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 | Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic |
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Product InformationStar Wars: Knights of the Old Republic takes you into the distant past of the Star Wars universe -- over 4000 years before Episode I when battles raged between the Jedi and the Sith!Product FeaturesA massive conflict between Jedi & Sith has left the Republic weakened. Into this chaos steps a young Jedi on a mission. His mission will determine the outcome of this colossal galactic war - and your destiny as a JediLead your group of freedom fighters across the galaxy -- you can choose from humans droids Twi'leks Wookies and moreRecruit other to your cause & train them in exciting mini-games like racing swoop bikes or manning turret gunsTravel to ten unique world in the Star Wars galaxy from the Jedi Academy on Dantooine to the Sith homeworld of KorribanCustomizable and evolving characters keep the story fresh and the gameplay interesting -- especially when you have to choose between the Light & Dark Sides of The ForceProduct Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #2896 in Video Games
- Brand: Lucas Arts
- Released on: 2003-11-18
- ESRB Rating: Teen
- Platforms: Windows 98, Windows 2000, Windows Me, Windows XP
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 1.25" h x 5.25" w x 7.50" l, .50 pounds
Features
- A massive conflict between Jedi & Sith has left the Republic weakened. Into this chaos steps a young Jedi on a mission. His mission will determine the outcome of this colossal galactic war - and your destiny as a Jedi
- Lead your group of freedom fighters across the galaxy -- you can choose from humans, droids, Twi'leks, Wookies and more
- Recruit other to your cause & train them in exciting mini-games like racing swoop bikes or manning turret guns
- Travel to ten unique world in the Star Wars galaxy, from the Jedi Academy on Dantooine to the Sith homeworld of Korriban
- Customizable and evolving characters keep the story fresh and the gameplay interesting -- especially when you have to choose between the Light & Dark Sides of The Force
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
Star
Wars: Knights of the Old Republic takes place just a few years
after the Mandolorian Wars, thousands of years before the events in the
Star Wars movies we know and love. Two Jedi, master Revan and his
apprentice Malak, led the Republic's forces to victory and pursued the
Mandalorians into deep space only to return as Dark Jedi at the head of a
huge fleet of Sith warships. Only the Force powers of the Jedi Bastila
prevented the Sith from overwhelming the Republic's weakened forces. At
the start of the game Malak has usurped control of the Sith by betraying
Revan and has attacked the ship carrying Bastila and yourself. In true
Star Wars style, the game begins with a bang.
The storyline could
have been a standard coming-of-age yarn but is instead a genuinely
interesting adventure told with humor, compassion, and respect for the
source material. Your character has a mystical bond with Bastila, and
the two of you share some kind of connection to the Sith villains Darth
Malak and Darth Revan. The game's planet-hopping adventures are driven
by your exploration of these connections and how they relate to your
larger goal of discovering the source of the Sith's sudden fleet. During
your adventure you can explore side quests minor (such as racing swoops
or gambling) and major (such as uncovering the fascinating back stories
of your companions). Star Wars fans will get a kick out of the rich
lore introduced in the game, particularly the Tatooine storyline that
reveals the origin and history of the Sand People.
Gameplay is an
abbreviated form of Wizards of the Coast's d20 Star Wars RPG game
system--anyone who has played Dungeons & Dragons will be familiar
with the abilities, stats, feats, and bonuses in this game. The player
creates a character as a member of one of three starting classes
(soldier, smuggler, scout) and then later chooses a Jedi class
(guardian, consular, sentinel). Joining the player's character are other
Jedi, warriors, thieves, droids, a wookiee, and even a Mandolorian.
Unlike the faceless non-player characters of other games, each member of
the supporting cast has an intriguing history and even agenda. Up to
two of these other characters can join your character at any time.
Depending on who you chose to take with you, new dialogue and even
intra-party arguments come into the game (put the Mandalorian veteran
with the Republic patriot and you'll see sparks fly). Combat is
real-time turn-based, meaning the turns are seamless but the player has
the option of pausing the action at any time to issue orders or direct
any character to use a certain Force power, ability, feat, or item.
