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Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (video game)

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This article is about the video game. You may be looking for Star Wars: The Force Unleashed multimedia project.

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Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
Publication information
Developer(s)

LucasArts, N-space, Krome Studios, THQ Wireless

Publisher(s)

LucasArts

Release date

USA: September 16, 2008[1]
Asia: September 17, 2008[1]
Europe & UK: September 19, 2008[1]

Genre

Third-person Action

Modes

Single Player, Multi Player

Rating(s)

ESRB: T for Teen[2]

Platform(s)

Xbox 360[3], PlayStation 3,[4] Wii,[5] PlayStation 2,[6] PlayStation Portable,[6] Nintendo DS,[6] iPhone[7]

Chronology
Timeline

2 BBY

[Source]
"This game is about kicking ass with the Force."
―Haden Blackman, in the March 2007 issue of Game Informer

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed is a Star Wars video game that takes place between the films Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith and Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Being the centerpiece of the Star Wars: The Force Unleashed multimedia project, the game was released on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii as well as the PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, Nintendo DS and the iPhone. Thus, LucasArts worked in conjunction with Industrial Light & Magic, Pixelux Entertainment, and NaturalMotion to create a next-gen Star Wars experience. The game showcases Digital Molecular Matter (DMM), an extremely detailed and realistic material physics engine developed by Pixelux, and euphoria, a realistic bio-mechanical A.I. engine by NaturalMotion. The Force Unleashed was originally slated for release in November 2007 but was delayed to the spring of 2008 and later delayed again to that summer. The final version of the game was released on September 16, 2008. A demo was made available on Xbox LIVE and Playstation Network for download on August 21, 2008.

Contents

Opening crawl

The Force Unleashed 
The galaxy is on the brink
of total darkness. The evil
GALACTIC EMPIRE has overthrown
the Old Republic and now
holds countless worlds in the
grip of fear.

The Jedi Knights have been all
but destroyed. Only a handful
have escaped Imperial forces,
disappearing into hiding across
the galaxy.

The Emperor's spies have
located a lone Jedi Knight
on the Wookiee homeworld of
Kashyyyk. The Sith Lord DARTH
VADER has been sent to
destroy him....

Synopsis

PS3 and Xbox 360 versions

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Attack on Kashyyyk

Darth Vader accompanies the Imperial Fleet in invading the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk, because rumors abound that there is a rogue Jedi who is fighting in defense of the Wookiees. After battling his way through an army of vicious Wookiees, Vader eventually makes his way to a small hut, home of the rogue Jedi Kento Marek. Kento, in an attempt to protect the planet and his young son, Galen, from Vader's grasp, engages the Sith Lord. Kento, not surprisingly, loses the duel and is then killed by a Force choke by Vader. During the battle however, it becomes apparent that the young son is powerful in the ways of the force. Powerful enough that, rather than allow his officers and stormtroopers to kill the young boy, Vader murders them to protect the boy. Now in Vader's hands, the young boy is taught in the ways of the Sith, is raised as Vader's secret apprentice, sent on dangerous missions by his dark master in order to test his abilities, and given the codename of 'Starkiller'.

The search for Kota

For his first mission, Galen is sent out to the Nar Shaddaa shipyard to locate and kill an ex-Jedi General named Rahm Kota. Before taking off for his mission, Galen is introduced to his new pilot of the Rogue Shadow: Juno Eclipse. The two, along with PROXY, took off for the shipyard, and ran into a space battle immediately after dropping out of hypserspace. Galen is dropped off within the TIE Fighter Construction Facility where Kota is hiding, and fights his way through Rebels and Stormtroopers alike. When Galen finally reached Kota, the two fought and Galen eventually emerged victorious, sending Kota hurtling towards the planet and leaving him for dead. Before returning to his master, Galen took Kota's lightsaber per Vader's orders.

Mission to Raxus Prime

Starkiller dueling Kazdan Paratus.

After defeating Kota, Galen's next mission was to the junk-world of Raxus Prime where he was to find and kill the insane Jedi, Kazdan Paratus. He fights through the hoards of Rodian scavengers and junk droids before he reached the tower of the makeshift Jedi Temple Paratus constructed. The crazed Jedi Master, determined to protect the mannequins of fallen Jedi Masters, fights against Galen, who eventually defeats him.

The last of the Jedi Masters

Before they could confront the Emperor, Vader tells Galen that he must defeat someone more powerful than the other Jedi, Shaak Ti. On Felucia, she is training an army of Felucian Force-users. When she spots the Rogue Shadow, she tells her Zabrak Padawan Maris Brood to hide while she lures the assassin to the place of sacrifice, the Mega Sarlacc's nest. But even her strength and communion with the Sarlacc are no match for Galen. Before she dies, Shaak Ti warns him that the Sith always betray one another.

