Together Retro: Dark Forces

[dsheinem]

So I am jumping the gun on this one by a few days, but I needed something to play on my laptop this afternoon and got a start on Dark Forces, which I grabbed in a Steam sale a while back.

First of all, everyone playing via Steam/DOSBox should read the very helpful FAQs about controls and what not here: http://forums.steampowered.com/forums/s ... p?t=967990 and here http://forums.steampowered.com/forums/s ... ?t=1701559

Second, you should know that the game saves at the end of every level, there is no mid-level save as there is in most modern FPS games. You have a set amount of lives per level.

So far I am a few levels in and really enjoying the game. I have never played more than a few minutes of any game in this series, and am already much more impressed than I thought I would be. Especially surprising is the quality of the cut scenes - both the pixel art and the voice acting are top notch for the day. I am looking forward to playing through the game in full in the next few weeks, and may even delve into some of the sequels give time and interest...

Oh - I should note that since I am a PlayStation enthusiast I did try this game on the PS1, but I found it to be a real unpleasant chore. That port does not do this game justice in any way, and I would strongly suggest staying away. It's only $5 on Steam anyway, so go that route if you are trying to decide which version to purchase.

[Flake]

I'm not a real big FPS kinda guy - can you give me some back ground on the game and how it stands out?

[noiseredux]

regardless of yr warning, I'll be playing the PS1 game. First off, I spent money on it. Second, I don't play PC games. So. Yeah. Maybe I'll pop it in this afternoon. Does the PS1 version have mouse support? I have a PS1 mouse.

[Betamax001]

I grabbed all of the Dark Forces/Jedi Knight games on Steam for 5 bucks. I haven't touched them yet, so perhaps I will actually play them. Then again I played KOF for about 15 minutes this month. So who knows.

[SwooshBear]

I'm going to be playing the ps1 version as well. I haven't played this since I was a kid so it will be fun to go back and play it again.

[Pabstblueribbon]

Started playing this a yesterday, I didn't realize it was going to be part of the Together Retro series. I've only beaten the first level, but I played this game when I was a kid, so I'm somewhat familiar with it. The lack of in-game saves is frustrating, but it makes beating a level that much more rewarding.

[bladerunner]

Awww yes! DF is probably my fav Star Wars game. I generally try to play it at least once a year. I recently played through it around Christmas time. I always stick to the PC version via DOSbox. It configures easily enough, and with a little tweaking, you can setup up the controls to mimic a more modern PC FPS nicely (WASD instead of arrow keys).

I have played the PS1 version, and the port is ok, but if you have the chance, go snag it on Steam or PC-CDROM.

Flake -
Historically speaking, DF stands out for allowing multiple floors per level and the ability to look up and down. This is pretty standard fare today, so it may not stand out to someone used to modern FPS. The best part is really the introduction of Kyle Katarn, quite the awesome Expanded Universe character! If you aren't really into Star Wars, you might take a pass. Still, a pivotal game in FPS history.

[emwearz]

Damn, I utterly love dark forces.

As I don't own a copy anymore, and as cheap as I sound I dont really have $5 spare to buy it on steam.

Anyway! the point of my post is to say people should check out DarkXL.

DarkXL is a Hardware Accelerated remake of Dark Forces. It requires the original game data, and will fully support the original game - with cutscenes, briefings and other features. In addition user mods and levels will be supported.

The point of this project is to allow people to play Dark Forces in high resolution, on windows in either “classic” mode (no new features) or “extended” mode. All modes will benefit from newer control methods like mouse look, high resolutions and color depth. The extended version will get new features such as real-time lighting, slopes, dual adjoins, vertical adjoins, better model support (md2 and/or md3) and more.

Even though it is currently not finish, I still highly recommend everyone with a retail (no idea if it works for Steam versions, but I doubt it) versions give it a go.

http://darkxl.wordpress.com/

If you have played through Dark Forces before and want to do it a little bit different give DarkXL a try.

[lisalover1]

My friend absolutely adores this game's sequel; it is his favorite FPS ever. I think I will give this game a shot this month.

[emwearz]

My friend absolutely adores this game's sequel; it is his favorite FPS ever. I think I will give this game a shot this month.

The sequel to the sequel was easily the best lightsaber system in a game until Force Unleashed was released. Great story in Jedi Outcast as well.