Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II - The Rise of Katarn

[@Hamun002]

Its really kind of a loophole for Kyle to beat the guy, then give him back his lightsaber so he can murder him without repercussions.

[@mikecampos1193]

Guy was a mercenary before any of this he did more killing than the mandalorian did on that show.

[@mugwump7049]

It's a moral thing. You know, the Jedi way. You simply don't strike an unarmed opponent down. Samurai and medieval knights had a similar code of honor.

[@Hamun002]

@@mugwump7049 I know that. Ethically however, the difference is minimal. If anything its worse to give your opponent a fighting chance. What if he kills you and keeps doing stupid ass evil shit? The code you serve that demands it knows that these enemies cannot be left alive. And in the end it means nothing. No one would think less of him of defeating his opponent and killing him after he drops his weapon in this case.

[@XenoSpyro]

@@Hamun002 "The code you serve that demands it knows that these enemies cannot be left alive." Calm down Mace Wendigo.

[@Havik61]

@@mugwump7049 Samurai would actually kill random unarmed peasants just to test their swords. Its called Tsujigiri (crossroad killing).

[@KenshinMizuhara]

You know what the weirdest thing in this whole game is? The fact that in the first level cutscene, Kyle throws a Gran over the table, but when the first level starts and his buddy runs away, the model on the table is that of a Tusken from later in the game. Kyle whooped his ass so hard mans changed species.

[@MrLTiger]

my memory almost suppressed that detail like I was crazy, but you're right, that first corpse is the wrong species!

[@KenshinMizuhara]

@@MrLTiger It is something that has frustrated me since I was a child and first played this game. I'm 26 now and still mad about it hahahaha

[@ShreddingDragon]

Oh man, true that! Nice catch.

[@toddhowarddd]

bro that just broke my mind. that detail was so buried in my brain I somehow forgot about it almost.

[@FarseerAnimation]

Isn't it just a different character holding a blaster to Kyle's ear while the Gran is across the table? I don't think they had the makeup to make a cutscene tusken so you never see his face.

[@Atrahasis7]

This was prime star wars material right here. Kyle is a great character like the fusion of Han and Luke into one conflicted but collected man, Kyle and Jan warm my heart. I really miss Raven as well. The game is jank but it has this really weird 90s feel to it, yeah the period where you would just stop to look at low poly 3d models and be amazed by them.

[@GreenEyedDazzler]

So nostalgia

[@Atrahasis7]

@@GreenEyedDazzler Pretty much nostalgia plays a part. But Katarn is great. Many buried adn forgotten experimental games in the late 90s, like Outwars or Urban Assault.

[@cubeflinger]

I'm not sure the SJW world is ready for a strong male lead.

[@Icecastles4000]

@@cubeflinger if only there have been hundreds of strong male leads before hand 🤔🤔

[@wolfshade5020]

I hate that Disney retconned Kyle and other amazing characters

[@sethandseth2]

Regarding Jason Courts wine, I've had it and it's quite good. I love that the dude moved on entirely from acting and just does this one specific thing he loves

[@Cheepchipsable]

He could have been the next Jonathan Frakes!

[@Mazryonh]

Sure, selling good wine is steadier income than he would have made as an actor who isn't particularly famous. But I still wish he could have found his big break in a great sci-fi TV show or the like. He deserved more chances to shine than just this game.

[@0v_x0]

@@Mazryonh With Disney throwing anything Star Wars at the Sticky Wall, a Dark Forces/Jedi Outcast feature or series might become a thing. I wonder if he'd come out of retirement for that kinda budget... he's much older now but it seems a bit wrong for anyone else to play him. Would at least be cool to see the character show up at all, even briefly, but Disney doesn't seem to care much for expanded universe canon =\. Katarn would make a great Grey Jedi in later life I think, like that one dude in KOTOR (KOTOR 2? been well over a decade, I kinda want to replay those games except for all the grinding...)

[@Mazryonh]

@@0v_x0 I would love to see Jason Court reprise his role as Kyle Katarn. Though we may need a younger actor to portray him in his earlier days. Sadly, Disney largely ditched the original Expanded Universe canon, calling it "Star Wars: Legends" instead.

[@WTFisTingispingis]

Honestly based.

[@fonkyfesh-old]

I like how Katarn had absolutely no qualms about laying waste to 100's of stormtroopers in DF1 but now sort of has a conscience as a jedi

[@passingrando6457]

Yeah, that's one of the downsides of awakening one's force potential. Doing some shit that's normal for a non-Force user will start corrupting you through space magic. Kill an evil dude? A-Okay. Kill an evil dude in anger? Your own space magic starts turning you evil.

[@dannyboi5887]

@@passingrando6457 "I do not enjoy killing, but when done righteously it is a chore like any other" - Joshua Graham Basically the perfect summary for Jedi ethics

[@lucascoval828]

@@passingrando6457 That's Star Wars for you. There's people out there who unironically like that universe.

[@passingrando6457]

@@lucascoval828 Uh, yeah? I don't know what the point of your comment is supposed to be.

[@livingcorpse5664]

There's a fine line between justified killing in defense of oneself and others and just straight up revenge. That's the tricky thing about being a Jedi. When is it justice and when is it just murder? I do like that Yun remembers even Dark Jedi are supposed to have some (not a lot but some) sense of fair play and gives you a chance to have a fair fight against Sarris.

[@LaNoLaCola]

My introduction to Kyle Katarn was in the third game, Jedi Outcast. One of the first games I owned on the original Xbox, too. Now I can't wait for Civvie to review Jedi Outcast in 2 and half years later, and then Jedi Academy in 2057.

[@ld9950]

I can't wait till Civvie reviews F.E.A.R. in 2198. I will most ceartinly be dead by then, but i hope that somehow i can connect to my living offspring on this earth through possesing them or something, so i can enjoy the review.

[@Densiozo]

@@ld9950 FEAR was amazing. I did all the three games recently

[@csabaszabo6859]

I can't wait for the RTCW review in 2077

[@rogankane6901]

I'm still waiting for Civvie to review Quake 3 in 2098 and Quake 4 in 2122

[@keithrichmond4390]

Was also introduced to the Jedi Knight/Dark Forces series through Outcast. I hope he skips Mysteries of the Sith and goes strait into Jedi Knight II.

