I decided, being that I was already reviewing all 6 Star Wars movies, that I should put into review form all of the parts of Star Wars canon that I have experienced, in chronological order for the Star Wars universe. The earliest account that I have taken part in is the Knights of the Old Republic, or KotOR for short. This RPG series was brought to us by one of my favorite game developers, BioWare, and published by LucasArts.
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (2003)
This game takes place 4,000 years before the events of Star Wars Episode I. Darth Malak, Dark Lord of the Sith, has unleashed a Sith armada against the Republic. Malak has done significant damage to the Jedi order, killing most of them or converting them to the Dark Side. We play as an unnamed player, on a Republic ship called the Endar Spire, right as it’s come under attack from Malak’s forces. Through the course of the game, you collect companions and learn about your past while trying to stop Malak. Eventually we come to the Jedi Academy on Dantooine where your character learns the ways of the Jedi. Then you learn about something called the “Star Forge”, which is probably where Malak has been collecting his military resources. As you look for more information about the Star Forge, you discover your character’s true identity. You are the brainwashed Darth Revan, former master of Darth Malak, brainwashed by the Jedi to stop his threat to the galaxy. Jedi Bastila Shan had defeated Revan and was aboard his ship when Malak turned his guns on Revan. She heals Revan and takes him to Dantooine to be brainwashed, and is later seduced to the dark side by Malak. The player can then choose a good or evil ending. You either defeats the Sith (light-side) or takes control from Malak (dark-side).
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords (2005)
This game takes place 5 years after KotOR. Jedi have been nearly wiped out by the Sith. We play as a former Jedi Knight, exiled from the Jedi Order. You can choose your gender, but canon takes this character as a female and refers to her mostly as “the Exile”. She had served under Revan during the Mandalorian Wars and activated a devastating weapon named the mass shadow generator during the climactic battle over Malachor V. The ensuing deaths created a massive “wound” in the Force and caused the Exile to sever all connection to the Force and caused her exile. As the game progresses, we rebuild our connection to the Force while creating strong Force Bonds with other characters and places, while unknowingly sapping Force powers. One of the characters that join the Exile is Kreia, who mentors the Exile, as well as former Sith assassin Atton Rand, Mandalorian War veteran Bao-Dur, criminal droid G0-T0, Sith apprentice Visas Marr, and T3-M4 and Mandalore from the first game. As the game progresses, we find out Kreia is the Sith Lord Darth Traya and was attempting to use the Exile to create another rift in the Force so deep it would destroy the Force completely, but we defeat Traya instead. Bao-Dur activates the mass shadow generator and causes Malachor V to collapse in on itself. The Exile’s ship, the Ebon Hawk, arrived just in time to rescue the Exile and disappears into space to search for Darth Revan.
Both of these games are fantastic and right up my alley. Universally loved by critics and beloved by me. This game is a RPG set in the Star Wars universe! That’s one of my favorite types of games in one of my favorite universes! I’m also a big fan of the games where choices you make set you on a good or evil path and change the outcome of the game, an idea that BioWare took with them to other beloved games of mine, Mass Effect and Dragon Age. It will probably follow them into a game I’m skeptical about, The Old Republic, which I’m only skeptical about because it’s an MMORPG like World of Warcraft and I just don’t want to be “that guy”. In that, it shares my desire for a sequel that will most likely never come as I wish for sequels to both games (KotOR and Warcraft) but both developers will likely be too busy because of their MMORPG titles. Sad face.
As I haven’t played either of these games in many years (and had to read most of the stories from Wikipedia sites) I can’t go into the proper detail with them. Suffice to say, I remember both fondly. They both offer further expansion on my beloved Star Wars saga and fantastic gameplay to boot. I don’t know if I can recommend you play them since they would look so dated at this point it could take you out of the game. But if you’re a lover of Star Wars, you need to play it for the canon storyline. But, if you’re a Star Wars lover, you probably already did. I give this game “It was awesome, but if you wanted to play it you probably already did” out of 863.
And, as always, please rate, comment, and/or like this post and others. It may help me get better.
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