Customer Reviews

Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II (includes Mysteries of the Sith)

5 star:		(36)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The thing that's realy great about this set is that you get three CDs worth of games. You get the original Dark Forces II game that has quite a bit of gameplay, PLUS the Mysteries of the Sith game that is almost as long as Jedi Knight. For the price you get a LOT of playing time.

Jedi Knight follows the path of Kyle Katarn, an ex-Imperial soldier turned rebel. His father was murdered and as the game progresses you learn the truth about your family and learn the ways of the force.

One of the interesting twists of Jedi Knight is that your alignment towards the dark side or the light side is determined by how many innocent people you kill or by certain moral decisions you make as the game progresses. You shape your own destiny and at the end of it all your decisions determine how the story turns out.

On the second game, Mysteries of the Sith, you primarialy play Mara Jade... although you also spend time in Kyle Katarn's shoes once again. Much likes its predecessor you find yourself once again going against the Empire before they destroy a Rebel base and ruin all hope the Rebellion has against defeating the Imperial forces. From there you embark on a search to find the lost Kyle Katarn and find your way through an amazingly twisted and trap ridden Sith Temple.

The thing that sets these games apart from most first person shooters is that you do more than run around and kill things. You have to make moral decisions, solve puzzles, and use tactics to your advantage. By the first hour or so of gameplay you'll easily lose yourself.

And finally, as an extra special bonus there is a hidden level on the Mysteries of the Sith CD of Cloud City that allows you to follow in Luke's footsteps from Empire strikes Back.

Jedi Knight is my favorite shooter. Although its 3D engine lacks certain features, the single player gameplay is lightyears ahead of games like Quake 2. The atmosphere is very good, feeling like you're truly in the Star Wars universe. Also there is a good sense of scale; you can run around under AT-AT walkers and get vertigo from the huge distances in the levels, something I never felt in Quake engine games. I was often reminded of scenes like Cloud City in Empire Strikes Back, and some scenes surpassed the movies (playing this game was a lot more fun than "Episode 1" anyway). The level design is amazing, with many puzzles that require you to think, and inventive situations like a crashing starship and a ship refuelling station.

This game set a benchmark for FPS games that has not been surpassed in my opinion, except by Half-life in some respects.

This is the second best computer game of all time as far as I am concerned (only supassed by Half-life). The graphics are kind of dated now but the gameplay is still soild and loads of fun.

The game contains all of the best gameplay while being intermixed with a good story. The levels are designed very well and never seem to "feel" the same way twice.

Of course one of the best parts of this game is using the lightsaber in regular gameplay or against six Dark Jedi. No other Star Wars game has been able to capture the feel of the lightsaber like this one.

The sound effects are very good and the soundtrack is classic Star Wars with perfect timings to get the right music for what you are doing.

I can't think of anything more to say than, if you haven't already played this game, you are missing out on one of the greatest games of all time.

I've never been a big fan of the 3D shooter genre. So many of them boil down to nothing more than a quick reflexes, and practically none of them have any sense of coherent plot. Jedi Knight, however, remains among one of my favorite games. It is, in essence, the next evolutionary step of games like "Doom" or, of course, "Dark Forces." But its real strength lies in its ability to keep a strong sense of plot and location, and to balance its action with puzzle elements that never seem gratuitous.

The plot is not particularly original, but it's functional. Seven dark Jedi are seeking the sacred "Valley Of The Jedi" (a Jedi burial ground with infinite power.) It's your job, as Kyle Katarn, to stop them. In a sense, the plot is a mix of "Star Wars" with a trace of "Indiana Jones." A side plot involves the fact that Kyle's father was murdered by the dark Jedi, and so the quest becomes more personal.

The story unfolds through a series of cutscenes after each level, with actors filmed against computer-generated backdrops. At times the performances and dialogue will make you cringe, but then so will much of the dialogue in the actual movies. The computer-generated scenery, however, is quite impressive throughout.