[@txcrix9236]

I've always felt Jedi Knight doesn't get the recognition it deserves. Going from pixelated sprites to polygonal models was so amazing to me back then. I was only 17 but that tech was still a pretty big thing at the time. Imho the live cutscenes were great and the level designs were excellent. The falling ship is one of my favorites. Tilting the entire map 45 degrees was ingenious.

[@MrDevious88]

Half Life definitely overshadowed it.

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

The time when every year had games that looked so much better than before and also played really great. The era between 1997 and 2007 where we went from Quake to Crysis, from "yeah, that is actually 3D" to "that is quite photorealistic". Sure afterwards there was still development, but that period did so much so fast.

[@Zontar82]

same here, and still amazes me

[@noop9k]

They promised “more polygons than Quake” and then we got this. But back then, despite sparse maps and bad polycounts, smooth enemy animations looked awesome. Those dying guys slowly crumbling to the floor.. Also, I think it ran better than Quake on non-Intel CPUs, but could be wrong. Same with Chasm: The Rift. Quake was like “Intel Pentium or GTFO”

[@kokojack]

@@noop9k Chasm wasn't real 3D tho, maps were 2D maze like with everything else in 3D, it was kind of wizardry

[@VasiliyOgniov]

Dude, Katarn was such a badass. He was single-handedly carrying the whole Rebellion, was a spy, a great gunner and a really charismatic son of a bitch

[@InuYugiHakusho]

He should've been in Rogue One.

[@mikecampos1193]

This guy did more harm than even the mandalorian in the show did.

[@scootza1]

Have you seen how magnificent the hair on his face and head is, especially when he got silver streaks in Jedi Outcast? Splooshhh

[@Silverflower351]

@@scootza1 i really had a crush on the dude when I was younger just saying 😅

[@VasiliyOgniov]

@@InuYugiHakusho 200%. He totally should have been there as a protagonist

[@LockeDemosthenes2]

Imo, this is the first Star Wars game that geniuenly felt like playing through a Star Wars movie. It's pure escapism and I love it. Also, the graphics don't look great now, but in the late 90s they were freaking mind blowing.

[@SLENDAMANN]

This game was absurdly ambitious for its time, and it did almost everything it attempted at least well enough to be enjoyable - which is more than can be said for the vast majority of games at the time.

[@InvestmentBankr]

yeah, the quake engine jk2 is trash - this game was the best.

[@MrLTiger]

No, even for the 90's the graphics were bad. Compare it to half-life 1 and you will see. I played this game as a teen and I finished it all the way, but even back then I found it was ugly. but the live action cutscenes were cool I guess

[@SLENDAMANN]

@@MrLTiger Half-Life came out 14 months after Dark Forces 2 - that was a goddamn eternity in the 90s.

[@handznet]

@@MrLTiger you was weirdo. That game was amazing for its time. Graphic was totally ok.

[@uthertheking]

8:22 I can't believe Cruelty Squad just lifted their whole artstyle from this.

[@GmodPlusWoW]

It's also giving me vibes of Vangers. Which is another weird-ass game that a certain cursed knight covered many years ago. (the one who became a secret boss in ULTRAKILL)

[@Dr.W.Krueger]

So this is why it looks like *ss. That or the devs are untalented clowns.

[@retroriven9740]

"Never skip hate day, especially when you're forced to skip leg day" Absolute genius line

[@feco91]

Vader took some notes.

[@saxxonpike]

I wasn't ready for this and had to pause the video to laugh it all out

[@KenshinMizuhara]

One of his all-time best I think

[@360patton]

@@feco91 Darth Maul was also a practitioner of this training routine.

[@mortichro]

maul in a nutshell

[@teranokitty]

For me, this game's best quality are the levels with huge arenas. This was the first Star Wars game that communicated huge areas like the top of an Imperial Tower as far as I remember.

[@pistool1]

Thanks for the video! I really liked the game and even completed it as a kid :D I don't remember whether I used cheats in some levels. However, the game was pretty entertaining around 2010 when I replayed it again on a modern system and without cheating. Yes, the thermal detonators were a pain and the sound fx design was pretty poor in my opinion, which is weird for a Lucasarts game. This was common complain in reviews, too. Anyways, pretty different game in the series compared to Dark Forces - as well as Jedi Outcast and the later sequels are quite different. I'm fond for the 1990s and that is why my favourite is the PSX port of Dark Forces which was my first Star Wars game.

[@LordShrub]

It was crazy how much you could force jump.

[@KenshinMizuhara]

The levels on the outside of The Imperial Palace are so big, even to this day, they're titanic in scale, especially even the stuff you can't technically get to. All that stuff you can see from atop the tower is real, it's all actually there. It's so fucking large for a stuff that isn't even play space. Very impressive stuff.

[@GeekMasterGames]

The most powerful beard in all of the Galaxy. As jerky as the game is, I logged hundreds of hours in this game just to feel like a Jedi. Thanks, Civvie.

[@tbone9474]

Hell yes! Even back then I felt the levels were stupidly convoluted, and the red sharks scared the piss out of child me but... gods damn it was amazing back then

[@pistool1]

So sad that they do not make fps games like this anymore - with epic cutscenes and vast single player levels.

[@adam1984pl]

You mean Chuck Norris.

[@michaelandreipalon359]

What about Obi-Wan's beard? Still more benevolent than Joruus C'baoth's.

[@phallen_1]

My fondest memories of this game involve using Force Pull to disarm stormtroopers and imperial officers. The stormtroopers would run around pretending to hold their guns and shouting orders at me, while the officers would switch to their non-aggro stance of arms folded behind their back, wandering around with their noses in the air like everything was under complete control.

[@ZuluRomeo]

It's even funnier in Mysteries of the Sith when you force-pull weapons from your fellow New Republic soldiers. They pause, then run around in panic screaming "WE'RE BEING OVERRUN!"

[@frederickhk4786]

@@ZuluRomeo In MotS sometimes they punch you

[@MajorFleshbang]

After I realised they can't pick their weapons up again this was all I did. Run into a room full of imperials, force pull all of their weapons, then proceed to slaughter then while they run around in panic. Like a true Jedi 😇

[@noinfo9130]

My first and pretty much only multiplayer experience was actually with JK Academy, force choke to lift someone off the ground, force push off a ledge, then ban because the fucking children that played it absolutely hated having their asses handed to them. Multiplayer gaming *never* changed, and is still a shitshow no matter what you play now. As for disarming stormies... not sure which game it was but there was a dismemberment mod, it didnt just take their gun away, youd legit rip their arms off. it was absolutely epic.

