Reliving the Classics: Dark Forces

Mission 4 Imperial Weapons Research Facility

The lovely Jan Ors briefing you on your mission

The Imperial weapon designer did not give away much on interrogation. He did mention; however, the work he completed in a facility on the planet Fest. So, the next adventure for old Kyle Katarn is to infiltrate an Imperial weapons research facility and retrieve samples of metal the Empire has been testing and ex-fill on the Crow. Sounds simple right? (This is my attempt at foreshadowing)

Jan drops you off in a mountain range of white stone and from there you need to locate the base. I must give it to the game the sound effects makes you feel like you are in a vast cavern. There is this wind blowing effect that is really immersive. The graphics leave much to the imagination (I know I know its from 1995). Everything looks the same, so you already know you are going to get a little lost. Then.. there.. is.. jumping… Not a lot of platforming, but a couple of jumps. I plummeted to my death multiple times before I figured out which ways I was supposed to go. The mountains have the usual suspects of Stormtroopers and Imperial Navy Troopers sending atmospheric burning laser bolts at you. Once I made my way through the labyrinth of cliffs and imps I stumbled upon the imperial base.

Imperial Research Facility

Again this game does a really good job with the level design in respect to the imperial bases. The lights on the stairs and the monitors on the walls gives me that 70s sci-fi feel that I love. There is a series of vents you have to navigate where you come across those adorable mouse droids. As much as I love the design the level is beyond frustrating. You must backtrack a couple times and it is extremely easy to get lost. Most of the facility looks very similar so I ended up going to the same rooms over and over again. Full transparency here… I totally had to look up a walk-through on YouTube. Once I figured out how to get the key I was able to get to the lab where the metal was being stored. Hitting a combination of keys to move a platform to a door on a lower level, access the switch from that platform, then repeat 3x until you can grab the imperial metal sample. (a couple puzzles in this level to keep you on your toes) A new weapon is introduced in this level in the Imperial Repeater Rifle. Super quick and easy to mow down Stormtroopers with.

Peek-a-boo!

Once you are in possession of the sample you must make you way back to the Crow. This means navigating the very confusing level one more time until you get to a ledge for Jan to give you a ride. Overall, pretty frustrating level, but I still like it better than the sewage plant. That level haunts my dreams still.