The best RPG and Star Wars game to date has something to offer long time fans and casual players alike.
It was so successful that its spin-offs included a sequel and comic book series in quick succession. You will find that practically all serious gamers have either played or know of this famous title. Originally launched in 2003, it was marred by some out-of-the-box technical issues, but since most of these were resolved in patches later on, nobody has anything but praise for this masterpiece.
The game's mechanics can be divided into two categories - combat and dialog. At any point in the game you are either fighting or talking, and in some situations watching cinematics or playing mini games. To control the game you use your keyboard to move around and your mouse to initiate actions or to interact with people and objects.
When first starting out you must choose your character's status, beginning with full name, then class, gender, appearance, skills and attributes. There are three classes to pick from, Soldier, Scout and Scoundrel. Then later on when you become a Jedi, you can pick another secondary class, which includes; Guardian, Sentinel and Consular.
Your skills and attributes determine how you play the game and what tasks you can complete by yourself. Also it lets you assign combat styles, ranging from expertise at melee weapons, ranged guns and force usage. As well as that, you can select certain feats which give you varied bonuses, and force powers for special attacks and defenses. Attributes include; dexterity, strength, charisma, wisdom, constitution and intelligence. Skills available are; computer use, repair, demolitions, persuasion, stealth, awareness, security and treat injury. Many of these are self explanatory, but it would take too long to overview each one here.
Progressing throughout the game involves advancing in level, from one to thirty. Every level lets you add more skills, powers and feats, and every so often more attributes too. This happens when you achieve a certain level of experience, which you gather by killing enemies or finishing quests. Your character has an inventory in which items are stored, such as; armor, weapons, accessories, shields, usable components and more.
One of the most important features of character development is the alignment system, which lets you decide if you want to follow the light side or fall to the dark side. This is possible via dialog options and quest outcomes through-out the game. Not only does this impact on how you react with the world around you, it also has different bonuses depending on which force powers you use.
The game's plot revolves around visiting several different planets, searching for puzzles to solve a larger mystery, using your personal spaceship to travel to each one. All the while you can complete quests - a few being mandatory and all others being optional. In between the beginning and end of the game, the story is non-linear, which means that you can pick what planet and which quests to complete in whatever order you prefer.
The environments are free roaming, allowing you to discover new things and also choose your fights. You always have one goal at each destination, the rest of the missions - whether tied into the plot or non-related, can reward you with extra experience points or special items. There are literally hundreds to complete, and they make up the bulk of the game.
You are not alone though, along your journey you will meet several other characters who join you as a party. Eventually your party will consist of nine people, including different classes and background stories. Some are even optional depending on your decisions. At each new checkpoint location you can choose which two people will accompany you. As well as bringing their own abilities to the table, this also allows a chance for personal character building. Every party member has an interesting life story you can explore by dialog options. One of the funnest parts of the game is actually getting to know your friends, and this can lead to romantic pursuits, if you are that way inclined.
When in combat situations, you no-longer need your keyboard, you use your mouse to select targets and then a menu is displayed letting you select what attack to use, or what grenade to throw, or what force power to activate. These of course are determined on what feats, powers and inventory you currently have. You also have a queue so you can plan attacks beforehand, for a bit of variety. This is really what sets the combat apart from other Star Wars games such as Jedi Knight, instead of hack and slash the computer performs the actions for you. Different weapons include single, dual and double edged lightsabers, pistols, blasters, swords, grenades, mines and more.
Like all role playing games, graphics aren't nearly as much of an issue as gameplay is, and Knights of the Old Republic is no exception. Compared to a similar game like Jedi Academy, the detail isn't quite on equal terms, but on the other hand the environments are much bigger. If you play both you might notice that a lot of the force powers and attack moves and their animations are related. The 3rd person view is almost identical, and both the in-game cinematics and movies also follow the same pattern.
A lot of other small additions to the graphics make a noticeable difference, such as your appearance morphing as your alignment changes, or unique facial animations when talking to characters. The seven different planets you visit do a great job of simulating varying atmospheres, so you'll never get bored of your progress. Along the way you'll encounter several mini-games and out of the ordinary situations in which the game does a decent job. Examples of this include card games, turret firing, speeder racing and an underwater adventure.
Star Wars is famous for its fantastic amount of sound effects, and thankfully the same trend continues in this title. The first thing you'll notice about the musical score is its originality. Evidentially the producers wanted to stay true with the expanded universe setting in the music they composed, a wise decision indeed. Every song is fitting to each scenario, as it automatically adapts from ambiance to conflict where necessary.
Every single person you come across can talk to you, and you can have conversations with your party members whenever you like. Aliens and droids communicate in their own native language, which is another nice touch. Subtitles let you read along in whatever they are speaking, and though you cannot hear yourself talk, your list of dialog responses spell out word for word what you would say. Voice acting of all the main characters is terrific, and is perfectly cast too.
In regards to re-playability, role playing games lead the pack because of the many different options they present to you. Knights of the Old Republic gives you the opportunity to complete the game many times, due to 3 main factors; gender, alignment and quests. Being male or female means more than just the superficial appearance, it actually decides on which romantic interests you can pursue.
The alignment system lets you play through the game as either Jedi or Sith, and its interesting to approach the missions in the opposite way. It should also be noted that this allows for an alternate non-canonical ending. There are so many quests in the game you probably won't finish them all the first time around, so its fun to tick them all off your list later on. In fact, there is so much content in the game, you would have to play-through it four times to get 100% out of it.
Knights of the Old Republic is a classic Star Wars title that you will still be playing in several years time. Its genius storyline and memorable characters are a tribute to the original saga that even George Lucas would be proud of. Role playing at its best, this epic title has paved the way for many other great expanded universe spin-offs, and is bound to attract a lot of new fans to the franchise.
Whats most amazing about this game is that it captures the essence of Star Wars philosophy and introduces two dimensional morality like no other titles did before it. It leaves you asking yourself just what is right and wrong, and what if things had happened differently. Any game worthy of being motion picture material deserves extra marks, and with a promising future in sight for this new saga, the sooner you play this game the better.