Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
Subseries of Star Wars
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed	2009
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II	2010

Warnings

The macOS (OS X) release of this game does not work on macOS Catalina (version 10.15) or later due to the removal of support for 32-bit-only apps.

Key points

The Ultimate Sith Edition is the only version available on PC and includes all DLCs released on consoles^[2].

Capped at 30 FPS, with physics issues above 40 FPS. See higher frame rates.

General information

Aspyr Media support page (archived)

GOG.com Community Discussions for game series

GOG.com Support Page

Steam Community Discussions

Availability

Source	DRM	Notes	Keys	OS
Retail		SecuROM v7.40.0009 DRM disc check^[3]; 2 DVDs
GamersGate		Sold by Disney Interactive Studios.
GamersGate		Sold by Aspyr Media.

GOG.com
EA app		Included with EA Play Pro.
Steam
Mac App Store (unavailable)

Essential improvements

Patches

GOG.com and Steam users are already patched to the latest version.

Activate cloth simulation

Cloth simulation is disabled by default, leading to some visual bugs on the character's costumes.

Set ClothLevel^[4]
Go to configuration file(s) location. Edit `Config.xml`. Change `<s id="ClothLevel">0</s>` to `<s id="ClothLevel">1</s>` Save your changes. The game now runs with cloth physics activated.

Skip intro videos

Skip intro videos^{[citation needed]}

Go to <path-to-game>\FMV\
Delete or rename FMV-GoldGuy-WMV9_HD_STEREO.bik and Aspyr.bik.
Start the game.

Notes

For languages other than English FMV-GoldGuy_XX-WMV9_HD_STEREO.bik (where "XX" is replaced with adequate "FR", "DE", "IT", "PL", "RU" or "ES") also needs to be deleted or renamed.

Game data

Configuration file(s) location

System	Location
Windows	%LOCALAPPDATA%\Aspyr\Star Wars The Force Unleashed\ HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\aspyr\star wars the force unleashed\^{[Note 1]}
macOS (OS X)	~/Library/Preferences/com.aspyr.swtfu.steam.plist/
Steam Play (Linux)	<SteamLibrary-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/32430/pfx/^{[Note 2]}

Save game data location

System	Location
Windows	%USERPROFILE%\Documents\Aspyr\Star Wars The Force Unleashed\
macOS (OS X)	~/Library/Application Support/Star Wars The Force Unleashed/SWTFU.BIN/
Steam Play (Linux)	<SteamLibrary-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/32430/pfx/^{[Note 2]}

Save game cloud syncing

System	Native	Notes
GOG Galaxy
EA app
OneDrive		Requires enabling backup of the Documents* folder in OneDrive on all computers.*
Steam Cloud

Video

Graphics feature	WSGF	Notes
Widescreen resolution
Multi-monitor		If an option doesn't appear it can be forced by going to `config.xml` (see Game data). Make sure to mark the file as Read Only after making any changes.
Ultra-widescreen
4K Ultra HD		Resolutions above 1920x1080 can be forced in the `config.xml` file. See the WSGF entry.
Field of view (FOV)
Windowed	Use Unknownproject's solution.
Borderless fullscreen windowed	See the glossary page for potential workarounds.
Anisotropic filtering (AF)	See the glossary page for potential workarounds.
Anti-aliasing (AA)	See the glossary page for potential workarounds.
Vertical sync (Vsync)	See the glossary page for potential workarounds.
60 FPS	Capped at 30 FPS; see High frame rate.
120+ FPS	Frame rate is tied to refresh rate if unlimited FPS cap fix is used; see High frame rate.
High dynamic range display (HDR)	See the glossary page for potential alternatives.
Color blind mode	See the glossary page for potential workarounds.

High frame rate

Use the patched .exe^{[citation needed]}

Use the FPS cap fix. Available frame rate options are 40 FPS, 50 FPS, 60 FPS, and unlimited.

Notes

Some force-gripped objects and enemies will constantly move upwards when using the 50 and 60 FPS .exes;^[5]^[6]^[7]^[8] if this happens, use the 40 FPS .exe.

All cutscenes, both pre-rendered and in-engine, will continue to run at 30 FPS.

Some people may experience slow downs when running the game with an uncapped frame rate. Creating a shortcut to the game executable, adding the "-variableTimesteps" and "-variableperformanceThrottling" parameters to it and then launching the game from that shortcut fixes the problem.

