Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II
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| Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II {{#if:{{{image|}}}|<tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align: center;">{{{image|}}} | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | LucasArts {{#if:{{{publisher|}}}|<tr><th style="background-color: #ccccff;">Publisher(s)<td>{{{publisher|}}} |
| Release date(s) | October 9, 1997 |
| Genre(s) | First-person shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single player, Multiplayer {{#if:{{{ratings|}}}|<tr><th style="background-color: #ccccff;">Rating(s)<td>{{{ratings|}}} |
| Platform(s) | Windows {{#if:{{{media|}}}|<tr><th style="background-color: #ccccff;">Media<td>{{{media|}}} |
Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II (often abbreviated JK by fans) is a first person shooter computer game released on October 9, 1997, by LucasArts based on the Star Wars franchise. In addition to being the first game in the Dark Forces series to include multiplayer capabilities over the Internet or a Local Area Network. It was the first computer game to allow players to take control of a Jedi character using both the Force and Lightsabers in a multiplayer setting. It is also known for its use of live-action cutscenes.
Contents |
Storyline
The plot of this game places the player in the role of Kyle Katarn, who made his first appearance in Star Wars: Dark Forces (1995). Jedi Knight begins several years after the events in Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. It begins as Kyle is being interrogated by a droid named 8t88 ('88' for short). Kyle is informed by 88 that his father was killed by a Dark Jedi named Jerec. He escapes a gun to the head (from a Gran) and chases 88 for a stolen data disk meant only for Kyle from his father. Afterwards, he recovers a lightsaber from his father's workshop, compelling him on a journey to confront his father's murderers and to discover his own latent Force abilities. While on this journey, Kyle learns that seven Dark Jedi (Yun, Pic, Gorc, Boc, Maw, Sariss, and Jerec, the leader), his father's killers, are intent on finding the Valley of the Jedi, a focal point for Jedi power in the universe.
Kyle starts the game with no knowledge of The Force. As the player progresses through the game, Kyle gains Jedi abilities, known as "Force Powers". These powers fall in three general categories: Neutral, Light, and Dark. The game awards one "Force point" upon the completion of each level, and an additional point if the player finds all of the secret areas. These skill points can be allocated towards any Force power, boosting that power's effects.
Jedi Knight is noted for the ethical decisions integrated into the gameplay. Kyle is a neutral character for most of the game, neither fully Light nor Dark. Actions against unarmed civilians throughtout the game, as well as what Force powers a player chooses throughout the game, will sway Kyle towards the Light or the Dark sides. Eventually, the character Kyle must choose between Light and Dark; how he chooses depends on the player's actions throughout the game. A "Force meter" displays Kyle's progress towards either side during breaks in the action.
In case the player chooses the dark side, the alternate ending is triggered: Kyle kills Jan Ors and then becomes the rival of Jerec, this time for dominion over the Valley. This scenario however is alternate and not canonical.
Expansions and "mods"
Image:Darkforcings.jpgJust four months after Jedi Knight's initial release, LucasArts released Star Wars Jedi Knight: Mysteries of the Sith, an official expansion pack, created by the LucasArts team that worked on "Outlaws" (a spaghetti western themed first person shooter) which features the opportunity to play as Mara Jade for a significant portion of the game. This expansion significantly improved the original Jedi Knight engine (known as Sith) by adding aesthetic features such as coloured lighting, new enemies and force powers (and more controversially, doing away with the Dark/Light side duality). There were several under-the-hood changes as well, the most significant involving COG, the programming language that Jedi Knight uses to create scripted in-game events and interactivity (doors, elevators, weapons, in-game cutscenes, etc.). The MotS expansion was typically sold separately from Jedi Knight (but required the original game to install) and was often difficult to come by unless it specifically came bundled with Jedi Knight.
Over time, unofficial editing tools were developed for this game, thus attracting a wide audience of level editors that still make levels for this game today. Countless modifications have been made to Jedi Knight by way of software products such as Jed, the map editor created by Alexi Novikov (with help rumored to have been provided by at least one JK team member). Less popular but somewhat more user friendly was JKEdit, which was recently released free to the public. Avid JK modders and fans have released new multiplayer levels, single-player levels, character models, and even weapons. Sites like the Code-Alliance (formerly DarkJedi.com) were host to lots of activity with regard to modding tools and enthusiasm. The most reliable source of these mods today is popularly thought to be The Massassi Temple. Unlike many other fps games, Jedi Knight still enjoys a wide fanbase even after nearly nine years, primarily due to the fact that Jedi Knight and its Mysteries of the Sith companion game are extremely editor-friendly (in how nearly anything about the JK engine can be changed or modified, with only a few exceptions, plus the wide enthusiasm of level designers at Massassi and at other groups. The other strengths and contributors to the games longevity with fans could be attributed to the large and expansive often "vertigo inducing" levels, the excellent third person option (within the context of a traditional first person shooter, a real novelty at the time of its release), the incredible fast pace of online play, and the complexity of the use of Force Powers and Melee combat (lightsabers) in the mix of more traditional First Person Shooter combat. Finally, the inclusion of the Dark/Light duality, morality scale and alternate endings made Dark Forces II: Jedi Knight stand out from the FPS crowd and made a lasting impression on many fans.