"Death"

Galen returns to the Executor, where he learns that the Emperor's fleet had arrived. But Vader had not lured him -- his spies had followed Galen from Raxus. Without warning, Vader stabs Galen in the chest as Palpatine tells him to kill his apprentice. The Emperor, watching the former apprentice's supposed death through PROXY, enjoys seeing Galen getting beat up, saying, "Yes, Lord Vader! Kill him! Kill him!" After thrashing the powerful Dark Jedi around, despite his pleas that they could defeat him together, Vader throws Galen out the window. Vader later dispatched a droid to recover his body.

Empirical

Galen later wakes up on Vader's science vessel, the Empirical, having all his scars healed. Through PROXY, Vader tells Galen to distract the Emperor's spies by gathering the Empire's enemies. After cutting his transmission, PROXY tells Galen that he had programmed the Empirical to crash into the nearby sun. Despite the holodroid's pleas, Galen saves Juno, who was imprisoned and branded a traitor.

Tracking Kota

Remembering that Kota said he'd be in his future, Galen tracks him from Nar Shaddaa to Ziost eventually finding him—blind, doubtful of the Empire's fall, and drunk in the vapor room on Cloud City. Galen urges the former General to help him, as they escape the Imperials looking for them.

Contact on Kashyyyk

Kota said he had a contact who had been feeding him information on Imperial targets but he required that Galen find something on Kashyyyk. Galen goes down to the planet, where he finds an old hut which seems vaguely familiar. He encounters a vision, in which his father said he never wanted this for him. Galen then rescue Princess Leia Organa, who was being kept prisoner by Captain Ozzik Sturn. She refuses to leave until the skyhook is destroyed. Galen goes on to destroy the skyhook and kills Ozzik Sturn who attempts to kill Galen in his personal AT-KT.

Return to Felucia

A rancor.

Kota said that because he was of no use to Bail Organa, he went looking for Shaak Ti. Galen then returns to Felucia, where the Empire had been battling its inhabitants, who have turned to the dark side, and studying the Sarlacc. Galen is able to locate Bail, who was being held prisoner by Maris, who plans to use to buy leniency from the Empire. Galen defeated Maris and her pet bull rancor, holding her at his mercy. She pleads him to let her go, promising to turn her back on the dark side. Galen lets her go mentioning that she will have to live with her choices for the rest of her life.

Back to Raxus

Organa says that to rally other dissidents, they need to show that the Empire is weak. Vader suggests destroying the Star Destroyer construction yard over Raxus Prime. PROXY finally attempts to fulfill his programming by killing Galen on this planet but Galen defeats him. But after using the ore cannon to destroy the construction yard, one of the Destroyers came crashing down through the atmosphere. Kota tells Galen to use the Force to bring the destroyer crashing down. After he does so, PROXY is found and regretfully informs Galen that he no longer recalls his primary function.

The Corellian Treaty

On Corellia, Bail, Mon Mothma and Garm Bel Iblis gather to form a Rebellion to take down the Empire. But as soon as the Alliance is declared, the Empire strikes, capturing the Senators and Kota. Vader then reveals Galen as his apprentice and that he had never intended to kill Palpatine with him. He attempts to end his apprentice but PROXY, disguised as Obi-Wan Kenobi, saves him, at the cost of his life. Galen, whom Vader presumed dead, was picked up by Juno. He realizes that Vader only wanted to draw out the Empire's enemies.

Rescuing the Rebels

Through the Force and his knowledge that the rebels were going to be executed by Palpatine, Galen and Juno go to the Death Star to rescue Kota, Mon Mothma, Garm Bel Iblis, and Bail Organa. After being discovered by Palpatine, Vader is sent to take care of Galen. They duel, leaving Vader injured and with damaged armor. Kota, after a failed attempt to attack the Emperor, is struck with Force lightning, and Galen intervenes. He defeats Palpatine in a duel, but decides not to kill him; Palpatine, as in his duel with Windu, is feigning defeat. To save the Alliance from Palpatine as they escape, Galen sacrifices himself. Later, the Alliance is formed formally, and they decide to use Galen's family crest as their symbol.

PS2, Wii and PSP versions

These versions are slightly different as they include some additional levels in the Jedi Temple and on Cloud City. The biggest difference is the location of Rahm Kota, who is found on Nar Shaddaa instead of Bespin.

