If you’re accustomed to Aspyr’s current output of remasters, then you definately received’t be shocked to be taught that the Star Wars: Bounty Hunter remaster doesn’t do a lot to go above and past these earlier efforts. It is a mild touch-up that polishes the visuals and tidies up the digital camera controls a bit, leaving the entire different 2002 jank intact. Fortunately, they didn’t screw up as a lot right here as they did with Battlefront Traditional Assortment’s multiplayer servers; as there is no such thing as a multiplayer to be present in Star Wars: Bounty Hunter. It is a purely single-player affair, starring Jango Fett and his adventures main as much as the occasions of Assault of the Clones. The gameplay consists of third-person capturing as you jetpack your means by way of completely different places all through the Star Wars galaxy. We’ll discuss all about amassing bounties and Jango’s arsenal of instruments after going over all of the additions that Aspyr has made to fairly up this 22-year-old recreation.
Visually, Bounty Hunter appears a lot better on this remaster than it ever has earlier than. As anticipated, Aspyr has touched up the decision to match trendy screens with sharp textures and crisp decision. As a result of this isn’t emulated, however quite a local port utilizing Gamecube supply code, cutscenes solely get a partial graphical enchancment in comparison with the extra constant high-res textures discovered within the gameplay sections. Lighting was an issue with the unique recreation, and fortunately this remaster provides a brand new flashlight to Jango’s repertoire. You received’t be utilizing the flashlight too typically, although, contemplating the brand new lighting system they’ve applied illuminates the numerous nooks and crannies properly sufficient by itself. One other neat improve is a slow-down throughout scanning. Scanning was downright hectic within the authentic model, as you’d typically be in the midst of a tense firefight whereas choosing out your bounty, so it’s good this remaster treatments {that a} bit by slowing all the pieces down a notch as quickly as you scan. On the sound entrance, Jeremy Soule’s authentic rating hasn’t been touched up in anyway and the voices are precisely the identical as they’ve all the time been.
“This remaster consists of each the Legacy and the Trendy management scheme, the latter making use of the PS5’s DuelSense rumble capabilities.”
This remaster extremely favors the PS5 and PC platforms over Xbox and Swap due to its integration with DuelSense and keyboard/mouse performance. Should you’re enjoying on PS5, now you can really feel the resistance and rumble of your weapons by way of the adaptive triggers. Completely different weapons function various levels of rumble as properly, with the heavy repeaters and rockets inflicting your controller to vibrate like loopy. As anticipated, this new emphasis on the shoulder triggers necessitates a brand new management scheme. This remaster consists of the ‘trendy’ management scheme for all platforms, following typical third-person-shooter controls from the final decade. PC gamers lastly get devoted mouse and keyboard optimization for the primary time with this remaster, so no less than aiming will likely be considerably improved on PC.
Oh, and the brand new trophies and achievements added for this explicit remaster get unlocked at a really good tempo. Each chapter grants you a silver trophy/achievement and fundamental milestones doll out trophies at a pleasant tempo as properly. As such, Star Wars: Bounty Hunter remastered makes for a super recreation to ‘platinum’ and get each final achievement for. Oh, and no, you may’t earn trophies/achievements by simply inputting the extent skip cheat codes. However fortunately, all of the codes from the PS4/Xbox One Bounty Hunter port stay right here intact. So, for those who ever get caught on a very annoying degree or wish to try the entire idea artwork and secrets and techniques, you may nonetheless use these codes to take action.
Total, these remaster touch-ups aren’t game-changing. The 22-year-old recreation positive wanted the graphical cleanup, sure, however the DuelSense bells and whistles and trendy management scheme fulfill extra of a decorative enchancment than a considerable one. What Star Wars: Bounty Hunter deserves is a full-on remake. Jango’s origin story is full of enjoyable characters and wealthy locales, and the premise of enjoying as a bounty hunter throughout the Star Wars universe stays ripe with potential to today. However alas, this recreation’s underlying design is suffering from early 3D environmental points and enemy encounter woes, one thing a full-on remake might have addressed extra completely.
Every thing from right here on within the overview addresses the mechanics and design inherent within the authentic 2002 Star Wars: Bounty Hunter. Contemplating that that is an older recreation, I’ll be as honest as I can; there’s solely a lot a light-weight remaster can enhance.
“Locking onto targets is most well-liked, although it will probably get janky as you soar round a sea of enemies.”
As you drop into the opening chapter’s area battle, you’ll rapidly discover the very fundamental capturing controls. Locking on is commonly your greatest wager in most fight conditions, contemplating the chaotic digital camera and sheer variety of enemies on display. Whereas the lock-on targets foes precisely, transferring on to the closest enemy can generally result in some very janky moments. I’ve had a number of situations of the lock-on looking out maniacally for the subsequent goal, ensuing within the display spinning and chopping away abruptly. Equally, locking onto enemies whereas rolling and utilizing the jetpack could cause the digital camera to chop violently, typically resulting in a dying. Fortunately, this remaster provides digital camera sensitivity, however the binary sensitivity meter can solely accomplish that a lot when the digital camera itself isn’t constructed for precision.
