Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II

So after having the game in my possession for the past few days, I have at last played through (and finished) Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II.

Yes, this play through was finished in a single sitting.

Granted, this play through was done on easy...

But I at least got the gist of things and it would seem that my initial thoughts about this game were correct. The game play, despite some additions to the Force powers, doesn't really feel all that different from the original game. And truth be told, you don't seem to really even need to use much other powers outside the basics, which renders the new stuff pointless.

The actual game play itself is repetitive and there are a fair share of cut scene spots during the action where you have to bash the hell out of the buttons to get through certain action scenes. Does that make sense? These will be practiced quite well, as you will have to repeat them many, many times over during the course of the game.

The story behind the game is okay to me, though I will say that the story behind the original game was much more memorable then this second go around. However, I do like that this Starkiller seems a little more mature and not quite so whiny as before. But even that is a little difficult to surmise, as there really isn't much meat to flesh out the characters (no one new joins the gang) more then they were previously.

And this might be a slight spoiler, but all that hints of maturity goes right out the window during the finale as Starkiller is reduced to a angry, screaming clone... thing. All of this because of his kidnapped love, Juno Eclipse.

Overall, I think the only things I actually enjoyed the most out of this game was the music and the cut scenes, which were both absolutely beautiful. Here goes another spoiler.... (much more revealing then my previous "spoiler," so be warned!)

At the end I chose to stick with the Light side and with how things ended, it seems all too obvious that there will be a third (and presumably final) chapter in the Force Unleashed saga. There are still questions left unanswered (is this Starkiller the true one? Or is he, in fact, a clone?) and what of Vader, whom was captured and is being held prisoner by the Rebel Alliance? There was a certain bounty hunter tailing Starkiller and Juno (whom are transporting Vader), so the set up for the next game is definitely there.

If I had to chose whether to buy or rent this game, I am definitely sticking to my original opinion and would certainly rent this (as was the case here). Considering how short the game is, I just don't see any real value in playing the game again (unless you desire to play again, maybe on a higher difficulty?). But as I saw first hand, the repetitive nature of the game might not leave many wishing to play through a second time (count me in with this crowd). I am hoping that if there truly is a third game, that maybe there will be more to it then this game had to offer. Granted there were some good points and the game play, while repetitive, was fun while it lasted.