History YMMV / DarkForcesSaga

* FridgeBrilliance: The numerous Reborn enemies in ''Jedi Outcast'' were a bit silly... until something clicks: ''Reborn''. ''Jedi Outcast'' features ''the same Imperial splinter faction'' as ''Literature/TheCrystalStar'' did! It's always nice when the EU interacts with itself. Plus, do we really need another level set on Hoth? [[spoiler:''Jedi Academy'' declares "Yes" wholeheartedly.]]

* NightmareFuel:
** In the original ''Dark Forces'', you've got the Dianogas that pop up out of sewage and roar in your face.
** Stage One Dark Troopers. They look like walking metal skeletons with swords and are partially bulletproof. And Lordy, those things are ''fast''!
** Kell dragons. They're the size of tanks, they're practically unkillable (especially in ''Jedi Knight'', where bullets ''deflect off their scales''), and they sport gruesome {{Slasher Smile}}s.
** Gran and Trandoshans, who serve as EliteMooks in ''Dark Forces'' before assuming a more prominent role in the early levels of ''Jedi Knight''. Trandoshans can easily kill you from as much as an eighth of a mile away with their plasma-loaded "concussion rifles", while Gran toss grenades down on you from high platforms or windows.
** Gamorrean guards, at least after they [[TookALevelInBadass Take a Level in Badass]] in ''Jedi Knight''. Their evil piglike grunts are intimidating enough without those nasty battle-axes, which they can swing with deceptive speed.
** Boc is probably the most unnerving of all of Jerec's followers in ''Jedi Knight''. Not only does he wield ''two'' lightsabers at once, but he jumps around so frantically (and so high) while fighting you that it's easy to get caught from behind. That, and he's definitely TheHyena of Jerec's crew, creepily giggling and cackling nonstop until you finally slaughter him -- and even then, he continues laughing until he finally chokes on his last breath.
** ''Jedi Knight'' and ''Mysteries of the Sith'' have the Drugons, giant carnivorous fish which can kill you in one bite, can swim faster than you (if you're not using Force Speed), and may spot you from afar.
** ''Jedi Academy'' has the Sand Burrowers on Blenjeel, which can swallow you whole if you're not careful. And that level is overpopulated with them. It doesn't help that the save file name for that level is "Danger".
** The Rancors in both ''Mysteries of the Sith'' and ''Jedi Academy'' can be this.
*** The one in ''Mysteries of the Sith'' can not only kill you in two attacks, but it eats you alive when it defeats you, and you can only kill it with your lightsaber, which you won't have at first and must retrieve from a nearby vault after getting past the creature.
*** In ''Jedi Academy'', on the Nar Kreeta mission, it's not as dangerous to deal with since you have ranged weapons that can affect it now, but it has a crapton of health, and it will just respawn if you kill it.
*** On the Tanaab mission, you are dealing with a mutated specimen twice the normal specimen's size, and [[SuperPersistentPredator you spend the whole level being chased by it]], and [[TheJuggernaut it even plows through the terrain eating any of the cultists it comes across.]] You can't kill this one until the end of the level. Also, for both specimens in ''Academy'', if they grab you and you fail to break out of their grasp in time, they will instantly kill you by eating you.
*** This can slide into NightmareRetardant if you're playing around with console cheats. If you activate noclip mode right before the rancor eats you, it still bite off your model's torso, but then you can escape its grasp and run around as a pair of legs. Which still have full access to all your force powers. It's so over the top, it's more funny than {{Squick}}.

* FridgeBrilliance: The numerous Reborn enemies in ''Jedi Outcast'' were a bit silly... until something clicks: ''Reborn''. ''Jedi Outcast'' takes place ''at the same time'' as ''Literature/TheCrystalStar''! It's always nice when the EU interacts with itself. Plus, do we really need another level set on Hoth? [[spoiler:''Jedi Academy'' declares "Yes" wholeheartedly.]]

* EvenBetterSequel: ''Dark Forces'' was a well received title when it was released. Then ''Dark Forces II: Jedi Knight'' and it's expansion came along introducing lightsaber combat and being able to become a Jedi. And on top of that is ''Jedi Outcast'', where it improved a lot of the lightsaber and force mechanics, often seen as the best in the series.