Graphics
range from adequate to exceptional. Building and character models are
not impressive--about what you get in GTA 3. Lightsaber graphics
and environmental effects (like waving grass, clouds, and weather) bring
the world to life. Battles are just brilliant, with characters pumping
out blaster fire at Jedi who dash, dodge, and even deflect the bolts
back toward their assailants. Complete with sounds straight out of the
movies, the thrilling combat is pure Star Wars.
All in all, Star
Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is a masterpiece of Star Wars
gaming. The pacing, balance of action and dialogue, clever puzzles and
quests, and loving attention to detail have set the bar very high for
role-playing games in general and Star Wars games in particular.
Consider this a must-have game.--Mike Fehlauer
Pros:
Subscribe to Game Informer
From the Manufacturer
Long before the
Galactic Civil War, an epic drama begins. Engage in this saga set in the
Golden Age of the Republic - over 4,000 years before the first Star
Wars film, when both Jedi and Sith number in the thousands. With the
Galaxy reeling from a recent conflict with the Dark Lords, the ongoing
battle between the Jedi and the Sith rages on. Your actions determine
the outcome of this colossal galactic war - and your destiny as a Jedi.
-Immersive,
action-packed Star Wars role-playing experience with customizable and
evolving playable characters.
-Choose from nine customizable
characters to build your party of three adventurers, including humans,
droids, Twi'leks, Wookiees and more.
-Journey spans seven different
worlds including Tatooine, Sith world of Korriban, Jedi Academy on
Dantooine and Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk.
Build your party and
upgrade your equipment in your own starship, the Ebon Hawk. Fast paced
mini-games -- such as racing swoop bikes, or manning turret guns.
FAQs
Q.
What character classes / races can you play?
The main player
character will be human and can be played as one of three classes:
soldier, scout or scoundrel. Throughout the course of the game the
player will have the opportunity to become a Jedi, making available Jedi
specific dual classes such as the Jedi Guardian, Jedi Consular and Jedi
Sentinel. Additional races can be played by assuming control of NPCs
that have joined your party. Ever wanted to experience the raw power and
rage of a Wookiee? Here's your chance! In addition to playing as a
variety of human classes the party system allows the player to play as a
Wookiee, Twi'lek, Cathar or even a deadly assassin droid. As you can
imagine, players have a wide variety of options for gameplay, but can
always choose to focus on the player created character and leave the
rest of the party to the game AI.
Q. How will character generation
and advancement be handled?
The rules system in the game is based
on the Wizards of the Coast Star Wars D20 rules. So, players familiar
with this system will find the character creation and advancement to be
quite similar.
Your main character will be human (party members
will be a variety of species), and you first choose your gender and
class. You can be a Soldier, Scout, or Scoundrel class, but ultimately
you'll develop into a Jedi class. You can then choose your character's
appearance from a variety of head models and textures.
You will be
able to choose your abilities, skills, and combat feats that will help
customize how you play through the game. As you gain experience and
start to move up in level, you will be able to improve your skills and
add to your Force powers and combat feats.
Q. Could you guide us
through the character creation process?
You start by choosing your
gender and class. You can be a soldier, a scoundrel or a scout. These
classes each have statistical implications, and they also dictate
whether your character is big and strong, small and quick, or somewhere
in between. Next, you'll see a close-up of your character's face, and
you can choose from a wide variety of different appearances. You'll also
be able to choose a voice set for your character. Once you've decided
how your character will look and sound, you can choose your name (or
generate a random one).
You will be able to create a quick
character and jump right into the game, or create a custom character and
spend some time adjusting your stats. If you choose to create a custom
character, you start by determining your character's abilities. These
include things like strength, dexterity, and constitution, and will
dictate how well your character is able to perform skills and feats in
the game. Next, you'll determine your starting skills and feats, which
give you the capability to do things like special combat moves or
hacking computers. This is where you can really start customizing your
gameplay experience. Throughout character creation, we have a button
that will automatically assign recommended stats if you want to see a
configuration that we think will work well.