First Mission to the Jedi Temple

       Main article: First Mission to the Jedi Temple

After Starkiller defeated Rahm Kota at the TIE fighter construction facility, Darth Vader sent his apprentice to the ruins of the Jedi Temple in order to prepare for his next mission. Within it, his presence activated the Holocron of the long-dead Sith Lord, Darth Desolous. Leeching off of Marek’s fear, Desolous began his attack, wielding a cortosis shield and a red lightsaber. Starkiller successfully fended off the Sith’s lightsaber blows and used Force lightning to send the Sith reeling. Near defeat, Desolous made a final attempt at destroying Marek, and failed. Starkiller then used the Force to hurl Desolous' Sith Holocron towards the main statue at the top of the hall, and up along the statue’s surface. The Holocron was then cast down from the statue’s face and hurled into the stone floor. With a final pull of the Force, the main statue came crumbling down on the hologram of the ancient Sith Lord, defeating him and ending the Trials program.

Second Mission to the Jedi Temple

       Main article: Second Mission to the Jedi Temple

After Starkiller assassinated the deranged Jedi master Kazdan Paratus on Raxus Prime, Darth Vader sent his apprentice to the Jedi Temple once more. While Darth Sidious had ordered the library’s protection during Operation: Knightfall, the Jedi protecting the four main wings of the Archives brought down the ceiling in the central atrium and a few of the archive's wings. It was within one of the damaged wings that Starkiller encountered an incarnation of the ancient Sith Lady, Darth Phobos. Engaging each other in lightsaber combat, Phobos often changed her appearance to that of one of the few people Starkiller cared for, Captain Juno Eclipse, believing that would hold him back. However, the young Sith apprentice was unrestrained by the illusion, and savagely battled the Sith apparition. Hurling busts and holobooks around towards his opponent, Starkiller eventually pushed the Sith illusionist through four bookcases. Wounded, Phobos once again attempted her disguise in order to spare her defeat. Not fooled by the image before him, Starkiller stabbed Phobos through her back.

Third Mission to the Jedi Temple

       Main article: Third Mission to the Jedi Temple

After Marek’s master, Darth Vader, killed and resurrected him, Starkiller felt compelled by the Force to return to the Temple a final time to finish the Trials. Winding through the High Council quarter, the Sith apprentice made his way to the lobby of the High Council Tower and entered the ancient turbolift that would transport him to the summit chamber. When the turbolift stopped and emptied into the Council Chambers, Starkiller gazed upon his next adversary; a robed Jedi, yet another opponent selected from the Trials program’s memory bank. Using the Force and other techniques to subdue the Jedi phantom, Marek eventually pulled the Trials’ ghost down and impaled him with his saber. Before the program cut out, the Jedi revealed itself to be Kento Marek, Galen’s father.

Rescue of Garm Bel Iblis

       Main article: Rescue of Garm Bel Iblis

After destroying the shipyard above Raxus Prime, Marek travelled to Cloud City, where he heard that senator Bel Iblis was present in. With his assistance along with Bail Organa's, there would be enough people to help in the creation of a resistance against the Galactic Empire's rule. Upon reaching Cloud City, which was still under construction at the time, Marek encountered the administrator of the floating platform, which was Lobot. He informed the cyborg that master Rahm Kota had sent him to meet with the senator. However, Lobot informed him that the senator was unavailable, as he attempted to negotiate with a criminal gang led by Chop'aa Notimo, who's mercenaries were assaulting the city. Mounting the Basilisk war droid, Chop'aa fought Marek and after a long battle the droid was defeated when Galen used the Force to send it crashing into the ground. From the flames, Notimo's helmet rolled out and he came charging at Starkiller ready to kill him. After a lengthy battle, Galen slashed his lightsaber across Chop'aa, thus killing him. Now that Chop'aa was dead, Starkiller came before Bel Iblis and told him that he was safe. Galen attempted to inform Garm that Rahm Kota sent him, but Bel Iblis was already aware of this and knew of his plans for a rebellion. When Starkiller asked the senator if he was with them, Garm replied by stating that he had spoke out against the Emperor too many times, which resulted in Palpatine issuing death warrants against him and his family. He then said that he was of course going to join Marek and told him to meet him with Bail Organa in order to discuss their next move.

Nintendo DS and cellphone versions

Starkiller fighting stormtroopers on Felucia in the mobile phone version.

The Nintendo DS version is almost the same as Playstation 3 or Xbox 360. However, it doesn't include Garm Bel Iblis and Mon Mothma and all levels are shorter. Also, the color of the lightsaber blade can be changed at any point of the game by using the crystals found on various levels. The available colors are blue, green, yellow and purple. Other differences include Ozzik Sturn piloting an AT-RT instead of an AT-KT, and wookies attacking Starkiller on Kashyyyk as opposed to aiding him.

