Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II | first review says "one of 2010's biggest disappointments"

GameInformer normally gets premier reviews as is the case with few other magazine publications. We have already been treated to some upcoming game scores including Star Wars: The Force unleashed which only managed a mediocre 78/100. From the moment the score was published you have to wonder what the whole deal was, it has now been revealed and while they are only complaining about two aspects, they happen to be two very important aspects.

[sinncross]

I'm South African and I don't even know this South African site...

that said: seems a bit premature to be basing the game off only Gameinformers opinion.

[DigitalAnalog]

Game Informer claims to finish the game in 6 hours when the actual total time could be more than 10.

Dumb magazine to go for reference.

-End statement

[Chucky2003]

i played the game 2 days ago and to my surprise i finished in 5 hours on medium,k lets say the time its not really exact but the length is half of the first game,i was like...wtf???is this all??,i'm some kind of Star Wars fan i like this fantastic universe that was created,i loved the first game,i like this one but the story is lame,i mean ..i was expecting something great like they did in the first game,instead the character is obsessed with a rescue mission,and the final boss fight it became so boring,there are only 4 areas in the game,if you can call Degobah a playable level,the only thing you will do there is just walk until you reach the cave,no fighting, no nothing,yes this game it is a disappointment because of the story and the length,the gameplay is good,its fun decapitating a group of storm troopers when you throw the lightsabers,like the first it has 2 endings,light and dark,i think the dark is the real one

If you have a save game of the first game on HDD and you finish it on both sides good and bad you will have 3 costumes unlocked from the start in this game,the apprentice,the sith and the ceremonial jedi robe

[nveenio]

After playing this demo, I don't hold much hope for this game. It feels exactly like the first (which wasn't great). They would have gotten better reviews if they left Starkiller with one lightsaber and added Move support.

[JBaby343]

After playing the demo this game is seriously disappointing. I'll keep playing the original TFU. Even my wife said the second TFU looked like cartoony crap. I want the feel of the old force powers back.

[FriedGoat]

Dark forces the original was brilliant when I played it all those moons ago! Jedi knight 2 was also pretty good in my opinion.

[Mike134nl]

I certainly hope so, didn't buy the first one because of the bad reviews, though I am actually looking forward to TFUII

[Sheikh Yerbouti]

The only thing I didn't like about the first was the hit or miss platforming. Everything else was well done.

If you are a Star Wars fan, it is a must buy for the story alone. The story was surprisingly well-woven into the mythos . I was expecting another Lethal Alliance and was already won over by the force powers/light-saber gameplay. I was real frustrated with the platforming so much, I put it down. But a certain cameo made me stick with a game - it was filling in gaps of the Star Wars storyline.

The ending was well done too, and in a way sets up the second's storyline to seem kind of hokey. So I would say play the first game first.

[crzyjackbauer]

after playing the demo it was just not fun

same old thing, one more lightsaber

[Galaxia]

I thought the story was the worst part about TFU1. I don't understand how fellow fans can swallow it. I liked Phantom Menace better, story and character wise. There was no one likeable character in TFU and the story was so bad and generic. Gameplay was horrible too.

I'm not surprised at all at TFU2's bad review. Hopefully there is no TFU3.

[Reibooi]

I don't see how they can say it's the biggest disappointment when according to the score it's just under 80 which would rank as good or great to alot of people.

I have not played it yet. But that said what I have seen of the game both story wise and game play wise looked miles better then the first Force Unleashed. I'm looking forward to playing it regardless of this so called disappointment.

[danielle007]

When I see a 78, I think it means that maybe the game isn't going to be amazing to everyone, but for a lot of people, it will be.

Plus, honestly, GameInformer are pretty hit or miss when it comes to reviews. Some I agree with, others I really really do not.

[Blaze929]

never planned on buying this. the demo was pretty cool and what not but the only thing that REALLY amazed me was the graphical leap TFU2 has over TFU1. Besides that, the gameplay still felt the same as well as everything else.

Most I'll do for this is rent or wait till it's at an ultra low price used.

[Shepherd 214]

"Have Star Wars games ever managed to encapsulate the very aspect that gave Star Wars a cult following in the first place? Sadly I cannot say they have and I had high hopes riding on this one, albeit early days."

