Star Wars: Dark Forces Remaster Review (Xbox Series X|S)

Nightdive Studios has rapidly fostered a reputation as something of a master within the realms of the retro remake lately. It's not hard to see why, with its fantastic revamps of System Shock and Quake 2 having recently received a ton of praise (including a big fat 10/10 from us for Quake 2). However, Star Wars: Dark Forces is a slightly different proposition.

As well-regarded as this 1995 FPS is, and as much as it's definitely very much still a cool concept that the Star Wars fan in us is excited to revisit, there's no doubt that it's a lesser experience than the likes of Quake 2 and the cyberpunk shenanigans of SHODAN et al. We're not saying it's a bad game, it is in fact perfect fodder for this sort of ground-up revamp, it's just that you should temper your expectations, as the core here is still very much the product of a time that's now far, far away.

Back in the mid-90s the rules of engagement for shooters were a little bit different than they are nowadays, you see. There was no need for massive amounts of setup, emotion or character-building, it was all about shooting stuff in the face without any questions, and getting into the shooting of said faces as quickly as possible was of the utmost importance. Dark Forces sticks resolutely to the designs of its time for the most part, funneling players through a series of fairly linear Star Wars levels (14 in total here) whilst offering a few side objectives to keep things interesting as you blast hordes of stormtroopers, bounty hunters, droids, and all manner of other recognisable foes from George Lucas' never-ending space mistake.

Even without the upgrade, then, this is still mindlessly entertaining stuff that, to its credit, gives players a level of freedom in how they explore its movie-precise locations which was uncommon back in the day. Now, through Nightdive's KEX engine, it's mindlessly entertaining stuff that looks and sounds the absolute business whilst serving up flawless 4K gameplay on Xbox consoles.

You most likely already know the drill with just how good this dev can make these retro shooters look and feel, and with Dark Forces the streak has continued. It's gloriously moreish stuff once it gets going, giving you all the Star Wars-specific guns and enemies you could possibly ask for, each one looking and sounding exactly as it should, before kicking you off on a 12 hour adventure that never takes its foot off the lightspeed pedal. Is it a pedal or a button? We can't remember.

In terms of upgrades, as usual Nightdive has thrown the kitchen sink at it, with 4K visuals, flawless framerates, carefully enhanced graphics, modernised controls, rumble support, new lighting and atmospherics. There are plenty of switches to toggle back and forth in the game's menus, allowing you to peel back layers and get the visuals back to their original '90s state, and you can also switch between updated sounds and the original music tracks.

The vault, which you'll slowly unlock as you play the game, is another nice addition which gives you access to treats such as promo materials and other bits and pieces from the making of the game, and it cannot be understated just how much the simple addition of things like controller rumble bring to the pew-pew party here. Giving each weapon its own rumble effect and recoil helps make the whole thing that little more modern and, alongside flawless performance, it makes for a classic slice of Star Wars FPS history - and one of the better Star Wars games overall if we're being honest - looking and sounding better than ever before.

If you're a Star Wars fan who has never played this one it's an easy recommendation, really. Nightdive Studios has done another top-notch job here and the game stands up well enough to modern scrutiny. Just don't expect something on the level of System Shock Remake, this is a much simpler affair. For everyone else, if you're in the market for yet another surprisingly well-appointed boomer shooter, goose-step right this way.