to be honest that seems a bit more realistic imo. Plus I feel more investment into this games plot than the bland, identity politics laden plot Rogue One had that I quickly forgot as I was watching it. if a star wars film bores me much like what happened with the Attack of the Clones and Farce Engorges they fail at being Star Wars films just my opinion that's all ^.^;;;;;
great review. respectful and considerate for the time period, while aware of how it compares to contemporary gaming. intelligent and straightforward. subscribed.
+M0rshu64 They destroyed a rebel base in minutes so basically they just blow shit up with repeater rifles, plasma cannons and rockets. In other words they don't give a fuck
Oh yeah they can! Those Dark Troopers scared me shitless back in the day -- if you happened to have the wrong gun on hand you'd be toast cause they moved pretty darn fast, had a high pain threshold and packed quite a mean punch. Only the model III was indeed a pushover but I reckon that the reason lore-wise for that, was that it simply wasn't ready yet. Basically the hail-Mary from a desperate officer whose only options were victory or death.
The troopers can hit anything they just couldn't hit the main characters in the original trilogy because plot armor that they forgot to put it back on during the sequel trilogy
I actually really liked the Soundtrack of Dark Forces, especially when you hear a remastered soundfont version like you used in the background of this video.
Same, not the first fps i played tho, but the game I made my parents buy for me with my PS1. I wanted an N64 with Goldeneye but then I saw it, an fpswith a Star Wars theme, I loved this game from then on.
Republic Commando should also be a game both Star Wars and shooter fans should play. I've only played it for a few hours, but it's really well made and keeps you playing for hours. :D
I actually like the puzzle aspect of this game. Sure, you'll get lost from time to time, but it helps give the game its own identity compared to other Wolfenstein/Doom-esque shooters at the time and also does a good job in making you remember each level once they're over and done with.
Andy How does it give the game its own identity? Dooms maps were also giant puzzles for the most part. Strafe also had EXTREMELY similar level design to Dark Forces. Most FPS games from back then were like that.
One thing that bears mention about the music which you may have missed is that it dynamically changes in time to the action on screen without ever skipping a beat. This is due to LucasArt's proprietary iMuse music system where motifs are called up in response to certain kinds of triggers, and the overall soundtrack stitched together on the fly. It's pretty ingenious, and contributes nicely to the immersive, cinematic quality of the game.
Okay I might have a bit of fog in my nostalgia goggles, but HELLO!? The music is FANTASTIC! Also like what BillXCIII said, levels are dark but that's why they gave you night vision goggles and a headlamp. The levels are incredibly creative and it really does feel like a high end game that can even live up to today's standards, if not, raise the bar. Levels can be so uncreative nowadays in order to make it easier for casual players to navigate, but in my opinion a level design that doesn't insult the player's intelligence and requires some thinking or strategy is a beautiful thing.
Fantastic review. Never played the 'Dark Forces' games before, and after watching this, I'm absolutely going to pick them up in the GOG sale on right now. Thanks!
Actually, the XLEngine, while a nice idea is still quite buggy and many things don't work as they should. For example, the little mouse droids don't move and can't be destroyed. Not that this is hugely important to gameplay (although they are a source of batteries), but it shows that the engine is far from finished. Using the XLEngine might make the game look a little nicer and make it easier to get running for most people, but when something doesn't work, you'll never be sure if you're missing something or if the engine just isn't working properly. I recently played through Dark Forces again using a trio of programs to give it a more modern feel. First, I played it using the Daum SVN version of DOSBox, which has save states. These worked perfectly in DF and basically give you the ability to quicksave/quickload. Next, I used a program called GlovePIE, running in the background, to map the Look Up/Down keys to the forward/back mouse movements, which gives a simulated mouselook. It's not as good as true mouselook, but it's miles ahead of having to use the keyboard to look up and down. True, DF doesn't really require you to aim up or down, but it certainly helps to be able to look up and see where the enemies are. Lastly, I used a small program called OverlayXHair to put a crosshair in the middle of the screen as an aid to aiming. As long as DOSBox's fullscreen option is set to desktop, the crosshair will stay visible in fullscreen mode. While DF has auto-aim, it still helps to have some reference for where you're aiming. Actually, the auto-aim is my biggest complaint about Dark Forces. There can be a squad of stormtroopers standing next to a bunch of exploding canisters, but you're not allowed to shoot the canisters until all the stormtroopers are dead. The concussion rifle, which should be a great weapon, is completely useless for any enemies located above you as the shot will just hit the base of the wall. If there is a powerful enemy and a bunch of weak ones, you can be sure it will target the weak ones first.