The cellphone version does not allow the player to control Starkiller's movements. Instead, he must weave the patterns of numbers appearing above the enemies' heads to make them dissapear. Starkiller can also use Force push, Force drain, Mind trick, telekinesis and Force lightning by weaving certain patterns. As on NDS, the plot closely follows the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions with some differences. Instead of sending Starkiller to Raxus Prime in order to show the Empire's weakness, Vader sends him to destroy the TIE fighter construction facility above Nar Shaddaa where he first confronted Kota (thus implying that it was rebuilt after their encounter). Also, the Imperial commander on Kashyyyk doesn't ride an AT-CT, but is rather equipped with a lightwhip.

Music

       Main article: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (soundtrack)

The music was composed by Mark Griskey, who also scored Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords.[8] It was recorded at Skywalker Sound on September 23 and 24[8] and was released as a promotional album available for listening here.

When asked in an interview about whether or not he thought the soundtrack would be released for sales, Griskey replied, "I can always be hopeful! I don't have much control there. That's really up to the legal and PR folks to decide."[9]

Voice cast

Official trailers

The first official trailer premiered on Entertainment Tonight and was featured exclusively (7/12/07) on the official home for Star Wars on Yahoo!, featuring an amazing view of what's to come as far as gameplay and story line. The trailer later appeared on the game's official website.

This all-new story revisits characters and locations that fans are familiar with, but also introduces new ones that add more rich depth to the Star Wars canon. Maris Brood, an apprentice of fan favorite Shaak Ti, and General Kota, a grizzled veteran who has much to teach, are introduced. The planets Raxus Prime, and Felucia, a planet only touched upon in Episode III (also featured in Star Wars: Empire at War: Forces of Corruption and Star Wars: Battlefront II), are also featured.

There were previews on Spike TV during April.

  • 1. Play as Darth Vader
  • 2. Amped up Force powers
  • 3. Epic Battles
  • 4. Wii Duel mode

Appearances

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Characters

Shaak Ti.
Palpatine as seen in the game.

Creatures

Droid models

Events

Locations

The Jedi Temple, a Krome-exclusive level.

Force powers

Organizations and titles

Juno Eclipse.

Sentient species

Vehicles and vessels

"The skies of this historically tranquil planet are once again filled with gigantic warships." -Hyperspace
Executor video game concept art

Weapons and technology

Miscellanea

The Force Unleashed Databank

The game also has an in-game encyclopedia. As players advance through the game, entries on various objects and characters become unlocked. It is similar in function to the encyclopedia found in the video game Star Wars: Rebellion.

Entries

Wookieepedia has a collection of images and media related to Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (video game).
Wookieepedia has a collection of audio files related to Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (video game).

Behind the scenes

Alternate dark side ending

Instead of saving Kota, Galen defeats Vader, fatally skewering him with two lightsabers, to replace him at Palpatine's side. His final test is to strike down the incapacitated Kota, but Galen instead attempts to kill the Emperor, who has anticipated his attack and blocks it. Palpatine defeats Galen easily and brings the Rogue Shadow down on top of everyone in the room, killing all but Galen and the Emperor himself. The final scene shows Galen, resting on a table, in a mechanical suit, paralleling Anakin Skywalker's transformation in Revenge of the Sith.

Platform differences

  • The PS3 and Xbox 360 versions are essentially the same. They both feature Ronin, a game engine developed by LucasArts. It integrates the physics engines Havok, euphoria, and Digital Molecular Matter. It should be noted that while the Wii and PS2 versions will also feature Ronin-like engines, they do not contain these modules.[source?]
  • The Wii, PS2, and PSP versions were developed by Australian developer Krome Studios, but each version is slightly different. They will all have characters and locations not featured on the other consoles, such as a bar on Nar Shaddaa and the ruins of the Jedi Temple.
  • The Wii's control scheme allows players to "wield" a lightsaber with the Wii Remote and use Force powers by moving the Nunchuk. The game also features a two-player duel mode with nine arenas and 27 characters to choose from.
  • The physics engine featured in the PS2 means that rag-doll effects, enemies flying across the screen, and destructible environments can be more prominent in the game.
  • The PSP version will feature three quick play modes – Order 66, Force Duel, and Historic Missions – but it is unclear if the game will support three or four players in Ad Hoc mode, as several official sources conflict. [source?]
  • The DS version was developed by n-space and features a touch-screen combo system and a four-player death match mode.
  • The iPhone version was developed by THQ Wireless. This version is controlled by pre-determined movements on the touch screen that must match what is shown for successful attacks with the Force. The playable character moves to areas on his own while the player simply has to destroy the obstacles in the way, enemies and non-organic alike.

