Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II is an action-adventure about Starkiller, Darth Vader's former secret apprentice. The story takes place between Episodes III and IV. Starkiller is haunted by memories of Juno Eclipse while Vader tries to turn his former apprentice into a more powerful Sith warrior.

The campaign combines lightsaber combat with supernatural Force powers. Objects, enemies and parts of the environment can be used for attacks and puzzles.

The PC version was released on Oct 26, 2010. In Europe, the Wii, PS3, Xbox 360 and Nintendo DS versions followed on Oct 29, 2010. The versions differ in some cases significantly in controls, technology and game modes.

A native PS5 or Xbox Series version is not part of this. The Xbox 360 version can only be played on newer Xbox consoles via backward compatibility.

On PC, PS3 and Xbox 360, the story is the focus of a 3D action-adventure. The Wii version was developed by Red Fly Studio and uses the Wii Remote. It has its own local battle mode for up to four players. Nintendo DS also has a standalone version for the handheld hardware.

If you are looking for a specific control scheme or multiplayer mode, check the specific version: the Wii duels are not a cross-platform online mode.

Starkiller wields two lightsabers and links fast combo attacks with Force attacks. Combat can be customized with costumes and crystals. New enemy types and boss fights require different combinations of abilities.

The single-player path is divided into missions and challenges, not a freely explorable open world.

In December 2010, additional content was released for PS3 and Xbox 360. The Endor mission tells an alternative version of events on the forest moon from Return of the Jedi. Separate character or costume packs expand the choices for Starkiller's look.

These console extras are not automatically included in the PC version on Steam. They are also not the same as the bonus missions of the Ultimate Sith Edition of the first The Force Unleashed.

For Windows, Steam lists an Intel Core 2 Duo at 2.4 GHz or AMD Athlon X2 5200+, 2 GB RAM, a graphics card with 256 MB and Shader 3.0 support, plus 10 GB hard drive space plus a paging file. Recommended are a Core 2 Duo at 2.8 GHz or Athlon X2 6000+, and a GeForce GTX 260 or Radeon HD 4800.

This information comes from the original PC release. The current Steam client requires newer Windows versions.

Force grip lets you move objects and enemies, Force lightning hits groups, and mind trick can make enemies turn against each other. Force Fury temporarily boosts the offensive power of Starkiller's abilities.

The improved targeting mechanics are especially important in battles where you need to keep track of enemies and objects at the same time.

The game combines Havok, Euphoria and Digital Molecular Matter to simulate reactions from characters and objects. This lets you hurl enemies into environmental elements and affect obstacles with Force powers.

Physics mainly supports the action and the presentation. It does not turn the linear campaign into a freely shapeable sandbox.

Starkiller tries to understand who he is after Vader's experiments and to find Juno Eclipse again. Darth Vader hunts him while questions of memory and identity drive the plot.

The story continues the events of the first The Force Unleashed. If you are familiar with Starkiller's past, you will recognize more of the relationships between the characters.

Additional challenges are designed to help you use your combat and Force abilities in a targeted way. New costumes and lightsaber crystals let you customize your appearance and certain powers.

These tasks complement the main story rather than building a separate multiplayer progression.

Besides the single-player campaign, the Wii version supports a local battle mode for up to four players. It is played with Wii Remotes, not through an online lobby.

This mode comes from the standalone Wii version by Red Fly Studio and should not be confused with a multiplayer mode in the PC version.

The PC version offers German menus, subtitles and full German voice acting. Steam also lists English, French, Italian and Spanish with audio, plus Polish and Russian as text languages.

The PC campaign is designed for one player. Local multiplayer battles are explicitly part of the Wii version.