STAR WARS™ Jedi Knight II – Jedi Outcast™

Hi, I'm here from the JK2 community!
I can tell you that even after 20+ years this game's online multiplayer mode is still actively played!
As a veteran of the game I'll tell you why it's one of the best most unique games ever made, what makes the players play it to this day and how to access it.
Firstly, the game was made way before the live-service era and devious MTX ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥. As a result, it is easily and endlessly moddable. Especially since the game's source code was released years ago. Skins, models, maps, game mods, server mods, you can really do whatever you want with this game and it's all free. We've even got our own Nexus Mods-like mods center and manager -
Secondly, the combat for which the whole Jedi Knight series is celebrated is pushed even further in the multiplayer version of the game:
- Different lightsaber styles, special attacks, swordplay dependant on your WASD movement and mouse aim, blocking, parrying... Man, the lightsaber rabbit hole goes deep and most of us are far from mastering it.
- Quake 3's engine for movement which in itself is a competitive discipline (like defrag or speedrunning maps) paired with JK2's freedom of movement (rolls, boosts, wall-runs) just offers you a level of mobility simply no other game has.
- Force powers, both dark and light side, add another dimension to the gameplay and it's just peak Star Wars!
Combine all of these elements and you get an insanely high skill ceiling game. Or, pick only some of the elements and there's a specific game mode for that too! Such as CTF, no force duels and so on...
Lastly, the game is dirt cheap on Steam and it's fairly easy to setup to play with us!
Buy the game on Steam, install it and then download one of our modern clients which we've developed thanks to the source code being released. Extract the client into your desired folder and then copy over the game's assets (assets0.pk3, assets1.pk3, assets2.pk3, assets5.pk3) to the "base" folder of the client. That's it!
You can find the clients here:
And you can find players here:
You can find us every night and frequently during the day as well on "Ownage City". (EU Time)
May the force be with you. :)

Comparing Jedi Outcast released in 2003 to its modern successors Jedi fallen order/Survivor 20 years later holds up surprisingly well, a star wars game that made you feel like a badass Jedi.
Kyle's story continues following MOTS, concluding the adventure that started in Dark Forces 1.
Neat cameos featuring Luke and Lando, story telling is awesome, better than games released today.
Level design/progression has improved from odd backtracking to a more obvious objective and forward/linear route.
Surprisingly has more force abilities than modern Jedi games.
Fluid light saber combat, bit a learning curve but quite fun once you master. Had a hard time with bosses for being on easy difficulty. I knew what I was in for, Outcast is not forgiving just like it's previous titles
Didn't try out multiplayer but heard it's still active after all this time. Could only imagine how popping the servers were back in its day.
Playable after install with some tweaks, but it's just clunky with modern windows.
I recommend installing mods with JKhub for a better experience.

I have been playing this game on and off since release, and I think it is without a doubt one of the best games ever made. The force powers, the saber fights and fighting mechanics are still one of the best out there.
I only play the game online/multiplayer, we are a few players still keeping it alive. Just remember that the offical server list is down, and if you still want to access the serverlist you need to use the client from jk2mv.org. usually the online community is active evenings european time.

World owes this game a remake. A well made game from my childhood.
Activating and deactivating the lightsaber's animation made me a 3D animator. So I'm highly biased but I'm sure huge amount of people will agree with me on this.
You will not see a lightsaber fight as good as this one has. Also check Jedi Academy too. Everything in this game made me love the whole Star Wars universe. (+ Republic Commandos)
Go play it if you haven't already!

Kyle Katarn as a protagonist is really interesting character. We see how his personality changes as we follow him until he faces main antagonist Desann. There are few missions in various parts of galaxy. We will meet different well known characters from Star Wars universe on our way. Besides of lightsaber, which will be our "best friend" to slay stormtroopers, there are also plenty of weapons to use. But to be honest, lightsaber is the main weapon, you end up using it for 90% time of the game. It's a little disappointing by the end game not being able to use the full roster of abilities that you have acquired for longer, because you do feel like a total badass by the end.

After being disappointed with Jedi Fallen Order, I remembered that I hadn't played Jedi Outcast, a game highly regarded for its lightsaber combat. And it was very fun! The game starts like a pure FPS until Kyle Katarn gets his lightsaber, then you discover a fluid and intricate melee system. Instead of preset damage values (like, for example, a light attack dealing 20 damage, a heavy attack dealing 50 damage etc) it calculates damage based on penetration depth and speed, making positioning and angling crucial and revealing a high skill ceiling, especially in multiplayer.
In single-player, it is much more forgiving, and you can relish the power fantasy of mincing dozens of stormtroopers and pushing them into pits. I recommend binding force powers to individual buttons, because the default "previous-next" list is clunky to use. Level design is mostly great, with interesting locations and cool set pieces, although it can get confusing at times. I never got really stuck, but at some points had to run back and forth looking for the way to proceed. One frustrating level (Nar-Shaddaa) has annoying snipers, but don't get discouraged - it's just one stage.
Overall, one of the best Star Wars games. It feels fresh even today and plays great.

Jedi Outcast has better lightsaber combat than most modern games, and it came out when people were still using dial up. Respect your elders.