[@smithgdwg]

@@MajorFleshbang Yeah you would think you would get Dark Side points by unarming enemies then slaughtering them.

[@mrgabest]

The most succinct description of Kyle Katarn is that he's the Chuck Norris of the Star Wars universe. Then he gets force powers.

[@JettMann8]

They didn't take him out of the sequel trilogy, he was just too awesome to be included in that trash

[@kabob0077]

@@JettMann8 Disney didn't make the EU "Non Canon", Kyle Katarn foresaw what would become of Disney Star Wars and so kicked the CEO's asses until they separated the EU from Disney Wars to spare us the pain.

[@maximummatt73]

Little known fact: Chuck Norris was originally going to be in Star Wars. It was going to be called Skywalker: Texas Ranger

[@enshk79]

He's the Mary Sue before the Ultimate Mary Sue (ray).

[@GattToDaChoppa]

@@maximummatt73 take my like and gtfo

[@VaqueroCoyote]

I always loved the art of the pause and loading menus. They always felt very mythic and story-book like to me, like the ones with the old ancient temple looking drawings, the archaic Jed istatues in the loading screens and then the options menu showing the books with lightsaber parts scattered around. Love neat little personal touches like these.

[@UncleDeadly1031]

They were based on the aesthetic of the Tales of the Jedi Dark Horse comics, which you will love if you liked the menus.

[@adamdavis1737]

I'm sure it hasn't aged super well, but this is one of my all-time favorite Star wars games My friend and I would take turns playing it on his computer every afternoon

[@madmonty4761]

Whats your opinion on republic commando

[@DIEGhostfish]

@@madmonty4761 A vastly inferior shooter with worse inventory, spongy enemies, pitiful ammo supplies, and a disgracefully useless concussion rifle you only keep around for the stun bayonet.

[@moistloaf3854]

Was he a good kisser?

[@adamdavis1737]

@@moistloaf3854 no he wasn't

[@michaelandreipalon359]

Good points, DIEGhostfish, but I still adore it no matter what. I just get a nice kick out of storylines and gameplay filled bada**e Muggle spec ops in a magical fantasy universe, complete with gritty twists and unconventional music. That aside, good to see you here.

[@cc1912]

"The Franchise Cannibal Rodent..." "...Steamboat Wendigo..." Well ain't that the best allegory for Cancer Mouse as well.

[@pistool1]

Anyone else agree that Jan and the female jedi were hot? No, I don't think so either...

[@expendableround6186]

disnEA deserves to be crushed by the upcoming and inevitable Second Communist Revolution.

[@Sangheilitat117]

@@expendableround6186 I can’t wait for it, both corpos and commies are gonna skyline themselves and what happens next certainly will be glorious.

[@juliovictormanuelschaeffer8370]

Kyle Katarn will always be canon in my heart, along with Mara Jade.

[@FanofRvB]

Same here. This is why I was happy these two, along with Dash Rendar, were added to Galaxy of Heroes.

[@juliovictormanuelschaeffer8370]

@@FanofRvB that, puts a smile on my face. Star Wars still has some life into it🤓.

[@noinfo9130]

OG EU will always be canon. F*** the disney trainwreck and f*** their "f*** the authors of hundreds of novels and software titles, especially the authors of the bits we want to steal and shove together and pretend its a new story' attitude.

[@tio_john]

and me

[@juliovictormanuelschaeffer8370]

@@tio_john and you too, sir.

[@jamstonjulian6947]

Sounds crazy, but when I was a kid this game was more Star Wars to me than even the movies. It just had this incredibly epic atmosphere, helped of course by John Williams.

[@Archon3960]

The guy who did Kotor 1 & 2's music may be a good replacement for John now that he left the saga. What do you think?

[@SomeKindaSpy]

I'm with you there. It's what makes me mad that Katarn isn't in the new canon in any way and instead they shredded and split his character into three different people: Finn, Cassian Andor, and Kanan Jarrus.

[@juxstapo]

Nope, right with you. As much as I adore the OT, if I examine the deep recesses of mah noggin, I find that a massive amount of my internal Star Wars is actually old games, esp. these ones

[@bl687]

I go back to a time where I knew nothing about this game until the day I found it on the shelf of a local PC store. Managed to convince my parents to buy it for me. Brought it home and fiddled with our family PC until it was running relatively decently. Fired it up, and within 15 minutes, the star wars galaxy became instantly larger, darker, and full of infinite possibilities.

[@fauxcuss2]

Star wars is just better suited to games. One of the only reasons I hold Star Wars in such high regard is because of Star Wars: Episode 1 Racer.

[@comfylung]

"I don't indiscriminately use people, except Max." DEEP CUT, man. Like 8 people will get that one.

[@kinderbueno9018]

Sam and Max hit the road when Civvie

[@thecandlemaker1329]

Sam & Max aren't that obscure.

[@NerfPlayeR135]

@@thecandlemaker1329 Yes, but I believe it’s a reference to what happens if you repeatedly give commands to pick up unusable objects in Hit the Road.

[@abdelali9279]

@@thecandlemaker1329 had to read the thread to understand the joke

[@WayneManor666]

retro humor, nice

[@GasBandit]

I played this game when it came out. I still have deep nostalgia for that "falling starship" level. It was absolutely mindblowing in 97, yeah.

[@twoquickii1330]

I got so mad at that level. I believe I broke my mouse back in 98 playing this. And Jerec, holy shit... It took me forever to figure out the statues! It was a time when if you had a a Voodoo2 card you borrowed every game that supported Glide and 3DFX OpenGL from your friends. It didn't matter if they sucked, it was just fun to scale the graphics up and look at the walls. This game was definitely hard. I played it last year with all the tweaks to make it look identical, still so much fun.

[@bullseye8841]

The scope of the levels in this game are jaw-dropping at times, and that's not nostalgia talking. I played it for the first time 3 years ago and was stunned at the level size, and how much fun it was. I LOVE THIS GAME.

[@thejoin4687]

The level size underpins one of my favourite things about the game: a sense of adventure and journey. A good example is the level after you get the lightsaber; you travel through a series of canals, and you really feel like you're traveling over a distance (as opposed to running round a monster maze). The architecture feels massive and threatening. The rough, jagged look adds to rawness. I like Jedi II, but I never got the same kind of tension and awe.

