I documented my disappointment when I played this sequel on PS3. My main complaint was a rushed feeling, with a smaller scope and breadth of content than the first game. The Wii version of the sequel is even briefer, but I felt better disposed towards it while playing; maybe it was that my expectations had already been lowered.

It does certainly aim lower, with smaller environments and shorter levels (and much worse graphics, obviously). Perhaps ironically, by cutting filler and moving along quickly, it wasn’t so obvious that there was less going on than the first game. There’s fewer tedious QTEs, and using motion waggles for them and for using force powers helps them feel satisfying. This is a power fantasy of being an uber Jedi badass, after all.

If any setpieces were cut outright from the HD version I didn’t miss them, and in fact a few bits and bobs were added to this version by Red Fly, such as Baron Tarko’s private gardens or making Dagobah into an actual level instead of a cutscene. There’s also a pseudo-Smash-like 2D platforming/fighting multiplayer mode in this version, a nifty addition. Oh and your health regenerates on its own, which is nice.

The plot is still as dumb as ever, but it’s a tad more ambiguous on whether Starkiller is a clone or not, for whatever that’s worth. The game still feels like an unnecessary sequel, dangling cliffhanger hook and all… but now that I knew what to expect, it was less angering and more amusing, especially with the derpy cutscene facial expressions. Juno is still a damsel, Kota is still strangely pushy, and our protagonist is still a thick slice of bland between white bread, but it’s fine. It doesn’t matter.

I enjoyed playing this game, but it’s already passing through me. It probably shouldn’t have been made. It was, and it’s competent, and I was much less aggravated than I was at the HD version… maybe time has made me feel that the Force Unleashed sequel project is “OK”, and this… might… be the best way to experience it? There you go, the most qualified endorsement ever.