May cause occasional crashes.^{[citation needed]}

You may need to open compatibility settings for the patched SWTFU.exe and set the game to run in administrator mode for the higher FPS cap to work.

Input

Keyboard and mouse	State	Notes
Remapping		Doesn't change on-screen prompts.
Mouse acceleration		Reverse mouse acceleration, can't be disabled.
Mouse sensitivity
Mouse input in menus
Keyboard and mouse prompts
Mouse Y-axis inversion		Both axes can be inverted independently.
Controller
Controller support
Full controller support		Launcher requires at least one mouse click or key press.
Controller remapping		See the glossary page for potential workarounds.
Controller sensitivity
Controller Y-axis inversion		Both axes can be inverted independently.

Controller types

XInput-compatible controllers
Xbox button prompts
Impulse Trigger vibration

PlayStation controllers		See the glossary page for potential workarounds.

Generic/other controllers

Additional information
Controller hotplugging		`Input Device` needs to be set to `Xbox 360 Controller` in launcher before being visible in-game.
Input prompt override
Haptic feedback
Simultaneous controller+KB/M

Audio

Audio feature	State	Notes
Separate volume controls
Surround sound		Game is advertised as supporting surround sound; however, surround sound support is heavily broken and results in background music only playing out of the front-left speaker.^[9]^[10]
Subtitles
Closed captions
Mute on focus lost

Localizations

Language	UI	Audio	Sub	Notes
English
French
German
Italian
Polish				Also available in Steam version; see enabling unsupported languages.
Russian				Also available in Steam version; see enabling unsupported languages. Fan voice-over by «Mechanics VoiceOver», download.
Spanish

Enable unsupported languages in the Steam version

Steam version of game includes Polish and Russian languages in game files disabled by default and without option to be enabled from Steam properties menu.

Enable Polish or Russian language in the Steam version of game (Windows)^[11]

Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\aspyr\star wars the force unleashed\.
Set language value to pl for Polish or ru for Russian.
Right-click the star wars the force unleashed key and select Permissions.
Click Advanced and then click Add.
In the Enter the object names to select field type Everyone and then click OK.
In the next window click the checkbox in the Deny column for Write Owner.
Click OK in each of the three opened windows.

Issues fixed

Missing Sounds in Raxus Prime and Death Star levels

The Steam and Origin versions of the game are missing sounds for the Raxus Prime and Death Star levels.

Replace Missing Sounds^[12]
Download the missing sounds fix. Decompress with 7-Zip. Extract files to `<path-to-game>\LevelPacks\` Overwrite all files when prompted.

Missing Sounds in Tie Factory level, specific to the French version

The French Steam version of the game is missing sounds for the Tie Factory level.

Replace Missing Sounds for the French version^[13]
Download the missing sounds fix. Decompress with 7-Zip. Extract files to `<path-to-game>\LevelPacks\` Overwrite all files when prompted.

Other information

API

Technical specs	Supported	Notes
Direct3D	9

Executable	32-bit	64-bit	Notes
Windows
macOS (OS X)			32-bit only.^[14]

Middleware

	Middleware	Notes
Physics	Havok Physics	Also uses Digital Molecular Matter (DMM) for destructible environments.^[1]
Audio	Miles Sound System	7.2c
Cutscenes	Bink Video	1.9g

System requirements

Windows
	Minimum	Recommended
Operating system (OS)	XP SP3, Vista SP2	7
Processor (CPU)	Intel Core 2 Duo 2.4 GHz AMD Athlon X2 5200+	Intel Core 2 Duo 2.8 GHz AMD Athlon X2 6000+
System memory (RAM)	2 GB	4 GB
Storage drive (HDD/SSD)	30 GB
Video card (GPU)	ATI Radeon HD 2600 Nvidia GeForce 8600 256 MB of VRAM DirectX 9.0c compatible Shader model 3.0 support	Nvidia GeForce 9800 GT 512 MB of VRAM
Sound (audio device)	Directx 9.0c compatible
Controller	Microsoft Xbox 360 Wired Controller
Other	Windows XP/Windows Vista compatible mouse and keyboard, 8X DVD-ROM drive

macOS (OS X)
	Minimum
Operating system (OS)	10.5.8, 10.6.2, 10.7, 10.8
Processor (CPU)	Intel Core 2 Duo 2.4 GHz
System memory (RAM)	2 GB
Storage drive (HDD/SSD)	25 GB + 1 GB Swap File
Video card (GPU)	ATI Radeon HD 2600 Nvidia GeForce 8600 256 MB of VRAM

Notes

↑ Applications writing to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE will be redirected to other locations based on various criterias, see the glossary page for more details.
↑ ^2.0 ^2.1
Notes regarding Steam Play (Linux) data:
- File/folder structure within this directory reflects the path(s) listed for Windows and/or Steam game data.
- Games with Steam Cloud support may also store data in ~/.steam/steam/userdata/<user-id>/32430/.
- Use Wine's registry editor to access any Windows registry paths.
- The app ID (32430) may differ in some cases.
- Treat backslashes as forward slashes.
- See the glossary page for details on Windows data paths.

