Product Details
 | Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords |
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Product Description
Five years after the events from the award winning Knights of the Old Republic® the Sith have hunted theJedi to the edge of extinction and are on the verge of crushing the Old Republic. With the Jedi Order in ruinthe Republic's only hope is a Jedi Knight struggling to reconnect with the Force. As this Jedi you will befaced with the galaxy's most dire decision: To follow the light side or succumb to the dark...System Requirements:Computer: 100% DirectX 9.0c compatible computer. Operating Systems: Windows 98 SE Millennium (ME) 2000 and XP. CPU: Pentium III or Athlon class 1 GHz or faster required Pentium 4 or Athlon XP class 1.6 GHz or faster recommended. Memory: 256 MB RAM required 512 MB RAM recommended. Graphics Card: 32 MB OpenGL 1.4 compliant AGP 3D Graphics card with Hardware Transform and Lighting (T&L) Capability required. ATI Radeon 9200 and NVIDIA GeForce4 Ti or better recommended. Sound Card: 100% DirectX 9.0c compatible audio device required. CD-ROM: Quad Speed CD-ROM drive required 16 Speed CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive recommended. Input Device: Keyboard and mouse required. DirectX: Microsoft DirectX 9.0c is included on this CD. You will be prompted to install DirectX during the installation of this game if this or a more recent version isn t already properly installed on your system. NOTE: DirectX may require the "latest" updates for your operating system. This may also include the latest drivers for your particular motherboard sound and video hardware.Format: WIN 98ME2000XP Genre: ENTERTAINMENT Rating: T - Teen UPC: 023272326180 Manufacturer No: 32618Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #779 in Video Games
- Brand: Lucas Arts
- Model: 32618
- Released on: 2005-02-08
- ESRB Rating: Teen
- Platforms: Windows 98, Windows 2000, Windows Me, Windows XP
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 1.50" h x 5.50" w x 7.50" l, .56 pounds
Features
- Sequel to the award-winning role-playing game
- All-new Force powers, weapons, locations, characters and classes
- Cameo appearances from memorable characters of the first game
- Choose the light or the dark side of the Force based on your characters actions as you progress through the story
- For 1 player
Editorial Reviews
From
the Manufacturer
Five years after the events from the award
winning Knights of the Old Republic, the Sith Lords have hunted
the Jedi to the edge of extinction and are on the verge of crushing the
Old Republic. With the Jedi Order in ruin, the Republic's only hope is a
Jedi Knight struggling to reconnect with the Force and is faced with
the galaxies most dire decision: To follow the light or succumb to the
dark side...
The Sith Lords is the next chapter to Knights
of the Old Republic; winner of more than 35 "Game of The Year
Awards" featuring an all-new and perilous storyline set approximately
4,000 years before Star Wars Episode I.
Features:
- All-new Force powers, weapons, locations, characters and classes add to the richness of this next epic installment.
- Choose from three different classes of Jedi to start the game with access to specific Jedi abilities.
- Choose the light or the dark side of the Force based on your characters actions as you progress through the story. The choices you make not only affect your character, but also those in your party, and those who may join you in your quest.
- Cameo appearances from memorable characters of the first game enhance the continuity and story flow through this unique time period.
- Developed by Obsidian Entertainment, the development house founded by members of the Fallout, Icewind Dale, Baldur's Gate, Dark Alliance, and Planescape: Torment teams
Customer Reviews
Might have been great, had they finished it
Knights of the Old Republic 2
is, in most ways, extraordinarily similar to the original. All the
gameplay mechanisms are the same. There are a few new force powers, more
feats to acquire, and more items and upgrades. This is not a criticism:
the original KOTOR was a great game.
This is not, for one simple
reason: it isn't finished. By this, I don't mean that the door is left
wide open for a sequel, although it is. I don't even mean that the game
is buggy, although it is. The game is literally not finished.
Plot
points appear and disappear at random. For example, and without
spoiling anything, in the first part of the game, your actions cause a
significant problem on one of the other worlds in the game. You get a
quest to fix the problem. You find a way to do so. The quest abruptly
ends there--there is no way to let anyone know you've solved the
problem. Then, at the end game, people complain to you that you never
solved this quest. And that's a minor example. Frankly, more of the end
game is explained by the brief blurbs on the loading screens than
anything that happens in the game itself.
