It's like an evil version of Mario Kart in the best way possible. It's very dated, but VERY fun. Playing with friends is 10x better.
While I've never beaten these games, I wouldn't feel complete if I hadn't wasted countless hours trying. You can't appreciate where we're at unless you know where we've come from. Don't get me wrong, these games aren't some old relic to be tolerated. They are rich, enjoyable, and well written. That said, you will want to punch your monitor... frequently. I recommend getting a notebook and taking notes. It helps.
If you like DOOM and you like Star Wars, you'll like this game. I still haven't beaten it, but it's fun to break out and play sometimes. It is built on the DOOM engine, which some people love and others hate, but at least you know exactly the sorts of graphics and maps you will get.
The story is fun, the game play is fun, and the art is fun. If this were a triple-A title, I would be a bit more critical, but Dust is very up-front about what it is. As such, the story and gameplay all fall within expectations, and you can just enjoy the fun fighting mechanics and good level design. It's a great game, and it doesn't take too long to beat, so I think it's a worthwhile experience.
Some games have done 2D to 3D toggling, allowing you to bypass certain 2D enemies, or discover secrets not visible in the 2D plane. While this game is similar to those, it was done in a uniquely creative way. The graphics make you yearn for more. If you've played Monument Valley, it is a similar experience, but Fez did it better in my opinion. The maps are designed well and make you want to explore and experiment.
All of the Jedi Knight games are awesome, but this one was the Zenith. Its gameplay got even better while not sacrificing the story. If you haven't played this game, do yourself a favor and make time. If you really want to enjoy it to its fullest though, you need to play these 2 games first: -- Jedi Knight Dark Forces 2 -- Jedi Knight Jedi Outcast 1 If you don't like older DOS games, you can just get the story from DF2 quickly by putting in the cheat code "JEDIWANNABE" It will make you invulnerable so you can quickly get the story and appreciate the complex maps. Jedi Outcast 1 looks almost as modern as Jedi Outcast 2, so there is no excuse not to play it through completely ;)
This game is all about the gameplay. The force abilities and puzzles requiring rapid use of those abilities are SOOO fun. So while the story is much weaker than the other Jedi Knight games, it is still an installment worthy of your time. This game is just fun, pure and simple. The lightsaber and force battles are difficult enough to frustrate you while still feeling like you have appropriate control (whereas Dark Forces II sometimes felt like your light saber strikes and blocks were a bit random).
Words like "creative" or "bizarre" pale in comparison to the experience you'll have here. They reinvented what side-scroller mechanics should be, and those innovations have lasting effects you can see in today's games. They were also into counterculture before it was cool (sorry hipsters). The odd references in this game still serve as inside jokes for my oldest friends. I highly recommend this game! (whereas the 3D installment that came after these 2 was largely a disappointment)
The gameplay is great, the graphics are awesome, but the story is a little weak. Rayman usually focused more on interesting characters (which they still do here) with an incredibly simple story. In this installment they tried to give it more of a story, and I think it detracted from the focus on the characters. That said, the story isn't bad, and the gameplay and design more than makes up for it, so it still gets full marks :-D
Fun graphics, great level design, creative game mechanics... we owe Rayman a debt of gratitude for elevating the standards for platforming games. I still enjoy playing this game today & it makes the more recent 2D installments in the Rayman franchise feel richer and full of history. P.S. the recent games (Origin & Legends) are also phenomenal.