Q. How will the player
be able to choose which side he or she will be on, and how much will
being on the good side or the dark side affect the gameplay and
storyline?
Your actions throughout the game will create momentum
towards either the dark or light side of the Force. Whether you are
choosing an evil thing to say, or you're satisfying a generous and
heroic quest, those actions are associated with good or evil and will
start to really accumulate. People that you meet in the game will start
to react to things that you've done, and you can become famous (or
infamous) for certain things. We take this to greater and greater
extremes as you approach the end of the game, so that ultimately your
actions will have a massive impact on the galaxy and the fate of the
Republic.
Q. How do I manage the characters in my party?
Sometimes
when you encounter a new Non-Playable Character (NPC) the plot is such
that they need to join your party right away. In such a case if your
group were full, you would have to choose one member of the party that
would go back to the ship and wait for you there. With those cases as
the exception, you can normally only switch out your party members at
the Ebon Hawk as often as you wish.
Q. How will interaction with
non-playable characters be handled?
Most of the NPC's in the game
will have a fully voiced dialog tree, and you can talk to them and get
information or quests. All of the NPC's that you'll see can be talked
to, although some of them may not want to bother with you! The dialog in
the game is fully voice recorded.
Q. What weapons and Force
powers do you have?
There are 44 Force powers separated into
offensive, defensive and enhancement Force powers. Some of the
aggressive Force powers are Choke, Lightning and Whirlwind. Some of the
defensive powers include Force shield, Energy resistance and Heal.
Enhancement powers include Burst of Speed and Master focus. Whenever a
Jedi gains a level a new Force power can be selected. The more powerful
Force powers have prerequisites and level limitations. For example,
Force Storm requires that the Jedi already know how to use Shock and
Lighting as well as being 15th level.
There are many different
kinds of weapons in the game, but of course light sabers are very
popular. We have gone to great lengths to ensure that light sabers not
only look amazing but also come in a variety of different forms. For
example, players will see the double bladed light saber made popular by
Darth Maul in Episode I. In a unique twist, the player's light saber is
not simply a found item in the game, but rather is constructed from
items and crystals discovered in game play. The player will be further
able to customize his or her light saber in the Ebon Hawk's machine shop
by changing out crystals found throughout the game. Each light saber
can have three different crystals: one crystal determines the color of
the saber, while the other two crystals modify the energy output. Some
crystals enhance the light saber's ability to cut through steel and thus
do more damage against droids. Some crystals widen the beam of the
saber making it easier to deflect blaster bolts, while other crystals
simply improve the energy output all around, making for a more powerful
weapon. In addition to light sabers, Star Wars: Knights of the Old
Republic contains numerous other weapons including a variety of
blasters, pistols, bladed weapons, rifles, grenades, disruptors, bow
casters and many, many more that also come in dual wield and two handed
forms. Combat is clearly an important part of the game and one that we
want to make as personal to the player as possible!
Q. What colors
of lightsabers will there be?
You can customize your lightsaber
on the Ebon Hawk. There are three crystal slots in the lightsaber and
many different crystals that you can fit into those three slots. The
crystals determine the color and attributes of the lightsaber. By
putting in more powerful crystals you can change the properties of your
lightsaber, as well as alter the color. The basic colors are Blue, Gold,
Green and Red.
Q. How will combat work?
The combat will be
rules-based and realtime. That means you will issue the main actions you
want your character and party members to take, and they will perform
those actions based on their stats. Since you have a huge number of
Force powers, combat feats, weapons, and items to use in combat, in
addition to the challenge of controlling a party of 3 characters, there
is a ton of things to do during combat. The overall result is that the
combat is quite strategic, but it plays out very fast, as though you
were seeing an action sequence from a movie.
Q. What will the
cutscenes be like?