The game is filled with
"Huh?" moments as a result. The end game, in particular, expects you to
know things that are never revealed anywhere because those aspects were
cut. Side plots are built up and suddenly dropped. One of the end-game
cutscenes suggests a critical decision is about to be made, then is
completely ignored.
Then there's the ending itself. Sheer
garbage. There's no payoff for wading through the disjointed story.
There's nothing but a brief little dialog that goes nowhere.
What's
particularly sad is that, what story is there is very interesting. This
game was designed by the designer for Planescape: Torment, one of the
great RPGs. It has a similar feel, full of regret and melancholy, and
the weight of decisions made in the past. I'm quite sure a complete
story was developed. Some genius decided to start cutting so the game
could get out the door sooner. It's a sad waste of potential, and leaves
a bitter taste.
Not a bad game . . .
but you might want to wait for the price to drop before buying.
The first KOTOR was, in my
opinion, one of the greatest games ever. Though it had its flaws, they
were few and far between. Obsidian and everyone involved with putting
out KOTOR 2: TSL deserves an enthusiastic round of applause for their
efforts to make a follow-up to such a stellar game. They managed to come
up with a sequel that, while plauged with bugs and other issues, is
nonetheless relatively enjoyable.
First, the good stuff:
TSL
is fun to play--most of the time--and delivers much the same kind of
experience as the first KOTOR (after all, what can compare to barbequing
hordes of Sith with Force Storm whilst laughing maniaclly to
yourself?). KOTOR 1 was good, and TSL tries to continue in the same
tradition. Though there are plenty of problems with the game (see
below), it is worth the time, to play through a few times. Many of the
new features, like the streamlined weapon-change function, or the
"Empty" label for looted containers, or the fact that new datapads are
automatically opened to be read, are small but very helpful add-ons. The
new prestige classes add a lot to the experience, giving much
additional replay value. The companion influence system is interesting,
if a bit stifling at times. Aside from the gameplay, I feel compelled to
praise the new Jedi/Sith robes in the game: unlike KOTOR 1, TSL boasts
about four different, full-length types of robe, with probably two dozen
different color schemes/stats/features--it is most gratifying to walk
around in a flowing robe, something very Star Wars-ish that the first
game just didn't convey despite the brilliance of everything else. The
music is quite good, as is the feature on the main menu that enables you
to listen to the different songs you've unlocked in the game.
Now
the not so good . . .
The one word that comes to mind when
playing TSL is "Potential." This game had *enormous* potential to be
utterly amazing, but unfortunately . . . it's not. I've seen other
reviewers griping about Lucasarts pushing Obsidian too hard, about the
game not being completely finished when released, etc. I'm not going to
get involved in all that, but there are a great many things that
disappoint in TSL, and it looks like TSL was indeed *not* entirely done
when released (Pardon me while I sigh miserably over the lost content).
The
incomplete state of the game is the biggest issue for me. This means
that there are vexing holes in the story--especially near the end,
where, as I think someone else pointed out, the little tidbits of info
on the load/save screens are more informative as to what's going on than
the game itself. The first KOTOR really delivered a strong, continuous
main plot that kept you riveted till the very end; TSL pales in
comparison. The story is *there*, you can sense it, but it was not fully
brought out and clearly delineated--again, wonderful potential, but it
falls flat. The end of the game is nice, to be sure, but KOTOR 1's was,
simply put, totally cool, and made your adventure worth playing. In TSL,
well, it's more than a little disappointing.
The NPCs you find
seem sadly, madeningly dull compared to the first KOTOR. They don't have
nearly as satisfying backstories or personalites--with the notable
exception of Kreia; she is in the same league as KOTOR 1's characters.
Occasionally, you'll get a juicy emotional cutscene or something where
you actually connect with the others in your party, but those are
infrequent. Also, the influence system makes its doubly hard to find out
any stories that the NPCs actually have. (After hearing Atton make a
woefully not-funny comment for the hundreth time, you'll start getting
nostalgic for Jolee or HK-47 and their side-splitting remarks.)