Game technology

Havok

Havok is a system also used in the famous Halo series; it allows the game to know the dimensions of objects and how they would work against each other.

Euphoria

The use of euphoria, delevloped by NaturalMotion, gives characters advanced bio-mechanical AI, allowing characters to realistically respond to changes in the environment.

"Well, you probably Force pushed a stormtrooper or two as Kyle Katarn in a Jedi Knight game, right? Imagine if that stormtrooper was able to stop his progress by grabbing onto a railing and then proceeded to grab a gun beside him and fire back at Kyle—all this because his biomechanical AI simply knew that that's the best thing for him to do. That's euphoria in action."
―Haden Blackman[21]
Digital Molecular Matter
Snapshot from the Force pre-visualization video.

DMM creates truly interactive environments that behave as they do in real life. Materials in games usually break in predetermined ways. DMM calculates the breakpoint in real-time. It simulates what would happen to a material when broken, shattered, cut into two, snapped, splintered, pushed, squeezed, etc. It was developed by Pixelus and exclusive to LucasArts until September 2008.

"Now, imagine that Kyle pushes another stormtrooper into a building with so much force that you'd expect the stormtrooper to make a permanent dent in the wall. That happens with DMM, and no matter how many times you throw that stormtrooper into that wall, it will look different every single time, and still always look authentic. In fact, if you hit him hard enough and the building is dilapidated enough, the whole thing might collapse on the stormtrooper, because DMM also takes into account the actual physical mass of an object and the ways in which objects are constructed. Even with euphoria in place, there's no getting up from that!"
―Haden Blackman[21]

Industrial Light & Magic

ILM partnered with LucasArts to deliver movie-quality special effects in real-time for the game.

"In Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, the team is striving to raise the bar to deliver movie-quality effects. As much as possible, we want gamers to feel as if they are living the adventure unfolding before their controller, and with the added processing power of the next-gen platforms it is now possible to bring movie-quality effects and lighting to games. One of the advantages that we have at LucasArts is that we're a part of the same company, Lucasfilm, which owns Industrial Light and Magic (just in case you didn't already know). And for the first time in the histories of the two companies, LucasArts and ILM are teaming up to co-develop tools that will enable Star Wars: The Force Unleashed to feature polished effects, the likes of which have only been hinted at in previous games."
―Brett Rector[22]

Mistakes

  • The Star Wars Databank has the pictures of the Felucian Shaman and Chieftain reversed.
  • The Imperator-class Star Destroyers are portrayed with the bridge towers of the Imperial II-class.
  • In the cutscene where Vader "kills" Galen Marek by throwing him out of a window, all of the glass is gone, yet in the very next scene the glass is back, albeit with a hole in it.
  • The Executor is described as incomplete in the text in the PS2 version of the game, home to only Vader, Starkiller, PROXY and many busy droids working to complete the ship. However, in this version's cutscenes, the Star Dreadnought appears complete and fully functional.

Notes and references

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 The Force Will Be Unleashed on September 16
  2. ↑ IGN profile
  3. ↑ Gamespot.com
  4. ↑ Gamespot.com
  5. ↑ Gamespot.com
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 LucasArts.com
  7. ↑ Star Wars: Force Unleashed Announced for iPhone
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Music 4 Games
  9. ↑ Interview with composer Mark Griskey
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 The Force Unleashed at Celebration IV
  11. ↑ Yahoo! Games: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed Preview
  12. ↑ Jimmy Smitts In The Force Unleashed!
  13. ↑ DiGiacomo, Frank (March 2008). The Game Has Changed. Vanity Fair. Retrieved on April 23, 2008.
  14. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named IMDb
  15. ↑ Kari Wahlgren: News
  16. ↑ http://www.gamepro.com/nintendo/wii/games/previews/173588.shtml
  17. ↑ http://www.forceunleashed.net/images/screens/psp_4.jpg
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 Force Unleashed Web Documentary
  19. ↑ http://www.forceunleashed.net/images/screens/starwarstheforceunleashed8.jpg
  20. ↑ http://www.forceunleashed.net/images/screens/starwarstheforceunleashed4.jpg
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 Inside the Star Wars Pre-Vis
  22. ↑ Effecting the Force

External links

Official sites

Non-official sites

The Force Unleashed series
Books:
Novel | Art of the Game
Campaign Guide | Game Guide
Comics:
Graphic Novel | Webstrip
Other:
Game | Soundtrack
Toy Line | Miniatures
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