+lurkerrekrul not having beaten the game yet i dare say having free savestates would probably render the whole game a breeze to get through with little to no satisfaction at the end
+yarpen26 The problem with the lives system is that it's very easy to screw up and get killed. On some of the levels you can easily fall off a ledge and die. In the later levels, the dark troopers can easily kill you in a matter of seconds. Even on the earlier levels, you might open a door, look all around, walk into the room and BOOM! You start getting hit with thermal detonators thrown by the enemy up on the ledge over the door that you can't see until you're in the middle of the room because the game only lets you look up at about a 45 degree angle. Or you come around a corner and get blasted by a guy with a concussion rifle that takes off half your health. Even if you finish the level after losing 2 of your three lives, it means you have no spares for the next level and will have to start it from scratch if you die. Conversely, being able to quicksave also means that you can easily replay the parts that you like without having to replay the whole level to get to them.
lurkerrekrul i understand every single problem with limited lives and i did wish for quicksaves more times than i could actually count (i'm on the 9th level by the way). but still, i really don't think they would be able to just insert quicksaves without cranking up the difficulty significantly at some points. i don't necessarily enjoy it but i can live with that as far as Dark Forces goes. at least the levels aren't terribly long or something (when compared to, say, Shadows of the Empire). i'm pretty sure that before i got to level 9 in Jedi Knight i had died at least fifteen times more than i have so far in Dark Forces (by dying i mean just losing one of your lives, not having a game over). by the way, do you happen to know how things looked when it comes to saving in Doom, Duke Nukem, Wolfenstein 3D or other classics of the FPS genre that i didn't have the honor of playing?
+yarpen26 Are you playing the game using DOSBox? If you have the Steam or GOG versions, chances are that you are. If so, check out this page; steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=286364447 It details how to use a program called GlovePIE to read the mouse and have it send the page up/down keys to the system. This will fool the game so that you can look up and down with the mouse. The game has auto-aim (I wish it didn't!) so it's not hugely important to be able to aim up/down, but it does help to be able to easily look up and see what's shooting at you. You just run GlovePIE with the script provided and then run DOSBox/Dark Forces. It's still limited by the game, so it's not true mouselook, but after a few minutes you kind of forget that and it mostly feels like normal mouselook. As for the other games, I've only ever played the Doom games (1, 2, Heretic, Hexen), Duke Nukem 3D and Wolfenstein 3D with Windows source ports. However I just looked up the manuals for them (www.ReplacementDocs.com) and all three say that you can save your game at any time. I have played Blood, Redneck Rampage and Shadow Warrior (which use the same engine as Duke Nukem 3D), using the original programs in DOSBox and all of those let you save at any point. I've also played Alien Trilogy a little and that only lets you save at the end of a level. I haven't really played any other DOS FPS games other than those.
lurkerrekrul oh thanks for the info. yeah, i got the Steam version and i did hear about that mod which i might actually check out some time but not until i've beaten the game. i've just gotten used to the Y axis look by now, i wouldn't try to change it again for the last couple levels i got ahead of me. besides, i got the quirk of playing old games exactly the way they were released with no modifications whatsoever. anyway thanks for that link to the website with manuals, might come in handy some time!
The level where Boba Fett appears is one of the best. There's a bit of suspense when you know he's about and about to attack but you can't see him because he's flying around.
Ugh, that sewer level, tell me about it! I must have been between 8 and 9 when I got the game and I never was able to get through it....the freaking third level! As such, I never finished the game. I'll have to try that DarkXL thing since last time I tried to install my copy it didn't quite work out.
The Movie Planet I always stopped at the sewer level because I always got scared of the sewer monsters in water when I was young. I still do not like that level to this day, freaks me out.
@Chong Li Oh man…Boba Fett! That was so damn stressful. After getting through that whole long, complicated level that flying a-hole is just there waiting for you. I ran off into the little secret area with the window and kept crouching only getting up to launch a few rockets in his general direction. I finally managed to down him with 0 armor and 1 life point left!!! Can't tell you how relieved and thankful I was, I did NOT want to do that level again lol. (PS: You break my record. Now I break you. Like I break your friend!)
This, Dark Forces 2 (Favorite Star Wars game), and Duke3D are my favorite DOS shooters. Dark Forces 2 and Turok Dinosaur Hunter are my favorites of all time.
DAMN YOU DEMON!!! I buy the sequel an hour ago and here you are following my very steps!! I shall make my sacrifices if it pleases you but leave me alone!!!
I 100% agree with the review and nice work by the way! As a 10-year-old kid, some of the levels were impossible to finish due to the complexity of the map design. The game on PSX was a bit scary in some places because of the dark sky backgrounds, menacing atmosphere and the dramatic soundtrack. Oh, those were the days :)
According to an issue of PC Gamer magazine, the game was originally intended to feature krayt dragons. Since official sources identified the krayt dragons as far larger than the creatures designed for the game though, the game renamed its design as kell dragons and identified them as relatives of the former species.
You said the environments are 3d, where the characters are 2d sprites. In fact, this engine is a portal engine very similar to BUILD. There's a scattered handful of polyobjects as set pieces/decoration in some levels, and for 3d bridges, but the environments themselves are not polygonal.
