Star Wars Dark Forces 2:

Jedi Knight!

(LucasArts, 1997)

Where Quake 2 failed, Dark Forces 2 succeeded...and vice-versa, for that matter. While "deathmatch" (ie, multiplayer "shoot everything moving" tournaments) was better on Quake 2, LucasArts' latest game had far larger game maps, a far superior single-player story (complete with multiple endings), and inspired gameplay. Top all that off with the ability to use a light saber, and you can see how this game became such a hit!

The premise was that Dark Forces 1's hero, Kyle Katarn, is training to become a Jedi. Along the way he must fulfil a legacy, by preventing a group of Sith villains from finding the lost Valley of the Jedi; a source of ultimate power. The game maps rivaled the size of the ones in Tomb Raider, with numerous ingenious secret areas (including one truly inspired Hidden Max). LucasArts also offered two alternate paths of "The Force"; you could choose to be as evil as Darth Vader, or to be the next Luke Skywalker. One example: much like the following year's Unreal, the game was not a "kill everything" no-brainer, and there were civilians that a true Jedi would have to protect and unharm (if you just blindly killed them, you would soon be seduced by The Dark Side!). There were even alternate video cutscenes, depending on the path chosen. Challenging light saber duels, John Williams background music, and sound effects from the movie trilogy itself, added to the major fun. Topping it all off was a Mission Disc in the following year, Mysteries of the Sith, that was almost like getting a whole new game! This game was a flawless classic to fans of Star Wars games.

Rating : Deep Impact.

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