I went back for the Whiz-Bang Super edition of FU1 and the generously priced DLC for FU2, to see what extra life had been wrung from the formula before the series met its untimely end at the hands of Disney.

My big takeaway form playing the two games back-to-back was how much of an improvement to the engine was done for 2. It looks fantastic, it’s smooth to play, all your actions and abilities are more responsive. I maintain that overall it struggles to justify itself with its weak plot and dearth of content but the mechanical and graphical upgrade is pretty drastic.

You’d think this would translate to me enjoying the DLC content for the second game more. Nope. The costume selection was small and not very exciting compared to the broad range included in the final release of the first game—I especially liked the what-if kind of costumes, such as old Rebel Starkiller, or a take on what he’d look like in the CGI Clone Wars show. FU2 does have the Guybrush Threepwood costume, but that’s not even DLC, it’s in the base game. However, the PSP version of FU1 (maybe the Wii version too, not sure) is the only one that lets you play as Mara Jade, so for that and other reasons I slightly prefer it.

In addition, the Endor level seemed a bit… straightforward compared to the three bonus levels in FU1. A straight path with obvious challenges. It did however, have an awesome moment with Leia taking on the Jedi mantle in the absence of Luke, which I very much appreciated (read the Infinities comics for more of that!). FU1′s Tatooine and Hoth levels had a bit more going on, I feel, and the Jedi Temple level was the highlight of the bunch. Moody, climactic, and with huge rooms swarming with guys.

Releasing “ultimate editions” of games after the fact is a shady move, but even though it’s much rarer, the DLC for FU1 is priced so outrageously that if you want it it’s actually cheaper to get that version. FU2′s DLC is super cheap so it’s a much easier decision. It’s not essential to get these DLCs but I enjoyed them, and I enjoyed revisiting the HD versions after roaming through the many ports.