The Art and Making of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

Star Wars is a cultural phenomenon of global proportions. What began as inspired and inspiring science fiction action/adventure movie trilogy has expanded into novels, comics, video games, fan conventions, and memorabilia that seems to increase in popularity every year. The collaborative work of Star War's enthusiasts W. Haden Blackman and Brett Rectork, "The Art And Making Of Star Wars Force Unleashed" is a profusely illustrated compendium of information about the creation of the 'Star Wars: Force Unleashed' video game that takes place within the Star Wars universe between the fall of the Republic and the rise of the Rebel Alliance. The cutting edge of game design as applied to this Star Wars theme entertainment is fully described and illustrated with more than 300 conceptual artworks. Readers are provided with a virtual tour of the development process, provided with details of unused game concepts, story meetings with George Lucas as well as commentaries and interviews with other key members of the video game design teams. Enhanced with ten Character Cards, "The Art And Making Of Star Wars Force Unleashed" will proved to be an essential addition to the personal collections of dedicated Star Wars fans and enthusiasts as the Star Wars phenomena continues to unfold as a multi-faceted, multi-platform, multi-format entertainment.

It's very interesting to read just how much time and effort goes into making a game, specially one within the Star Wars Universe. From all the different story concepts, to deciding on the timeline of the game, to which characters would make an appearance. The artwork is nothing short of amazing, with all the different concepts for the Jedi characters, to the look of the Apprentice, to the characters that were not included in the game. The book of course details the finished game as well, discussing in length the plot of the finished game, so if you don't want to be spoiled then wait until the game comes out to read it.

I recently watched The Clones Wars and thought it was average; it felt more like an homage, than the real deal. And although I enjoyed the prequels, my faith in "a galaxy far, far away" had slowly waned until I got this book. The imagery is stunning and true to form; it looks and feels like a perfect "bridge" between Ep 3 & 4. Clearly is takes on a new realm in the Star Wars universe - "the force unleashed" but the designers give reasons why we have never seen someone of this power before; all conveyed through hundreds of amazing, beautifully presented images. From concept to completion, this book tells the story of every facet of the games development including original titles and designs. In honesty, there was only one design (a single page) that I thought looked too far left of center. Other than that, this book is one of the finest "making of" books I have bought in years. For any Star Wars fan - or someone interested in the tireless amount of effort that goes into making a game - this book is a must. Hope this helps...