There will be many cutscenes in Star Wars:
Knights of the Old Republic because we want the game to be a very
cinematic experience, where you feel like you're inside a Star Wars
movie, but you're in complete control of what happens.
There are
many different types of cutscenes in the game too, but it will be
difficult to tell them apart. They all flow quite seamlessly from one
type to the next. For example, the dialog in the game is experienced
through a cutscene system, which looks like a letterboxed movie. During
those dialog scenes, characters animate, speak, and even lip-synch their
words. There is also a large number of cutscenes that involve things in
the game world such as scripted events or dramatic scenes that are
happening elsewhere in the galaxy.
Some of the most stunning
cutscenes though, are the ones of the colossal war going on in space.
Combined with Jeremy Soule's musical score and sound effects from
LucasArts the cutscenes will be an extremely compelling part of the
game.
Q. What kinds of mini-games will there be?
We have
added several mini-games, to give players the fast-paced and visceral
part of the Star Wars experience that you normally wouldn't be able to
do within the context of an RPG engine. So, when your ship is attacked
by Sith fighters, you'll be able to hop in the gun turret and blast them
yourself. Also, you'll be able to engage in illegal races with modified
swoop racers on a number of worlds.
We've also added a card game
called Pazzak, so that you can gamble with characters throughout the
game. It's somewhat of a collectible card game, so you'll be able to
find new cards throughout the game that will help you play better
against your next opponent. This mini-game alone has proven to be lots
of fun, so we think that it will be a nice diversion for people to be
able to try some different types of gameplay within the overall
experience.
- Captivating storyline
- Clever dialogue
- Star Wars feel
- True story and dialogue support for either Light Side or Dark Side play
- Brilliant combat graphics
- Fascinating characters (the loyal--and homicidal--droid HK-47 is truly unique)
- Occasional bugs in dialogue, movie playback
- Cannot transfer equipped gear between characters while on your ship
Subscribe to Game Informer
From the Manufacturer
Long before the
Galactic Civil War, an epic drama begins. Engage in this saga set in the
Golden Age of the Republic - over 4,000 years before the first Star
Wars film, when both Jedi and Sith number in the thousands. With the
Galaxy reeling from a recent conflict with the Dark Lords, the ongoing
battle between the Jedi and the Sith rages on. Your actions determine
the outcome of this colossal galactic war - and your destiny as a Jedi.
-Immersive,
action-packed Star Wars role-playing experience with customizable and
evolving playable characters.
-Choose from nine customizable
characters to build your party of three adventurers, including humans,
droids, Twi'leks, Wookiees and more.
-Journey spans seven different
worlds including Tatooine, Sith world of Korriban, Jedi Academy on
Dantooine and Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk.
Build your party and
upgrade your equipment in your own starship, the Ebon Hawk. Fast paced
mini-games -- such as racing swoop bikes, or manning turret guns.
FAQs
Q.
What character classes / races can you play?
The main player
character will be human and can be played as one of three classes:
soldier, scout or scoundrel. Throughout the course of the game the
player will have the opportunity to become a Jedi, making available Jedi
specific dual classes such as the Jedi Guardian, Jedi Consular and Jedi
Sentinel. Additional races can be played by assuming control of NPCs
that have joined your party. Ever wanted to experience the raw power and
rage of a Wookiee? Here's your chance! In addition to playing as a
variety of human classes the party system allows the player to play as a
Wookiee, Twi'lek, Cathar or even a deadly assassin droid. As you can
imagine, players have a wide variety of options for gameplay, but can
always choose to focus on the player created character and leave the
rest of the party to the game AI.
Q. How will character generation
and advancement be handled?
The rules system in the game is based
on the Wizards of the Coast Star Wars D20 rules. So, players familiar
with this system will find the character creation and advancement to be
quite similar.
Your main character will be human (party members
will be a variety of species), and you first choose your gender and
class. You can be a Soldier, Scout, or Scoundrel class, but ultimately
you'll develop into a Jedi class. You can then choose your character's
appearance from a variety of head models and textures.