Im pretty much 120% percent sure that this guy has never played Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, a game released in 2003 with a story that is just as good, if not better, than the Star Wars movies themselves.

[Sheikh Yerbouti]

I don't think a Star Wars game has ever had to "encapsulate the very aspect...blah blah blah". The genius of this high fantasy/sci-fi story carries itself across media via the imaginations of its fans. I think all that is left is for a game to be epic on its own merits. KOTOR being exemplary title.

Perhaps with KOTOR you mean the immersion of being a Jedi has been the Holy Grail of the Star Wars experience...but there's nothing a good blaster can't handle.

[RedDead]

Still Happy with the twist of that game, it changed my preferance completely. I was originally follwing the light side, but after the twist, I felt like destroying the currently pathetic weak sith so I could rebuild it the way I wanted.

I've said this before, Kotor is the best thing to come from the Star Wars francise at all. Imo of course.

[Koromaro]

Or Star Wars Battlefront 1&2

[CobraKai]

*possible spoiler*

I did the same thing!! And it worked out so perfectly for the story, even better than just going light or just going dark!! Except my angst was towards the jedi.

That was one of the greatest games period.

[RedDead]

Battlefront 1 and 2 are good even for their respective genre, but KOTOR is in the my list for top quality games period, it's just brillant in so many ways.

[deafwing]

not again ... it was the same thing with the first one ... ahh well .. they need to get their damn act together and add blood to this series .. it's just so passe with the whole light saber dries the blood

[RedDead]

lightsaber burns the wounds shut, ya know the way people used to put a burning iron bar up to them to close a wound? Same thing, although I agree with you, it shouldn't be

[deafwing]

that reasoning is passe

[AEtherbane]

They made the sequel that much worse then the original.
The original was FLAWED, but fun,
I can imagine this is still better, to some degree at least.

[r0gueZA]

well maybe you should be more observant

FYI - this "unkown SA site" has over 240 stories approved on N4G ...in 3 months!

[commodore64]

that doesn't mean a thing.

Anyone can make a blog, with a fancy logo, write stories, pass the contributor test and then submit each and every article to be approved on n4g.
It's sooo easy.

I have noticed a few users on n4g already doing just that, with a commensurate decrease in submission quality.
Trash journalism, I think it's called.

Lots of amateurs are trying to get a slice of the online advertising revenue by attempting the above.
It doesn't mean there is quality behind it.

[kmr1977]

So, what makes an "official" sites reviews any better than a bloggers? A blogger's review is sometimes better, because they are not being paid by the publisher to advertise for them, making some of their reviews highly questionable, look at the Gerstmann scandal...

Also, how do you think most of these so called "journalists" on the big sites like IGN get their start? They start blogs, and eventually get picked up by the big sites.

While it may be true that some people are bucking the system by starting flame bait blogs, some are actually writing decent material, not all of them, but some.

[despair]

yea thats not a big deal people on N4G approve "top ten man boobs" so getting something approved here is not a defense. Also it doesn't matter what or how many articles you have the article is taking 1 review from game informer and making it seem like the game is a huge failure.

I mean writing an article and making judgments on single review is kinda dumb. I don't trust every game informer review, I used to, now not so much, that's the good thing about this day and age, we get tonnes of reviews to compare, where's yours?

[SaberEdge]

While I agree with your basic point, I still find that Game Informer is most consistently in line with my opinions of games.

[despair]

yea I agree with most of their reviews(the magazine never the website) but recently they have been giving some strange scores and that has me worried.

[phantomexe]

idk about the review...Still geting it anyway and didn't ign say it was better then the last?

[joydestroy]

yeah when it comes to reviews, i won't be paying much attention regarding this game. i hated the first one but couldn't get enough of the second one's demo. plus, i'm selling this to a friend at work when i'm done for half of what i'm paying ($50).

[gaden_malak]

78 out of 100 isn't even bad or mediocre.

[badz149]

yeah, trust IGN. the best reviewer out there! /s

[Blaster_Master]

Dude, I played and hated part 1. But the demo to part two was so sick, I cant believe its a sequel.

[r0gueZA]

thanks for the feedback, I was stoked for this one till I read GameInformers findings.

still I hope the reviews pick up, because as we all know 70's normally mean - meh.

