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Better Than the Prequels - Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

There are few hard rules when it comes to Star Wars continuity. Fans are hotly divided on key issues like the size of Imperial Star Destroyers, the fate of the Ewoks after the second Death Star's destruction, and whether or not Emperor Palpatine's trademark Force lightning attack is inherently evil. However, one rule remains inviolate – regardless of the number of heroic Jedi, there are only two of the sinister Sith. Except in cases like Star Wars: The Force Unleashed when there are more than two.

In Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, players take on the role of Darth Vader's secret Sith apprentice, who he's training behind the back of his master, the Emperor. While most Star Wars games cast players as Jedi or non-Force sensitive heroes, The Force Unleashed is the first one to place players in the role of a Dark Side Adept from the beginning. According to lead developer Haden Blackman, "This game is about kicking ass with the Force."

The game doesn't force players to be evil, though. The secret apprentice – or “Starkiller” as Vader calls him (a winking reference to Luke Skywalker's original surname in early drafts of the first movie) – will have choices to make as his journey progresses, leading to damnation, redemption and multiple endings. As is typical with Lucasarts games, only one ending is the 'canonical' one, and Blackman has confirmed that the characters from the game will be further integrated into the Star Wars universe with a sequel and other appearances in the works right now.

The real star in Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, however, is the gameplay. Starkiller has the standard array of Force abilities at his disposal – at least, all the fun ones like Force Push, Force Lightning, Telekinesis and Force Dash – and the ways those powers are used manage to seem limitless, no mean feat in a linear action game. In fact, The Force Unleashed plays less like the old staple Jedi Knight games and more like Star Wars meets Psi-Ops, and trust us, that's a good thing.

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed is coming to every major console, including a Wii version that lets players control Starkiller's lightsaber with the Wii remote. While it's not exactly the Clone Wars lightsaber-dueling game that's still on the horizon, it promises to be lots of fun. No matter which version you take home, you can count on GameQuestDirect.com to give you a new, factory-sealed copy.