Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (SWFU) for iPhone takes place after Episode III, and The Empire is hard at work trying to crush all remains of the Old Republic and the Jedi Order. In SWFU, Darth Vader appoints you as his Apprentice and tasks you with killing all remaining Jedi before Star Wars: Episode IV begins.

The game's first impressive feature is is its gorgeous graphics with beautifully painted background vistas and smartly rendered characters and ships. While the game makes the iPhone look like a viable gaming platform, the iPhone's lack of buttons restricts the player's control to only making swish movements on the touch screen. Because there are no buttons, the Apprentice automatically walks around, so that the player only controls how he fights.

While killing Jedi with a lightsaber sounds thrilling, the Apprentice unfortunately uses it only to deflect blaster fire or another Jedi's lightsaber. Instead, players use Force powers including Force push, Force pull, Force grip (grab and throw enemies or objects into enemies), Jedi mind trick (makes enemies stop attacking briefly), Force speed (slows everyone else down), Force protect (protective bubble), Force drain (steals enemies' health and gives it to you), and the Emperor's specialty -- lightning.

The gameplay in Story mode feels like a movie that the player controls during battle sequences. In this regard, it feels like a rail shooter with DDR elements, but the player can still get creative with attacks. For instance, the Apprentice can sometimes use the surroundings to his advantage -- such as pushing someone down an abyss, throwing them into a large fan, or pulling a giant Venus fly trap's mouth directly on an attacking enemy. Boss battles require the use of all Force powers the Apprentice learns up to that point and requires some light problem solving. After completing the Story mode, Survival mode entails fighting wave after wave of Stormtroopers and droids until you die.

During the game, the player can alternate seamlessly between a vertical or horizontal view of the action by tilting the iPhone, which is a plus. But the game fails to make use of the iPhone's ability to vibrate during battles, although no other game uses the feature either.

The main gripe with SWFU for iPhone is going to be its price: $9.99. For only having six levels and lasting a little over an hour, it's a valid complaint. Make no mistake—this is a casual iPhone game, so it's not going to be as immersive as its console equivalent. However, if you can afford an iPhone, you can probably afford a $10 Star Wars game.