You will be
able to choose your abilities, skills, and combat feats that will help
customize how you play through the game. As you gain experience and
start to move up in level, you will be able to improve your skills and
add to your Force powers and combat feats.
Q. Could you guide us
through the character creation process?
You start by choosing your
gender and class. You can be a soldier, a scoundrel or a scout. These
classes each have statistical implications, and they also dictate
whether your character is big and strong, small and quick, or somewhere
in between. Next, you'll see a close-up of your character's face, and
you can choose from a wide variety of different appearances. You'll also
be able to choose a voice set for your character. Once you've decided
how your character will look and sound, you can choose your name (or
generate a random one).
You will be able to create a quick
character and jump right into the game, or create a custom character and
spend some time adjusting your stats. If you choose to create a custom
character, you start by determining your character's abilities. These
include things like strength, dexterity, and constitution, and will
dictate how well your character is able to perform skills and feats in
the game. Next, you'll determine your starting skills and feats, which
give you the capability to do things like special combat moves or
hacking computers. This is where you can really start customizing your
gameplay experience. Throughout character creation, we have a button
that will automatically assign recommended stats if you want to see a
configuration that we think will work well.
Q. How will the player
be able to choose which side he or she will be on, and how much will
being on the good side or the dark side affect the gameplay and
storyline?
Your actions throughout the game will create momentum
towards either the dark or light side of the Force. Whether you are
choosing an evil thing to say, or you're satisfying a generous and
heroic quest, those actions are associated with good or evil and will
start to really accumulate. People that you meet in the game will start
to react to things that you've done, and you can become famous (or
infamous) for certain things. We take this to greater and greater
extremes as you approach the end of the game, so that ultimately your
actions will have a massive impact on the galaxy and the fate of the
Republic.
Q. How do I manage the characters in my party?
Sometimes
when you encounter a new Non-Playable Character (NPC) the plot is such
that they need to join your party right away. In such a case if your
group were full, you would have to choose one member of the party that
would go back to the ship and wait for you there. With those cases as
the exception, you can normally only switch out your party members at
the Ebon Hawk as often as you wish.
Q. How will interaction with
non-playable characters be handled?
Most of the NPC's in the game
will have a fully voiced dialog tree, and you can talk to them and get
information or quests. All of the NPC's that you'll see can be talked
to, although some of them may not want to bother with you! The dialog in
the game is fully voice recorded.
Q. What weapons and Force
powers do you have?
There are 44 Force powers separated into
offensive, defensive and enhancement Force powers. Some of the
aggressive Force powers are Choke, Lightning and Whirlwind. Some of the
defensive powers include Force shield, Energy resistance and Heal.
Enhancement powers include Burst of Speed and Master focus. Whenever a
Jedi gains a level a new Force power can be selected. The more powerful
Force powers have prerequisites and level limitations. For example,
Force Storm requires that the Jedi already know how to use Shock and
Lighting as well as being 15th level.
There are many different
kinds of weapons in the game, but of course light sabers are very
popular. We have gone to great lengths to ensure that light sabers not
only look amazing but also come in a variety of different forms. For
example, players will see the double bladed light saber made popular by
Darth Maul in Episode I. In a unique twist, the player's light saber is
not simply a found item in the game, but rather is constructed from
items and crystals discovered in game play. The player will be further
able to customize his or her light saber in the Ebon Hawk's machine shop
by changing out crystals found throughout the game. Each light saber
can have three different crystals: one crystal determines the color of
the saber, while the other two crystals modify the energy output. Some
crystals enhance the light saber's ability to cut through steel and thus
do more damage against droids. Some crystals widen the beam of the
saber making it easier to deflect blaster bolts, while other crystals
simply improve the energy output all around, making for a more powerful
weapon. In addition to light sabers, Star Wars: Knights of the Old
Republic contains numerous other weapons including a variety of
blasters, pistols, bladed weapons, rifles, grenades, disruptors, bow
casters and many, many more that also come in dual wield and two handed
forms. Combat is clearly an important part of the game and one that we
want to make as personal to the player as possible!
