Written by Jeff Walters


What is Mysteries of the Sith? Well, I know most of you are sitting there mutering, "well, duh", but for those cut out of the loop in the previous month - Mysteries of the Sith (MotS) is an add-on pack for Jedi Knight which will feature 29 new levels (14 single player and 15 multiplayer). Currently the pack is scheduled for a February 4th release date.

Once again, you start the story in Kyle Katarn's familiar shoes, but he soon dissappears from the picture and you take up the role of someone most Star Wars fans will recognise, Mara Jade. Now I could just list the names of the new levels, weapons and force powers, but I won't. If you want the raw details on MotS then click here to visit the Official MotS site at Lucas Arts. Instead this article will analyze what we know so far, what's missing and what MotS will mean for JK players.

Prepare to be digested!
Here kitty kitty CHOMP!

The first thing you'll notice about MotS is that unlike Dark Forces & Jedi Knight, which both try to carve their own niche in the SW Universe, MotS seems to tie itself in more with the Star Wars stories depicted in the movies and books. I personally can't wait to do battle with this bad boy pictured to the right.......makes Kell Dragons look like kittens.

Though I'm sure JK fans everywhere are estatic about this add-on pack, I'm equally sure that there is some dissappointment that only one of most fan's top three JK wishes has been granted (Saber Throw - yep, Co-op play - nope, Pilotable vehicles - nope). MotS will however feature so many new weapons, enemies, force powers and new MP options that to complain loudly about the lack of co-op and flyable vehicles would be unfair. Fact is that to add true co-op play would require a complete engine re-design...in which case MotS would still likely be released in February....but February 1999.

That looks familiar...
Hmm....I know that ship, no don't tell me!

The amount of new non-pilotable vehicles should also help calm the masses. This add-on does not only have a ton of new fighters to go with the Tie bomber's in the original game, but you'll also see frigates, cruisers and dreadnaughts. The reason for this new batch of ships is obvious when you take a look at the settings of some of the single player levels. Two spaceport levels and one set in an orbital shipyard (insert sound of hands rubbing together here).

Seven new weapons and ammo types will grace our PC when Mysteries of the Sith arrives in February. Carbonite Gun...hmm....while it sounds strikingly similar to Duke Nukem's freeze thrower, it will add a new interesting element to multiplayer games. The new remote sequencer charges are also very reminiscent of DN's pipe bombs, but I, for one, have no problem with this.....combined with the new security cameras MotS will feature - I can see some very nice ambushes being executed. For me, the best of the new items sounds like the electroscope, which acts as a viewfinder and allows you to zoom in on your enemies at a distance and nail them. A lot of players out there fond of playing the role of a 'sniper' in MP will no doubt be drooling over this fashion accessory... The new blind grenades could definitely have their uses, but I'm sure something similar to these could be fairly easily made now by a keen JK hacker (combine Force Blind and TD's).

Jedi's will have five new force powers to toy with and I'm sure there is no doubt which one is the most anticipated - Saber Throw. This force power was actually very close to being included in the original game (it's template was left in), but nagging problems reslted in it's exclusion. I'm glad to see that the problems were worked out because this will be an awesome feature. No more will enemies be able to easily disengage from saber fighting by running.......try to flee and you might just find yourself lying face down with a lightsaber protruding from your back.

As expected, MotS will feature a bunch of new enemies and characters....but I'm not sure many people expected this many new ones. All up the add-on will contain a grand total of 26! Browsing down the listed characters the two that grabbed my attention were Rebel Soldiers and Rebel Officers. It's possible that these two will merely be 'scenery' characters like the ugnaughts in Jedi Knight, but somehow I doubt it. The first four level scenario is called Rebel Base Defense and it seems fairly unlikely that the player would be the only Rebel taking up arms.

This place stinks...
That's it! I'm firing that damn gardener!

Around a dozen MotS screenshots have hit the net so far and the one to the right is the one that really intrigues me the most. No 3D game has featured an effective level set in a swamp, forest or jungle environment. The reason behind this is simple because it's very difficult to represent trees, leaves in a 3D environment....but this screenshot leads me to believe that MotS may contain some very unique environments.

Carbonite Chamber
I think I'll hide in this nice safe pit behind me....

Multi-player gameplay has been greatly improved. Instead of every player using the a charcter with the same skills as in JK, in Mysteries of the Sith you will be able to choose from four MP personalities(Soldier, Scout, Jedi & Bounty Hunter), each with their own strengths and default weaponary. MotS will contain a new style of MP combat called 'Kill the Fool with the Ysalamiri'....while the force negation powers of the Ysalamiri will be interesting, I'd like to see more information on this feature before getting too excited about it. Something I am very excited about is some of the settings of the new Death Match levels - Imperial Throne Room (Get three people to play as Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker and the Emperor and you've got yourself a nice ROTJ re-enactment scene). As owner of a website called Bespin, I also can't wait to see the new Cloud City levels :)

Lucas Art's ploy to release an add-on pack a few months after Jedi Knight was a terrific idea. It will inject some fresh interest in the game and keep fans from straying over to the other new 'Quake-killers'. Let's just hope we can stay patient till the February release date......and while we're at it we should also hope that the release date.....stays February.


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