Gameplay is like most other 3D shooters. You run about a 3D world shooting almost anything that moves before it can shoot you. If you're hoping to become a "good" Jedi, however, you'll want to avoid shooting civilians. The pace in "Jedi Knight" never gets as frantic as it does in games such as "Quake." You'll rarely face large hordes of enemies in a single room. Mostly, you'll be picking off stormtroopers from a hiding spot, or stumbling into a security room and being faced with two or three imperial officers. A couple well aimed shots will take them out easily. Nevertheless, there's a good arsenal of weapons available to you to keep things interesting.

Eventually, you'll confront each of the seven Jedi in a light saber battle. The duels, unfortunately, are one of the more irritating points of the game, and are often won through rapid sword swinging, rather than through any sense of strategy. Fortunately, you can view the battles in a third person perspective, which at least helps you get a better sense of your proximity to the enemy.

The third person view is also useful for some of the platform jumping sequences. In typical Star Wars fashion, each location is infested with bottomless pits for the unwary.

Despite the annoying sword fights, Jedi Knight is the most immersive Star Wars game I've played, and truly gives you a sense of playing a movie-- something many games aspire to do, but rarely succeed in doing.

Owners of low level Pentiums (200 mhz and less), dissatisfied with the performance of such new games as "Half-life" and "Rainbow-6" on their antiquated systems should get LucasArt's "Dark Forces 2: Jedi Knight". The sequel to the classic Star Wars game, "Dark Forces", JK offers more than improved graphics and sound reflecting hardware advances since the mid-90's. With its more realized worlds, fleshed out charachters and complex puzzles, playing the newer game feels like watching a new Star Wars movie that doesn't...well...dissappoint. And because of the improved gameplay, as opposed to special FX which change little from movie-to-movie, the experience is even more palpable.

In JK, you become Kyle Katarn once again - the freebooting soldier of fortune. Out to find his father's killer, Kyle crosses paths with an army of dark jedi marshalled by the Evil Jerec. Cruising the galaxy in the typical miles-long Star Destroyer, and flanked by an endless army of stormtroopers, Jerec searches for the fabled "Valley of the Jedi", a burial ground holding the force energy of countless Jedi. Were he reach this sacred battleground, warns the spirit of a departed jedi, "the eradication of an entire star system, in a whisper, would be within his power!" Revenge is forgotten and galactic salvation takes priority. Along the way, Kyle will learn the ways of the jedi - to make super jumps, high-speed dashes, or grab guns from his enemies. But every Jedi faces challenges as he grows in power, and the game allows Kyle the choice of eradicating the dark side...or succumbing to it.

JK has a much tighter plot than DF, keeping the action within a smaller number of worlds and locations, with a much more linear progression. Gameplay is also improved in that, for a first-person shooter style game, the body movements are much more natural. The up-down and sideways head movements, separately coordinated in the older game, are easily managed with a single mouse control. While the rigid head-movements tended to give players of the old game car-sickness, players of the newer game can leave their Dramamine in the medicine cabinet. The levels are mostly diverse and the John Williams score keeps things hopping. Star Wars devotees may even remember which of the movies' scenes go with which music.

Non-fanatics need not go hungry, as the game supports a seeming ocean of add-on levels produced by game enthusiasts. While most of these internet-downloadable levels add on the Star Wars theme, others, called Total Conversions, or TC's, restructure the game to recreate anything from Star Trek to 007. Parts of JK itself seem to recall other movies. The occupied city of Baron's Hed recalls pre-WW2 Cairo from "Raiders" (outgunned swordsman, not included), while Indiana Jones would've felt at home in the darkened tunnels of a Jedi Temple towrds the endo of the game. In another level, Kyle must escape from a towering Dark Jedi fortress by creeping through vents, jumping through elevator shafts and crawling around very narow ledges, all faster than you can say "yipee-kay-yee you fuzzy nerf-herders!!"

That said, the game is not without cons. AI is pretty spotty - with storm troopers running for cover once they've lost their blasters. As in the movies, the troopers fall like flies while commandos seem more duarable without all that armor, and have a much better aim. The biggest dissappontment is the game's biggest selling point - mano-a-mano using lightsabers. In the films, saber duels represented the epitome of brute force and choreography. Technology hasn't reached the stage where such a myriad of body movements can be represented in software, and the combatants in JK seem to hop around like crazed monkeys until, inexplicably, one of the chimps wins out. Inevitably, the game climaxes on just such a duel against Jerec himself.