[@pegasusactua2985]

Too big, making many of the environments a slog to get through. There needs to be a balance of encouraging exploration but also having good pacing.

[@kaspi001]

Also this is one of the few games in which finding all the secrets in a level has a direct impact on your progression.

[@dianabarnett6886]

If you want more Force power, you gotta get those secrets.

[@fi-fithedestroyer5871]

"I don't shoot the Innocent civilians, but only because I want to save ammo" Lawful Neutral

[@ZuluRomeo]

Good news! The lightsaber doesn't use ammo. 😜

[@PaladinDusty]

True Neutral. There was no concern for the law. The followed laws were incidental.

[@halhala2]

20:29 - The training remotes actually have shown up before, but it’s an optional encounter. Immediately after you get your lightsaber, there’s a switch in the room that summons one of those remotes to introduce you to the deflection and attack mechanics. Destroy one, and hit the switch again, it’ll make the remote faster. Repeat and it starts spawning more than one. I personally thought it was a clever, fun design choice.

[@michaelpeacock4228]

I know the lightsaber combat was more "refined" in the sequels, but I think the story concept of this game, the goofy FMV segments, and you really FELT like you were building Kyle up to being a Jedi, makes me more attached to this game. And why it has not been re-released is still a mystery to me! ... But that bridge level where you have to shoot down swarms of those damn insects, while maintaining your balance. White knuckle gaming!

[@CM-jc7gk]

10000%, getting that lightsaber is, to this day, one of the more genuinely epic-feeling moments I've experienced in a video game. Considering how limited the game actually was by the period's hardware & software, it was such a great balance in starting with the lightsaber as mainly a tool while still needing to rely on guns, to eventually cutting through Sith in Force combat.

[@Zontar82]

exactly, i never liked the nothingness of jedi academy

[@michaelandreipalon359]

Am still spoiled by the Prequel lightsaber combat though, especially in that Western sakuga form from Clone Wars 2003. We really need more traditionally animated lightsaber combat nowadays. Live action and animated works CGI just feels too slow for me.

[@btssilence]

"It reminds me of when Star Wars was fun." Oww, my childhood.

[@FrenchToasted1995]

i feel for you

[@TK2692]

Yep. I'm so glad I was transitioning out of childhood just as the prequels started to come out. It ended up making things so much simpler for me in the long run considering how much I loved Star Wars as a kid.

[@michaelandreipalon359]

It's still fun, you just only need to consume the old material, not unlike how people only played Blood and not Blood II.

[@Rockhard1492]

The thing I love about this game is the hammy acting, especially from Jerec. Truly a sight to behold. Definitely worth it to go and look up the cutscenes.

[@ZuluRomeo]

The Valley of the Jedi scenes are the most glorious, such as when he is in the heart of the Valley, holding a Jedi corpse and deeply inhaling the aroma like it was a Camembert factory

[@FaithyJo]

Katie and Civvie: that editing on the Big John scene was so on point!

[@MoonSpiritChannel]

Can't believe Kyle Katarn is no longer a thing this day and age. He was the best extended Star Wars character out there! I've played Jedi Outcast on numerous occasions and would do so again.

[@isaiahgarraway5568]

Considering the state of nu canon its probably for the best.

[@Zontar82]

@@isaiahgarraway5568 in my mind, the expanded universe (up to those games/comics era) it's all that there will ever be

[@efxnews4776]

Revan and Kreia take his place this days...

[@spenceduggs]

"I'm not interested in petty political squabbles." "Me either man, but I've got a comment section soooooo..." Few words have ever rung so true

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

ah yes, the negotiator

[@passingrando6457]

Counterpoint: Remember when Civvie made Trump jokes every third video? Yeah, I'd empathize, I hate politics (even ones I agree with) shoehorned into my entertainment, but Civvie sort of invited the hobo in and then got mad when he shit on the carpet.

[@friendlyoctopus3512]

"I cut him down like a tree in front of my hot neighbors window"......Thats quality

[@dontnubblemebro]

The warm apple pie line had me in stitches too

[@G0thCrayon]

I concur. If you think that I'm not going to integrate that line into a conversation in the near future, then I would highly suggest that you refrain from placing bets. [ Ticks off "Financial Advisor" on the list of professions that don't actually require any skills or certification to practice. ]

[@otakon17]

17:41 The reverence and fear you put on John Carmack is just shy of deification and i love it.

[@PalmliX]

This game actually looked a lot better without 3D acceleration back in the day, as like in other 3D games of that era (i.e. quake), the 3D acceleration turns the "pixel-art" textures into a blurry mess and ruins a lot of the fullbrights. The JkGFXmod is probably a better way to go than voodoo, as it fixes the menu issues among other things.

[@phyrr2]

Right? It's just like emulating old video games from roms and it looks TOO sharp. Because these games were meant for a different kind of display that blended the light. In this game's case, our old CRT monitors. Looked great on a Trinitron monitor!

[@mouthmw]

I disagree. Those games looked better with 3D acceleration, not only due to texture filtering (which was all the rage then) but also much better lighting effects (another rage besides filtering). BUT, the big thing here is, it looked great on CRT monitors. It looked better than software rendering, but all of that was on old CRT monitors. Oh and you couldn't really get great FPS on higher resolutions without 3D acceleration, so there's that as well.

[@MistaMaddog247]

@@mouthmw I agree, every PC gamer BITD used 3D accelleration to make games look better. The problem with texture filtering is the smoothing effect looked better on CRTs with lower resolutions and not so much on flatscreens with higher rezes. There's two solutions, one is to use HD texture mods to improve the graphics and look more modern or...turn off filtering all together for that classic 90's pixelated look. Disclaimer: I use GOG versions for old school graphics and mod Steam versions for remastered stuff.

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

@@MistaMaddog247 For Doom I go a bit of a middle ground. I keep anisotropic filtering active, but don't smooth any sprites or interpolate textures. Everything looks nice and crunchy, but on long hallways and other bigger surfaces there will be no moire and texture crawling. And for Unreal, I actually prefer playing in 640x480, despite the machine I play on being capable to run much higher resolutions. You can basically feel the pixels, but in a smooth way.