There's a group of people working on a re-imagined version, which in concept is cool but when you see it it doesn't look at all familiar to the environments that you remember so the whole Nostalgia factor is kind of out the window, meanwhile they just remade Full Throttle, which was a LucasArts game, and it's amazing, it's actually a good way to do a remake because you could send it back to the classic Mode
One interesting bit of trivia about the game is that the disc came with a demo of the game Full Throttle. The demo took up more space than the entire game of Dark Forces.
AGH! I love this game! It was one of the first games I ever played back on the family IBM MS-DOS computer. I still have it and play it to this day. My go-to gun is usually the concussion rifle when I have it. Takes care of enemies in one hit. It really got me into game design as well, mainly level design. I feel like all of the levels are so well laid out. Your comments on the simplistic midi soundtrack made me laugh because although it's true, I remember the soundtracks sounding more orchestral, haha.
I ususally finish the games i have before buying new ones, as of right now i haven't finished 2016 Doom, but this one is next on the list. They had it for $0.80 on GOG some time ago, so i shouldn't have much trouble getting it.
You can fiddle with the controls from the DOSBox settings menu from the game folder, i think that's easier than having to get a separate program for it. Gotta love the game's soundtrack. Star Wars music never gets old.
If I could figure out the levels at 11years old without RUclips, I don't think they were that puzzle'y. I do remember literally one or two being tricky but achievable. I loved the atmosphere this game generated at the time. It was awesome!
I've had Dark Forces on PS1 since 1997, first game I ever got and I've recently replayed it. I can't get over how good the PC version looks in comparison. Absolutely deadly game to this day
parallel to that in 93/94 I always played X-Wing, Rebel Assault and Tie Fighter .... Lucasarts was mega at that time, if only because of Monkey Island, Day of Tentacle, SamnMax, Indian Jones. That was a good time for me back then
I remember buying Dark Forces off the shelf at Best Buy back in the day, the game was so much fun, but I remember it being really difficult as a 12yo gamer at the time!
Still got that 3 1/4 inch floppy (!) in my desk. I would just love to play that again... after 20 years I still remember that sewer puzzle with the switches. Wheeee...
Damn this game was and is still so awesome ...remember one of the T.A.'s sneaked it in and installed it on one of my high school class mac's and I would play it during lunch, and stay after school to play the hell out of it, I didn't have a PC at home so the only time I played it was at school...all I had at home was my SNES....it wasn't until years later after I graduated that I was able to get this at home on my PlayStation and still have it😊...excellent review, awesome you point out that this is NOT a Doom clone because it certainly isn't, thank you.
actually in the game you have both a flashlight and night vision goggles so dark areas are not really a problem. the main problem that the original version had was the controls, with key bindings scattered all over the keyboard and no vertical targeting with the mouse
Great review! I'm a new subscriber and love your review style and taste in games. Would love to see a Dark Forces 2: Jedi Knight review one day. Keep up the good work!
Check out the Newly Released Force Engine, these are the same guys from the Dark Forces Xl port. It is much better looking and includes all the bells and whistles that you'd expect to see from something like a GZDoom port...
I remember as kid how the demo was so amazing. Floors above floors! hoovering death star projection! Actual animated flying shuttle coming to take me away. And the game even ran better than doom on our 486
4:21 There is a way to make the MIDIs sound better. Run setup.exe in DOSBox (it is in the same folder as dark.exe). Change Sound Setup, Custom Setup, change music to General Midi, and change Digital Sound to Soundblaster 16. The problem is that DOSBox by default is emulating an old, crappy soundcard instead of letting you use the one in your PC.
I had a fond memory playing it as a kid. It was a big leap from Doom with truly realistic level designs have you really immerse in the Star Wars universe. Nar Shadda was my favorite as I really feel I am running through a real space city with graffiti, TV display ads and a bar with thugs trying to shoot me.
This is the first video, where the DF game doesn't seem to have any major drawbacks. I mean, usually there is something with color and general graphics. I remember playing it for the first time, enjoying so much.
Whaa.. The music is great, and so in Tie Fighter. The day John Williams is no more with us, Clint Bajakian is the person that should take over the composing.
Didn't that engine have texture alignment? These levels look like semi-competent Doom wads from circa 1995, would have thought the pro's could make them a bit more interesting and detailed.
one of the first games i played on a pc. loved it. sucked at it. seems crazy when my dad and brother were figuring out how to install it, with installing direct x etc.. the memories
Dark Forces' sequel, Jedi Knight, did not use the Jedi engine for obvious reasons. Dark Forces is a DOS game, whereas JK is a Windows game, and it used the Sith engine.
Also, I recall that every reviewer who complained about the Dark Troopers being pussies actually played the game on DarkXL as well. I ran it unmodified on Hard and those motherfuckers were as tough as nails, I dreaded every single time they showed up. The mode apparently greatly increases their vulnerability aside from seemingly breaking the game towards the end. Just play the regular version.
