There was a lot wrong with Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2, and one of the big causes may have been Starkiller's popularity. The sequel to the first Force Unleashed game was heavily criticized at release for its short completion time and its convoluted story. It’s a shame because, as a concept, The Force Unleashed had tremendous franchise potential. The experience of pushing the use of the Force to spectacular heights was thrilling, and being able to do that with various characters in well-told stories would’ve provided an excellent base for future games.
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed was a huge success for LucasArts and one of the most popular Star Wars games ever made at the time, unhindered by the problem of Star Wars saturation which some of the newer games may be beginning to face. The first game sold extremely well, buoyed, no doubt, by it being the first true next-gen Star Wars video game, having released on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in 2008. One of the critical parts of the game’s success was the story, at which Starkiller was the center. The character returned for a sequel, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2, but the results were less successful.
YouTuber Star Wars gaming moments, The Force Unleashed 2 was released to mixed and negative reviews and, according to GameSpot, sold only about 500,000 copies in its first two weeks.
Starkiller Wasn’t Supposed To Be In Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2
Matt McMuscles also points out that Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2 was initially going to focus on a different character. This makes sense because of Starkiller’s tragic fate at the end of the first game. Yoda had ostensibly even been mooted as a potential protagonist, although it's unclear if that concept would've translated well to a sequel. In any case, LucasArts apparently requested that the sequel feature Starkiller as the protagonist, as a great deal of money was spent marketing the character for the first game.
To this day, Starkiller remains a fan favorite and one of the best Jedi characters introduced in Star Wars video games. It’s possible the character may eventually make his debut in the new Star Wars Canon since Rahm Kota seems to have been confirmed to exist thanks to the Obi-Wan Kenobi series. For now, however, the hero of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2 remains a legend.
Sources: GameSpot, Matt McMuscles
