Oh how the tides have changed
Force unleashed 2 has always remained in my memories due to how much people were hating it when it was released. A lot of “the first game is so much better” and the more valid “this is too short” was most of what I was seeing around this title and at the time I was young so I thought the same as well. However, isn't it interesting how perception of things changes as time moves on? Because I genuinely think the sequel is leagues ahead of the first title.
Why do I like it more?
To start, the combat is actually good in this game. It feels more fluid , more skills to use and the lock on works better making for a solid gameplay loop. For a game that was released so shortly after the first title this game looks way better in both graphics/ stage design. As force unleashed 1 was aggravating to play, this game was so much fun and I never once felt dread past a few glitches that occurred during my playthrough. Bosses for the most part are unique and fun but on one hand there are so few of them. Skills progressing is streamlined with you earning money to power up your skills and finding cubes in each level to level up your HP , energy. I prefer this honestly because the level up system made zero sense in a linear story mode game of this calibur imo. Speaking of skills once more they feel great and very fun to use in the sequel. To explain, in the first game comboing was terrible due to delay in moves , clunky lock on and things just not connecting. However in the sequel it simply just works as combos come out way quicker and there isn’t any annoyance of delay / animations to ruin combat for you. It is a damn shame this game is as short as it is because if they just let this bake more in the oven and added more and more levels to flush out the world even further this really could have been a classic.
What didn’t I like?
Well the story in the sequel really didn’t do it for me. I do think it's better in the first title overall but even that isn’t saying much as the story in the first title is not that great. Furthermore, Starkiller is honestly more annoying in this game??? There are a good amount of scenes where he just screams and I wish I could jump in the game and tell him to stfu LOL. As stated before the game is just way too short you can literally beat it in one sitting in under 4 hours which is insane. It makes sense due to how quickly this game was pushed out hence why I believe they should have just released it later and added more content to it. As well I did run into a few bugs and glitches but nothing as severe as the first title. One last point on an issue I as well had with the first title that reappears in this tone is lacking enemy variety. There are a few new enemy types but they do not stand out enough for me to really consider them new or game changing.
in the end
I am surprised by the divided feeling for this game because past its short runtime I think force unleashed 2 is a genuinely fun title and better then the first game.
Force unleashed 2 has always remained in my memories due to how much people were hating it when it was released. A lot of “the first game is so much better” and the more valid “this is too short” was most of what I was seeing around this title and at the time I was young so I thought the same as well. However, isn't it interesting how perception of things changes as time moves on? Because I genuinely think the sequel is leagues ahead of the first title.
Why do I like it more?
To start, the combat is actually good in this game. It feels more fluid , more skills to use and the lock on works better making for a solid gameplay loop. For a game that was released so shortly after the first title this game looks way better in both graphics/ stage design. As force unleashed 1 was aggravating to play, this game was so much fun and I never once felt dread past a few glitches that occurred during my playthrough. Bosses for the most part are unique and fun but on one hand there are so few of them. Skills progressing is streamlined with you earning money to power up your skills and finding cubes in each level to level up your HP , energy. I prefer this honestly because the level up system made zero sense in a linear story mode game of this calibur imo. Speaking of skills once more they feel great and very fun to use in the sequel. To explain, in the first game comboing was terrible due to delay in moves , clunky lock on and things just not connecting. However in the sequel it simply just works as combos come out way quicker and there isn’t any annoyance of delay / animations to ruin combat for you. It is a damn shame this game is as short as it is because if they just let this bake more in the oven and added more and more levels to flush out the world even further this really could have been a classic.
What didn’t I like?
Well the story in the sequel really didn’t do it for me. I do think it's better in the first title overall but even that isn’t saying much as the story in the first title is not that great. Furthermore, Starkiller is honestly more annoying in this game??? There are a good amount of scenes where he just screams and I wish I could jump in the game and tell him to stfu LOL. As stated before the game is just way too short you can literally beat it in one sitting in under 4 hours which is insane. It makes sense due to how quickly this game was pushed out hence why I believe they should have just released it later and added more content to it. As well I did run into a few bugs and glitches but nothing as severe as the first title. One last point on an issue I as well had with the first title that reappears in this tone is lacking enemy variety. There are a few new enemy types but they do not stand out enough for me to really consider them new or game changing.
in the end
I am surprised by the divided feeling for this game because past its short runtime I think force unleashed 2 is a genuinely fun title and better then the first game.