@@yarpen26 100% agreed. Just finished playing the DOS Version with my Physical Copy of Dark Forces and its safe to say that the Dark Troopers (the Phase 2 Versions) were a pain in the balls on Hard Mode, especially during the last mission when you had to face 3 at once which cost me a mission restart. Even just one drained a huge chunk of my armor and health. Was going to use DarkXL originally but I prefer to play the game as it is and the source port is unfinished.
Just bought a second-hand Apple G3 PowerBook (1999 Pismo model) off ebay; first thing that I installed was Dark Forces, the only game that makes me feel like a REAL man when I play it (apart from Dark Forces 2)
Mate can you review Singularity please! I really want your opinion. Its got quite a bad pc port, but its on sale on steam just now. Its like a B movie bioshock.
Gggmanlives Awwww, that was how I got into the shock series... I started with System Shock 2, then Bioshock, then Bioshock 2, then Bioshock Infinite, and now I am playing System Shock 1 with Mouselook and Fullscreen Mods (without these, the game is TERRIBLE due to its controls.)
Rogue One: Spends a whole movie getting the Death Star plans
Dark Forces: Spends one mission getting them
Kyle Katarn FTW
I thought that Dark forces would have been a better movie.
to be honest that seems a bit more realistic imo. Plus I feel more investment into this games plot than the bland, identity politics laden plot Rogue One had that I quickly forgot as I was watching it.
if a star wars film bores me much like what happened with the Attack of the Clones and Farce Engorges they fail at being Star Wars films
just my opinion that's all ^.^;;;;;
I mean, I think Rogue One was more fun than TFA, so...eh.
Pepper Millers fun? I had more fun watching paint dry than watching R1
great review. respectful and considerate for the time period, while aware of how it compares to contemporary gaming. intelligent and straightforward. subscribed.
+nutleyoleo Thanks for subbing, bro!
i just realize that nar shadda is in just about every game in this series
shadowop114 bar fights for days ay
Nar Shadaa was always my favorite levels in the DF/JK series. Until Bespin was done in JKO.
Well I mean it's space vegas, why wouldn't you want it in your game?
@@hankhill1964 Idk, in KotOR 2 it's more of a space Detroit xd
1:05 "The Dark Troopers are basically Storm troopers on steroids."
Does this mean they can actually hit something?
+M0rshu64
They destroyed a rebel base in minutes so basically they just blow shit up with
repeater rifles, plasma cannons and rockets. In other words they don't give a fuck
Not necessarily. They mostly still miss their targets, but are bulky and beefed up while doing so.
Oh yeah they can! Those Dark Troopers scared me shitless back in the day -- if you happened to have the wrong gun on hand you'd be toast cause they moved pretty darn fast, had a high pain threshold and packed quite a mean punch. Only the model III was indeed a pushover but I reckon that the reason lore-wise for that, was that it simply wasn't ready yet. Basically the hail-Mary from a desperate officer whose only options were victory or death.
The troopers can hit anything they just couldn't hit the main characters in the original trilogy because plot armor that they forgot to put it back on during the sequel trilogy
No, it just means they're angry and black.
I actually really liked the Soundtrack of Dark Forces, especially when you hear a remastered soundfont version like you used in the background of this video.
jesus liam you are everywhere
"You're not authorized in this area!"
Classic. XD
God damn right I'm not.
pew pew pew pew!!
"Set Blasters on Full" "Let's get some ID" "Get the Jedi."
My blaster says otherwise!
Eye Above All more like “you’re in violation of imperial l-UGH”
Light years ahead of anything Lucasarts have released in modern times. A true classic :)
The very first FPS I've ever played. Probably the most important game of my life.
Same, not the first fps i played tho, but the game I made my parents buy for me with my PS1. I wanted an N64 with Goldeneye but then I saw it, an fpswith a Star Wars theme, I loved this game from then on.
This was the first Star Wars game I played
s s IMPOSTER😂😂
Same. :) the game that made me fall in love with the E-11.. still cant stand to use anything else in Star Wars Battlefront, best weapon ever.
samesies
This game was one of the greatest things in my childhood, next to Doom 1 and 2. And a great introduction to the whole franchise.
Republic Commando should also be a game both Star Wars and shooter fans should play. I've only played it for a few hours, but it's really well made and keeps you playing for hours. :D
I actually like the puzzle aspect of this game.
Sure, you'll get lost from time to time,
but it helps give the game its own identity compared to other Wolfenstein/Doom-esque shooters at the time and also does a good job in making you remember each level once they're over and done with.
Andy How does it give the game its own identity? Dooms maps were also giant puzzles for the most part. Strafe also had EXTREMELY similar level design to Dark Forces. Most FPS games from back then were like that.
One thing that bears mention about the music which you may have missed is that it dynamically changes in time to the action on screen without ever skipping a beat. This is due to LucasArt's proprietary iMuse music system where motifs are called up in response to certain kinds of triggers, and the overall soundtrack stitched together on the fly. It's pretty ingenious, and contributes nicely to the immersive, cinematic quality of the game.
