Star Wars: Dark Forces
Star Wars: Dark Forces is a first-person shooter computer game which takes place in the Star Wars universe. It was made by LucasArts. It came out in 1995 for MS-DOS and Apple Macintosh, and a version was later made for Sony Playstation.
| Star Wars: Dark Forces | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | LucasArts |
| Publisher(s) | LucasArts |
| Designer(s) | Daron Stinnett, Ray Gresko, Justin Chin |
| Series | Star Wars: Jedi Knight |
| Engine | Jedi (engine), iMuse |
| Platform(s) | MS-DOS, Apple Macintosh, PlayStation |
| Release | February 15, 1995 June, 1995 November 1996 |
| Genre(s) | First-person shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
The player controls Kyle Katarn, who was once a stormtrooper for the Galactic Empire but left the Empire to become a mercenary. In Dark Forces, Katarn works for the Rebellion which fights against the Empire. The game's story is about Kyle finding and stopping an Imperial weapons program called the Dark Trooper Project.
Everything in the game is set in the Star Wars universe. Many things in the game are taken from the original Star Wars trilogy movies, such as several weapons and most of the game's enemies, but some things were made just for Dark Forces.
Many of the planets that the levels take place on were created for Dark Forces, but a few of them are from Star Wars books.
Gameplay
Dark Forces is a first person shooter, so the player controls Katarn and sees from Katarn's eyes. Much of the gameplay is about fighting and shooting enemies, but there are also many puzzles to solve to move through the missions.
The player can run, strafe, jump, crouch, and move through shallow water. The player can also look up and down. The game can be controlled with keys on the keyboard, and also a mouse can be used to run, turn, and shoot.
The game is made up of separate missions. Each mission has certain goals that the player must finish. The missions are all part of the story. Katarn's pilot drops him off and picks him up, but he goes through the missions alone without any help.
There are many different weapons in the game that the player can use and that enemies also use. Most of the weapons shoot blaster bolts or other projectiles, but the player can also throw thermal detonators like grenades. Some of the weapons have a secondary fire mode which shoots in a different way.
Story
The story is told in two ways. One way is cutscenes, which are animated videos that play between some missions. Also, before each mission the player is given a briefing which talks about what is happening in the story and what the mission goals are.
In the first mission, Katarn steals the Death Star plans so the Rebels can destroy the Death Star. The rest of the game is a different story.
The Rebels find out about a secret Imperial program called the Dark Trooper Project. The Dark Trooper project is a plot to create new robotic Stormtroopers that are very powerful and dangerous.
Kyle searches for clues about the Dark Trooper Project and sets off to stop it.