[@Dr.W.Krueger]

There is hardly anything "pixel art" about these textures. They were painted and photo-sourced at a higher resolution (2x in most cases) and then downscaled. They are a bit messy to begin with but they get the job done. Filtering a 64x64 texture was never pretty. But did we care back in the day? Most people didn't, because we could finally do primitive filtering in real time on consumer grade hardware.

[@Luciferkragoth]

"I haven't played mysteries of the sith" You will do... You will do...

[@Arbakos]

I won't rest until I see civvie suffer through those goddamned fucking cats in the last level.

[@joelm5509]

@@Arbakos Oh god those cats and those plants shooting those spikes. God damn those last 2 levels were hard and spooky.

[@gunsmithcat7542]

25:04 "You never skip hate day, especially when you're forced to skip leg day" GOOD one! LMAO!

[@Ogranium]

I’ve been praying for this episode for a long time now! So thankful for it.

[@kingawesome5219]

Praying for the other knight games

[@alexello1189]

11:03 this scene honestly sums up Star Wars for me. The Knick of time save, the ships, the odd but charming dialogue, it’s a swashbuckling adventure in space vibe.

[@thegreywanderer8427]

I played this game back in 1997 and it was a lot better back then. Me and my best friend would take turns playing it and the expansion too, we were big Star Wars fans and played all the X-Wing games, Dark Forces and Jedi Knight games. Good times.

[@GammaCatch]

IIRC I played Mechwarrior 2 and Tie-Fighter with the amazing Sidewinder 2 Joystick. Great times.

[@MattJerkhole]

Despite the janky gameplay, I'm impressed at how ambitious this was for the time and all the FMV sequences actually feel like proper lost media of that era of Star Wars. Dang.

[@Icecastles4000]

Kyle hot AS FUCK

[@barnebyoconnell8176]

Yeah it really felt like a proper addition the stories from the original trilogy. Similar plot points, similar narrative, similar aesthetics. All great.

[@HarriJokinen]

I wish there still were games with FMVs these days. I love their cheesiness and ambition

[@captainscience2732]

@@HarriJokinen Rogue State Revolution has them. It's a game where you play as the president in control a fictional Middle Eastern Country, and you're stuck in a time loop going back to inauguration day until you lead the country to prosperity.

[@HarriJokinen]

@@captainscience2732 Really?? I gotta check that one out!

[@LightningBoltForever]

It’s certainly not the best game out there, but definitely one of my favorites since a very young age. Being able to invest in Force Powers for the first time, playing multiplayer with my Dad. I’ll always have some great memories from this game

[@impronen]

Yeah probably. I haven’t played it since, well, when it was new and have really fond memories of being a Jedi for the first time and playing with friends at a LAN party. Now that I looked at it after 20 years, it does look quite horrible.

[@alkimos55]

Daaamn, I remember watching your playthrough of the game years ago! Good times.

[@jamstonjulian6947]

Hey LBF. I too fondly remember your playthrough of this.

[@ginaxxgodgames9573]

Elan Sleazebaggano: want to buy some death sticks? Obi-Wan: you don't want to sell me death sticks. You want to go home and rethink your name. Elan Sleazebaggano: 😧

[@deadwar2012]

I miss Kyle. As well as a lot of the old extended universe.

[@dallesamllhals9161]

Erh? You've lost it :-O How?

[@R77ification]

Kinda want to know how the death star plans went from Kyle to the inside of a coffee machine protected by a random resistance member.

[@michaelandreipalon359]

On a silver lining, at least we didn't get more muck-ups from Karen Traviss and Troy Denning.

[@DoctorProph3t]

This game was a part of my childhood, racing home after school to load up the pc, wait 20 minutes to load, get some noodles and cordial, devour it, then shove in disc one and play through til dinner time. Then disc 2.

[@kevinjohnston4923]

Those storm troopers looked so amazingly real when the game was released.

[@mateusfelipecardoso40kview3]

THIS black eye klingons are amazing This a reference to jedi out cast

[@duncancole1742]

Yeah, which I think was mostly down to the animation which still looks pretty good for the era.

[@hybralisk]

That fuel station level was what they had as the Demo for this game. They gave all the weapons, and some of the various force powers. Pretty cool stuff. I think it all ran on my ancient Pentium 1 100hmz 32mb ram computer... just not very well. I had to get some horrible video card that cost almost as much as I had to save up to get that computer. All back at the tender age of 15. XD so many good game demos back then. Gaming magazines were so cool since they came with such demo disks. A few I have still to this day, 10, 20, 30+ demos on each one! This Dark Forces 2 demo had to have it's own disk, and most of the game ran off it with barely anything installed. Fun times. Oh and over the years I kept playing this and Mysteries of the Sith on the various computers I owned. Every single one of the comps I played it on, they all looked better than what we have to deal with atm due to it not working well with Windows 10. Fingers crossed for it working on some new OS better. XD

[@dontomaso11]

I was 13 when I played the demo and that level is probably one of my most nostalgic inducing things. The greyness of the outdoor area in the beginning, combined with the audio atmosphere and the humming of your light sword. I guess the sounds nostalgia is a big part because the demo didn´t have the cd music, so it was just that ambience there. And the level just felt so sprawling, in a way that I hadn´t experience before. Still love this game, replay it every 5 or so years.

[@TheJuggtron]

Are you my clone? My P100 only had 16mb of ram :P

[@hybralisk]

@@dontomaso11 yes yes yes!!!! I remember this so well. I was completely lost when I first tried it. It took me many hours of wandering the dangerous and haunting areas. I would play midi music in the background sometimes. The Age of Empires demo had some super awesome tracks. Pretty unique too, check them out if you haven't! Oh and SEVENTH LEGION! Probably the best music for one of the worst games ever. XD

[@hybralisk]

@@TheJuggtron maybe. As you see, mine also started with 16mb of ram. I got that upgraded fast. Otherwise it wouldn't run most of the games I wanted to play on it, not very well anyway! I remember paying about $100 for the original system. It had a 1.2gb platter hd. That thing filled up so fast! I had to keep uninstalling games to install new ones. I forget if I could even upgrade the hd or add another, likely not as easily. The ram alone was something like $20+? The video card had to be closer to another $100. Thankfully, I think I ported that forward on a fancy new Pentium 2 rig i got a couple years down the road. :3

[@TheJuggtron]

@@hybralisk I've been on a Retro hardware binge the last few years so I still have my P100, albeit with a new motherboard, but i still have the same crappy video card, an SiS 6326. DF2 was the first hardware accelerated game i got going - went from 10/15 FPS to 30ish at 320*240 lol

[@Chozo_Ghost]

All I want in life is for this game to get either a proper remastering, or an engine mod that makes it behave on modern OS's, like what DarkXL did for the first Dark Forces

[@bjorntantau194]

There have been some attempts but they all fail at implementing the awful scripting engine because it has some weird bugs that need to be replicated and some level specific hacks you more or less have to brute force. The most interesting thing to come out for this game in recent years was the AI upscaled textures that even emitted light and had bump mapping and stuff. Quite impressive.