[Ares84PS3]

I mean, never mind that you would probably love a game that the other guy hates and gives a 70 or below...but you will never get it because the other guy said it's crap.

Todays gamers amaze me.

[Pen15]

I'd rather get someone's opinion of the game before I buy it. I'm not Mister Money Bags here...

[SaberEdge]

This is one damn review score. Castlevania Lords of Shadow received several 7s and it turned out to be one of my favorite games of the year, easily a 9+ to me.

[AllroundGamer]

same here, hated the first one, but yesterday i finished SW Force Unleashed II and i think it's a great game (even if the singleplayer isn't so long - 5-6 hours)

[Ares84PS3]

Than I tried the demo for this and it's amazing. I can't wait to get my hands on it. The story is so interresting to me. I want to know if he is in fact a clone or the real Starkiller who was tricked in believeing that he is a clone. Can't wait...

Oh and, I don't base my purchases on others opinions. I try the game or watch gameplay videos and than I make up my mind. What is a AAA game to me could be a poor game to someone else...and vica-versa.

[r0gueZA]

No, dont fill in the spaces on what I didn't say

I would buy it, but I hated the first and if scores are low that means that it will slip from a first day buy, to when its cheap.

and when you have high expectations of something and it scores badly... well its a bummer

[Ares84PS3]

Try the demo. Check out gameplay videos and than you are more than ready to decide.

Since I loved the first one and I'm a Star Wars fan....not the hardcore type but still...it will be a first day buy for me.

[scar20]

I'll be the judge of that.

[tony6767]

NICE ASS!!!

[Sidewinder-]

lmao!

[Lou Ferrigno]

i second that.

[Snakefist30]

I Third That.

[TroyAndAbed]

And my axe!!!

[SephireX]

Disappointment? Seriously? The only good Star Wars games are Battlefront and KOTOR. So why did anyone have high hopes for this when the first one was average and it developed by the same team?

[Galaxia]

Republic Commando? Jedi Knight?

[SephireX]

KOTOR is the only good Stars Wars game if the truth be known and you know it!

[starmin76]

"Have Star Wars games ever managed to encapsulate the very aspect that gave Star Wars a cult following in the first place?"

Obviously he's never played kotor

[coolbeans]

...or a s***load of older Star Wars games.

[Nihilism]

Why are people so quick to defend lucasarts....if i'm not mistaken TFU1 did not live up to the hype either, lucasarts are also class A a-holes on par with S.E in terms of quick cash-ins...so it would not surprise me at all.

[asyouburn]

but all iwas hoping for inthe first was a decent starwars game, which lucasarts most definately delivered

[crzyjackbauer]

i agree they should just be partners with EA
they only game that was really good was Jedi Knight II
that was a hardcore starwars game
now they just make games for 12 year olds

[phantomexe]

I'm not 12 and i loved the frist game so much i had to get the wii and the ps3 ver. I am a big star wars fan tho.

[Djinn]

@nihilism no more bubbles for you

[Nodoze]

The textures (or lackthereof) were very very bland. The gameplay was ok, but seemed to get old pretty fast. I would give the demo a 6.

It went from a pre order to a rental for me. Just wait, I am sure they will offer an ultimate edition like they did last time (i waited and bought that one).

Lucasarts is not what it once was. They are a shadow of their former selves. It is so ironic that they have one of the strongest licensing properties in all of the world, and yet cannot manage to create a worthy title using it.

[R6ex]

Hope the PC version will look significantly sharper than the Xbox version.

Lucas Arts must not do the same lousy console port of their Unleashed 1 game for Unleashed 2 again.

[Sidewinder-]

The Force Unleashed was a poor game. Watched my bro play it countless of times on the wii, had a bash myself, tried it on the 360. It's a bland, boring and unecessary game.

Crap voice acting and garbage story, and for something set in the Star Wars universe that's embarrasing.

[Ares84PS3]

But these are just opinions :)

[Pen15]

You're a fanboy dude, of course you would disagree. No wonder you feel so strongly about this game.

[TroyAndAbed]

And...who has more bubbles?

[SeraphimBlade]

Wait, the review was just really complaining about the story. I'll wait 'til I hear more about it. The first one had some really strong moments and the demo for this one seemed to be more of the stuff I liked. I was never expecting much from the story, especially if you come up with a stupid lazy clone excuse instead of creating a new character. Seriously, it's a sequel to a midquel, what do you expect?