The
sidequests involve a lot of tedious running back and forth, and many
quests simply cannot be completed, or end with irritating abruptness, a
symptom of the game's unfinished state.
Many of the locations you
visit in TSL are disappointingly flat. Unlike the unique and vibrant
locales in the KOTOR 1, TSL's areas seem to be studies in how many
shades of brown, gray, and black can be used (ah, for Manaan, or the
Rakatan world).
There are other complaints, too: countless bugs,
typos in the dialogue subtitles, items mysteriously vanishing from
inventories, plot-critical quests failing to trigger, etc.--while I've
been fortunate enough to avoid the bulk of these, I've heard many others
complaining bitterly about them.
All in all, TSL is fun, but is
lacking on many levels. If you liked the first KOTOR, I'd recommend
getting TSL, but you'd be better off waiting for the price to drop.
Meanwhile,
I think I feel inspired to go replay the first KOTOR, and hope that the
rumored KOTOR 3 will be polish the many rough spots in KOTOR 2 . . .
A Half Great Game
Oh, man, here we go with the
name calling already. Re reviews below: Ray is not an "idiot" L.L., he
just expected his game to run since Kotor I ran okay on his system, and
the engine is basically the same. I've had the opportunity to play Kotor
II on the Xbox (friend's copy and console), and now I've just finished
the PC version (hoping Obsidian/Lucas had learned something in the last
two months). No such luck. The game is inexcusably buggy (even after all
the feedback from the Xbox version players). This is a serious and
distracting problem throughout the game (and Lucas/Obsidian tech support
is not good) -- beware!
To be fair, I should note that Kotor II
is a darker, more complex, more philosophical story than Kotor I. The
GAMEPLAY is somewhat better with a whole new system to build a great
Jedi character (Dark or Light) and to handle combat more effectively
(new Dark/Light Force powers are available along with new moves, feats
and Jedi or Sith "prestige classes"). But the STORY, as realized, is
often tedious, confusing and even puzzling (read boring) -- it often
simply doesn't make sense (Like why am I doing this?). Quests end for no
apparent reason without resolution or explanation. The ending sequences
are especially bad. Storylines begin involving NPC's in your party who
you care about, but you have no idea how they're resolved. The ending
just creeps up, and then it's suddently game over (credits roll). It's
almost as if they didn't get a chance to finish the last 25% of the game
completely (time constraints?). This looks like a rush job for the
Christmas 2004 (Xbox) shopping season which is really a shame. With a
little more development time, testing and polish, this game could have
really been great. I guess it's all about money.
The new
characters/party members are okay, but not quite as interesting as Kotor
1. You do have a "bond" with one of the NPC's, but she's not a pretty
young Jedi -- just the opposite in fact. For those of you who enjoyed
the "romance" and other sidequests involving party members in Kotor 1,
there will be major disappointment. If you liked the random dialog
(sometimes very funny) between certain NPC's in the first Kotor, forget
it. Most of the dialog in Kotor 2 seems to be pretty much scripted. The
new "influence" system is a nice touch if you like to talk a lot (and
know how to say the right things). If you handle things exactly right,
you can even make apprentices (Jedi or Sith) out of certain party
members.
In a couple places the game forces you to split up your
party and use party members you don't like, don't want and didn't equip
(this really bothered me). If you like combat, you can build a real
"tank" type Jedi and mow down scores of "enemies" (this can get a little
old after a while). I often felt my character was actually too powerful
-- even with the game setting on "difficult". Remember, this time your
character starts the game as a Jedi exile with some Force powers (but no
light saber -- you must acquire the components and construct it). The
weapons balance (melee vs. ranged) is MUCH improved as is the ability to
switch weapon types during combat.
So, as I said in my Xbox
review, this is a half great game. The gameplay is great, but the
story/quests/characters are not so great. There's no way this game
deserves 5 stars (except to real Star Wars fans who admit the game has
problems but still give it 5 stars. Hmmm). For more objective people,
I'd give it 3-1/2 stars if I could. It's a pretty good game. Perhaps
upcoming patches will fix the bugs; perhaps not. I loved Kotor I but
felt kind of let down by this one. Consider carefully before you buy.
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