Q. What colors
of lightsabers will there be?
You can customize your lightsaber
on the Ebon Hawk. There are three crystal slots in the lightsaber and
many different crystals that you can fit into those three slots. The
crystals determine the color and attributes of the lightsaber. By
putting in more powerful crystals you can change the properties of your
lightsaber, as well as alter the color. The basic colors are Blue, Gold,
Green and Red.
Q. How will combat work?
The combat will be
rules-based and realtime. That means you will issue the main actions you
want your character and party members to take, and they will perform
those actions based on their stats. Since you have a huge number of
Force powers, combat feats, weapons, and items to use in combat, in
addition to the challenge of controlling a party of 3 characters, there
is a ton of things to do during combat. The overall result is that the
combat is quite strategic, but it plays out very fast, as though you
were seeing an action sequence from a movie.
Q. What will the
cutscenes be like?
There will be many cutscenes in Star Wars:
Knights of the Old Republic because we want the game to be a very
cinematic experience, where you feel like you're inside a Star Wars
movie, but you're in complete control of what happens.
There are
many different types of cutscenes in the game too, but it will be
difficult to tell them apart. They all flow quite seamlessly from one
type to the next. For example, the dialog in the game is experienced
through a cutscene system, which looks like a letterboxed movie. During
those dialog scenes, characters animate, speak, and even lip-synch their
words. There is also a large number of cutscenes that involve things in
the game world such as scripted events or dramatic scenes that are
happening elsewhere in the galaxy.
Some of the most stunning
cutscenes though, are the ones of the colossal war going on in space.
Combined with Jeremy Soule's musical score and sound effects from
LucasArts the cutscenes will be an extremely compelling part of the
game.
Q. What kinds of mini-games will there be?
We have
added several mini-games, to give players the fast-paced and visceral
part of the Star Wars experience that you normally wouldn't be able to
do within the context of an RPG engine. So, when your ship is attacked
by Sith fighters, you'll be able to hop in the gun turret and blast them
yourself. Also, you'll be able to engage in illegal races with modified
swoop racers on a number of worlds.
We've also added a card game
called Pazzak, so that you can gamble with characters throughout the
game. It's somewhat of a collectible card game, so you'll be able to
find new cards throughout the game that will help you play better
against your next opponent. This mini-game alone has proven to be lots
of fun, so we think that it will be a nice diversion for people to be
able to try some different types of gameplay within the overall
experience.Customer Reviews
It's been a long time coming.
It has been a long and
interesting ride with the Star Wars gaming license, with about as many
games as there is sand on Tatooine. The latest offerings come in the
form of a role playing game- Knights of the Old Republic. Knights is a
somewhat confined and well-executed romp through perhaps the greatest
franchise ever created. Games magazines are giving Knights high marks,
and its well deserved, because she immersiveness of the game rivals just
about every other Star Wars title from LucasArts or its stable of
developers.
Knights succeeds in just about every category- it is
both stunning to behold and fun to play. Characters are well designed,
if a little `same-ish' given that all men and women are the same height,
with only superficial variances in model types. The game utilizes a
bare-bones version of 3rd Edition D&D at its core, but unlike
Neverwinter Nights, KOTOR only uses the system as background support and
the mechanics rarely if ever intrude into actual game play. What the
game doesn't allow is dual or multi-classing. You can start as either a
Soldier, a Scout or a Scoundrel and by 8th to 10th level, you become a
Jedi. And your character can only be human. Each class has their pluses
and minuses, usually in areas like Skills, Feats and allotment of Jedi
powers. Unlike Neverwinter Nights, however, you control the progress of
your NPCs- choosing their skills, feats, and choice of equipment and
weapons that they use. The Jedi classes are almost overwhelmingly
superior to their mundane counterparts, but given this is a game about
Jedi during their golden age, it is to expected.