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

@@bjorntantau194 A bit like what GZDoom does I guess? You can have the crunchy sprites, but ged proper lighting, bloom, particle effects and even texture filtering for the level geometry. Just don't use filtering on the sprites or install that weird 3d model wad.

[@rrwholloway]

You have to remember, these are literally the first full motion video Star Wars created since Return of the Jedi.

[@MarcioMazur]

No, Rebel Assault 2 was the first post full motion video StarWars since RotJ in 1995. But Jedi Knight is a better and more famous game, of course, so people tend to forget Rebel Assault 2.

[@bjorntantau194]

​@@MarcioMazurWhich is strange since Rebel Assault was THE game that put CD ROM drives into everyone's computer. Before that people thought they were just a funny expensive curiosity. Pretty important piece of PC history.

[@Yora21]

There were also straight to video Ewok movies, I believe.

[@demonicaxeman7264]

No matter how weird and bizarre Dark Forces II is, it's still an amazing game and brings out the joy in Star Wars. I love everything about this game, even the names. I still wish it was 1997. The world was not ending and there is this awesome and weird expanded universe game.

[@MilitaryHistoryVisualized]

I think your Dark Forces video was the first one of your videos I saw.

[@Mattulaak]

Didn't know you were a fan of Civvie MHV!

[@MilitaryHistoryVisualized]

@@Mattulaak Sürprise ;)

[@ByTexas23]

This is the weirdest crossover i have ever seen

[@solus48]

The ultimate crossover

[@derlammergeier5287]

If Civvie ever covers the old Necrovision games, I would kill for you to have a voice addition in there.

[@SweetMints]

I remember saving up for this as a kid. My first big pc game purchase, I played the shit outta it. Such an amazing game.

[@wullahblack6452]

I would just say that when you go to play Jedi Knight 2: Jedi Outcast, make sure to go in the console and allow the full power of the GHOUL engine so you get the maximum amount of dismemberment.

[@Rammkommando]

Wait is that why I dont see limbs being chopped off like I remembered it?

[@wullahblack6452]

@@Rammkommando yea so from what I remember, it was either not enabled or was like super randomized when it happened. But if you enable it properly in the console, anything you slice is coming off. So when you start up and fight a bunch of stormtroopers, you can hack them all to bits.

[@dhoyft411]

This is true and was so damn cool at the time (and still is). I remember you didn't even have to swing your saber at them with this cheat on. You could just collide the saber's actual model into the enemies with your mouse movement and they'd be sliced up like butter.

[@stephencardone]

g_saberrealisticcombat 1, my first ever console command

[@thegodofalldragons]

@@wullahblack6452 Without the cheat, dying enemies sometimes lost a hand or an arm, but that was it.

[@WhisperingDeath]

This game was absolutely mind blowing in 1997. At the time Star Wars was really cool and exciting as it hadn't been polluted by either the prequels or Disney. The levels were large and the scripted sequences with ATSTs and TIE fighters impressed. The levels had some NPCs like bartenders and droids that gave it more life than other FPS games at the time which were just shooting galleries. Dark Forces 2, Fallout, and StarCraft were the 3 games that really seduced me into a lifetime of gaming. I guess you just had to be there to experience it in it's time.

[@tomcruiiseship9461]

This game was everything to me as a kid

[@RMMilitaryHistory]

Christopher Neame plays Jerec perhaps best remembered for starting in the UK Colditz series and Secret Army in the 70s. Cracking stuff.

[@ORLY911]

Skipped Mysteries of the Sith? You're passing up top tier agony with the last two levels of that expansion. For real though I still have flashbacks of those chimaera things and the sith mummies.

[@storerestore]

I have bad memories from clearing all those assholes out and then spending another hour trying to solve the puzzles.

[@adam1984pl]

I Couldnt beat demo version with one level in like whole week.When i got full game i stuck in level 2.

[@Chilicharger665]

@@adam1984pl SAME

[@marrvynswillames4975]

Protagonist killing hundreds of minions: ok Killing a single named enemy: now hes evil

[@shayneurban2460]

Outlaws cutscenes have a special place in my heart.

[@michaelandreipalon359]

Agreed. Brings into mind a 90s cartoon miniseries with A-listers.

[@JettMann8]

He played Kyle Katarn to perfection, and now he makes really good wine! I have had Jason's wine, and honestly it is very good. The guy is living a good life and I am happy for him

[@NoOne-fe3gc]

I feel bad for Katie on this one, having to go after sources to back up Civvies feverish rambles

[@TheHalogen131]

OOOOH SHIT! Can't wait for when you get to Jedi Academy in a year or so! But I'm going to enjoy this nonetheless. Also are there any plans for a Painkiller video? Love ya, Civvie!

[@swanky2202]

I mean I love Painkiller Black Edition but everything after is steeply downhill jank territory.

[@TheHalogen131]

@@swanky2202 Oh you are 100% correct. That's why I asked about a video, not a series :D

[@ORLY911]

@@swanky2202 Overdose is pretty decent just unusually hard for some reason, all the other "expansions" were pretty awful. Hell and Damnation is pretty good too even if it just a greatest hits of levels. Silly they tried to make it a sequel though.

[@thecandlemaker1329]

@@ORLY911 Overdose was great.