Until then however, JK is compelling and downright fun. Replay value is high given the complexity of each level. I downloaded the demo in 97' and played it almost non-stop for 2 years before getting the full game. (Custom levels won't work with the demo or the SE version that comes with repackaged editions of the original DF) This edition comes with "Mysteries of the Sith", offering added missions and improved graphics over JK, but still requiring the older game to run. You won't be dissappointed, and you'll give that old pre-Celeron system a new lease on life.

This has to be the best game ever. It has a perfect balance of everything; graphics, enemies, weapons, storyline, and intrigue. LucasArts has mastered their field. The minute you put the CD in the drive YOU are in the game. The worlds are both significantly mentaly and technically challenging while not being frustrating. The graphics are mind boggling, especially on high performance systems. Every character is beleivable, and the game is the only first person shooter I know to be, in my opinion, suitable for the whole family. Great with a joystick. Actually I recommend one. Thanks for all the hours of fun, and the many more to come.

This game is amazing! All of the original Star Wars game were either side scrollers, flying games, or first person shooters. Jedi Knight changes all this. Jedi Knight IS classified as a FPS, but the gameplay is much better than all the rest of them, and there is a 3rd person toggle. Number one, as Kyle Katarn, you can use a lightsaber, the Force, and other items to defeat seven Dark Jedi. The storyline is the classic Lucas Arts 'one man vs. an army' plot, but there is something about Jedi Knight that sets it aside. Maybe it is that there are seven level devoted to lightsaber dueling, or the great multiplayer. There are quite a few jumping puzzles, one in the fourth level that, if you make one slight mistake, you fall 300 feet in a pool of water. The lightsaber is very easy to use. It will automatically block saber swings and shots, as well as cut through grates and cut off enemies' arms. This game has 21 levels to it, and the companion Mysteries of the Sith adds 14 more, as well as a new playable character, Mara Jade Skywalker. There will be a sequel, Jedi Outcast, out in 2002.

Ah, the saga of Kyle Katarn. What a chapter that was. Remember Dark Forces? That game was soooo much fun and it still is! We we're introduced to KK, Jan Ors (she's ... cool) and the feel of being in a Star Wars FPS. Beauty. The only place LucasArts could go? UP. And they did. Dark Forces II: Jedi Knight hit the shelves. I got it for Christmas. Being a diehard SW fan all my life, I eagerly installed and was enthralled immediately. From the insidious opening cutscene (the cutscenes are SO well done) where Jerec kills Rahn to set up your quest to the Valley of the Jedi I just couldn't stop playing. This is the finest SW game anywhere ever, and arguably one of the best games period. I don't have enough time to write about Mysteries of the Sith...but it rocks the house. It concludes Kyle's overall legacy very satisfyingly. Now, if you'll excuse, I have a date for a duel with Jerec in the Valley of the Jedi.

There are few games inspired by movies that capture the feel of those movies as well as Dark Forces II: Jedi Knight has. It isn't any one thing that does it, be it the music, the graphics, the characters or the sound effects, that draw the player so completely into the game until all senses are immersed in the environment, but rather they all combine so perfectly that Jedi Knight accomplishes just that. If I had anything approaching a complaint it might be that those 20 levels go by awfully fast.

The player assumes the role of and control of Kyle Katarn, a former Imperial agent who turned against the Empire to help the Rebellion against the fearsome new Dark Trooper project. Now, it's five years later and the Empire has been defeated, but Katarn hasn't been sitting on his laurels, this time it's personal. Kyle's father, Morgan, has been murdered and a disk he had made for Kyle has been stolen by Jerrik, the sinister leader of cabal of Dark Jedi whom he is leading with the aid of a faction of Imperial soldiers, to find a world upon which thousands of Jedi fought a battle centuries earlier and their souls are now trapped there. It is Jerrk's plan to tap that power for himself, a transformation that may spell doom for the fledgling New Republic.