KOTOR's story
revolves around two former Jedi who, victorious over the Mandalorians,
returned to conquer the Republic after falling to the Dark Side of the
Force. They arrive at the head of a massive star fleet that no one seems
to know where they got it from. It is your job to figure out how they
managed to assemble such a large fleet and hopefully do something about
it without succumbing to the Dark Side. (You can play through the game,
making choices that will eventually determine whether you become light
or dark.) Sadly, however, KOTOR's story is essentially the same as
Neverwinter Nights- instead of finding four `words of power', you must
collect four star map fragments that lead you to an unknown world
inhabited by the remnants of an ancient race that essentially gave the
galaxy hyperspace travel. And the answer to where the Sith star fleet is
coming from is more akin to a Star Trek story line than that of Star
Wars. None of this changes the fact that most of the events that lead up
to this revelation are interesting and a whole lot of fun. The various
plot twists and the `staggering' revelation about your character always
keep it interesting.
In Knights you travel to several worlds- you
start on the city-world of Taris, Dantooine, where you begin your Jedi
training, Tatooine, Kashyyyk, Mannon, and the Sith world of Korriban.
There are innumerable quests that you must undertake, many with light or
dark consequences, though most of which are entertaining. In these
adventures you are aided by several NPCs- a Republic soldier named Carth
Onasi, Bastila Shan, a prissy Jedi Sentinel, the perky Twi'lek girl,
Mission Vao and her Wookie sidekick, Zaalbar, an astromech droid,
Canderous Ordo- an ex-Mandalorian mercenary, a cantankerous fallen Jedi
named Jolee Bindo, and HK-47, a smart-mouthed assassin droid turned
translator. HK-47 steals every scene he is in with his dry, dark humor,
wry condescension and quips on the limitations of so-called `meatbags'
and bragging about his success as an assassin. There is also a never
ending supply of equipment and gear to upgrade characters with- armor,
shields, weapons and lovely flamethrowers.
The combat system
involves queuing up actions for each character then watching them
executed on screen. You can queue up four actions, be they attacks,
Force powers, healing items or stimulant injectors (potions,
essentially), and each action is executed in sequence. You can pause at
any time, assigning actions to your characters, targets to attack, etc.
then unpause and watch everything unfold. Though a limited way to do
things, it is never dull to watch and the combat sequences are well
animated and very flashy. One downside is that you can't switch weapons
on the fly, rather you must pause, enter a sub-menu and swap weapons out
as you desire. Combat should have been a little more interactive, but
since battles rarely last very long anyway, it hardly makes a
difference.
KOTOR's graphics are lavish and everything has that
all-important Star Wars look to it. Sound effects are bang on. In this
BioWare really did such a wonderful job in capturing all of the nuances
of what Star Wars is all about- something Lucas can't seem to do in
latest batch of prequels. This is perhaps the deepest and most Star
Wars-like game since Dark Forces II: Jedi Knight, successfully capturing
the best of what Star Wars is. I would have preferred a more
3rd-person-esque style of control and more freedom of movement, because
though you can drive your character around the places you visit, you
cannot climb, jump, swing, etc., which really would not have been that
hard to accomplish within the confines of the game.
Ultimately, it
is a very satisfying game- huge game worlds, which while linear in
nature are fun to explore, epic story and fun characters more than make
up for its failings. It has some bugs that lead to system lock-ups that
forced several restarts. No mention of midi-chlorians, prophecies, or
`chosen one's'. It is a very romantic high adventure peppered with humor
and a sense of fun - kinda what the movies are supposed to be like.
What's more is that it provides 40-60 hours of fresh gameplay, making it
the best Star Wars game in a long time.
Best
*experience* I ever had in gaming
This is an awesome game.
Period.
In many ways, this game redefines the role playing genre.
What is very unique about this game is that it has a very rich story.
Probably one of the best Star Wars stories ever. This is the first game I
have ever played where I simply kept going because I wanted to see what
happens next. And I can guarantee you that there will be plot twists
you will never be expecting!
