I have JK: Jedi Academy

[M1A2Tanker]

And I tell ya, it's very very nice. I'll give a more indepth review tomorrow when I have a little bit more time.

**goes back to slicing up Dark side users with his double-bladed lightsaber** ;D ;D

[Acehigh]

I can't wait to get my hands on this either. Are the missions as complex as in outcast or the first jk?

[M1A2Tanker]

It's more like you're playing a more interactive JK2. The missions are just as complex, but there's more things to mess with, and different tricks to use in order to find certain triggers and so on.

The Force powers have been improved in some respects, but the thing that really got an overhaul was the saber combat. If you use a single saber that really hasn't changed too much, with the exception that you get new moves with each fighting style. The Attack Kata is very pretty for each one BTW. ;D

I'll get some screenshots tomorrow or this weekend, whichever comes first and post them.

[Goku1]

is the gameplay smooth though? that was a big issue with Outcast. And are the lines finally smooth or are they still blocky?

[M1A2Tanker]

It runs off the JK2 game engine, so it all depends on your computer system. It ran just fine for me, although it does start to clunk up after awhile when you have music playing with it and you haven't shut the computer down for awhile.

[M1A2Tanker]

Ok I've played it twice now, and while I wasn't able to get any screenshots (did try though) I can give a good review of the game.

It's kinda of a mix of the first JK game, and JK2. It's based almost right after JK2, with a good storyline and with some different features that you really don't see in many Star Wars games. And just like Mysteries of the Sith brought new weapons and characters to JK, so too does JA bring back some old friends and weapons. I'll explain that more in detail as I go. You are a new student who does the amazing thing and builds a lightsaber without any training whatsoever (probably because you took the schematics off the Internet ;D). However, as you're about to land on Yavin, your shuttle gets its engine shot up by Tavion (you learn that later) and you have to find your way back to the temple with another student. That's your first mission. From there, you get a briefing from Luke, and you get to train under Kyle Katarn (in a way).

Characters:
At the very beginning you can create your own character, from Zabrak, Rodian, Human, and one other that escapes me at the moment, the gender, the color of the clothing, what kind of clothing, and hair style (unless you're a Rodian or the other species that escapes me still).

There are several points in the game where you'll have a partner who absolutely must survive or else the mission fails. You'll run into Chewie for the first time, and Kyle will be with you for a good while on a couple missions.

You'll run into new troops, none the least of which are several kinds of Dark Side Force users. Some of them will have a lightsaber, some two, others a double, and some don't have any weapon and just use the Force as their weapon There are 2 new kinds of stormtrooper as well, and one of them reminds you of the Dark Trooper from Dark Forces, although they're not as formidable (thankfully). They also brought back the Noghri from Mysteries of the Sith, but these guys don't look anything like those gorilla looking things from that game. These guys look far better, and they're just as tough as the old ones (just one Noghri takes two rockets to kill). They don't use blasters, but spray sticks instead, and as it's said in the Thrawn books, they are more than a match for stormtroopers...even for some of the Dark Side Force users. You also run into Tusken Raiders (who like to get up close and personal), and Jawas. The Jawas don't fight though, but they do gabber. I didn't hear any of them say UTENI...yet. ;D

And you'll also run into some creatures. Specifically, you meet Tauntauns (which you can ride), Wampas (nasty buggers), and our old friend from Mysteries of the Sith....the Rancor. However, later on the Rancor will return...with a twist. I'll leave it at that. ;D You have to watch out for the Wampas and Rancors because they'll grab you, stare you down for a moment, then start a chomping. Only way to get away from their grip is to slash the snot out of them. Doesn't always work, and even if you have God mode on (for us cheaters out there heheh) you'll still die.

Oh yes, for those of you who have seen Dune and Tremors, there's one mission that comes straight out of those movies. That's right, you deal with giant worms that can follow you when you run around on sand...and you can't kill the suckers. Best you can do is distract them and run like the wind.

Force Powers and lightsabers:
As you did in the first game, you have allotment points, or stars, to place in a specific Force power and determine whether you lean to the Dark side or Light. Unlike the first game though, if you fall to the Dark side, you don't loose your Light side powers. Also, there are some powers that increase in power automatically, so you don't have to worry about them. Three stars is the max for each power.

