Star Wars: Jedi Knight

Star Wars: Jedi Knight is a series of first- and third-person shooter video games set in the fictional Star Wars expanded universe. The series focuses primarily on Kyle Katarn, a former Imperial officer who becomes a mercenary working for the Rebel Alliance, and later a Jedi and instructor at Luke Skywalker's Jedi Academy. While the first game is set a year after the events of A New Hope, the sequels take place in the decade following Return of the Jedi.

The Jedi Knight series began in 1995 with the release of Star Wars: Dark Forces for DOS, Macintosh, and PlayStation. This was followed in 1997 by Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II for Microsoft Windows, in which Katarn learns the ways of a Jedi. In 1998, Star Wars Jedi Knight: Mysteries of the Sith was released as an expansion pack for Dark Forces II, this time giving the player control of Mara Jade as well as Katarn. In 2002, Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast was released. Jedi Outcast was developed by Raven Software and powered by the id Tech 3 game engine. It was released for Windows, Mac, Xbox and GameCube. Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy followed in 2003 on Windows, Mac and Xbox. It was powered by the same game engine as its predecessor. Jedi Academy was the first game in the series where the player does not control Katarn at any point, although he is featured prominently in the storyline.

The games in the Jedi Knight series have received generally favorable reviews. Multiple publications have commented on the quality of the series as a whole. The use of the lightsaber in the series, a prominent gameplay element in all but the first game, has received specific praise for its implementation.

The Jedi Knight series is composed primarily of first/third-person shooter gameplay elements, with a number of variation on the norms of the genre within each game. All of the games use a level based system which contains a series of objectives that must be completed before the player can continue. From Dark Forces II onwards, the games have included lightsaber combat and the use of Force powers, which have been tweaked and modified as the series has progressed.

In the first game, Dark Forces, the focus is on combat against various creatures and characters from the Star Wars universe, and includes environmental puzzles and hazards, whilst following a central storyline outlined in mission briefings and cutscenes. For combat, the player may use fists, explosive land mines and thermal detonators, as well as blasters and other ranged weapons, with the gameplay leaning more towards ranged combat.

In Dark Forces II, the player has the option of a third-person view, plus an option to switch automatically to third-person when the lightsaber is the selected weapon. Three types of Force powers are introduced in this game: Light powers provide non violent advantages, Dark powers provide violent ones, while Neutral powers enhance athletic abilities. The game has two endings, depending on whether the player chooses to focus on the Light Side or the Dark Side.

Unlike its predecessor, Mysteries of the Sith has a single, morally positive course, as the player progresses through the game in a linear fashion. The game includes most of the enemies featured in Dark Forces II, plus some new monsters. The player has access to Force powers and projectile weapons such as a blaster or railgun, as well as a lightsaber.

Jedi Outcast's gameplay is similar to that of its predecessors, with some small additions, such as access to gun turrets, or the use of combos unique to each of the three lightsaber styles in the game; fast, medium and strong. As with Dark Forces II and Mysteries of the Sith, the use of Force powers is restricted by a "Force Meter", which depletes when the powers are used.