Following my email last week of the Official Nintendo Magazine’s (UK) review of The
Force Unleashed, the latest issue (#38, October 2008) of XBox360: The Official XBox
Magazine (UK) also has a six-page review. I enclose their verdict, summary, score
and some choice words they have given to The Force Unleashed on the XBox 360:

Verdict : 8/10
Good points: compelling storyline; dark, edgy tone works well; really impressive
visuals; force powers awesome
Bad points: not very sophisticated
Summary: the best Star Wars game in five years

Some quotes:

The good:
In general:
“Most would agree that the recent Star Wars films have not been kind to fans [...]
so it’s with great pleasure that we report The Force Unleashed has renewed our faith
in the franchise.”

“it’s the closest that you’ll get to a sequel to the movies.”

On gameplay:
“The Force Unleashed strikes just the right balance between paying fan-service and
introducing new characters that have a chance to develop throughout the game.”

“Not only are the settings epic, there’s also a satisfying attention to detail.”

On Force Powers:
“This is a Star Wars game so tough that even a Jawa will try to kill you. They won’t
actually succeed, though, thanks to the way you can levitate them, smash them into
anything within range and then fry them with your Force Lightning.”

“It feels really good being bad.”

“Using Force Levitation is so much fun [...] that we hardly ever bothered using the
lightsaber.”

On the new technology:
“The Digital Molecular Matter (DMM) tech used behind the scenes creates real-world
properties for the objects in the game, and it takes every opportunity to show off
realistically bending metal or splintering wood.”

“Euphoria [...] it is hugely entertaining to see [stormtroopers] desperately
clinging to each other as they attempt to resist your powers of levitation.”

The bad:
On gameplay:
“The biggest problem [...] is the way the camera works. Jumping forces the viewpoint
to spasm upwards [...]”

“A lesser problem is that it’s all a bit shallow, never needing much brain power.”

On Force Powers:
“Force Push [...] it’s a shame, then, that it isn’t used more ambitiously. There are
a few basic puzzles [...] that make the most of this excellent feature; mostly it’s
just a visual effect.”

“The overblown Force Powers also serve to make much of the game very easy.”