Okay I might have a bit of fog in my nostalgia goggles, but HELLO!? The music is FANTASTIC! Also like what BillXCIII said, levels are dark but that's why they gave you night vision goggles and a headlamp. The levels are incredibly creative and it really does feel like a high end game that can even live up to today's standards, if not, raise the bar.
Levels can be so uncreative nowadays in order to make it easier for casual players to navigate, but in my opinion a level design that doesn't insult the player's intelligence and requires some thinking or strategy is a beautiful thing.
level design back then was confusing due to the repetative textures.. Hell most " liniar" games arent even that liniar
KayloMaster There's a difference between making the player think and just flat-out being confusing as fuck. You clearly don't know this difference.
Man,the Jedi Knight series was my first real gaming experience aside from Oregon and Amazon Trails. What a series
Fantastic review. Never played the 'Dark Forces' games before, and after watching this, I'm absolutely going to pick them up in the GOG sale on right now. Thanks!
Actually, the XLEngine, while a nice idea is still quite buggy and many things don't work as they should. For example, the little mouse droids don't move and can't be destroyed. Not that this is hugely important to gameplay (although they are a source of batteries), but it shows that the engine is far from finished. Using the XLEngine might make the game look a little nicer and make it easier to get running for most people, but when something doesn't work, you'll never be sure if you're missing something or if the engine just isn't working properly.
I recently played through Dark Forces again using a trio of programs to give it a more modern feel.
First, I played it using the Daum SVN version of DOSBox, which has save states. These worked perfectly in DF and basically give you the ability to quicksave/quickload.
Next, I used a program called GlovePIE, running in the background, to map the Look Up/Down keys to the forward/back mouse movements, which gives a simulated mouselook. It's not as good as true mouselook, but it's miles ahead of having to use the keyboard to look up and down. True, DF doesn't really require you to aim up or down, but it certainly helps to be able to look up and see where the enemies are.
Lastly, I used a small program called OverlayXHair to put a crosshair in the middle of the screen as an aid to aiming. As long as DOSBox's fullscreen option is set to desktop, the crosshair will stay visible in fullscreen mode. While DF has auto-aim, it still helps to have some reference for where you're aiming.
Actually, the auto-aim is my biggest complaint about Dark Forces. There can be a squad of stormtroopers standing next to a bunch of exploding canisters, but you're not allowed to shoot the canisters until all the stormtroopers are dead. The concussion rifle, which should be a great weapon, is completely useless for any enemies located above you as the shot will just hit the base of the wall. If there is a powerful enemy and a bunch of weak ones, you can be sure it will target the weak ones first.
+lurkerrekrul not having beaten the game yet i dare say having free savestates would probably render the whole game a breeze to get through with little to no satisfaction at the end
+yarpen26 The problem with the lives system is that it's very easy to screw up and get killed. On some of the levels you can easily fall off a ledge and die. In the later levels, the dark troopers can easily kill you in a matter of seconds.
Even on the earlier levels, you might open a door, look all around, walk into the room and BOOM! You start getting hit with thermal detonators thrown by the enemy up on the ledge over the door that you can't see until you're in the middle of the room because the game only lets you look up at about a 45 degree angle. Or you come around a corner and get blasted by a guy with a concussion rifle that takes off half your health.
Even if you finish the level after losing 2 of your three lives, it means you have no spares for the next level and will have to start it from scratch if you die.
Conversely, being able to quicksave also means that you can easily replay the parts that you like without having to replay the whole level to get to them.
lurkerrekrul i understand every single problem with limited lives and i did wish for quicksaves more times than i could actually count (i'm on the 9th level by the way). but still, i really don't think they would be able to just insert quicksaves without cranking up the difficulty significantly at some points. i don't necessarily enjoy it but i can live with that as far as Dark Forces goes. at least the levels aren't terribly long or something (when compared to, say, Shadows of the Empire). i'm pretty sure that before i got to level 9 in Jedi Knight i had died at least fifteen times more than i have so far in Dark Forces (by dying i mean just losing one of your lives, not having a game over). by the way, do you happen to know how things looked when it comes to saving in Doom, Duke Nukem, Wolfenstein 3D or other classics of the FPS genre that i didn't have the honor of playing?
+yarpen26 Are you playing the game using DOSBox? If you have the Steam or GOG versions, chances are that you are. If so, check out this page;
steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=286364447
It details how to use a program called GlovePIE to read the mouse and have it send the page up/down keys to the system. This will fool the game so that you can look up and down with the mouse. The game has auto-aim (I wish it didn't!) so it's not hugely important to be able to aim up/down, but it does help to be able to easily look up and see what's shooting at you. You just run GlovePIE with the script provided and then run DOSBox/Dark Forces. It's still limited by the game, so it's not true mouselook, but after a few minutes you kind of forget that and it mostly feels like normal mouselook.
