Another month, another remaster of a classic Star Wars game. Star Wars: Bounty Hunter does have the slightly easier task of following the Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection that came out back in March.
Well, how does this lovely 22-year-old game hold up in the modern era of shooters, and will there be a bounty put on Aspyr’s head by the end of this review?
Graphics and Gameplay
If you are familiar with Aspyr’s other remasters, you won’t expect this to be a revolutionary change from the original. The developer has touched up the visuals, but you won’t forget this is an over two-decade-old game now.
There are sharper textures and crisper resolution, with cutscenes receiving minimal touch-ups. The biggest issue people had with the original was the weak lighting, which made some sections impossible to see. Now, the lovely Jango Fett has a flashlight, which comes in handy on occasion, but as the overall brightness of the game has improved, you won’t need it too often.
The one thing for fans of the original that will go down a treat is that the original score and the voice acting remain untouched and hold up very well in the modern era, especially given some of the blunders modern games have made in this department.
In terms of the gameplay, well, there are some slight tweaks that make things easier for returning players. Scanning has been slowed down to make finding bounties in each of the worlds a little easier.
The biggest improvement comes to those playing on PC and PS5 and won’t be applicable to the other systems. As I was playing on PS5, I got to take advantage of the DualSense integration that has been applied here. For those on PS5, you will feel the resistance and rumble when using certain weapons thanks to the adaptive triggers, with each weapon behaving slightly differently.
As expected from a remaster for modern consoles, a whole new control scheme has been implemented, which aligns with the standard control scheme found in other third-person shooters.
From the first battle to the last, shooting is somewhat basic. Just use the lock-on mechanic, and you will get through most encounters pretty well, but the switching from enemy to enemy is a little finicky, so be aware of that.
Jango has all the weapons and gadgets that will keep you satisfied throughout this adventure. The bounty hunter’s dual blasters are coupled with an awesome jet pack to make each encounter fun and tactical. Do beware, though, as despite the blasters having infinite ammo, the jet pack does need some recharge time.
You also have limited ammo for the poison darts, an uncontrollable flamethrower, grenades, a whipcord for capturing bounties and Jango’s meaty fists. Throughout the game, you will also pick up blaster rifles and heavy guns to mix things up a bit.
Story
Set between Episodes I and II, the player is tasked with capturing the Dark Jedi Komari Vosa, under orders from Darth Tyranus, for the reward of five million credits. What ensues is a galaxy-spanning journey through several different Star Wars worlds, all brought to life relatively well, given the game’s age.
The way you progress through the game may annoy modern gamers as it is purely down to exploration and going into every nook and cranny of each level. The game doesn’t spoon-feed you info on where to go, which is refreshing nowadays. Levels feel organic, and progress is usually made through a small vent that Jango can cut, shimming along the edge of a platform, climbing a lift, or doing something else natural. If you do get lost, there are mid-mission checkpoints, so you can retrace your steps to a safe spot and take it from there.
The only major issue I had in the levels was that when I didn’t figure out where to go, the game would spawn more enemies, which would make me lose my place. It eventually got so frustrating that I had to shut the PS5 down and take a break for a while.
The other complaint I had with the levels was that due to this influx of enemies and the sporadic checkpointing, you could lose quite a lot of time replaying levels to get to the same point you were just in. As the game is not at all forgiving when it comes to its difficulty, you need to stay alert at all times or risk facing a long trek back to where you were.
Conclusion
If you come in expecting this game to measure up to modern third-person shooters, you will be bitterly disappointed. However, if you come in knowing that you will face some dated visuals and mechanics, then there is some fun to be had in this title.
As it is single-player only, you won’t have to worry about the iffy servers like you did with the Battlefront Collection, but you will have to deal with minimal direction, a janky camera, and sometimes frustrating gameplay.
If you can look past these shortcomings and pick this up on PS5 or PC, then it’s well worth it for any diehard Star Wars fan. If you are not super into Star Wars, then I don’t think this game does enough to warrant a purchase, in my opinion.
Developers: Aspyr, Lucasfilm Games
Publisher: Aspyr, Lucasfilm Games
Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series S/X, PC, Nintendo Switch
Release Date: 1st August 2024
