phantasy star jedi!
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Knights of the Old Republic for the XBOX is just one of those games that you really love and really hate at the same time. There’s always something pulling you in while pushing you away. Basically, the game has its own light and dark sides.
Story
Excellent story that takes place 4,000 years before the Empire. No whiny teenagers with spiky hair, no underaged robotic jailbait (unless you like protocol droids as much as Elise does…), no linear story. You create your own character; you decide his/her fate.
You really need to be a Star Wars nut to enjoy it. It helps a lot if you have read some of Dark Horse’s comics since it follows the Tales of the Jedi comics. Also, create-a-charater is limited to only human male/female. Why can’t I pick wookie?!?
Battle
It’s frighteningly similar to Phantasy Star Online. D&D purists will hate that comment, but it really plays more like PSO than Baulder’s Gate. Yes, you can see dice rolls if you want, but, a secret– PSO ain’t much different, just you can’t see their random number generator. PSO also does a better job disguising its turn-based-ness. Combat is very fast-paced, yet there’s the ability to pause to queue moves.
It’s frighteningly similar to Phantasy Star Online. If you played it on the DC and then GCN and then yet again on the XBOX, it’s pretty much played out. Okay, pausing and queuing is new, but it just makes the whole process lazier.
Graphics
Nice environments on Dantoonie, excellent character models, and the lightsaber battles– whoosh! Too good! Did I mention Jedi chix0rs?
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The rest of the game (like Tantoonie) looks like PSO (episode 2 at least), and that’s not a compliment. Also, there’s a disturbing lack of outfits for your Jedi, and they do promise offering a wider selection through XBOX Live, but this may take a while. There are also portions of the game that slow down a lot, like when using Force powers and cutscenes. A game should not slowdown at all during cutscenes. Also, character models are ridiculously re-used. I felt like I was playing FFX again seeing the same people over and over again.
Sound
By far the best sound in any videogame (maybe except for Hitomi’s “Kimochi!”…) . The DD5.1 in-game shines, and whipping out lightsabers is a joy to hear. The game is also fully voiced by some real voice actors including a few familiar voices from X-Men and Star Trek Voyager. The musical score is top notch and not just recycled music from the movies. There’s good stuff musically in this game.
The audio sometimes lags the video at the beginning of cutscenes. It’s annoying. I felt like I was watching an ADV dub.
Fun
Game is highly enjoyable. If you want to be a goodie Jedi and help old ladies cross the street, you’ll be more than welcome to. The plot will change based on this choice as will gameplay since Force powers such as buffing and healing are stronger than your killing Force powers. Conversely, if you want to be evil, and I mean the game lets you be extremely wicked at times, you are welcome to. As a Dark Jedi, you will go on a different path in more ways then one. Of course, you can be a pansy and be somewhere in between, but the game’s less fun that way.
The game also has a lot in terms of Star Wars mythology. It also allows you to build your own lightsaber and customize it to your own taste. Dual sabers? You got it. Dual blades? You got that too. Deflecting laser bolts back at the firer? Definitely!
KOTOR also features the “if you don’t have a key, you have a lightsaber” philosophy that should be followed in more games. Locked doors can be opened either with key cards or by lightsabers using the “BASH” command. Which brings me back to the question– why is Sam Fisher so great if he can’t even knock down one silly door?
Three things really decreased my enjoyment with the game:
1. Pointless mini-games. I hate mini-games in RPGs. I hate chocobo racing, so why would I like swoop racing? I hate Tetra Master, so why would I like Pazaak? I hate A.W.G.S. simulator, so why would I like walking 0.05 miles/hour in an environmental suit? The worst is the tail gunner mini-game where you have to shoot down enemy fighters in your turret. Why? It’s random. Yes, it’s a random battle in a game that advertises no random battles. To make it worse, you gain nothing. No XP, no $. Just pointless point and kill. And it has obscenely long load times.
2. Load times. I hate load times. Why can’t you borrow a page from Metroid Prime and disguise load times with short cinemas? Much better than seeing a “LOADING” screen.
3. Bugs. Memo to Bioware. XBOX != PC. Even with Live, you cannot patch games. You must get it right the first time.
Even with the flaws, I still find myself constantly playing this game, trying out new things. While combat eventually degrades into a Final Fantasy type slash->heal->slash contest, the story is what really sells the game. There’s something refreshing about being able to brutally chop down little jawas. KOTOR is easily the best XBOX RPG, and it makes a good case for best next-gen RPG in general.