As for the other games, I've only ever played the Doom games (1, 2, Heretic, Hexen), Duke Nukem 3D and Wolfenstein 3D with Windows source ports. However I just looked up the manuals for them (www.ReplacementDocs.com) and all three say that you can save your game at any time. I have played Blood, Redneck Rampage and Shadow Warrior (which use the same engine as Duke Nukem 3D), using the original programs in DOSBox and all of those let you save at any point. I've also played Alien Trilogy a little and that only lets you save at the end of a level. I haven't really played any other DOS FPS games other than those.
lurkerrekrul oh thanks for the info. yeah, i got the Steam version and i did hear about that mod which i might actually check out some time but not until i've beaten the game. i've just gotten used to the Y axis look by now, i wouldn't try to change it again for the last couple levels i got ahead of me. besides, i got the quirk of playing old games exactly the way they were released with no modifications whatsoever. anyway thanks for that link to the website with manuals, might come in handy some time!
The level where Boba Fett appears is one of the best. There's a bit of suspense when you know he's about and about to attack but you can't see him because he's flying around.
I've played this so much with my dad as a kid.
SAME
Ugh, that sewer level, tell me about it! I must have been between 8 and 9 when I got the game and I never was able to get through it....the freaking third level! As such, I never finished the game. I'll have to try that DarkXL thing since last time I tried to install my copy it didn't quite work out.
The Movie Planet I always stopped at the sewer level because I always got scared of the sewer monsters in water when I was young. I still do not like that level to this day, freaks me out.
same for me with the phase one dark troopers.
Also, the sewer level ain't got shit on the Imperial city's octogonal labyrinth.
Well I finally beat the game yesterday. Felt pretty good!
@Chong Li Oh man…Boba Fett! That was so damn stressful. After getting through that whole long, complicated level that flying a-hole is just there waiting for you. I ran off into the little secret area with the window and kept crouching only getting up to launch a few rockets in his general direction. I finally managed to down him with 0 armor and 1 life point left!!! Can't tell you how relieved and thankful I was, I did NOT want to do that level again lol. (PS: You break my record. Now I break you. Like I break your friend!)
Let's hope with the Dark Troopers appearing in the mandalorian that Kyle Katarn finally gets some deserved screen time
Dash Rendar too
This, Dark Forces 2 (Favorite Star Wars game), and Duke3D are my favorite DOS shooters. Dark Forces 2 and Turok Dinosaur Hunter are my favorites of all time.
This is one of my favorite review channels. I'm glad I found it. Your so underrated, I hope you can expand your following soon.
0:29 -- While the JEDI engine indeed ran on the original Dark Forces and Outlaws games, Jedi Knight used the SITH engine.
DAMN YOU DEMON!!! I buy the sequel an hour ago and here you are following my very steps!!
I shall make my sacrifices if it pleases you but leave me alone!!!
Good purchase!
I 100% agree with the review and nice work by the way! As a 10-year-old kid, some of the levels were impossible to finish due to the complexity of the map design. The game on PSX was a bit scary in some places because of the dark sky backgrounds, menacing atmosphere and the dramatic soundtrack. Oh, those were the days :)
According to an issue of PC Gamer magazine, the game was originally intended to feature krayt dragons. Since official sources identified the krayt dragons as far larger than the creatures designed for the game though, the game renamed its design as kell dragons and identified them as relatives of the former species.
You said the environments are 3d, where the characters are 2d sprites. In fact, this engine is a portal engine very similar to BUILD. There's a scattered handful of polyobjects as set pieces/decoration in some levels, and for 3d bridges, but the environments themselves are not polygonal.
There's a group of people working on a re-imagined version, which in concept is cool but when you see it it doesn't look at all familiar to the environments that you remember so the whole Nostalgia factor is kind of out the window, meanwhile they just remade Full Throttle, which was a LucasArts game, and it's amazing, it's actually a good way to do a remake because you could send it back to the classic Mode
I love the textures used for the levels, very nice looking
One interesting bit of trivia about the game is that the disc came with a demo of the game Full Throttle. The demo took up more space than the entire game of Dark Forces.
AGH! I love this game! It was one of the first games I ever played back on the family IBM MS-DOS computer. I still have it and play it to this day. My go-to gun is usually the concussion rifle when I have it. Takes care of enemies in one hit. It really got me into game design as well, mainly level design. I feel like all of the levels are so well laid out. Your comments on the simplistic midi soundtrack made me laugh because although it's true, I remember the soundtracks sounding more orchestral, haha.
You do realize there were two ways to illuminate areas right? You started out with a headlamp and then got nightvision goggles
I was thinking the same thing. I wonder if he was unaware of the inventory
E X T R A T H I C C They drained you energy super fast thus making them kinda useless.