[@Bulbman123]

He has to do Outcast first, so maybe 2-3 years XD

[@StarsEndMusic]

Man oh man, one of my favourite games...ever. Coincidentally, I played it again myself recently for the first time in at least ten years (played it again and again in the late nineties though). I honestly have to say that while I do understand it shows its age in certain areas, to me this is classic LucasArts, classic PC gaming, and also classic Star Wars... Everything LucasArts did in its heyday is just gold for me -- Monkey Island, Day of the Tentacle, X-Wing, Tie Fighter, Dark Forces, and yeah, this one too. There was a passion there; a love for their craft, which their games oozed out of every pore. In my own replay, what still got me after all these years and after having been away from the game for so long, was the superb level design, the sheer vastness of a lot of the levels, the story and characters, and especially the undiluted Star Wars atmosphere of old. I remember waiting for the game's release back in the day and how it blew my mind; in '97, this was on another level, and while (of course) technically surpassed in the following years, I can still only recommend this one as a classic -- especially for Star Wars fans :-)

[@darrellduncan8737]

I don’t know what I enjoy more, when Civvie plays something I haven’t seen, or when he plays something I played myself and I get nostalgic over it

[@Luy22]

Rey learned how to wield a lightsaber by knowing how Kyle Katarn fought with one which explains her wild swinging

[@cybergames3436]

Considering Kyle was a stormtrooper, rectoactively his crappy technique can be explained by his experience with a riot baton.. so, technically Kyle katarn should be the only jedi who weilds a lightsaber like a baseball bat... maybe rey too considering she used a stick

[@B3anus]

Long have I waited for Civvie to cover the best Star Wars games

[@zigfaust]

Eh..... We all know that's KOTR2 but to each their own. My personal fav is Fallen Order.

[@KingLich451]

Jedi Academy

[@painkiller8639]

Someone who loves RPGs will probably go for KOTOR, those who like pure FPS/TPS arena like games will go for the battlefront series (OG or new), or the ones who love RTS, Empire At War (or Battlegrounds). There are so many games from different genres, or even from the same genre but quite different (Commandos is a FPS, but quite different from Battlefront or Jedi Knight series). Its quite hard to pin down the "best" star wars game, just the most popular if anything.

[@DIEGhostfish]

@@KingLich451 Worse shooting than this game, and that stupid "The force users can force push everything including the sound-and-plasma blasts of a conc rifle or repeater's conc alt-fire" shit infuriated me.

[@KingLich451]

@@DIEGhostfish yea it's probably meant for lightsaber battles mainly

[@GummyPants]

Even though I never made it that far in the game myself, I can tell Boc is the kind of dude who ran with scissors as a kid.

[@rcblazer]

Finally, the most badass character ever from Star Wars returns, and now he's got Force powers!

[@Dex99SS]

I SO miss the era where it was magical and amazing to load a demo of a game like this, and just be amazed by figuring your way through it all. You could spend days on a demo alone, learning the systems, controls, checking all of the AMAZING graphics out, the AI, the NPC's... today we look at it and can only see trash. But then... it was the future. It was fkn amazing. . . it was truly inspiring, bringing you to levels of happiness, intrigue, etc. Even bad games were good games back then, so long as they were innovating to ANY level at all. Which is why I now spend most of my fleeting free time watching KZbin videos on old retro items. It doesn't ever really manage to recapture the magic, but it reminds. And in this adult realm of endless disappointment and sadness, that's about as good as it'll ever get again...

[@junioraltamontent.7582]

The multiplayer is godlike. You can still LAN it pretty easily

[@BombsGaspan]

I burst out laughing at “Who runs Bartertown now, bitch?” 😂 Great video as always Civvie. I keep thinking I played this but nah , it’s just how similar a lot of the titles were: Star Wars Dark Jabba III, etc.

[@DIEGhostfish]

Fun fact, Jerec's high tech wizard tower over the city near Morgan Katarn's farm is on Sulon. The moon of Sullust, a major rebel/New Republic shipyard captured literally before even Endor.

[@lilsleep02]

Absolutely love your content man. This may be TMI, but I've been watching your videos since before I quit doing drugs, and your videos were there to keep me smiling through the process of getting sober. Your fucking awesome Civvie keep this shit up

[@justinturner3959]

Man, just want you to know, i appreciate you dude. We've had the same "gaming upbringing" somewhat, and i've discovered titles like Nightmare Reaper and Prodeus thanks to you and it gave me hope in the gaming industry in regards to indie games being where the quality is. I haven't even touched a AAA title since i started watching your channel. Hope your channel flourishes in 2022, keep that sweet spicy retro content coming man we appreciate it.

[@ZuluRomeo]

The fuel station level was used in the game’s demo version, in order to showcase the Force powers and lightsaber for prospective customers while not giving away too much of the plot. Unsurprisingly it’s the level I’ve played the most.

[@WayneManor666]

that game was fucking solid, i remember playing the fuel pump level demo like crazy, couple of weeks later i got it for christmas. I realy realy enjoyed it.

[@sophiaperennis2360]

This game has some of the best level design in a shooter ever.

[@pagb666]

Dis.

[@tomcruiiseship9461]

I agree. I played cod cold war yesterday and it sucks ass compared to this game. It doesn't even come close.

[@storerestore]

I disagree. At times it looks all right and the scale is epic. But it's not a game I remember for it's fun levels.

[@tomcruiiseship9461]

@@storerestore wellllll that is a interesting topic I guess ...... beacuse i can agree . It wasnt fun. But the fun was seeing the star wars universal that talented level creators made.

[@storerestore]

@@tomcruiiseship9461 Yeah, I still think it's a great game all in all...and the levels are still more fun than modern AAA titles. They trust the player with finding their way and the combat is great especially when you get your force speed. The cutscenes and the overall narrative sticks, too. Unlike Civvie I think, I have a soft spot for the physics in this game as well. I can't think of another FPS that does inertia like JK

[@reilly5436]

Still remember when my uncle got me this masterpiece when I was 6 years old. I'll always be grateful for those memories, such good times.

[@MalabarTheGreat]

I was around 8 or 9 when my cousin, out of the blue, came to my parents' to spend a few nights, and gifted me a sealed big box copy of the game. Nothing was ever the same, since. 💯🔥

[@TuiCatNZ]

I remember this being a really fun game back in the day. The multiple resolutions for menus and gameplay were never a problem on an old school crt monitor. I loved the huge levels. The main thing i didn't like was to get pionts towards force powers you had to find a lot of difficult secret areas/items in the maps.

[@Kubal-cain]

I just recently found this channel. It takes on video games are exactly what I had back in the day. This game was so Jank and hard to play I gave up on it four different times and have never returned. Jedi Knight 2 is amazing and Jedi Academy isn't bad either!

[@astrangewelshman8413]

I wish i remembered what black magic i performed to make this run well, have better models and not switch resolution every time a cutscene or menu shows up

[@vahlok1426]

Kyle is still my favorite Star Wars character. Disney, you can kill the extended universe, but you can't kill Kyle's godly beard!

