LucasArts announced, after keeping mum for months despite a few waves of rumors, that its Star Wars: The Force Unleashed game will be specially programmed for the Wii to support the Wii Remote as a lightsaber controller. The game will also have an emphasis on lightsaber combat via an exclusive duel mode, which is to allow players to face off in head-to-head matches using Wii Remotes to control the movements of lightsabers in the game.
"The Wii is a great platform for The Force Unleashed, because the console's motion-oriented controllers really bring the game to life. We've worked hard to make the Wii version of the game unique in order to truly let you unleash the Force," said Jim Ward, President of LucasArts.
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed is set in the era between Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith and Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope. The players are cast as Darth Vader's ‘Secret Apprentice’ with the mission to rid the universe of Jedi Knights. Allegedly, the game is to give players Force powers in four basic categories: grip (which lets you telekinetically manipulate objects or enemies), push, lightning and repulse (a 360-degree Force push all around the player). These powers develop over the course of the game through usage.
While wielding the Wiimote as a lightsaber, the player is able to brandish the Nunchuk in your other hand and use it to activate Force powers on enemies. One can probably expect the Wiimote's loudspeaker to make the trademark humming sounds as you swing your lightsaber around.
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed is also long scheduled for the Xbox 360, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, and PlayStation Portable. The game was first publicly showcased at the 2006 Electronic Entertainment Expo where it made furors with its cutting-edge graphics, physics, and artificial intelligence. The game is powered by Pixelux's Digital Molecular Matter and NaturalMotion's Euphoria middleware. The engine gives not only enemies, but also the player's character intelligent moves according to the specific situation. For example, if pushed over a ledge, the character won't just drop off and die, it will try to grab the ledge and get back up if possible.
The Wii Remote was successfully used in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess as a sword controller.
Also, in August, Nintendo Wii has achieved again the first place among gaming console sales with 403,600 units sold. This means that until now Nintendo sold, only in U.S., some 4 million consoles. Still, July remains the best month for Wii until now, as during that month the company scored an all time high with 425,000 units sold.