| MORE INFO! | |
|
(SKX) Dark Blade - Student  |
From CGW's June issue. Impression by Darren Gladstone, Computer Gaming World Never play poker with Brett Tosti. The cagey director of Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy is excited about what's in store, sure, but he's damn good at not showing you his hand. We did, however, get an exclusive behind-the-scenes test drive, and we're here to tell you that the Force is with him. One big change up front: You're not Kyle Katarn. Picking up about a year after the conclusion of Jedi Outcast, in this game, Luke Skywalker's Jedi Academy on Yavin 4 is training initiates in the ways of the Force. Katarn may have flown off into the sunset at the end of JK2, but he does come back in the new game as a teacher. You, on the other hand, have to go back to class. JEDI SCHOOL DROPOUT You start off by creating a highly customizable character. First, you choose gender and species. While the final number of races hasn't been buttoned down, we saw Rodian, Twi'lek, and human characters in action. Next, you pick out skin tone, facial pattern, and outfit--nice, but fairly standard decisions. After that, however, comes the cool part: selecting your lightsaber. Not only can you modify the hilt and blade color, you can also choose your fighting style. Go for the traditional saber, get in touch with your inner Darth Maul using a saberstaff, or go for the dual saber approach popularized in Episode II. The way you arm yourself affects your character's moves. Take the saberstaff, for example: It's perfect for fighting off hordes of enemies with sweeping kicks and spinning blades. The single saber approach, by comparison, is all about stabbing and slashing. A pet peeve of many is that you started off the previous games without any Jedi powers. Here, you at least have a base level of abilities you can hone as you advance. The way those powers work has also been refined: Instead of being able to use either the lightsaber or force powers, you can now combine attacks. Force pull someone into you and swing away, then use Force lightning and strike at the same time for a double shot. BRAVE NEW WORLDS Par for the course with Star Wars games, you'll visit a number of familiar planets from the books and movies (we saw a number of areas on Tatooine, including a trip inside a Jawa sand crawler). In fact, Tosti says there will be a larger variety of locations, and that the total size of the game is larger than Outcast. He was also quick to point out improvements to the graphics engine. In the Tatooine level, "All the rock structures look smoother and more natural. There's a much higher level of detail." Eyeballing it up close, we're inclined to agree. The average character in JK2 consisted of 10,000 polygons; this time around, that figure's been doubled. The increased detail is also apparent in the creatures you'll fight. We saw Tuskan raiders, Jawas, and various Dark Jedi to deal with and dismember--not to mention a number of end-level bosses. They all look impressive, even at this early point. In one mission, some prisoners are in need of rescuing. As we break into the detention center, we're told that the prisoners are to be fed to a Rancor for sport. Some sport--you try coming between a two-story monstrosity and his lunch. It grabs a prisoner and shakes him around in its giant paw before biting the poor guy's head off. There will be many more surprises in store when the game ships later this year. Tosti tantalized us with the possibility of more controllable vehicles than just the AT-STs from Outcast, and even some multiplayer modes, but as usual, he couldn't yet put his cards on the table. "You've got to keep some things a secret. Right?" _______________ What is the difference between love and Herpes? Herpes lasts forever. (CDC joke) Padawans: Trad Redav, Darth Jello, Tallepyon, Shang Chi, Dopp, Karlin Duke, AuroN, Koushka, Damon, and Katan Brother to Xanatos |
| Login and add your comment! |
| Comments |
|
DoriaN - Ex-Student 
|
Sounds great. _______________ JiM |
|
FaT CaM - Ex-Student 
|
lol Yeh! gimme now so I can be plauged with a horrible and buggy leak and have to wait for numerous patches! No im serious, gimme! |
|
Darkwood - Student 
|
 _______________ -Darkwood- |
|
Lian Del Rey - Student 
|
Y'ALL GIVE IT TO ME ***RIGHT NOW!!!*** _______________ slorp |
|
D@RtHM@UL - Student 
|
COOL!!! GIMME GIMME GIMME GIMME !!! Cant wait  |
|
Malk - Student 
|
cool I want it right now, gimme gimme gimme _______________ You swing too hard, ass. I Swear!!! |
|
Halendor - Ex-Student 
|
Cool! I can't wait  |
| Login and add your comment! |