Much ofApprentice of the Force's gameplay takes place in aside-scrolling,platforming based environment. As Luke Skywalker, the player originally only has access to basic jumps and blaster-based combat, but as Luke learns more ofthe Force and the way of theJedi, he gains the ability to wield alightsaber to fight in melee combat, and deflect projectiles. In addition to the basic platforming, there are also minor puzzles to solve to progress. Occasionally, Luke will have to protect an NPC, such asR2-D2 orPrincess Leia to progress. There are also still several stages where Luke takes control of a ship in vehicle based combat where he must avoid oncoming obstacles whilst defeating foes.There are also severalboss fights throughout the game, such as againstBoba Fett orDarth Vader.
The gameplay has been compared to the Game Boy Advance version ofPrince of Persia: The Sands of Time in that the same side-scrollingengine is used, and that the player can slow down time temporarily with "Force Blitz".[4] A player who beats the game is given the option of replaying most of the ship and boss levels, as well as playing a arcadesurvival arena mode where they must defeat as many enemies as possible before being defeated themselves.
The game was met with average to mixed reception upon release;review aggregation websiteGameRankings gave it an average score of 65.32%,[5] whilst fellow siteMetacritic gave it an average score of 60 out of 100.[6]
GameSpot, giving the game a 6.4/10, were mixed on the game, complimenting its audio and visuals, whilst bemoaning its repetitive combat and short length, stating that whilst there were some "choice moments" in the game, "they don't come up as often as they should in this short action game."[9]
