Two thirds of the game – the cool effects, the story, the graphics and the sheer joy of it all – is all very well done and enjoyable. It's engaging and you really want to play it.
The final third however isn't quite so graceful, proving to make use of all the elements of game design that gamers have come to hate over the years. Arcade style bosses who swarm you with cheap bully-tactics and who don't let you recover during a fight? Inescapable cutscenes and pointless quicktime events that add absolutely nothing? Check and double-check.
It's a shame really, because The Force Unleashed is a pretty good game. Not essential playing perhaps, but enjoyable certainly and with a faithfulness that makes it as worthy of accolade as Jedi Knight. These few flaws make parts of the game really annoying though and in the end that does hold the final experience back.
