The Force Unleashed was filled with various “enemies” that populated the levels of the game.  EVO troopers, or Environmental Troopers, were typically deployed into worlds with extremely harsh environments.  Their heavy armor and breathing tubes allowed them to patrol areas of the galaxy that regular troopers could not.  This makes them a perfect design for a video game that was filled with wild planets, and, probably by design, they easily translate to action figure form.  They’re quite toyetic, as me ol’ pal Chris would say.  It seems the game’s characters were designed specifically with a partner toy line in mind.

Who doesn’t love Imperial Trooper figures?  Nobody, that’s who.  This one is an up-armored trooper that is quite similar to its wave mate, the Imperial Jumptrooper.  There are enough differences to make this figure unique, but at first glance, it does look similar.  In the little action shot at the end of the gallery, there are a pair of jumptroopers and a pair of EVO troopers being led by a Stormtrooper Commander.  They do look similar to each other, and it actually takes a second to realize they are not the same trooper.  They even have the same weathering effect, with a bunch of dirt sprayed on the lower legs.

The figure is superarticulated to basic modern standards with nothing special added, like ball jointed hips or rocker ankles.  Still, it can be posed in enough action shots to make it a dynamic figure for display.  The sculpt is impressive with plenty of accessories.  The two hoses that plug into the helmet are removable, although the chest box to which they are connected is glued into place.  Unplugging the hoses does increase the range of motion of the head.  The backpack is removable, revealing an unsightly hole in the figure’s back.  Unlike many removable backpacks included with figures, this one is pretty snug and won’t fall off when you breathe within 25 feet of it.

The EVO Trooper comes with a pair of blaster pistols similar to that of an ARC Trooper, although the figure has no place to holster them.  It also comes with a large Sandtrooper-style rifle with a sling.  The trooper can be posed to make a basic THWG with the rifle, but it’s not easy.  The hands are sculpted in such away to make gripping the blasters somewhat problematic, as it seems they were designed to better grip the rifle.  You can also put the rifle over the figure’s shoulder using the sling. 

Holsters for the pistols, bits of battle damage paint applied to the body, better hands, and ball jointed hips would make this figure an 8 or 9.  As it stands, I’ll still give it a solid 7. While it could be improved upon, it’s still a fun an great looking figure, and Hasbro need not expend any energy providing an update.  We’ll call this definitive.