Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II

"Game of the Year 1997? You bet"

Let me start off by saying this review is being written in 2002, so I'll be rating this game according to 1997/1998 standards. If you like LucasArts and Star Wars, buy this game! You'll get it and the expansion for about $10, and you'll be grateful for every last byte of it.

Graphics: 8/10
The character models are effective and the animation is smooth. 3D acceleration improves the quality even more. What's awesome is that in between levels, there are cutscenes. Now before you go and say ''Cutscenes? Pfft. Stupid in-game graphics trying to tell a story,'' let me just say that these are full video cutscenes with hired actors. In fact, Jedi Knight presented the first live action lightsaber battle since Return of the Jedi.

Sound: 9/10
The sound effects are, well, effective. But they're not the highlight of this game. What you're in it for is the music. I tell you, this has got to have some of the best musical timing of any other game (save Jedi Outcast). The music swells up when in danger, calms down when nothing's going on and all the classic Star Wars tracks are in effect. At a couple points, you can even hear stormtroopers chatting around a corner.

Story: 10/10
The story rocks. After the first Dark Forces, you (Kyle Katarn) are trying to find out what happened to your father. When a bounty hunter droid, 8t-88, tells you that he was killed by a Dark Jedi, you begin searching for reasons why. Ultimately, you must face your Jedi destiny and choose your path; be it dark or light. What's awesome is depending on the dark or light choice, the cutscenes and minor parts of the storyline change.

Single Player: 8/10
The gripping story and large levels make single player great to play through (multiple times, even). However, some of the enemies are ridiculously difficult, and you may have to actually memorize the layout of certain levels to make it through alive. That's just frustrating.

Multiplayer: 9/10
This is where it's at. Hop on the Zone and play some JK. The lightsaber battles aren't too complicated and the guns are awesome to play with. And with tons of mods and extra levels, the replay value is throuh the roof.

With a game like this, I can't complain about the speeder. For those that don't know, this game was originally going to be released with a level where you ride a speeder bike. You won't miss it. All I can say is:
Thank you, LucasArts. Thank you.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 06/24/02, Updated 06/24/02