Also, the game features some of the
most memorable game characters ever. Way to go, HK-47!
The game
also makes great use of character-shaping techniques. Are you going to
evolve along the light side of the force, or is the dark side too
tempting? Are you going to change your mind half way through? Many
special abilities can be aquired, turning characters into very unique
beings. And then of course, there is the choice of your party members:
Do you want the strong wookie to help you out, or would you rather have a
violent droid with you? Or perhaps a Jedi knight whom you just saved
from the dark side? Or is it all just a trap?
The choices you make
throughout this game have a great impact. In fact, this is problably
the first game ever that I will play through a second time! Dark side,
here I come...
The best RPG since
Baldurs Gate 2
You don't have to be a Star
Wars fan to appreciate what a great RPG this is, but it can't hurt. Star
Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is the best RPG that I have played at
least since Baldurs Gate 2, and it is the best Star Wars experience
since the first trilogy. There is just so much to see, and so much to
experience. Then, when you are finished, you can go back and do it all
over again as an evil character instead of a good one.
On a high
end video card, the game is beautiful to look at. The level of detail in
the graphics is astonishing. The on-screen appearance of your character
and your companions changes depending upon what you equip them with,
and your physical appearance actually changes depending upon how good or
evil you behave. The environments are immersive and realistic, and also
varied. You fight on grass-covered plains, beautiful beaches, desert,
and even a bit underwater. The grass and the trees sway in the breeze
and sand kicks up when you run across the beach. Combat is equally
impressive to watch. Lightsaber battles are reminiscent of the big one
at the end of "The Phantom Menace". You watch characters thrust, parry,
feint, kick, and slice with their lightsabers. And then there's the
force powers - oh the force powers. They are fun to use, and dazzling to
look at.
Every NPC line in the game is voice-acted. Every single
last one. And it's all high-quality material. I can't state how great
this part is. It's like getting to play through a 40-hour epic movie.
Some dialog trees are huge and go on for minutes at a time. Your NPC
companions are fun to click on just to see if they have anything
interesting to say, and they usually do. They are deeply developed,
unique, and have interesting stories to tell. One of them, a homicidal
droid, provides a lot of comic relief. Another is brutal mercenary who
tells interesting war stories. Chances are, you will want to take
different party members with you on different quests just to see what
they have to say. Lots of NPC's have their own side plots, which are
woven into the game.
The storyline itself is not that great, but
it's the way that the story is told that is so great. The themes of Good
vs. Evil and Light vs. Dark are shown to you over and over again. These
concepts are not explained to you. Instead, you experience them for
yourself. You get to witness or perform good deeds, as well as
atrocities. If you are playing a good character, then by the end of the
game you will have developed genuine feelings of distaste for The Sith
and their Dark Lord, Malak. If you are playing as an evil character,
than you will have an opportunity to commit some truly heinous acts
against helpless civilians, or your friends. All of this gives you a
true sense of role-playing that is unparalleled since Planescape:
Torment.
The role-playing system isn't as robust as D&D, but
there is still a lot to it. There are hundreds of goodies like armor,
weapons, and accessories that you can equip your character and
companions with. Chances are, you'll play a certain way one time, and
then want to try some different setups the next time that you play. You
can change the color of your lightsaber, and change the crystals in it
to upgrade its properties. You can wield just one lightsaber, a
double-ended staff sabre, or one in each hand. You can also choose
between brute force or finesse, but brute force seems to be an easier
path. As you progress through the game, there is a true feeling of power
progression. You can feel yourself changing from a lowly soldier to a
godlike Jedi who at the end of the game slices through hordes of
powerful enemies like a hot knife through butter. That feeling of
progression is what makes great RPG's like this so addictive.
It's
simple. This is the best RPG since Baldurs Gate 2 (another Bioware
title). If you like Star Wars, or if you have liked any of Bioware's
other role-playing games, then you must give this game a try.
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