** Once you max out Force Grip, you can use it to drop all but the most powerful of dark Jedi off a cliff or throw them into the air fast and high enough to kill them, allowing you to instantly kill the only enemies that stand a chance against you. Instantly, that is, once you do get it right, since Dark Jedi are very quick to use Push to escape.
** In ''Jedi Outcast'', the force speed power, which has the net effect of slowing the rest of the world down. With nothing but max-level force speed and a lightsaber, the final battle with Desann can be ended in less than ten seconds without him ever landing a blow.

** In ''Dark Forces'' and ''Jedi Knight'', the remotes. They're so small, hitting them is very difficult.

** Boc is probably the most unnerving of all of Jerec's followers in ''Jedi Knight''. Not only does he wield ''two'' lightsabers at once, but he jumps around so frantically (and so high) while fighting you that it's easy to get caught from behind. That, and he's definitely TheHyena of Jerec's crew, creepily giggling and cackling nonstop until you finally slaughter him - and even then, he continues laughing until he finally chokes on his last breath.

*** This can slide into NightmareRetardant if you're playing around with console cheats. If you activate noclip mode right before the rancor eats you, it still bites of your model's torso, but then you can escape its grasp and run around as a pair of legs. Which still have full access to all your force powers. It's so over the top, it's more funny than {{Squick}}.

** Nar Shadaa of ''Jedi Outcast'' is the first level after you get the lightsaber back. Does it present you with Stormtroopers to let loose on? Nope - it's crawling with snipers, whose shots you can't reflect, and other grenadiers. And given the terrain of the planet you're on, there are several segments of BottomlessPits.

** In ''Jedi Academy'', one of the first tier levels involved Jaden crash landing on a planet infested with giant sand worms. Said worms are invincible and will gobble Jaden up in one gulp if they're on the sand. Only thing you can do is to try to avoid contact with the sand while collecting four ship parts, and some of them will be out in the open. You can distract the sandworms with thermal detonators ([[GuideDangIt which the game never tells you]]), but even that doesn't make the mission a whole lot more enjoyable (as you can't carry enough of them to kill all of them).

** Jedi Knight includes the above mentioned [=AT-ST=] and also organic, dangerous enemies like the Kell Dragons, the Drugons and also the [[LizardFolk Trandoshan]] guards, armed with concussion rifles and rail detonators. Stormtroopers armed with Rail Detonators are also quite dangerous for the same reason as Trandoshans.
** In Mysteries of the Sith, basically every enemy on [[SwampsAreEvil Dromund Kaas]] and in the Dark Force Temple are basically this. The fact that your weapons malfunction (except for the lightsaber) doesn't help. The Vornskr are particularly dangerous as they're [[LightningBruiser frighteningly fast, hit hard and will overwhelm you in seconds]], can interrupt your attacks, jump at you even if you attempt to use a ranged force power from a ledge, and even swim.
** Pretty much any enemy that uses melee attacks in Jedi Knight and Mysteries of the Sith since their attacks ignore your shields. Gammorean guards are particularly dangerous if they get into range, as their axes will cut through your health rather quickly.

* EvenBetterSequel: ''Dark Forces'' was a well received title when it was released. Then ''Dark Forces II: Jedi Knight'' and it's expansion came along introducing lightsaber combat and being able to become a jedi. And on top of that is ''Jedi Outcast'', where it improved a lot of the lightsaber and force mechanics, often seen as the best in the series.
* EvilIsSexy: Sariss and Tavion.

* FridgeBrilliance: The numerous Reborn enemies in ''Jedi Outcast'' were a bit silly... until something clicks: ''Reborn.'' ''Jedi Outcast takes place at the same time as ''Literature/TheCrystalStar''!'' It's always nice when the EU interacts with itself. Plus, do we really need another level set on Hoth? [[spoiler:Jedi Academy declares "Yes" wholeheartedly.]]

** In Jedi Outcast, the force speed power, which has the net effect of slowing the rest of the world down. With nothing but max-level force speed and a lightsaber, the final battle with Desann can be ended in less than ten seconds without him ever landing a blow.
** Also Dark Rage in Jedi Academy; it makes you completely invincible, faster, and makes you cause more damage. At level one and two it's (very) slightly balanced by the fact it takes pretty much all your health to use (but it can't kill you in itself), at level 3 it only takes twenty health each use (force heal makes this easily recoverable between fights) and lasts more than long enough to destroy almost anything but the toughest of enemies (the only drawback being that there's a somewhat long delay before it can be recast if it does run out).

* NarmCharm: Most of the live-action cut scenes in Jedi Knight.