The game starts with Kyle escaping from a death trap on the moon of Nar Shadda, laid by the mercenary droid 8T-88 whom he must find in order to retrieve the lost disk. As Kyle you must fight your way trough legions of blaster-toting and thermal detonator throwing grans and quick, trigger happy rodians in order to achieve your objectives. Running, ducking and a fine sense of balance are needed to make your way through the first three Nar Shadda levels and once the disk has been found, Kyle must escape Imperial reenforcements with the help of his best friend, Jan Ors, (played by the stunning Angela Harrie). It is after the escape that Kyle has his first vision, a visitation by the Jedi Knight Qu Rahn (Benoit Gregory), who tells him of Jerrik's evil plan and encourages Kyle to become a Jedi.

From Nara Shadda its off to Kyle's home planet of Sulon, an agroworld where he must find the old family robot, WeeGee, who can play the encrypted disk. Kyle also receives Rahn's lightsaber and before long his destiny is set. The way LucasArts handled the application of Jedi powers is brilliant, as is their ease of use. Players gain `stars' by finding secret areas, these stars are then applied to an ever increasing selection of neutral Jedi abilities (Super speed, Force Jump, Force Seeing and Force Pull). After these are mastered, the player has the option to become either a Light or Dark Jedi with corresponding powers. While the Dark Side powers are nice and flashy, they are not nearly as useful as the Light Side abilties.

Light Side powers include: Force Blinding that you can use to dazzle opponents so they miss you with their shots, Force Protection, a literal force field that resists all damage, Force Persuasion that allows you sneak in unnoticed, and Force Absorption which allows the player to absorb the Dark Side energies wielded against you, and finally Force Heal, which heals damage. Dark Side powers include: The Grip which lets you crush people, Force Throw that allows you to hurl large objects at your foes, Deadly Sight, which immolates your enemies and Force Destruction, which hurls a bolt of powerful energy at your opponents.

From Kyle's home on Sulon it's off to the city of Baron's Hed where Kyle must now go in order to learn the location of the Lost Valley of the Jedi. It is also here that he must battle the first of the Dark Jedi, a young man named Yun who is all to eager to please his dark master. From there Kyle makes his way onboard a freighter bound for the planet with the Valley and where he must also battle Gorc and Pic-dark twins of the Force. And again LucasArts must be praised for sheer perfection with which the excuted lightsaber dueling in a first person view game. Players can parry attacks while performing slick and flashy maneuvers on their own.

I won't reveal any more of what happens through out the game to those people who may have not yet had a chance to play this classic. I think one of the several reasons why this game is so memorable are the live action cut scenes, (which were the first Star Wars footage shot in almost fifteen years). Kyle is handsome and dashing, Jan Ors is beautiful and witty, and the other characters like Rahn, Jerrik and his henchmen Maw, Boc, the beautiful and deadly Sariss all go a long way to immerse the player in the finest first person shooter I have ever played. I still find enjoyment in this title, even though it is four years old and starting to look dated, the game still holds my attention. Of the Star Wars games released to date, this is by far the most superior, engrossing and ultimately rewarding of the lot.

This was the first computer game I ever bought. I'd been hearing about it since '96, when PC Gamer did a feature on it, and after reading that article, I knew I'd be buying this game. In fact, I went and bought it BEFORE I EVEN HAD A COMPUTER OF MY OWN TO PLAY IT ON. When it came out in the fall of '97, it blew the doors off every magazine that reviewed it. Until HALF-LIFE came out a year later, this game was the one to beat. And granted, the graphics are pretty seriously dated now in 2005, it's still a great game; a true classic.

Now, let me tell you why.

This was the first game that brought a true melee weapon -- a lightsaber -- and Force powers into an FPS and made them work flawlessly, something no one thought was possible until then. It was also the last game (until ENTER THE MATRIX) that used FMV sequences between missions that actually helped flesh out the story taking place.

Kyle Katarn is the name of the man you play as. He's a former Imperial officer who resigned out of rage when he learned his father had been killed by Imperial operatives. He joined up with the Rebel Alliance, and you played as him in the game DARK FORCES, which was sort of a prequel to this game.