Believe it or not, there was also supposed to be a system where fighting enemies in dark areas would decrease their accuracy
I have this on ps1 and i absolutely loved it when it first came out. Love the video. You earn my subscription
So it's basically Doom: Star wars edition. I MUST have it! (I know you don't consider it a Doom clone, i mean graphicwise).
Did you ever get it?
I ususally finish the games i have before buying new ones, as of right now i haven't finished 2016 Doom, but this one is next on the list. They had it for $0.80 on GOG some time ago, so i shouldn't have much trouble getting it.
I just got it, it's pretty good
One of my favorite Lucas Arts games to date! Gonna have to make an Xpadder profile for it.
You can fiddle with the controls from the DOSBox settings menu from the game folder, i think that's easier than having to get a separate program for it. Gotta love the game's soundtrack. Star Wars music never gets old.
Childhood Favorite I still play it never gets old
If I could figure out the levels at 11years old without RUclips, I don't think they were that puzzle'y. I do remember literally one or two being tricky but achievable. I loved the atmosphere this game generated at the time. It was awesome!
I got Dark Forces on my first PC back in 1996. I still love it to bits, I wish that Lucasarts had remade it/remastered it before they closed
I used to love DOOM and Star Wars, and this was my first owned game on Playstation. I loved this game, and actually, it still looks pretty good.
I've had Dark Forces on PS1 since 1997, first game I ever got and I've recently replayed it. I can't get over how good the PC version looks in comparison. Absolutely deadly game to this day
I really enjoyed this game as a kid, played through more than once.
parallel to that in 93/94 I always played X-Wing, Rebel Assault and Tie Fighter .... Lucasarts was mega at that time, if only because of Monkey Island, Day of Tentacle, SamnMax, Indian Jones. That was a good time for me back then
Hey, I’m late on this, but I wanted to let you know (if you didn’t already) that it and it’s sequel is available on Steam for around $6 now!
This was probably the earliest FPS game that I ever played, and I still enjoy playing it every now and then!
Good old Lucas Arts games! Loved playing this one, Rebel Assault 1&2, Fate of Atlantis, etc.
If there's one thing I can't get enough of, it's 90's fps games (or Doom clones as they were known back then). Freaking glorious
I remember buying Dark Forces off the shelf at Best Buy back in the day, the game was so much fun, but I remember it being really difficult as a 12yo gamer at the time!
Your reviews are awesome, thanks for your great work.
Still got that 3 1/4 inch floppy (!) in my desk. I would just love to play that again... after 20 years I still remember that sewer puzzle with the switches. Wheeee...
+Lia A. Eastwood I am pretty sure that this is a CD-ROM game. I guess you got it in the high seas, arr!
Damn this game was and is still so awesome ...remember one of the T.A.'s sneaked it in and installed it on one of my high school class mac's and I would play it during lunch, and stay after school to play the hell out of it, I didn't have a PC at home so the only time I played it was at school...all I had at home was my SNES....it wasn't until years later after I graduated that I was able to get this at home on my PlayStation and still have it😊...excellent review, awesome you point out that this is NOT a Doom clone because it certainly isn't, thank you.
actually in the game you have both a flashlight and night vision goggles so dark areas are not really a problem. the main problem that the original version had was the controls, with key bindings scattered all over the keyboard and no vertical targeting with the mouse
i bought this 2 days ago, have you also played star wars republic commando?
Yeah I'm a huge fan.
+Gggmanlives Huge fan?Erm....
ssssssssssssssssss50 i see him on alot of star wars video's though
But he said he's a huge fan of republic commando frpm what i underwstand.if you see his review of it doesn't really look like it
0:35 - That stormtrooper and Imperial officer have nerves of steel!
I think that's a flaw of the enhanced engine he is using. Typically you fire anywhere in their vicinity and they get active.
Great review! I'm a new subscriber and love your review style and taste in games. Would love to see a Dark Forces 2: Jedi Knight review one day. Keep up the good work!
Piggies go down with one grenade? Someone was playing on "Game hournalist" difficulty.
I've just got a decent laptop today never played this as upto today never owned a pc. Remember seeing this year's ago, how would I get it now ???
Check out the Newly Released Force Engine, these are the same guys from the Dark Forces Xl port. It is much better looking and includes all the bells and whistles that you'd expect to see from something like a GZDoom port...
I remember as kid how the demo was so amazing. Floors above floors! hoovering death star projection! Actual animated flying shuttle coming to take me away. And the game even ran better than doom on our 486
Very impressive review, i had thoughts about reviewing this one eventually myself!
4:21 There is a way to make the MIDIs sound better. Run setup.exe in DOSBox (it is in the same folder as dark.exe). Change Sound Setup, Custom Setup, change music to General Midi, and change Digital Sound to Soundblaster 16. The problem is that DOSBox by default is emulating an old, crappy soundcard instead of letting you use the one in your PC.
