Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy - Critical Reception

Critical Reception

Both the PC and Xbox versions of the game were well received. Positive reviews praised the fact that, unlike Dark Forces II and Jedi Outcast, players could use a lightsaber from the beginning. Game Over Online Magazine commented that "You start instantly with your lightsaber, rather than wading through six painfully bland FPS levels to get your lightsaber as you did in Jedi Outcast". Critics lauded the lightsaber and player customization options: "You choose not only the gender and race of your character, but also which powers and fighting styles to develop," noted Gaming Age. "Third person adventure games rarely offer that much customization."

Critics noted that, despite its age, the Quake III engine was used well. "The Quake III engine, which although hardly groundbreaking any more, perfectly evokes the glow of the lightsaber and the grimy, metallic backgrounds of the films," commented PC Gamer UK. Some critics did, however, note that the engine was starting to look dated. The multiplayer, in particular the objective-based Siege mode, was well received. Jedi Academy's music, sounds effects, and voice acting received acclaim, though some critics found it odd that all aliens spoke English.

The story and level design received mixed reactions. Some critics commended the levels as varied (both in terms of length and content): "Some are a fast blast that can be beat in ten or so minutes. Others... can take as long as hours", GameZone observed, "The change of pace is very refreshing." The story was described as "great" by GameZone and as "strong" by Gaming Age. Game Over Online was more critical of the mission structure: "This kind of free-form mission assignment... only serves to weaken the plotline. It also leads to a disjointedness to the missions... it seems more like roaming than any actual story advancement." IGN remarked that "Jedi Outcast was more satisfying in terms of involvement with the story. Jedi Academy dishes out more action sooner but fails to put it in as solid a context as the previous game."

The AI was criticized by PC Gamer UK as "laughable": "Every encounter you have is filled with people too stupid to realise that running away or taking some sort of cover would be the best option... requires little to no skill to play through." This opinion was echoed by GameSpot: "Stormtroopers usually just stand there shooting away at you... Dark Jedi rush at you, even after watching four of their brethren plummet to a horrible death. Occasionally, you'll see an enemy accidentally commit suicide by falling off a cliff or falling into lava, enemies will not even dive for cover or try and throw it back if you throw an uncooked thermal detonator at them."