Jango’s gear contains a reasonably good number of instruments helpful for any bounty hunter. His iconic duel blasters make up the vast majority of gameplay due to the excellent charge of fireside and infinite ammo. Coupled along with his duel blasters, Jango’s jetpack is the opposite star of the present right here. It’s a variety of enjoyable simply flying across the environments and capturing at foes from above. Positive, the jetpack has a cooldown and you may’t concurrently fly vertically and horizontally, nevertheless it’s good outdated janky enjoyable. The remainder of Jango’s combative repertoire contains close-range fists, single-hit poisonous darts with restricted ammo, an unwieldy flamethrower, a whipcord for capturing bounties, and a set of grenades with a really quick throwing arc. You additionally choose up limited-time weapons like blaster rifles and heavy weapons, although these are few and much between all through the degrees.
“Switching between weapons is usually a chore as a result of similar weapons wheel from 2002. The remaster sadly doesn’t add the power to hotkey weapon mixtures.”
I’ve all the time appreciated the vary of weapons in Bounty Hunter, although the remaster nonetheless hasn’t discovered a technique to make switching between the various arsenal simpler. The one technique to rapidly change particular weapons is with the final weapon used button. To arrange this last-weapon-used ‘hotkey’, you should navigate the cumbersome weapon choose display, requiring a separate pause and scroll course of. Bounty Hunter very significantly wants devoted hotkeys between weapons. On the very least, the remaster might have applied customized loadouts to make switching between weapons mid-fight smoother and quicker, nevertheless it stays unchanged from the unique.
Star Wars: Bounty Hunter is a really fast-paced recreation, so I wouldn’t blame anybody for simply sticking to the essential duel blaster weapon by way of most of it. In any case, giant enemy waves operate as one of many major development gates within the recreation. These enemy waves aren’t all that fascinating both. Just about all enemies within the recreation simply shoot at Jango or have interaction in close-range pummeling, forcing the participant to only spam the shoot button to mow them down. This wave-based development will get repetitive quick, with little or no selection in fight ways. Sure, it’s typically inspired to make use of the flamethrower to rapidly dispatch close-range mobs or to lob grenades at mobs beneath you, however as a result of lack of hotkeys and the restricted enemy varieties, the quickest means by way of any battle often consists of spamming your duel blaster at foes. Enemies spawn at a quick charge, making the sport artificially troublesome and laborious to get by way of. You possibly can return to an space 30 seconds after leaving it to search out it swarming with a recent mob of the identical enemies. Half of Bounty Hunter’s gameplay might be recognized as a button-mash shooter, so let’s speak about its different half, lets?
“You’ll typically have to make use of your torch to chop open vents resulting in the place that you must go.”
The opposite technique to progress by way of ranges in Bounty Hunter is nice outdated exploration. Jango has a chopping torch that opens up entry to small vents and sewers, which frequently result in the subsequent space that you must go. To the sport’s credit score, ranges really feel very natural in the way in which they’re laid out. The best way ahead is commonly an obscure edge it’s important to shimmy throughout or an unmarked platform a layer beneath your present place. Sadly, this unmarked natural degree structure typically results in unbelievable confusion about the place to go subsequent. There’s little or no indication of the place to go, with nondescript blast doorways amongst a hallway of unmarked doorways typically being the one means ahead. You possibly can work together with elevator lifts and console buttons that open doorways all through the sport, however once more, these interactive parts haven’t any indicators cluing the participant they are often interacted with within the first place. All of that is made worse by the truth that there’s nonetheless no minimap on this recreation. I like me some good natural degree design, however the sheer prevalence of similar-looking doorways and the dearth of highlighted objects causes confusion and irritation.
Fortunately, for those who do lose your means and get misplaced, mid-mission checkpoints exist all through the degrees. There’s usually two or three checkpoints per degree, however some are positioned a bit too removed from each other, as is the case with the asteroid jail break degree. Ranges like this require you to undergo a number of giant rooms crammed to the brim with cells flowing with inmate/police mobs. Should you take too lengthy determining the place to go within the room, new mobs begin spawning and also you’ll should kill them repeatedly. The absurd spawn charge in some areas along with poor degree steerage and spread-out checkpoints simply makes the sport a drag to undergo. Different ranges just like the Coruscant chapter have a extra measured unfold of enemies, permitting you to discover the atmosphere and scan civilians for bounties with out a lot irritant. Total, the extent design misses greater than it hits.
“The story is surprisingly good right here, with top-notch voice performing and brilliantly directed cutscenes.”
In contrast to the gameplay, I can solely say optimistic issues in regards to the story of Bounty Hunter. The voice performing is great, barring just a few awkward line deliveries right here and there. Temuera Morrison reprises his position as Jango Fett from Assault of the Clones and performs it flawlessly. Likewise, all of the supporting solid and villains are excellently portrayed. Jango’s characterization, specifically, is properly realized right here, thanks largely to his banter along with his Toydarian informant Rozatta. The plot strikes at a constant tempo with cutscenes occurring in between each degree within the recreation, and so they’re all splendidly shot, offering a satisfying reward after an annoying degree. And though, this story isn’t technically ‘canon’ anymore, the backstory on how Jango acquired his Slave I ship and have become the prototype for the clone military is properly advised and intriguing all through.
This 2024 remaster of Star Wars: Bounty Hunter is the definitive technique to play the 2002 basic, although Aspyr might’ve accomplished extra to focus on the sport’s strengths. No matter its shortcomings, Bounty Hunter nonetheless offers basic early 2000s enjoyable and loads of Star Wars environment to fulfill any fan.
This recreation was reviewed on the PlayStation 5.
