Jedi Knight (Dark Forces 2)

                  Reviewed By Nick Edmunds

It doesn't take the mind powers of the Force to anticipate that
Jedi Knight (Dark Forces 2) may be related in some way to Dark
Forces.  The connection isn't even as subtle as the cunning word
play of the title, for Jedi Knight continues where Dark Forces left
off.  So again we play Jonathan Frakes look-alike Kyal Katarn as
we trundle around the Star Wars universe shooting its inhabitants.

Kyal initially sets out to avenge the death of his father.  Along
the way he uncovers an evil plot to conquer the universe and
decides to become a Jedi Knight.  He then takes it upon himself to
prevent the seven dark Jedi (coincidentally led by the evil Jerec
who killed Kyal's dad) from uncovering the ultimate power of the
Force at the hidden Jedi burial ground.

As we traverse the levels, accomplish missions and discover
secrets we receive Force points to allocate towards our Jedi
special abilities.  We begin with a neutral alignment and collect
the standard Force abilities of Speed, Jump, Pull and Seeing, but
later have the option of special powers specific to either side of
the Force.  Apparently our Force alignment is determined by our
actions throughout the game which in turn affects the eventual
outcome.  I don't know how it happened but I was on a fast train
to the dark side before I knew what was happening.  All right, I
may suffer from being a little trigger-happy, but it's a first
person shooter, surely that's the whole point? Master Yoda tells
us that "Only a fully trained Jedi knight, with the force as his
ally, will conquer".  What he forgot to mention was the success
rate of nutters with big guns. As such I wasn't so much tempted by
the dark side as much as had it thrust upon me. So while there are
probably alternative endings I only saw the one where I became the
dark lord, supreme ruler of the universe, which is apparently the
bad ending.  I'd be interested to know how this compares to the
good ending.

Although this is Kyal's second outing as a game character he
hasn't appeared in any of the Star Wars films.  A possible reason
for this is that he really is classic B movie material.  A trait
which is most apparent during the video sequences, where a cunning
blend of special effects and second rate acting combine to create
a hi-tech episode of the wooden tops.

By concentrating on characters that weren't in the films and
loosely linking the plot line with events in the films JK manages
to remain true to the Star Wars mythos without treading on the
continuity of the films.  And, as you may have anticipated, it
also features all your usual Star Wars fare; storm troopers, probe
droids, R2 units, etc. Most of which are modelled well enough to
be instantly recognisable.

As ever the storm troopers look great and are a pleasure to mow
down, but they are little more than pretty faces as their AI is
appalling.  Recruitment in the dark empire obviously doesn't
involve an intelligence test and the weapons training must be
negligible, as they are as stupid as a wamprat and couldn't hit
Jabba's backside with a banjo.  The end of level bosses, on the

other hand, are quite difficult, particularly after the cannon
fodder encountered during the levels.

Despite the dodgy acting the video sequences do a good job of
linking the levels, and maintaining plot cohesion.  They also
contain some great special effects, but the in game graphics are a
tad on the blocky side.  Even with the recommended 3dfx card it's
already looking decidedly dated as not only has it been superseded
since, but it was hardly cutting edge in its day.  Of particular
note are the sound effects, most of which are excellent (try
shooting up an R2 unit - makes me laugh).  All the effects that is
apart from Kyal's walk which is particularly annoying as, of
course, it's the thing you'll hear the most what with being Kyal
and all.  It sounds like he's mincing around in high heels -
behaviour which, I'm sure, would be frowned upon by the Jedi
Council.

After the initial "Yay Star Wars" reaction any excitement wears
off and flaws in the gameplay become more apparent. Other than the
Jedi skills and the Star Wars theme JK is just a standard shooter
as the force abilities are user selectable they are not necessary
to complete the game successfully. While the plot line progresses
neatly between the missions the whole comes across as a tad
linear, showing a lack of imagination in level design.  Which
essentially involves getting from A to B, finding keys, unlocking
doors and shooting people as you go.  As such there's not much in
the way of puzzles and it's soon apparent that the levels
alternate around big jumps and bad bosses.

In real terms JK is an improvement on Dark Forces as it addresses
some of the shortcomings of its predecessor, but remains little
more than another passable first person shooter.  Acceptable as a
game, but only manages credibility because of its Star Wars
connection. As a bit of a bonus my copy of JK came bundled with
the Mysteries of the Sith companion missions which, as you would
expect from an add-on, is essentially more of the same, but after
plodding through JK I couldn't really face it.  Ultimately I was
so disappointed that I may even give it back to my mate.

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