Now, it's a year after RETURN OF THE JEDI. The Empire is reeling, fractured, disorganized, and the Alliance's star is rising. But, the game doesn't begin with that; instead, it starts with the execution of a Jedi Knight who's been in hiding all this time. This Jedi, Qu Rahn, has been living on the run because he has a secret that would've meant absolute power in the hands of anyone who gets it. Who kills him? Jerec, a Dark Jedi, aided by six others like him, who will do anything to get that secret.

That secret is the Valley of the Jedi, an ancient Jedi burial ground where the Force is extremely concentrated. Anyone who taps into that massive stockpile of power would gain literal godlike abilities in the Force.

So what does all this have to do with Kyle Katarn? Simple; his father, Morgan, knew the hidden location of the Valley. Morgan was good friends with Rahn. And Morgan was murdered by Jerec, who didn't know what secrets Morgan had. It quickly becomes a journey of self-discovery for Kyle, who takes up Rahn's lost lightsaber and races to beat Jerec and his allies from finding the Valley and stop them from exploiting its power...or taking that power for himself.

This game had two different endings, depending on which path you choose. If you choose dark Force abilities, and you callously slaughter civilians, you become a Dark Jedi yourself, competing with Jerec over the Valley's fate. But if you choose light Force abilities, and you go out of your way to defend civilians, you'll become a Jedi Knight, and work to protect the Valley from Jerec and his Dark Jedi.

JEDI KNIGHT blew me away when I played it. I loved every aspect of it, all of which was thanks to Justin Chin, who was the project leader and who wrote the story. He did an incredible job, make no mistake. Kyle and his allies -- Jan Ors, an Alliance soldier; Qu Rahn, assisting you from beyond the grave; and Wee Gee, the family droid -- are all archetypes cut from the STAR WARS cloth, which is nothing but a good thing in my mind. The Dark Jedi, on the other hand -- Jerec, a twisted and evil former Jedi from the Old Republic; Sariss, a cold, calculating perfectionist; Maw, a hateful being whose rage fuels his power; Boc, a warped and clearly insane Twi'lek; Pic and Gorc, a bizarre set of twins like you've never seen; and Yun, the youngest and best of the bunch -- are almost all inspired by the title characters from Akira Kurosawa's classic film THE SEVEN SAMURAI.

The settings are just what you'd expect, full of atmosphere that could've been lifted directly from the movies. Nar Shaddaa is like Hong Kong in space, with buildings crammed together without planning. Sulon is a pastoral agrarian world, at least where it isn't under the Empire's heel. And the Valley of the Jedi and its tombs evoke are so rich with history, you can almost hear the spirits of the Jedi speaking to you in the hallways of the burial grounds.

Also packaged in this bundle is the one and only expansion pack for it, MYSTERIES OF THE SITH. It's set five years after the events of JEDI KNIGHT, which naturally assumes you chose the light side. You play as Kyle again in the first few missions, who's taken on an apprentice -- Mara Jade, a character introduced in Timothy Zahn's STAR WARS books from 1991-1993 (HEIR TO THE EMPIRE, DARK FORCE RISING, and THE LAST COMMAND). After that first batch of missions, Kyle goes off to chase down a lead, leaving you controlling Mara for the remainder of the game. You take missions aiding both the fledgling New Republic and the newly-rebuilt Jedi Order, until you travel to a forgotten Sith temple to rescue Kyle from the dark side...and from himself.

While SITH had a few flaws -- why would Kyle have to re-learn Force abilities he already had? Why not say who the Sith WERE, instead of just dangling the name around? -- I did like the setting of the Sith temple. This place is genuinely creepy, where the spirits of the dead know no rest, and never will. I also liked how they handled the ending duel. It's audacious, and it fits in PERFECTLY with the Jedi precepts. It's also so simple that you'd never think of it.

I recommend this game as heartily now as I would've eight years ago. It's a low-tech game, so it's practically guaranteed to run on whatever rig you have. And because it's been out for so long, you can pick it up for a fraction of the price of the current games.

Buy this game. It's worth a lot more than you'll pay for it.