Wednesday, October 5, 2016

Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Force II - 2/20 hours

This game is absolutely adorable! As soon as I started a new game, I was treated to something that I could not possibly have expected - the cutscenes are live action! This is such a profoundly bad idea that it almost circles around to being good. The production values of these little interstitial dramas are about the same as an above-average youtube video, and while none of the performances are what I'd call "good," the actors are clearly having a lot of fun with their Star Wars cosplay. It can be cringe-inducing at times, but I'll admit, I'm on the hook. I want to see what they'll do next.

As for the game itself, I'm still on level 2. I haven't gotten a good feel for it yet. I still don't have any of the promised Force powers, but I expect that the mysterious artifact I recovered might have something to do with it.

I've also noticed a bunch of small changes that make the game much more playable than its predecessor. You can save at any time, instead of just at the beginning of the level. Your vertical look is mapped to the mouse instead of the pg up/pg down buttons. The levels are easier to navigate and make better use of their verticality. And it's astonishing how much 3D graphics had advanced in just two years. Textures are smoother and more diverse and things look more like the things they're supposed to be.

I don't think the subsequent hour are going to be too much of a problem for me. This game isn't one of my usual genres, but it seems competently executed. So long as there isn't any sort of unexpected difficulty spike, I should be fine.

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