Summary
Star Wars: Dark Forces Remasterhas been given a 120 FPS mode on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S, among other improvements, as part of its new 1.0.4 update. Developer Nightdive Studios has specialized in reviving classic 90s first-person shooters in the form of remasters, remakes, and ports. Games like theTuroktrilogy,Doom 64,Quake, andQuake 2have all been given the Nightdive treatment. Just last year, Nightdive released itsSystem Shockremake on PC.
Nightdive Studios' remaster of the classic 1995 Macintosh shooter,Star Wars: Dark Forcescame to Xbox, PlayStation, Switch, and PC earlier this year. The remaster mainly focused on upgrading the original game’s textures and cutscenes, giving a new hand-painted art style to the game’s 2D assets while keeping the menus and music almost exactly the same. The remaster also keeps much of the original game’s level design and gameplay the same as well, striking the perfect balance for fans of the original and newerStar Warsfans.
Now, Nightdive has added some helpfultweaks toStar Wars: Dark Forcesin the form of Patch 1.0.4. Most notable is the addition of 120 frames-per-second on Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation; the game’s launch frame rate was capped at 60 FPS on consoles. Since the game’s 2D sprite visuals aren’t demanding, it’s unlikely the resolution will suffer at 120 frames. Speaking of, the update also smooths outStar Wars: Dark Forces' performance on Switch. The patch makes some fixes to the game’s janky music as well. Previously, the score would sound off-tempo, seemingly skipping over parts of itself.
Additionally, Patch 1.0.4 fixes broken door switches in the Ramses Hed level, as well as inDark Forces Remastered’sAvenger bonus CES demo level. While the patch notes mention that the update fixes the ice physics in the Ice Station Beta level where players' walking speed is affected, Nightdive doesn’t specify whether the skidding is more or less sensitive while walking. Players come across a pair of ice cleats very early on in the level, negating the ice skidding entirely, so it’s likely not a huge deal.
Looking ahead, Nightdive Studios is gearing up for the launch of itsSystem Shockremake on PlayStation and Xboxlater this month on May 21. As for what’s next,System Shock 2: Enhanced Edition, while not a full-blown remake, is still in development at Nightdive. Whether the studio tackles a remake or remaster ofStar Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces 2in the future remains to be seen, but it’s certainly near the top of the wish list for fans of classic 90sStar Warsgames.