Online play
An often looked over, but extremely important part of Jedi Knight's longevity was the addictive online mode. The game lacked a dedicated server and was hosted by the MSN Gaming Zone, although several "IP boards" were hosted on fan sites such as JediKnight.net and Qtracker. Most games were confined to the Nar Shaddaa (Nar) game room which became a refuge for clan wars, recruitment, and challenge. There were five game types. The choice of the 'elite' or those aspiring to be were, Full Force (FF) Battle Ground Jedi (BGJ) and Canyon Oasis (CO) and No Force (NF) Battle Ground Jedi and JI Oasis (an add on level created by the Jedi Infantry clan). A few clans also specialised in the Capture the Flag (CTF) feature but it much less popular than the four key settings. The greater learning curve of the game over most other FPS games of the time, due to the inclusion of extended melee combat (far advanced for the time) and the Force Powers created something of a gap between skilled veterans and newer players. The "NF" servers tended to attract beginners who were more easily discouraged by the fast pace of "FF" play, and was a training area for those who wished to play "Sabers Only" (there was actually no lightsaber only gametype in JK, this was something added in the sequels) and many simple agreed upon their own made up rules in order to facilitate "saber parties," though these were generally loosely enforced. While Canyon Oasis was undoubtably the most played multiplayer map and generally well liked due to its variety of weapons/pickups and varied terrain (including water tunnels and ramps). It was also brightly lit, meaning stealth was a less viable tactic as it was in many of the darker maps favored by the development team and mod makers. Despite its huge popularity, there was a movement against its overuse as well (and the proliferation of poor quality remakes of the Canyon Oasis map often merely with some textures changed, extra sniper nests added or extra ammo strewn about), to the point where a prominent addon using player group was formed with the slogan "Because we're sick of Canyon Oasis." [1]
Unfortunately at times the game suffered from extensive cheating, until the third party program known as "Kicker Helper" was released to combat the cheating, by allowing the host to rename players and remove certain hacks, restore levels and kick them. JK's permissive checksum system was what allowed most of the "hacks" or "cogs" (as the cheats were commonly called) to work, an unfortunate side effect of the ease of editing. Another problem was the font display made it extremely easy for cheaters to use long ascii-laden names in order to avoid being kicked (the primary problem which Kicker Helper addressed). In all, the cheating created an atmosphere of paranoia, in which accusations were much more common than the cheating itself.
To this day, GameSpy Arcade and Qtracker support JK and MotS online play, to its remaining devoted fans, and many mod projects keep interest alive.
Places visited
Cast/crew
- Jason Court--Kyle Katarn
- Angela Harry--Jan Ors
- Christopher Neame--Jerec
- Bennet Guillory--Rahn
- Valerie Wildman--Sariss
- Time Winters--Boc
- Morgan Hunter--Maw
- Denny Delk--Pic (voice)
- Rafer Weigel--Yun
- Jacob Witkin--Morgan Katarn
- Daniel Bloom--Bounty hunter
- Dylan Haggerty--Bounty hunter
- Roger L. Jackson--Computer/Greedo (voice)
- Scott Ewers--Director
- Justin Chin--Writer
Trivia
- The game is notable for including nearly an hour of live-action (FMV combined with CG, much like Emperor: Battle for Dune would do four years later) involving characters such as Kyle Katarn for the first time.
- Perhaps the first non-RPG Star Wars game to feature a "morality scale" of Dark/Light Force alignment that changed depending upon how you played. This also changed the content of later levels and the ending of the game.
- The game establishes that lightsabers work under water, and there are more than four blade colors to choose from. This was an expansion of the extended universe canon. Strangely, however, in Jedi Knight's sequel, Jedi Outcast, the lightsaber does not work underwater; it instead automatically turns off once Kyle is submerged in water.
- The lightsaber footage used in the live-action FMV of this game were the first new lightsaber scenes filmed since Return of the Jedi.
- Continuing the tradition of Sam and Max cameos in Lucasarts games, Sam can be found on the fifth mission, which takes place in the city of Barons Hed. He is hiding inside a house with a locked door - the female occupant of the house will leave the house once in the entire span of the mission, and the player must time this correctly in order to get into the house when she leaves. Oddly enough, he carries a Bryar Pistol that shoots powerful bowcaster bolts.
External links
- Lucasarts Official Site for Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II
- The Massassi Temple
- The Jedi Knight Editing Hub
- JediKnight.Net
- Jedi Knight Multiplayer Addon Group (JKMAG) - includes link to Kicker Helper
- Qtracker online server browser/launcher (supports Jedi Knight/MotS)
- MagicForce.com home of JKEdit, a level editor (now free)
- {{{2|{{{title|Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II}}}}}} at The Internet Movie Database
- Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II at MobyGames
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