Now here's where they really improved the game from JK2. Before we knew there were some acrobatic moves in the game, but for the most part we really didn't know how to pull them off consistently. Well, if you hit TAB, instead of an Inventory button, they replaced it with a Moves button (because this time you don't have any inventory) that shows you all the moves you can make, to include all lightsaber combat techniques.

They added to the Fast, Medium and Strong lightsaber styles by giving them each their own Attack Kata, or Form. When you use it, you will use some Force power and your saber will move in a rapid motion leaving a glowing trail behind it, decimating anything in the way of your blade. The Fast kata is good for lots of enemies around you, but doesn't do a whole lot of damage overall, which makes sense since it's more of a glancing style. The Medium kata has good power and can mess up your target pretty good. It's also pretty decent against several enemies, although not as good as the Fast kata. The Strong kata is made specifically for 1v1 combat, and is out to kill your target as powerfully and completely as possible.

There are two new styles of combat as well. You can wield two lightsabers, or a double lightsaber. Both of these styles come with their own attacks which are totally different from using a single lightsaber. Using two lightsabers is somewhat more flexible and is unpredictable to your target, but (this is my opinion) the double lightsaber seems to be the best out of all saber styles. Watch Darth Maul fight in the movie, and you basically know most of all the moves you can do with that saber in the game.

You don't get to make a double saber from the get go though. You start out with picking one type of hilt out of nine, and a certain saber color. After a few missions you learn a new single lightsaber style, and after a few more, you'll get the chance to learn the twin lightsaber style or the double lightsaber. For the twin sabers you can pick differnet hilts and colors for each of them, and for the double you get a totally different set of hilts to pick from. From what I've seen so far there doesn't seem to be much difference in useage, so it's more cosmetic than anything.

The acrobatics have been greatly added to, as I mentioned, and add greatly to the flexibility that you have as a Jedi. You can also kick your opponent while you use your lightsaber, although I have to admit I'm not totally sure how to pull that off with the other saber styles besides double (which is your alternate attack).

Weapons:
Not too much has changed, except that you get Han's blaster back, and you get the good ol BFG of JK...the concussion rifle.

There is one thing that's different though. You don't go into a mission with all the weapons you have found before. You have to pick two weapons and one explosive before you can go to the mission. Your saber and the blaster though you always carry, no matter what. So you just have to decide if you want a disruptor and concussion rifle, or stormtrooper carbine and a rocket launcher, and so on.

Story:
The story isn't too bad really. Not on the first JK games level (my opinion again), but it's equal to JK2s story. Basically though this game deals with Tavion and her attempts to resurrect an ancient Sith lord with a Dark Side Force draining scepter, and you must stop her. If you fall to the Dark Side though, you'll go after her just so you can get your hands on the scepter and use it for yourself, screw the Sith Lord. He's been dead for 5,000 years, so why bring him back now right? However, if you fall to the Dark Side, you will have to fight your Master, and I tell ya...Kyle can FIGHT! He pulls some moves out on you that you never see anywhere else in the game. He's very difficult to beat. Not impossible, but about as close as it gets. Still, the choice is yours. ;D

Graphics:
They corrected some things that were kinda goofy with the JK2, such as the grass looking kinda pathetic, or the trees (which you can cut some down with your saber now), or as you walk about everywhere you walk it sounds like you're walking on stone...even on metal or grass. They also made things look a little smoother. Certain Force powers, like Protection or Absorb look much better than in JK2, but they did cut down on the Force Lightning a bit (or so it seems to me, but I'll fool with my video options to be sure). In some places it rains, and when the water hits your saber it'll sizzle and spark slightly.

And that does it for this review. Overall, it's better than JK2, and is worthwhile to play. Don't know what the multiplayer is like, but you can bet it comes with the saber styles and Force powers automatically instead of having to mod them.

[Goku1]

if we can go and create our own character, then could i make mine look like Goku?

[M1A2Tanker]

Not quite. You only have a few templates to pick from when creating your character. Unlike Galaxies, you don't get to change your height, facial shape, hair color or muscle density. You only have a few templates to use for the head, torso, and legs.

Now maybe you can make a mod for multiplayer to look like that, but in the game you're stuck with the templates.

[Goku1]

Only problem with that is that i don't know how to make a MOD

[M1A2Tanker]

Who says you have to?

I wouldn't doubt that there's plenty to pick from at the Massassi Temple site. I also don't doubt that you could ask someone to make one for you.