References

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 GDC '08: LucasArts prioritizing PS3 dev, unleashing Force - GameSpot
↑ Star Wars: The Force Unleashed: Sith Edition- Tech Reviews, Firstpost
↑ SecuROM v7.40.0009 confirmed - last accessed on 2017-04-29
↑ Activate Cloth Simulation
↑ Verified by User:Mars icecream on 2016-12
Happens with the majority of objects.
↑ https://steamcommunity.com/app/32430/discussions/0/627456486206668585/
↑ https://steamcommunity.com/app/32430/discussions/0/540744936086401184/
↑ https://steamcommunity.com/app/32430/discussions/0/620712364023089395/
↑ Music in front-left speaker only. - Steam Users' Forums (retrieved)
↑ near-muted in-game sounds - Steam Users' Forums (retrieved)
↑ Verified by User:Reton on 2017-04-29
↑ Possible fix for missing sounds on Raxus Prime and Death Star - Steam Users' Forums (retrieved)
↑ Fix for the Tie Factory Level (no sound) Specific to the French version
↑ MacOS Catalina, 64-bit, 32-bit, and related Questions – Aspyr Support

[HKLM-5] Applications writing to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE will be redirected to other locations based on various criterias, see the glossary page for more details.

[Proton_path_note-6] 2.0 ^2.1 Notes regarding Steam Play (Linux) data:
File/folder structure within this directory reflects the path(s) listed for Windows and/or Steam game data.
Games with Steam Cloud support may also store data in ~/.steam/steam/userdata/<user-id>/32430/.
Use Wine's registry editor to access any Windows registry paths.
The app ID (32430) may differ in some cases.
Treat backslashes as forward slashes.
See the glossary page for details on Windows data paths.

[3] File/folder structure within this directory reflects the path(s) listed for Windows and/or Steam game data.

[4] Games with Steam Cloud support may also store data in ~/.steam/steam/userdata/<user-id>/32430/.

[5] Use Wine's registry editor to access any Windows registry paths.

[6] The app ID (32430) may differ in some cases.

[7] Treat backslashes as forward slashes.

[8] See the glossary page for details on Windows data paths.

[engines-1] 1.0 ^1.1 GDC '08: LucasArts prioritizing PS3 dev, unleashing Force - GameSpot

[2] Star Wars: The Force Unleashed: Sith Edition- Tech Reviews, Firstpost

[3] SecuROM v7.40.0009 confirmed - last accessed on 2017-04-29

[4] Activate Cloth Simulation

[7] Verified by User:Mars icecream on 2016-12
Happens with the majority of objects.

[8] ttps://steamcommunity.com/app/32430/discussions/0/627456486206668585/

[9] ttps://steamcommunity.com/app/32430/discussions/0/540744936086401184/

[10] ttps://steamcommunity.com/app/32430/discussions/0/620712364023089395/

[11] Music in front-left speaker only. - Steam Users' Forums (retrieved)

[12] r-muted in-game sounds - Steam Users' Forums (retrieved)

[13] Verified by User:Reton on 2017-04-29

[14] Possible fix for missing sounds on Raxus Prime and Death Star - Steam Users' Forums (retrieved)

[15] Fix for the Tie Factory Level (no sound) Specific to the French version

[16] MacOS Catalina, 64-bit, 32-bit, and related Questions – Aspyr Support

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[Note 2]

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Developers

	LucasArts
Windows	Aspyr Media
macOS (OS X)	Aspyr Media
Publishers
	LucasArts
	Disney Interactive Studios
Russia	1C Company
Engines
	Ronin^[1]
Release dates
Windows	November 6, 2009
macOS (OS X)	November 6, 2009
Reception
Metacritic	65
IGDB	71
Taxonomy
Series	Star Wars: The Force Unleashed