[unrealgamer58]

well that's his OPINION >_>

[Acquiescence]

is not a mediocre score.

And how can this sequel be called a disappointment when the first game didn't exactly breach Metacritic's all time highest gaming scores list. Were expectations really that high?!

[blackburn5]

Actually IGNs opinions and reviews are $hit. If you should trust an online review I trust Joysiq if anything. IGN, Xplay and Kotaku's reviews are inconsistant, biased and unreasonable. No good in my opinion

[AwesomeJizz]

This game is fucking brilliant. I'm playing it right now in fact.
Don't listen to reviewers. They became harsh and if you play your games based on their reviews, soon you'll not be able to play any game

[tatotiburon]

i love the first one, one of the best star wars plots in videogames, can't wait for the sequel

[BLAKHOODe]

i've said it before and i'll say it again, a review is ONE person's opinion. just because ONE person doesn't like something, doesn't mean you or the next person won't. the first Force Unleashed got so-so reviews, too.. guess what? i LOVED that game! recently, Medal Of Honor got so-so reviews.. i LOVE it, too. Fallout: New Vegas.. same! rent the game, play it's demo and decide for yourself.

[HungPHATx]

That'd exactly how I judge a game , demos and hands on ! And Ya Metal of Honor is AWESOME........

[DanSolo]

I played the demo and thought it was pretty good so I will reserve judgement until the actual game is out!

While playing it though I did have the feeling that it would be cool if they would combine the game mechanics of Force Unleashed with an RPG like KOTOR, as that would be very cool, and not hard to implement!

[asyouburn]

was far and beyond anything force unleashed could ever do. i enjoy action games, but kotors combat was the stuff from which dreams are made

[tunaks1]

imo KOTOR combat hasn't aged well, its just to lifeless.

[asyouburn]

in my opinion, when you have access to hundreds of force powers, and all the options you have open, it would be a step back to change it to "lets run up to an enemy and hammer on the button" until said enemy dies. when you can do all the things you can do in KOTOR, you shouldnt have to worry about your default attack. that and the scripted lightsaber battles on the default attack look so much more cinematic than something like force unleashed.

[TheOtherSide]

Going on 3 hours and love it, did not play the first one but I like this one.

[Urrakia34]

didnt like the demo. I found the gameplay a bit bland and generic. Plus the story plot seems retarded

I'm still waiting for Star Wars Battlefront 3. How I miss SWB:(

[Rhezin]

but don't bash this game, it's one hell of a star wars game. I'm gettin it day one despite a retarded review from gameinformer.

[ZombieNinjaPanda]

If battlefront 3 ever comes out. I think LucasArts just want to fail for the rest of our gaming lives.

[Urrakia34]

I'm pretty sure it'll come out sometime in the near future. Alot of people loved SWB2 so maybe LucasArts will see that SWB3 is the way to go.

[antz1104]

Hard to think too, SWB2 was a huge success compared to the first. Figured they'd focus on that.

[tigertron]

Well I enjoyed the demo and I loved the first game so its highly likely that I'll love the sequel. Thats all I care about anyway.

[tunaks1]

" which only managed a mediocre 78/100"
god, so much is wrong this gen.

How the hell can a 78 be the biggest disappointment? User reviews are so much more reliable then these poorly thought out "professional" ones.

[troncoparati]

Play the demo and choose for yourself.

[jalen247]

The demo was amazing. I do not care what any reviewer has to say.

[Eiffel]

Called it.

[wedgie]

As a huge Star Wars fan, enjoyed the story of the first one. But as a game, it fell short. It was a rental.

And in a similar way, I am sure I am going to enjoy the story of this game, but it will also be just a rental for myself. A fun enjoyable rental though.

[Close_Second]

...was good but not great. Its once again a very linear game with enemies that are all too easy to dispense of. I also disliked the way a boarder appeared around what you were targeting on as though the game was made only for kids. And what was with just mashing the same button for using the light sabre!?!

I was really hoping for something a little more open world, allowing you to take on different enemies and situations in different ways.

