Jedi Knight: Jedi Outcast - Kyle Katarn Is Back In Action
The Story (4 out of 5)
This game takes you back into the drivers seat as Kyle Katarn. The former smuggler, who turned into a Jedi Knight, turned back to a smuggler for fear of the dark side. During a mission, you discover the remnants of the Imperial army. This time they are trying to make a half human/half machine army of super soldiers who are also enhanced with the force. Your job is to stop this army and once again save the burgeoning republic. To do that, you will regain your force powers of course.
Single Player Mode (5 out of 5)
The single player mode has eight different worlds that are broken up into 24 levels. The game starts out as what seems like a shooter but by the end turns into more of a strategic style RPG. The game features a wide variety of puzzles. Mostly these involve jumping from one platform to another but others are about finding the key that you need to move onto the next level.
MultiPlayer Mode (5 out of 5)
This mode has some fun multiplayer games available for PC players. There are several options for playing with your friends. Most of the modes are your standard death matches where you (or your team) have the sole goal of killing all of your opponents. There is a capture the flag mode as well. Along that same reign is a capture the ysalamiri mode which is funny. If your friends are not online, you can play with the bots. There are actually 28 different bots, so if you don’t have friends with the game you can still play multiplayer games.
Leveling Up (3 out of 5)
Unlike previous games you are not given generic points to choose or enhance your powers. At the end of each level you will get specific powers. For the most part this is a good system. In some cases you will be annoyed to find that you have to wait for a power that you really want.
Controls (3 out of 5)
The controls are relatively simple and for the most part well designed. The only complaint is how you access the force powers. This can be fixed easily however if you manually assign the keys.
Graphics (3 out of 5)
This game looks good, but it is not stunning. The visuals are decent, the characters are well done, and face renderings are realistic enough.
System requirements
Windows: 350 MHz Pentium II, 64 MB RAM, 620 MB hard drive space, 16 MB graphics card, DirectX 8.0
Mac: 400 MHz G3/G4, Mac OS 9.1 or later, 128 MB RAM, 665 MB hard drive space, ATi/nVidia video card
Conclusion
This game is a must for any Star Wars fan. If you enjoy swinging a light saber, you will love this title. While one may miss the ability to level up as they please, this is a minor issue. At the very least it assures that you will always have the powers you need at the right time. The puzzles keep the title from being more than another hack and slash title. Customizing the controls makes what could have been an annoying flaw into a strength. The multiplayer modes will make you want to hook up with your friends online more often. All in all, this title is worth the cash.
What the heck is a ysalamiri ?
For those of you not so deeply into the Star Wars canon, here is a brief description. A ysalamiri is a large lizard that has the unique ability of negating force powers. This means while you are carrying this lizard you cannot use your powers. Since this is a localized effect however, it means that others cannot use force powers against you. This makes for a fun game of capture the lizard.
This post is part of the series: Star Wars Jedi Knight
A collection of articles about Star Wars Jedi Knight.