** In the original Dark Forces, you've got the Dianogas that pop up out of sewage and roar in your face.

** Jedi Knight and Mysteries of the Sith have the Drugons, giant carnivorous fish which can kill you in one bite, can swim faster than you (if you're not using Force Speed), and may spot you from afar.
** Jedi Academy has the Sand Burrowers on Blenjeel, which can swallow you whole if you're not careful. And that level is overpopulated with them. It doesn't help that the save file name for that level is "Danger".
** The Rancors in both Mysteries of the Sith and Jedi Academy can be this.
*** The one in MotS can not only kill you in two attacks, but it eats you alive when it defeats you, and you can only kill it with your lightsaber, which you won't have at first and must retrieve from a nearby vault after getting past the creature.
*** In Jedi Academy, on the Nar Kreeta mission, it's not as dangerous to deal with since you have ranged weapons that can affect it now, but it has a crapton of health, and it will just respawn if you kill it.
*** On the Tanaab mission, you are dealing with a mutated specimen twice the normal specimen's size, and [[SuperPersistentPredator you spend the whole level being chased by it]], and [[TheJuggernaut it even plows through the terrain eating any of the cultists it comes across.]] You can't kill this one until the end of the level. Also, for both specimens in Academy, if they grab you and you fail to break out of their grasp in time, they will instantly kill you by eating you.

** Pretty much any enemy that uses melee attacks in Jedi Knight and Mysteries of the Sith since their attacks ignore your shields. Gammorean guards are particularly dangerous if they get into range, as their [[AnAxeToGrind axes]] will cut through your health rather quickly.

* SpecialEffectFailure: As a Miraluka, Jerec don’t have eyes, but we can clearly see his actor’s eyes through his mask in the cut-scenes.
** This is slightly forgivable as, at first, Jerec was simply a human who happened to be blind, and was later retconned into being a Miraluka.
** And, end of the day, few if any would expect the actor to go EnforcedMethodActing and blind themselves by way of removing their eyes just for this one part.

** In ''Dark Forces'' and ''Jedi Knight'', the remotes.

* BetterThanCanon:
** Kyle fanboys consider the dark side ending for ''Jedi Knight'' to be a SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome, though they understand why it cannot be canon.
** The dark side ending for Jaden in ''Jedi Academy'' is actually preferred by a lot of fans. It's not that the light side ending is necessarily bad or that Jaden is an unliked character, but it just leaves the state of the galaxy in a more uncertain state without compromising the core characters of the series. The preference for Jaden's dark side ending may also be due in part to the ''way'' he turns to the dark side: killing TheScrappy, Rosh. And hey, you get to have a boss battle ''against'' Kyle Katarn, who remains an utter badass through it.
** Some ''Legends'' fans are already calling the ''Soldier for the Empire'' audio drama to be a superior story about the theft of the Death Star plans than ''Film/RogueOne''.
** Finn from the new trilogy is a reference to Katarn in canon as they are both traitor Stormtroopers, but many fans would rather just have Katarn come back in some fashion or another regardless as to whether or not they like Finn.
** For that matter, it could be argued that Kyle does the "new heroes, even Jedi, can come from anybody" plot that ''Film/TheLastJedi'' was going for with Rey, even before ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'' renders it an AbortedArc. Speaking of THAT, Kyle isn't treated as some amazing paragon who could represent all Jedi-hood, nor is even someone with a grand heritage[[note]]He certainly grew up in a pretty decent mansion, and his dad was a Force-sensitive who was friends with a Jedi, but he was still practically a nobody[[/note]]. Unlike Rey, Kyle actually ends up unwittingly and majorly screwing up and has to be bailed or pick himself back up, which is difficult to apply to Rey's own progression. Overall, despite being similar to Han, Kyle seems like much more of an ideal protagonist for a post-''Return of the Jedi'' trilogy.

*** This can slide into NightmareRetardant if you're playing around with console cheats. If you activate noclip mode right before the rancor eats you, it still bites of your model's torso, but then you can escape its grasp and run around as a pair of legs. [[CrazyAwesome Which still have full access to all your force powers.]] It's so over the top, it's more funny than {{Squick}}.

** If you use the two sabers style, the game breaking move is ducking, slowly moving forward while crouching, while swinging your sabers wildly like a Cuisinart. It looks stupid, but it lets you defeat most if not all Dark Jedi enemies.