Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy

"Not a total lost cause..."

So I used to own this game on the PC back when it first came out, but I lost my CD. Then I saw some game play footage on Youtube and thought to myself "I really gotta get that game back", so I bought it for $25 (yes, $25 for a 4-5 year old USED xbox game, which is still cheaper than the gamestop price of $30).

GAME PLAY - 8/10
The controls definitely take some getting used to. Button mashing will probably get you through the game ok, but if you go online, you will find people who can string together combos to great effect. Either way you go, the satisfaction of pushing stormtroopers off ledges, or force gripping those pesky rodians, or just zapping things with lightning is incredible. This game lets you start off with a lightsaber and some (limited) force powers, and that alone is worth something. It does have all of the forcepowers and weapons from JKII, plus a few new ones (though you will rarely ever use the other weapons). The vehicle controls are horrible, glitchy, and horribly glitchy, but luckily, there is only one level where you really need to pilot anything.

FEATURES - 7/10
Multiplay is pretty good, you get to use saber staffs and dual sabers, you get to make your own jedi by choosing species, gender (some species you can only do one gender, humans are the only ones with both the male and female option), and clothing. You can also pick your saber hilt and blade color. None of this effects game play at all, except your voice will be either a male or female one.

GRAPHICS - 5/10
They manage. The Quake engine is pretty outdated at this point (2008), but the graphics aren't horrible. The game does look better on the PC version, but that can be expected. Bottom line is that if you're a graphics freak, this may not be the game for you.

SOUND - 7/10
Nothing new, it's all pretty much standard Star Wars fare, lightsaber buzzing, blaster fire, recognizable music. My biggest qualm was my jedi's voice, it got really annoying after a while.

STORYLINE - 5/10
Not one of the game's strongest points. What little story there is is pretty much thrown in the back, and is addressed every 3-5 missions or so. The story really doesn't contribute to the game that much, and it's progression is hardly detectable. Flip side, it doesn't take away from the game play either. There are hints at following a path (light vs. dark), as you choose force powers before each mission, but your choices don't effect the game play (except luke will either commend you or warn you after missions), and your actual alignment isn't decided until one big pivotal moment in the game (there is little warning that your choice will have such an impact at the time, so SAVE).

REPLAY VALUE - 7.5/10
The only real replay value for single player is replaying any missions you may have skipped the first time around, or playing the last level with a different alignment (dark side instead of light side?), just to see what difference there is. This game gets the most replay value out of its multiplayer mode, which I think is incredibly well done. Duels and capture the flag are incredibly entertaining, as is siege mode, if you can find other people online to play with. There has been a recent surge in online activity too (possibly in preparation for force unleashed?).

FINAL REC. - 7/10
It's definitely not a horrible game, at least not as bad as some people are making it out to be. Yes, it does have its flaws, but I definitely think it's worth checking out, if you haven't already. That said, it is DEFINITELY not worth the $30 or so it's going for these days, so either rent it, mooch off of a friend, or just wait for force unleashed to come out. I suppose the other option would be to buy it on PC, because there is a large community of support for it, including mods and toolkits for custom material, 2 other stances that can be unlocked via codes, and the ability to spawn NPC's and levels for those times you just want to bash some stormtroopers or reborn(s).

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 05/08/08

Game Release: Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy (US, 11/19/03)