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Star Wars: Jedi Starfighter Review
Chris Leyton
00/12/0000
Star Wars Jedi Starfighter heads to the Xbox after debuting on the Playstation2, which version should you get read on to find out.
Star Wars Jedi StarFighter for the Xbox is the follow up to LucasArts PS2 launch title Star Wars StarFighter, however does adding Jedi to the title do more then just sound cool, keep reading to find out.
The game opens with the usual Star Wars crawl, and a well rendered cut scene setting up the story. The game takes place after Episode I but before Episode II. Control is the same as the last Starfighter, very intuitive and responsive. But for those that havenāt played the first game there is a set of training missions that will get them started.
Actually it might be wise for everyone to go through the training missions because the new force powers may need a little explaining. Thatās right I said force powers, this isnāt your daddyās space shooter, after all this is a Jedi game. When playing a mission as Jedi Adi Gallia players can use force powers during flight. Force Shield and Force Lighting are available from the start but new powers can be gained. Using the force is as easy as firing a missile, but there is a little skill required. Once the force meter is full pressing the circle button will unleash the power, but only at its normal strength. To increase the force powerās strength you must press and hold the cycle button and tap it again when the particles of light outside the ship are at their prime. Timing is everything when using the force, and when used correctly can give a significant advantage. The new force abilities make the game feel different right away from the last game. But that isnāt where Lucas Arts stopped when adding new features.
Now players can play through all the story missions in two-player cooperative mode. The Ability to play with a friend as your wingmen makes for some exciting team play, and lengthens the longevity too. But the length and depth is where the game comes up lacking, sure there are plenty of bonuses to unlock but there are only 15 story missions to play through. Some of the missions donāt last very long, and the ones that do seem to just though waves of fighters at you instead of challenging you with a real threat. But the game is longer then the original and is packed full of so many secrets to unlock it will last long enough to satisfy most gamers.
The graphics in Jedi StarFighter are adequate and improved over the last game but there is room for improvement. The biggest problem is that there are no real improvements upon the PS2 version, no Xbox special trickery such as bump mapping or use of dynamic lighting; even the textures suffer from poor clarity and definition. Planet missions show this the most with the hills, mountains, and craters covering the landscape but painted with low colour textures. One other graphical complaint is that in the distance, you can see the complex ground end and flat non-textured ground take over. Itās far enough in the distance that when in the middle of it and during intense dogfights most people wonāt see it, but since the draw in is so far away it could have been easily covered with just a little bit of fog without looking like a N64 game. The ships for the most part are made of relatively high polygonal models so even up close the ships donāt look any blockier then they were designed to. The gameās most impressive graphical feature is itās amazing sense of scale. In space planets, capital ships, and space stations are gigantic and dwarf the tiny fighter the player is piloting. On the whole Jedi Starfighter isnāt the worst looking Xbox title youāll see (that accolade belongs to another LucasArts title Obi Wan), however itās disappointing to see very little improvements upon the PS2 version, itās not what you brought an Xbox for.
From the very start with the opening crawl players will notice that they are in for a treat when it comes to sound. As with all Star Wars titles the music is of an exceptional quality and fast paced during dogfights and bombing runs, when the game play is intense so is the music. Sound effects are also well recorded, many of the ships, especially enemy ships, sound much like they did in the last game. Which brings me to my only complaint in the sound department, repetition. The music sounds great but most of it is taken directly from the first game. The voice actors did a good job with each character but in combat they donāt have much to say outside of a couple of lines and they use them over and over. It can get a little annoying, hearing āAttack my Targetā again and again. On the other hand the new ships, weapons, and force powers, have their own sound effects to differentiate them for the rest of the onscreen havoc. The entire game is recorded in Dolby Surround Sound so those with a home theatre system are in for a real treat. Lucas Arts games have always been known for their high quality sound, and Jedi StarFighter is no different. Everything sounds great even if youāve heard it before.