[CombineElite]

With the barrage of Star Wars games coming out I think each one will offer something different and if the game is short well then you guys set the trend by buying MW2 buy the kazillions. 5 hour Sp with Arcade MP.

I'm looking forward to Battlefront 3 Lego Clone Wars and The Old Republic MMo.

[Makidian]

I really liked the frst one and I don't trust GI's reviews anyway because most of the time they are way off base so I will still be getting this on Tuesday.

[gcolley]

i learnt my lesson on the first one. when the first one is a huge disappointment the second one can't really be one of this years big disappointments. this guy is a drama queen

[bunfighterii]

Disappointing but expected. The first one sucked.

[earbus]

In the demo the camera seems to far away from the action i notice it alot i hack games.

[TronEOL]

'the feck? Since when was 78/100 mediocre? The second I read that, I called bullshit on this website.

I believe anything 60-70 is Decent, 70-80 is Good, 80-90 is Great, 90-100 is Amazing.
Mediocre is 50.

Just from the demo, this new Star Wars game looks amazing.

[MrBuffalo]

You're exactly right. Any thing other than games and 78/100 would be good. B+/A-. As you say 5 is mediocre. This is gonna make some conspiracy theorists shout but this is why I like edge reviews! (well I have read it since 1993) To them a 7 is good, an 8 is very good, a 9 is excellent and a 10 is unmissable. Save for differing oppinions and the fact that as humans we can only be subjective when looking at games anyway, then to me that makes sense. This article is nonsense.

[rickrollvip]

im new

[K92]

Sooo...what do you want, a cookie?

[SnakePlissken]

Was not too impressed with the demo. Seemed like the first one with just slightly better graphics. When on earth will they just come out with a kick ass star wars game that follows the 3 original films? Lightsaber duels between luke and vader! Escaping cloud city as han and chewie, blasing storm troopers away, taking on boba fett! Comon, keep it simple and lets go back to basics. I think thats what most of us long time star wars fans would all like to see!

[mrcash]

The demo was pretty good, nothing great aside from the graphics, I think it has some of the best visuals this gen and yes im including the ps3 exclusives as well

[SnakePlissken]

Graphics were definately some of the best ive seen as well. Agree with you there! Gameplay was just ok for me.

[CrzyFooL]

IS 78 MEDIOCRE!?

Jesus effing christ, I'd kill for 78's on my college exams. Gamers have gone fucking insane with review scores.

[davyou5]

I have viewed many sites reviews for this game, and Despite claims that the sequel is not this, that ,or the other. I am still going to my nearest Game Stop today at 10 P.M. (The website says 12 midnight, but I got a call yesterday from them saying that the pick up time is at ten.) and Picking up my copy with the Exclusive Bonus Offer that I preordered. I did like the First one, However I was dissapoint that the PS2 version had the Force Choke, when the PS3 and Xbox360 verisons did not, also it seems that they have kept this force power off of the Second game too.

In allot of ways I can agree with the arguement that with Now a days Better graphics just puts the story line, plots, and real creativity out the window because of visual eye candy, and one of the reason's why I did not go for Final Fantasy 13. I think that all of these Video Game companies need to balance out the Graphics with the Stories. Because so far as I have seen from these next gen games their coming out with really suck. Regardless of opinions of the too picky, I am buying this game, I will make the choice myself, and I will not let some half cocked drama queen decide what is good for me.

[davyou5]

I think that if they come out with a Force Unleashed 3, it should be about the Emperor's secret Apprentice Mara Jade, ohh... you people didn't forget about Mara did you?

[Silentmerc3nary]

Whatever. All I know is I want it, and I want it NOW!

'Tis going to be badass.

[divideby0]

just play the demo.. I was very underwhelmed. I will buy it when it hits the bargin bin... 60 bucks...sorry no way and I am a SW fan

[wanderingpixel]

Am I the only one who thinks that calling a 78 out of 100 "mediocre" is stupid? That's a good score. Not everything needs to be a perfect 10. Some of my favorite games (Kane and Lynch) have gotten 6s and 10s.

[hellsere]

78 is average with games FFS! Not exams GAMES

[K92]

"One of 2010's biggest disappointments"

How many disappointments have there been this year?

[swtfu2]

Ripoff game. $60 for a campaign finished in under 6 hours...