Jedi Knight 2: Jedi Outcast Preview

I'm sure that countless fellow fans have been sitting down for days crying their eyes out when they discovered that LucasArts had officially ceased production of Star Wars Episode I: Obi-Wan for the PC. At the moment, Obi-Wan is on route for the Xbox (and it's also looking rather good at the moment), and all PC-platformers have something new to look forward to - Jedi Knight 2: Jedi Outcast.

A few years ago, when Dark Forces appeared it possessed something unique in a game era that was swarming with challenging titles such as the Doom series or Duke Nukem 3D. This time it is up to Raven Software (popular for titles like Hexen II, Heretic, Soldier of Fortune, and Elite Force) and their creative team to present all those features that Star Wars devotees are most keenly waiting for - Force usage, the light-saber handling and a load of other Star Wars goodies. Each one of those issues received a great deal of attention from the developers, especially issues that enhance gameplay. Besides that, animations and graphics have significantly improved and are powered by the Quake III Arena engine. Of course, the essential question is: are we facing a game that's going to pass on an enjoyable and fulfilling Star Wars experience? Apparently (fingers crossed), we're not far from it.

One by one, please!

Flashy lightsaber action.

Kyle Katarn, the main character in the game, is back to battle it out with bounty hunters, Stormtroopers, and any other malevolent characters that are wrecking the law and order of the Galaxy. Now, Kyle is a far more advanced and experienced Jedi Knight than he was in his previous adventures. Several years have passed since Kyle avenged his father's death and saved the Valley of the Jedi from Jerec and his gang of Dark Jedi. Allowing his Force powers to languish for fear of falling to the dark side, Kyle entrusted his lightsaber to Luke Skywalker, vowing never to use it again. But when a new and menacing threat to the galaxy appears, Kyle knows he must reclaim his past in order to save his future. Unfortunately, LucasArts is very strictly keeping the rest of the plot under a cloak of secrecy until the final game is released.

The demonstration at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) left visitors stunned once they saw the innovative visual effects and features, never before exploited in Star Wars games. Now, let's role up our sleeves and begin, say, with the weaponry assortment.

The Rebel blaster, an Imperial auto rifle, thermal detonators, and bowcaster all belong to Kyle's standard weaponry arsenal. A number of new guns will appear next the traditional Star Wars weapons. But, we mustn't overlook the most crucial Jedi weapon - the Lighsaber. Oh yeah, If there's anything in this game that I'm exceedingly looking forward to it is definitely the lightsaber clashes and the motion captured character movements. If we look back at the Dark Forces, the lightsaber, when triggered and aimed at the enemy, automatically deflected laser fire (which I found pretty tedious and, quite frankly, a bit disappointing). Regrettably, this feature stays the same in Jedi Outcast, but that doesn't necessarily mean that there won't be any more features added to the lightsaber. Quite the opposite, the developers are persistently working to free the sophisticated Jedi weapon from any restrictions. The most impressive thing is when two Jedi engage in a fierce duel, their lightsabers we'll be able to collide and stick together and produce that famous buzz-sound we all like so much. Altogether, the duels seem hectic and convey a movie-like ambiance, which creates a sensation other Star Wars titles lack. Alongside these things, Kyle will be able to perform a wide variety of moves with his lightsaber weapon. For instance: 'Kyle sees a host of Stormtroopers rushing towards him aggressively. He manages to hack off a few legs with his lightsaber and deflect laser shots, but the troopers still keep running senselessly at him. He runs, using his super-Jedi speed, but eventually finds himself facing a jammed blast-door. What now? Well, that's where one of the many new lighsaber-features comes in. Kyle now has the ability to cut through the doors, just like Qui-Gon did in 'The Phantom Menace'. Then again, that is not the only way to get out of such a sticky situation. The main character has the option of hurling his shimmering Jedi weapon at his adversaries and then, using the force, he can maneuver it around before it get back to him like a boomerang.

Although the players control an experienced Jedi, the enemies, will not run at him mindlessly. An effective AI routine was introduced that's going to ensure a normal and logical reaction expected from the hostile NPC's. A few recent demos, exhibited by LucasArts, indicated that the game's AI works quite well. For instance, when a group of enemies are guided by an Imperial officer they will consequently have a higher moral. Yet, if the player eliminates the officer, the enemies will appear confused and may start to retreat in order to fetch some reinforcements.

Give me that lightsaber, it's not for you!

We meet again at last...now I am the master!!

Special force powers will be available, such as force push, force grab, force jump force lighting, and so on. I'm positive that all of you are acquainted with the force push, which can help you get rid of unwanted characters and just thrust them down an air shaft (rather traditional as it were). The grab allows you to snatch the opponents gun, particularly If he's a week-minded Stormtrooper. As in the previous game, the force jump is effective and, although its function remains the same, the animation was slightly enriched. Last, but not least, is the force lightning. Instantly, one may associate it to the lighting power of the Emperor in 'Return of the Jedi'. Yes, it appears just like that and it offers you an additional (and visually most impressive) way of striking down your enemies.

Furthermore, the player gets to deal with several NPCs throughout the game whilst using the help of the Force. Right now, the creators of Jedi Outcast are incorporating a feature that's going to allow Kyle to extract any information from the NPC he encounters during his adventures. Naturally, I'm referring to the good old Jedi mind trick - the same concept Ben Kenobi used in the movie Star Wars: A New Hope. Also, some of the NPCs won't act friendly to Kyle if they witness him chopping of the arms and legs of innocent civilians. Still, you do not have to fear those actions will bring you to the Dark side of the Force (like in the previous games, in which this choice was an integral part of gameplay). However, killing civilians might lead to several other things, like characters running away from you before you've managed to squeeze any important information out of them (without some of this information you might not be able to continue the game).

Back to lightsabers again... when flailed around it can cause visible damage to the environment and, simultaneously, sparks will appear as the saber hits any solid surface (walls and floors will show scorching marks once the lightsaber hits them).

Now, let's turn to the graphics, or more specifically the game's 3D engine. Interestingly enough, the designers have decided to use the Quake III engine, rather than use some proprietary code. After the E3 and several demonstrations afterwards, we realized that the Quake III Arena engine works brilliantly and really becomes the Star Wars scenery. Snow and rain effects will appear every now and then, plus the developers are currently deciding how these weather effects would influence gameplay. The high-polygon character models are all motion captured and appear less rigid when they enter combat - this is a most noteworthy attempt on the developer's side since it was never before used in other SW titles.

While you're waiting for Star Wars Galaxies to arrive, Jedi Knights comes as the best possible time killer. Jedi Knight 2: Jedi Outcast is scheduled to be out at the beginning of 2002, and mark my words, it's sure to bring all of you Star Wars fans something special.