ways to delivers exciting gameplay and unforgettable Star Wars moments. It'll leave you wanting more, but take my word for it, it's worth playing just to see Vader Force-throw wookiees.
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