My KotOR II Review

December 26th, 2004 | Recreation, Reviews, Star Wars

***spoilers***

(slightly edited from several entries I posted in Galaxy of the Old Republic – KotOR II: The Sith Lords, “Rating the Game”)

Story:
The story is much better than K1, but is confusing and convoluted. There are too many questions left unanswered, and players shouldn’t have to guess at what they are. One can argue that this leaves the story “open-ended” for K3, but is there definitely going to be a K3? For example, in the conclusion, is the crew really riding off into the sunset, or are they headed for even more dire circumstances? Did everyone even survive? There’s no sense of resolution, and this is because the conclusion was so abrupt.

Writers should operate on the assumption that theirs will be the last chapter and as such, their contribution should be able to stand on its own. The exception would be if the entire story is already finished and is broken up into parts because it would be too long to include in just one game.

Gameplay:

  • I liked that you don’t have to rely on pazaak and swoop racing to earn credits, that the side games are there as an option. The “advanced” cards are nice, but could be explained better. Also, the pazaak players I’ve encountered are much better than the ones in K1. The option to play just for fun or for credits is also nice. The swoop racing, though I’m no good at it, is fun because of the vertical obstacles. It’s less boring.
  • The battles, with the exception of Sion and Kreia, are way too easy. In fact, I’m on Dxun right now and have outfitted myself in armor that restricts some of your Force powers. And even though I have a lightsaber, I’ve armed myself with blasters just to make things more challenging!
  • My minor quibble is the lack of “press X to return to the Ebon Hawk.“
  • Being able to influence the party members is really cool and makes more sense in terms of how they react to you.
  • I haven’t decided yet on whether or not I like being able to create and break down items. It’s convenient, but you can’t break down armor overlays and underlays to recycle them. I like to upgrade, you know?
  • At times I’m so loaded down with equipment that it would be nice to be able to store some in the cargo hold, which is completely empty and a waste of space. Also, it’s frustrating not to be able to upgrade items that your current party members aren’t equipped with. Like, if you’re using a workbench other than on the Hawk, you can only upgrade the stuff you have with you.
  • Sometimes I feel like I have so many Force powers that I can’t keep track of them on the action queue thing when you’re in combat mode. I can’t tell, either, if the lightsaber Forms make a difference or not. Because some of the powers are supersecret bonuses, they aren’t explained in the instructions, so I’m not entirely sure how some of them work.
  • The fact that you don’t have to use the gun turret is a nice addition. I tried it last night and couldn’t even figure out which ships were my targets.
  • Sometimes dialogues take place at inconvenient times, like when you’re in combat. In the Crystal Cave, for example, you’re fighting the mother of all kinrath, and suddenly, Kreia’s voice is in your head explaining how crystals work.
  • I have yet to pursue a romance, but I believe you have a choice (though limited) this time, as to whom you pursue it with.
  • You aren’t prompted to initiate a dialogue, so the first time through, I’d forget to talk to the other characters for hours at a time. Then again, I thought that was annoying in K1.Graphics:
    They’re about the same, I suppose, though I really like the different climates, especially on Dxun. Sometimes it’s raining, sometimes it isn’t. I think that’s really cool and adds a good variety to the game’s environment.

    Music:
    I can’t say whether or not it’s better, but I can say for sure that I much preferred the Dantooine music in K1. The minor key really brought out the tension in those scenes, and the eerie melody, which is reminiscent to The Exorcist theme, is really stuck in my head–in a good way.

    Replay Value:
    Way, way better, especially because of the greater number of dialogue options, and the ability to choose whether K1 ended, not so much male or female as DS or LS.

    Also, the randomly located items, as well as not knowing which items you’ll find, keeps it exciting. Will you get the cyan crystal this time around, or not?

    The Plot:
    It’s more sophisticated, but not as well developed nor executed. Critics blame either Obsidian or LucasArts because of the rush deadline supposedly rooted in greed, but whether or not it’s true, that takes away from any argument. If they had more time it would be better, etc., etc. Well, duh. It’s too much like a first draft. Or OK, second or third. It needs a lot more polish. Of course, this leaves plenty for the fanfic writers to flesh out. :)

    Overall:
    There are too many factors to consider for me to be able to make an objective evaluation. The main thing, probably, is because I was so blown away by K1 that I had such high expectations for K2, and unfortunately, they weren’t completely met. What’s even more frustrating is that there’s so much untapped potential in the storyline.

    • Comments are closed.