New 'Star Wars' game goes to the dark side

Remember that sense of wonder you felt the first time you saw "Star Wars"? Me neither.

Oh, sure, it was fun, but nothing to inspire the kind of devotion it's gathered over the years. Its thin, derivative mythology just doesn't bear up under the weight of all the junk — the prequels, the cartoons, the books, the action figures — that has accumulated over the years.

By and large, I can live without "Star Wars" video games, too. With a few exceptions — "Knights of the Old Republic," "Lego Star Wars" — games based in George Lucas' faraway galaxy have been disappointing. There are far better science-fiction games out there, such as "Mass Effect" and "BioShock," but they're easily outnumbered by uninspired "Star Wars" titles.

LucasArts has been building up the hype for its latest game for months, promising that this one would get it right. Then again, Lucas promised the same thing with "Revenge of the Sith."

The main selling point of "Star Wars: The Force Unleashed" (LucasArts, for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, $59.99; Wii, $49.99; PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, $39.99; DS, $34.99; HH 1/2 out of four) is that it lets you play the bad guy. The villain is Darth Vader's "secret apprentice," and his job is to hunt down the last of the Jedi. The missions take you to a variety of exotic planets where you'll fight against rebels and Imperial forces alike.

You can cut a swath of destruction with your light saber alone, but it's more fun to use your Force powers. You can send enemies flying with a Force push or grab them and throw them at each other. You can zap them with lightning bolts or shock waves. And when you come face to face with a larger foe, you have to figure out how to effectively mix your Force abilities.

The story takes place between the third and fourth episodes of "Star Wars," and it doesn't have much for the nonfan to chew on. "TFU" also is marred by some technical problems, such as bland level design, awkward camera angles and inconsistent targeting, which makes it hard to pick up and heave specific objects. And some of the fighting, whether against hordes of Wookiies or just a single big boss, gets tedious. Still, "TFU" is entertaining for most of its eight-hour length; it's just not the revolutionary title that will win over "Star Wars" skeptics.

--''Too Human" (Microsoft, for the Xbox 360, $59.99; H 1/2 out of four): This epic from "Eternal Darkness" developer Silicon Knights has some serious issues. After nearly a decade in development, it's kind of a mess, but it gets points for originality. The concept: The Norse gods are trying to protect humanity from destruction at the hands of the trickster Loki. Except the gods, who may be just humans with superpowers, are all cybernetically enhanced, and Loki's minions are robots.

At least, that's what I learned from the company Web site. The story is presented in such a haphazard fashion that it's nearly impossible to guess what you're fighting for. You are Baldur, one of the gods, and all you really need to know is that you're supposed to kill robots. You can get up close and use swords and hammers, or you can try to pick off enemies with gunfire, which is also nearly impossible, thanks to an awful targeting system.

"Too Human" bounces among waves of mayhem, mildly challenging puzzles and tiresome cut scenes with your fellow gods.

It never really picks up momentum during its first eight hours or so, and it ends shortly after with a cliffhanger leading into "Too Human II." This initial installment has some promising if poorly executed ideas; I'm hoping Silicon Knights does better with the inevitable sequel.

--'The Last Guy" (Sony, for PlayStation 3, $10; HH out of four): Sometimes a simpler concept is better. In "The Last Guy," a mysterious beam from outer space has turned most of humanity into zombies. Your job is to drop into various cities and rescue the few surviving humans.

Each level takes place on a satellite map of a real U.S. city, and you have to rescue a certain number of people before a time limit expires. Any humans you find will follow you back to an escape point although they'll scatter if they see a zombie approaching.

It's like a combination of "Pac-Man" and "I Am Legend," a silly yet oddly addictive brain teaser.