Lightsaber Duels Links, Previews & Reviews Posted By Mike on November 29, 2008
It's time to start the Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Lightsaber Duels(Wii) link post as we draw closer to the release on November 11th. I can only assume we'll start one for Jedi Alliance soon as well.
"In some ways, Lightsaber Duels feels polished. Some of the cut-scenes are well done and the in-game fights come to life with advanced lighting and particle effects which light up and surround the battlefields. The game also features a fluid framerate. In other ways, it lacks polish. Lip-synching is off, animation is a little stiff and the control mechanics lack genuine depth. As we said, there are only five basic slashes with modifiers. Bearing the latter in mind, there's little doubt that the title is aimed singularly at kids, an audience that we think will probably like the fast-paced duels that lay in wait. But if you're hoping for an experience to match the recently released The Force Unleashed, keep on looking."
"Beyond solid combat mechanics, Lightsaber Duels is chock-full of Star Wars charm that should appeal to both fans of the new Clone Wars television series and movie (which are aimed at 8-12 year olds) as well as long time fans of the franchise. While the visual style may not be to everyone's tastes, it is undoubtedly a unique style that happens to look rather great in motion. With only two characters on screen at one time, developer Krome Studios has been able to ensure that everything looks highly polished and fluid. Environments ? of which there are a great many, including those that will be familiar to Star Wars fans and those of that have been built exclusively for the game ? look great and all include unique features, be it destructive scenery or dangerous set pieces such as fire from Stormtroopers or falling meteors that can inflict damage on the unwary player. As with most Star Wars games, Lightsaber Duels doesn't disappoint in the audio department either. From classic sound effects and music to brand new dialogue recorded by the actors who work on the TV show, your ears are in for a treat."
"PROS: A solid roster of fighters to choose from. Good, albeit shallow, fun. CONS:: Won't appeal to older Star Wars fans. Battles between experienced Jedi Masters amount to a lot of waving the Wii remote to and fro."
"Lightsaber Duels offers many of the same gameplay features found in traditional fighting games, but with obvious Star Wars twists. Padawans can fight alone against a computer-controlled opponent, or they can follow along with the story, based on the Clone Wars movie and animated series, which stops at all the proper junctions for fights. Players can also choose to complete challenges, such as having to meet a certain objective in a set amount of time. Of course, they can battle each other as well. Each player requires his or her own Wii Remote and Nunchuk attachment."
"Star Wars The Clone Wars: Lightsaber Duels is a missed opportunity to do much more on Wii -- and strangely, it feels in many ways like a dumbed-down version of Force Unleashed, which came out first. Krome Studios has recreated the less compelling Clone Wars universe complete with high production values, from clean graphics to lots of audio work, but the gameplay experience is lackluster. This is mostly true because of a forced gesture system that is clearly doing nothing more than replacing buttons and not really using the Wii remote in any beneficial way. Kids might enjoy all the shaking, but nobody else will, especially when the prospect of really, truly wielding the Wii remote like a lightsaber lays just over the horizon."
"Although the game is technically proficient and accurate, it all comes down to how you view the animated features, which are clearly geared toward a younger set. With that in mind, Lightsaber Duels has superior production values that younger fans of the animated series will truly appreciate. Of course, there is also a set of disenfranchised older fans that have tried to erase The Phantom Menace from their memories and shudder at the thought of a Star Wars cartoon, but at this point, there may be no pleasing them.
"As I mentioned previously the Star Wars The Clone Wars: Lightsaber Duals is pretty stunning to look at and LucasArts and Krome Studios have done a superb job graphically, but the control system lets the game down, it’s good fun to start of with but becomes old pretty quick. The campaign mode will only let you play with Anakin, Obi-Wan and Ahsoka, which is a little devastating for wannabe Sith Lords."
For fans eager to finally wield a lightsaber, there will be no pleasing them, either. There is no suspension of disbelief due to the simplistic fighting mechanics and imprecise controls, and your dreams of feeling like an all-powerful Jedi remain unrealized. LucasArts gave it a great try, with faithful graphics, sound, and cinematic flair, but for legions of rabid Star Wars fans, it's do or do not. There is no try."
"In the end it’s just not the experience you’d come to expect from a Star Wars game that is all based on lightsaber duels on the Wii. You want to experience the power and grace of wielding a lightsaber, but you’re left with waving plastic in thin air."
"So, what’s good? Well, everything moves swiftly, and the arenas are pretty big and intricate. Plus, there’s a fascinating new character: the EG-5 Jedi Hunter Droid. It’s scarlet red, looks similar to Grievous but with glowing red eyes and only two arms, and wields two sabers. It’s badass. And we can only pray that we see more of it in a very different game than this one."
UPDATE #7: Starwars.com highlights the "Wii For The Holidays", which of course centers around Lightsaber Duels.
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