I had a fond memory playing it as a kid. It was a big leap from Doom with truly realistic level designs have you really immerse in the Star Wars universe. Nar Shadda was my favorite as I really feel I am running through a real space city with graffiti, TV display ads and a bar with thugs trying to shoot me.
Ahh those were the days, thinking games won't get any better than this.
This is the first video, where the DF game doesn't seem to have any major drawbacks. I mean, usually there is something with color and general graphics. I remember playing it for the first time, enjoying so much.
I love your content. you deserve more subs
Whaa.. The music is great, and so in Tie Fighter. The day John Williams is no more with us, Clint Bajakian is the person that should take over the composing.
Why do i have a feeling that the boss you were talking about is Boba Fett? I have not played the game, just a guess
Can you do a review of Star Wars: Rebellion? I don't know too many people who played it.
Didn't that engine have texture alignment? These levels look like semi-competent Doom wads from circa 1995, would have thought the pro's could make them a bit more interesting and detailed.
Seriously, Kyle Katarn is Mika Häkkinen, former F1 driver. Look at that resemblace!
One of the best Star Wars games ever made and one of my favorite games.
one of the first games i played on a pc. loved it. sucked at it. seems crazy when my dad and brother were figuring out how to install it, with installing direct x etc.. the memories
Wasnt it the first game where you could look up and down?
Isn't the XL engine incomplete and abandoned?
I tried playing through with it and the game crashed once I got to a certain level
Fantastic game, and one of the best Star Wars gaming experiences out there. The creators should be proud of this game.
Actually, Dark Forces II runs on the Sith Engine. It is fully 3D rather than 2.5D.
I played this when I was 4. I only got to level 3 but damn was it memorable. It blew me away
May the 4th be with you.
thx, Gggmanlives , I admire your work. I have a good game for you to try out. The Lara Croft originals, or the Metal Gear Series.
ha yeah mabye
Why are your textures so smooth? o.O
do you have a direct DL for that source port? australian net is really chaos.
A studio needs to remake this and the first Jedi Knight game. I love these games!
Probably the first real video game I ever played. Good thing Steam had it for dirt cheap. A true classic.
As a kid I once talked about this game to a friend. He claimed it has "Nothing to do with Star Wars" due to not being directly based off a film.
Are you going to review Shadows of the Empire for the N64 by any chance?
Dark Forces' sequel, Jedi Knight, did not use the Jedi engine for obvious reasons. Dark Forces is a DOS game, whereas JK is a Windows game, and it used the Sith engine.
quite amazing graphics for such an ancient pc game
dont play with DarkXL, its not finished and its missing weapons and enemies.
And also has some plot stopper bugs and no voice/music during cutscenes. I wish they would finish/develop DarkXL further.
Also, I recall that every reviewer who complained about the Dark Troopers being pussies actually played the game on DarkXL as well. I ran it unmodified on Hard and those motherfuckers were as tough as nails, I dreaded every single time they showed up. The mode apparently greatly increases their vulnerability aside from seemingly breaking the game towards the end.
Just play the regular version.
@@yarpen26 100% agreed. Just finished playing the DOS Version with my Physical Copy of Dark Forces and its safe to say that the Dark Troopers (the Phase 2 Versions) were a pain in the balls on Hard Mode, especially during the last mission when you had to face 3 at once which cost me a mission restart. Even just one drained a huge chunk of my armor and health. Was going to use DarkXL originally but I prefer to play the game as it is and the source port is unfinished.
Can you use analog sticks on the ps1 version?
Are you gonna do a video on the sequel and star wars republic commando?
Yes to both.
Gggmanlives Nice! by the way your videos are awesome and addictive.
The mines are only useless if you don't know how to use them. And dude, the Concussion rifle and the Dark trooper weapons both have their utility.
This was my early childhood.
Hah, there was a Rogue One ad before this video.
I kinda hope that if the movie gets a sequel, it goes into the same direction as Dark Forces 2.
Just bought a second-hand Apple G3 PowerBook (1999 Pismo model) off ebay; first thing that I installed was Dark Forces, the only game that makes me feel like a REAL man when I play it (apart from Dark Forces 2)
i just bought this a couple days ago on steam and i cant finish the first mission because i dont know where to go
Was the Dark XL project ever finished, and are there any links to it that are not dead?
the music is incredibly good for me
how can you control the camera like you want ?
Mate can you review Singularity please! I really want your opinion. Its got quite a bad pc port, but its on sale on steam just now. Its like a B movie bioshock.
It's unavailable in my region.
Gggmanlives Awwww, that was how I got into the shock series... I started with System Shock 2, then Bioshock, then Bioshock 2, then Bioshock Infinite, and now I am playing System Shock 1 with Mouselook and Fullscreen Mods (without these, the game is TERRIBLE due to its controls.)
I wonder if Kyle will be in Rouge One.
I prefer the sprites over the polygonal models in the second game. I'd say Dark Forces is a better looking game. The design just holds up better.
How did you make it look so good ? Mine looks real bad