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Adapted from Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for audio. This HearLore entry is also licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

— Ch. 1 · Nine Months Of Production —

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II.

~4 min read · Ch. 1 of 6
Production for Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II transpired over an approximate period of nine months. This tight schedule created significant pressure on the development team at LucasArts. Writer Haden Blackman received only three weeks to write the game's script. He sought influence from Darksiders, released in 2010, and other video games such as Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, which came out in 2009. Blackman also looked to Heavy Rain, a title released in 2010, for dialogue inspiration. The main protagonist Starkiller was initially intended to be replaced with a new lead character. Such plans never materialized as LucasArts opted to develop more backstory for the existing character instead. The team traveled to the headquarters of Lucasfilm in San Francisco, California to give an overview of their plans. They sat down with licensing officials to get feedback on what they wanted to do.

Engine Upgrades And Physics

The Force Unleashed II derives from LucasArts' Ronin 2.0 game engine, an update to a similarly named proprietary game engine used by its predecessor. Like The Force Unleashed, the game integrates three third-party technologies. Havok handles varying types of body physics such as ragdoll animation. NaturalMotion's Euphoria provides realistic non-player character artificial intelligence. Digital Molecular Matter creates dynamic destructible objects. Dmitry Andreev devised a framing system that gave the illusion of operating at 60 frames per second despite running at 30FPS. To familiarize himself with the process, Andreev observed various 120 Hz television sets that incorporated two frames in producing an intermediate image. He constructed a prototype that performed several enhancement techniques which examined images for vectors that demonstrated how elements of the image would move from one frame to the next. The game is AMD Eyefinity validated and features new skins for Force powers that appear in The Force Unleashed.

Clone Identity Crisis

At an Imperial facility on the planet Kamino, Darth Vader observes the training of a clone of his former apprentice Starkiller. The clone experiences various memories and visions of Starkiller's life. He is unable to strike down a droid impersonating Starkiller's love interest, Juno Eclipse. Vader labels the clone a failure in his quest to create a perfect apprentice. The clone remembers Vader's betrayal of Starkiller and realizes Vader will try to have him killed as well. He makes his escape by stealing Vader's TIE Fighter. The clone leaves in an attempt to understand his identity and escape Vader's influence. Meanwhile, Vader hires the bounty hunter Boba Fett to capture Juno to lure the clone back to him. Starkiller arrives on the Imperial-controlled planet Cato Neimoidia to rescue Rahm Kota. Kota is being forced to fight in a gladiatorial arena by the planet's ruler, Baron Merillion Tarko. Tarko quickly becomes distrustful of Starkiller and orders his men to kill him.

Voice Cast And Performance

Sam Witwer returns to provide both the likeness and voice of Starkiller, the game's protagonist. He also voices Emperor Palpatine having earned the part during a read-through of the script during development. Witwer petitioned David Collins, voice of PR0XY and audio lead for the game. He told Collins that if he was not going to get Ian McDiarmid to do this role, he would take it himself. Actress and model Nathalie Cox reprises her role as Juno Eclipse. Cully Fredrickson plays General Rahm Kota. Matt Sloan portrays Darth Vader in the webseries Chad Vader: Day Shift Manager and voices Vader in the original The Force Unleashed. Veteran Star Wars: The Clone Wars voice actors Tom Kane and Dee Bradley Baker are also included amongst the cast. Kane voices Jedi Master Yoda, a role he has provided several times within the Star Wars franchise. Baker voices bounty hunter Boba Fett, a clone and adopted son of Jango Fett. Baker provides the voice of all of the clone troopers in the Clone Wars series, of which Boba is one.

Mixed Sales And Reviews

The Force Unleashed II performed under expectations. In the United States, it sold 500,000 copies within its first two weeks. It became the fifth best-selling video game of October 2010. The game was the fifth-highest selling game of the week in the United Kingdom, denoting sales of 56,064 copies. In Sweden, The Force Unleashed II was the third best-selling overall game of the week. Commentators were divided on the title. The Observer columnist Toby Moses avouched that the game failed to live up to the expectations established by its predecessor. Alexander Sliwinski of Joystiq derided it as a desperate cash grab. He stated it had no intentions to be nearly as epic as The Force Unleashed. Anthony Gallegos of IGN gave the game a 6.5 out of 10 rating review. He noted the visuals immediately captivate the audience but are plagued with repetitious gameplay. Game Informer Andrew Reiner said the game's mechanics are more fluid than the first game's and praised the textures and animations.

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Common questions

When was Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II released?

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II was released in October 2010. It became the fifth best-selling video game of that month.

Who wrote the script for Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II?

Writer Haden Blackman received only three weeks to write the game's script. He sought influence from Darksiders and other video games such as Uncharted 2: Among Thieves which came out in 2009.

What technology does Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II use for physics?

Havok handles varying types of body physics such as ragdoll animation within the game engine. NaturalMotion's Euphoria provides realistic non-player character artificial intelligence while Digital Molecular Matter creates dynamic destructible objects.

Which voice actor plays Darth Vader in Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II?

Matt Sloan portrays Darth Vader in the webseries Chad Vader: Day Shift Manager and voices Vader in the original The Force Unleashed. Tom Kane voices Jedi Master Yoda and Dee Bradley Baker voices bounty hunter Boba Fett.

How many copies did Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II sell in its first two weeks?

In the United States, it sold 500,000 copies within its first two weeks. It became the fifth best-selling video game of October 2010.

See all questions about Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II →

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