#13 The Dark Side

So I finally caved and got myself a PS3, woah! The last time I had two consoles was the Gamecube and the Xbox, and well I quickly stopped using my Gamecube oh dear! That outcome is unlikely to happen in this case, Xbox 360 has the better first party (and exclusive) titles, and any multiplatform releases I would get for the 360, considering the superior online experience, and how in a lot of cases (not so much now) the PS3 version has just been a port of the 360 version.

That being said, the PS3 does have some pluses. For one, the dashboard is slick as fuck - not to mention supremely easy and quick to navigate, it makes the 360 dash look old and clunky in comparison. That will of course all change when the New Xbox Experience drops in November, but until then the PS3 comes out on top.
Also a big motivation for getting one is of course Blu-Ray playback - I haven't watched one yet, but I've already converted my LoveFilm queue ready (EDIT: I watched Gotham Knight, the collection of animated Batman shorts akin to the Animatrix, in brief, some stories very cool, some not so much). DVDs look great thanks to the upscaling, plus the PS3 can handle a wider range of media files, so I have to convert video podcasts, TV shows etc a lot less. It has wireless connectivity built in by default, and even some large files (a HD version of a very recent Heroes ep for example) played absolutely fine. Plus if streaming is getting a little choppy, the dash offers the option to copy the file onto the PS3 HDD, problem solved.

That being said, I have had some problems with syncing the controller to the console. I've experienced whole days where upon pressing the "PS" button on the controller (their equivalent of the 360's guide button), and literally nothing happened - no flashing lights, nothing. It's possible that the battery had ran out of charge, but it seemed incredibly problematic charging up the damn thing. As it's a USB cable, it can be charged off the PS3, or indeed any computer (even some cable boxes I read), but I was not getting the slow flash to indicate charging. Late one day, I pressed the PS button just to see what would happen, and it switched on the console - it took me completely by surprise, I had to run and connect up the cable like it was the only chance I was going to get.
Thoughts on the controller itself, it's light, much lighter than the 360 controller (no chunky battery) although I'm not a fan of the triggers - they don't feel at all comfortable. I haven't had a chance to utilise the sixaxis motion controls; The Force Unleashed didn't have any mechanics within which utilised it, and that brings me smoothly onto some thoughts of my first PS3 title eva!!!11one1.

Now, the Force Unleashed's premise is where you play the super badass, secret apprentice of Darth Vader, Starkiller (wasn't that the original name for Skywalker, or did I read a bad trivia fact?!), set between Episodes III and IV, and will hopefully fill in the gaps between the two trilogies, but more about of the story later.

The only time I would die would be due to the annoying knock back onto bottomless pits, where Starkiller would animate getting to his feet, before realising where he was and in trademark Wile E. Coyote fashion, fall to his doom.

I've heard murmurs that this has been the most expensive game ever developed (I don't believe that's the case...), and it's an absolute must have for die-hard Star Wars fans. To be honest they're the main driving reason why the franchise is still knocking about, and whilst I really like the original trilogy (not so much the recent films), my nostalgia gland tingles on familiar locales in the game, not to mention the rousing fanfares that ebb and flow throughout the game. Unfortunately once you look past all of that, an average hack 'n' slash game is all that is found.

All the force powers you'd expect are included, force grip, push and lightning are at your disposal, and can be leveled up via three simplistic categories. The categories also allow you to purchase new lightsaber combos, and also buff your character with increased health, improved force regeneration etc. That being said, this RPG mechanic didn't leave the impression that I was developing a unique spin on Starkiller. The first level of the game sees you play a pimped out Darth Vader, sporting all the force powers at their maximum levels, it was a lot of fun tearing through the Wookie habitat - following that level, you begin the adventure with a nerfed Starkiller and you have to work your way back up to that level; what a tease.

The mechanics are very button mashy - there's not much strategy required here. A lot of the times, I run up to a group, work some force push/lightning and finish up with some lightsaber. Lightning is pretty much the standard point of attack, stunning pretty much every enemy in the game. That invites you to take the time to go to town with the lightsaber, or fling the smaller troops far with the force grip for instant kills. In fact, all this power becomes destabilising after a while. I actually never "properly" died in my playthrough. The only time I would die would be due to the annoying knock back onto bottomless pits, where Starkiller would animate getting to his feet, before realising where he was and in trademark Wile E. Coyote fashion, fall to his doom. Perhaps I was playing on too easy a difficulty and coupled with the health boosts you acquire through leveling, low health was never a problem. It was very consistent that my attack animations could be interrupted and that the enemies' animations couldn't - especially the 10 foot tall elite troopers later on (I've never seen those in a Star Wars film...)

Of course, the force allows you to double-jump, but it feels horrible and difficult to control. I was constantly caught out on the later levels which add a verticality to proceedings. Also walking off platforms meant that Starkiller falls directly down rather than retaining some forward motion as real physics dictates should happen, which for a game that boasts great physics, doesn't actually have any groundbreaking innovations. I never saw evidence of stormtroopers held in a force grip trying to grab their surroundings - as the game progresses, the difficulty ramps up by throwing more enemies your way so there wasn't much chance to observe.



The story of the game is probably the best thing about this game, but the story only exists in the cutscenes that separate the levels. I won't spoilt it here, but I did experience a disconnect with the dialogue early on in the game, but the story cleared that up in a rather predictable fashion. I'm annoyed at the love story that was shoehorned in - again completely needless and very clunky considering the storytelling experience the Lucas camp have. The levels themselves are exact copies of each other, the environment the only thing changes. Get ready to button-mash your way through waves and waves of enemies, the odd sub-boss mixing it up, before you reach the end encounter versus a master Jedi of some kind.

Be warned; when it comes to the boss fights, get used to coming up against good ol' quick time events. With the sub-boss/elite units you encounter throughout the level, an optional quick event sequence will be offered for a quick takedown when their health is low. Unfortunately, with the boss battles, these QTEs are mandatory. I wouldn't mind that much for two reasons: The first being that, the button presses you have to match are the same every time, so even if you're slow with the reactions, you'll soon commit them to memory. Also, once you've initiated the QTE, you're not getting out of it, so if you slip up, it resets back to the beginning, along with the accompanying FMV - "hey didn't you throw the junkrock at me, just a moment ago?!"

Speaking of QTEs and the buildup of this game, saw a trailer where Starkiller pulls a Star Destroyer out of the sky and crashing down to the Sith's feet. That was very cool. Sadly, the set-piece in the game does not approach anywhere near the level of coolness that it should have been. Some tedious analogue stick action separated by waves of tie fighters to interrupt the flow. It was only very frustrating as the tie fighters proved very hard to destroy, that is until I discovered that the only some can be destroyed on the left by using force grip, whilst others could only be zapped by force lightning on the right, very annoying, anyone else get this?

Overall, not a great experience, and nothing in it that made me want to repeat at harder difficulties. The story is the only redeeming feature of the game, although the fanboys will check this out through rose-tinted glasses. So my first PS3 game was not a keeper - in that time I did order Metal Gear Solid 4 which I will play through once I've gone through the current crop of Xbox 360 games that are begging me to play. I traded The Force Unleashed in for £18 and then paid the difference to get Civilization Revolution, a game of which I literally can't put down now, despite Fable 2's main quest screaming out for attention; a review will be on the way. The bundle deal I got The Force Unleashed meant that the game worked out as £10, so if only financially, I believe I've broken even, maybe even come out a little on top.

Also post #100, woah! Here's to another 100.