[@Innomen]

"I cut him down like a tree blocking my hot neighbor's window." /my sides

[@waynesolo]

I LOVED this game as a teenager. I played it all the time and yes, even had the eponymous Mysteries of the Sith. Some great single player fan levels were made for it too. Great game.

[@Simmcal]

The sheer wish fulfillment of this game back then. It was like a dream come true. Plus it was 3D! A game in THREE dimensions! I even had an accompanying novel with art work in it.

[@JoeNovax]

This game was way ahead of it's time with it's level design. You had NPCs and in the level after you get the lightsaber and are introduced to stormtrooper enemies, you go through a whole city with a market, bar, and residences. There's a bar fight you can stop and civilians you can save from rampaging raiders. The saber combat was super basic where you would only use the secondary fire button since it did nearly twice the damage per swing then primary, it was more like jousting then sword combat online on msn zone.

[@impronen]

Jousting is exactly what it was! Running past the other guy and timing your strike so you’d land a hit.

[@hephesto555666]

Man the nostalgia, though the follow-ups were definitely better designed and built games. Still, for the time it was a great game with rather ridiculously large levels. Shame to hear it is such a hell to get it running again.

[@twoquickii1330]

There is a pretty good patch to get it all up and working well. If you buy this on steam, there is a thread in the community page that links to it. I re-played it last year for the first time since 98 and it's still damn special.

[@Rauscherklaus]

You don't know how long I've been looking forward to this civvie.

[@isenokami7810]

Hey Civvie, if you need some slavjank to cover, I’d recommend the Xenus trilogy (Boiling Point, White Gold: War in Paradise, and Precursors). Specifically in terms of the slavjank, that series is quite the case study as it just deteriorates and becomes more jank with each successive game. Boiling Point got backing by Atari, so that comes out as a pretty solid C game, whereas by Precursors you have the equivalent of some kids in a garage attempting to make Mass Effect. Plus, you need to be exposed to Saul Myers.

[@Pectabyte]

This and it’s expansion pack where the first online games I ever played and boy I tell you there has never ever been a community, modding scene, or fun like those early dial-up days. This game, and it’s expansion pack, are two of the greatest underrated hits ever made. It’s a shame he hasn’t played Mysteries of the Sith. It cleans up so many of the issues with the gameplay.

[@Valcien]

The modding scene was legit!

[@michaelandreipalon359]

Hope he does it, even as a companion piece to Jedi Outcast so to explain why Kyle is down in the doldrums with the Jedi and his Force affinity at that point.

[@DragonCrestPC]

I remember playing this right after launch when i was 11, such great memories. It took me almost a month to beat the game on normal, was quite a challenge.

[@landotucker]

This was one of my favourite games and you've thoroughly dismantled it. I still love you, Civvie. ❤

[@dontomaso11]

Yeah, this was probably my hardest civvie vid to go through, killing my nostalgia :(

[@passingrando6457]

@@dontomaso11 consider the alternative: Civvie is wrong, sucks at the game, and has forgiven much greater sins from games he's liked. It's happened before, and the fact that Civvie's popular doesn't make him right. Also, the comment about not liking to get into politics after he had to screech about Drumpf every third episode for a while rubs me the wrong way. Still love him, been subscribed since 2018, but he's human like everyone else, and can be myopic and an asshole sometimes like everyone else.

[@michaelandreipalon359]

Still waiting for Trump to get the Splinter Cell Fifth Freedom treatment though, if not the classic Epstein.

[@keitorajames]

I still have this on my Windows 95 PC and play through it once a year to feel alive again ❤️

[@jaroslawwasila8884]

That was a great game, a great story, great themes, great all rounder... never was there a game more deserving a remake...

[@Archon3960]

Maybe the Jedi Academy games... Kotor for sure. :/

[@guilhermebraga9773]

I agree for sure. I loved it in the 90’s, one of my favorites

[@ing_frantisek_mohykan]

there is no need for remake madafaka

[@jaroslawwasila8884]

@@ing_frantisek_mohykan oh yes it does, making it run on modern gpus is too much of a chore.

[@michaelandreipalon359]

Eh, just remaster it so to make it more friendly to Windows and make those otherwise good fan patches redundant. Also, multiplatform capability for Dark Forces I.

[@GuardianStriker]

I like how Civvie never used the secondary fire option on the thermal detonators, which were giving him trouble. The timed, bouncing feature does help escape those mistakes that would kill you.

[@toddhowarddd]

It doesnt really matter as the throwing arc and not having any feedback for how far they will be thrown makes them mostly useless unless you just like spam reloading quicksaves constantly... If anything it makes them more unreliable since you have even less control over where they explode which is already a problem since they dont do much splash damage in the first place... Like most of the weapons in the game... poorly balanced.

[@GuardianStriker]

@@toddhowarddd True, I forgot how weak and unpredictable they were. But still beats exploding yourself.

[@johnmccarron7066]

"You can't spoil non-canon..." Damn, that hurt me in ways I didn't think it could.

[@tadpolegaming4510]

Disney-shit isn't canon

[@johnmccarron7066]

@@tadpolegaming4510 He wasn't talking about Disney.

[@expendableround6186]

disnEA deserves to be crushed by the upcoming and inevitable Second Communist Revolution.

[@SuperMookles]

@@tadpolegaming4510 Lucas did a bang-up job of torpedoing the franchise long before Disney got their paws on it.

[@Chef_Alpo]

@@expendableround6186 why would they crush one of their own? Or is this referring to what they do after the mask is off and the useful idiots of various indentities are no longer necessary?

[@norman6422]

This game was my first FPS. Thanks for bringing back the good memories Civie

[@fireborn10]

I remember being 5 or 6 and watching my older brother and cousin playing this game on my grandfathers computer and then years later playing it myself. By far my most favourite star wars game of all time.

[@Nerry09]

Best game of my childhood by far, so many dreams and memories of this adventure with the badass Katarn.

[@Lirka_906]

This is one of my favorite games ever, and I still replay it every other year. It might definitely be nostalgia, but I much more prefer this game to the Outcast sequel. The music, shooting and jankyness of the cutscenes just remind me of old school star wars.

[@michaelandreipalon359]

Also the lack of *ugh* bloodkriffing Rodian disruptor snipers helps.