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35 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Feels more like an expansion pack (but a very good one), 26 Sep 2003
I feel compelled to write this because this title only got 70% from PC Gamer's review, which I felt to be much too harsh. This game deserves better.In Jedi Academy you play as Jaden, apprentice to Kyle Katarn, our hero from Jedi Outcast. An enemy from the past starts accumulating force energy using an ancient artifact, and fearing for the consequences the new Jedi are sent out to investigate. The game allows you choose which missions to take, weapons to carry and force powers to develop. In time, and as the game progresses, you can learn new lightsaber combat styles and can even construct your own double-bladed saber-staff (or fight with two sabers at once). This game allows all the character options that players have been crying out for, and no player can go through the game without a feeling of smug satisfaction at the progress of his character - because it's your character, not someone else's. So why is this not a perfect game? Well, reasons given by the previously mentioned review are basically: old game engine, problems with graphics when the action takes place in large areas, superfluous weaponry and moronic AI. I would like to debunk these accusations a bit because at least three out of four are unfair. Firstly, this game uses exactly the same graphics as Jedi Outcast. This is a plus, because if you can run Jedi Outcast you can run Jedi Academy too, and I can't see any owner of Jedi Outcast not wanting this title (that's how good it was). Secondly, the game will only slow down if you shove the graphics' resolution too far, and why on earth would you want to? In the middle of hurried saber-combat there's not a lot of time for sight-seeing, and in any case who is actually going to need such a hi-res setup? Thirdly, how you choose to use weapons is entirely a matter of skill and style. It's called gameplay. There are some weapons that are still very useful even at later levels. Catch a reborn standing on a ledge, unawares, and a handy shot from a rocket launcher can knock him off the precipice (saving you the need to actually fight him). Nothing can block a shot from the sniper rifle. And the concussion rifle is almost unstoppable. If you can't see the advantages of kit like this, you must be severely lacking in imagination. But the comment about the AI is true, I'm afraid. Although you could argue that you are almost invincible once you get decent saber defence abilities, the stormtroopers really are dumb. Their accuracy is pathetic (fairly consistent with the films then) and while you get the odd Dark Trooper thrown in now and then or the occasional heavy weapon trooper, it's mostly a matter of deciding whether to smash them into the wall, push them off ledges, use a mind trick or just walk up to them and cut them into little pieces. I'd suggest that you crank up the difficulty for a real fight now and then. So, overall I reckon this is worth a good 84% as a game, and four stars on this site. It's just that it feels more like an expansion pack than a freshly developed game in itself, and the AI really needs a tune-up. A patch or update from Lucasarts with improved AI and a few more single-player skins would not go amiss.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
And to think I almost missed this game entirely..., 26 July 2006
Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars
I know it may seem a little over the top when someone gives a game five stars (it has to have SOME faults, doesn't it?), but I can't help myself. This is one of the most fun games I've played in years. Perfect? Probably not, but the good points so outweigh any bad ones I might have encountered that I don't even notice them.
Basically, this game takes the best things about Jedi Knight (which was my previous favorite game of all time), and improves upon them greatly, tossing in a whole bunch of cool new features to top things off. As with Jedi Knight, you play as a Jedi, this time, a padawan (in the beginning, anyway) named Jaden. My favorite part about playing as a character other than Kyle is that you get to customize your characters species, costume, and lightsaber from a fairly generous pool of options, giving you more of a feel of "ownership" of the character as you play, despite the pre-assigned name. Later in the game, you get the option of choosing between dual sabers or a saber staff if you so choose, and both are a lot of fun to master. There is an overall story to the game, but mainly, you get to play through a series of "tiers" of missions, with a much larger mission that ties the story together after every four or five missions you complete. As usual, you get to choose the force powers you improve as the game goes on, and you are rewarded with extra force points if you choose to complete the optional fifth mission in each tier (only four are requried). There are some nice cutscenes to tie the game together as well, and the acting is done quite well for a bunch of computer generated actors.
I could go into a boatload more detail about the minute aspects of the game, but there are plenty of places to read the technical details. The point I want to get across is that this game is FUN...a lot of fun. I have literally played it through back to back four times since I bought it (it takes me a couple days to play through a few hours at a time, of course). Even without the level of customization the game offers, I'd still play through it over and over. The biggest issues I experienced was some slowdown on a couple of the levels, but my machine basically falls somewhere just past the minimum system requirements, so I can't complain. Jedi Knight fans or Star Wars fans in general will appreciate what this game has to offer - it's the next best thing to actually being a Jedi, and you won't have to "force" yourself to have a good time playing it! :-)
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32 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best ever Star Wars game..., 1 Sep 2003
I was lucky enough to play a Beta copy of this game, and thoroughly enjoyed it (however I quit after the first ten levels so as not to spoil the final version).Saber-combat is the focus of this game and the bewildering array of moves is both broad enough for the L33T Jedis out there, but easy enough to pick up for the newbies. Most of them only appear after a little more play, giving you time to expand your repertoire and skills as the levels get harder. The locations are stunning and the plot of the story allows for a huge range of areas. The thing I liked most was the variety of levels, and the tasks involved. I played one level where there are no other characters, no need for weapons - just a lot of speed. You DON'T wanna be caught standing around here! Another challenge is mastery of the vehicles... I've played Taun-tauns and Speeder Bikes, and I think the final version will have many more! This is a game for any Star Wars fan, trust me. It is both appealing to get into at a very user-friendly newbie level, but for the die-hards out there, the experience is just as rewarding... theres nothing quite like the thrill of taking on a cluster of enemies armed with a saber, some dark-side powers and a bad attitude! I cannot recommend this game enough...
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