|
Best Xbox game to date? Find out for yourself!
Bioware has had a nice, long history of making quality RPG's for the PC. Ever since Baldur’s Gate, I’ve been a huge fan of Bioware and its superb games. They quickly made their way to the top of my favorite developer list, brushing elbows with the likes of Square. The fact that they also originate in my home town Edmonton, Alberta just puts the icing on the cake. Of course, since the first day Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic was announced, I hounded the internet for even the slightest glimpse of screenshots, or details about the game. Now, after watching two years worth of tantalizing E3 video’s, KOTOR is here at last. Was it worth the wait?
Graphics
One of the first concern’s that came to many peoples minds, was if KOTOR would have more then just a pretty face. While the graphics are the most noticeable part, the true spirit of Knights lies in the deep combat and engaging story line. Everything is crisp and clear, by far the most impressive part is the lip-syncing. Every mouth movement is perfectly in-sync with the words, even if a different language is being spoken, the mouths are right-on. The varying character models are extremely impressive; when you change your armor or weapon it changes your characters appearance instantly. Even during in-engine cut-scene’s your character is still clothed in whatever you set it as before. Another perfect aspect is the wonderful camera work that Bioware has implemented in KOTOR. Not once in this game has the camera ever caused me trouble.The framerates are also silky smooth, and I never once experienced any stutter.
The environments you’ll venture to in KOTOR are so beautifully rendered, that you’ll want to go see everything there is to see. The painted backgrounds are so incredible that it’ll give you the feeling that you are truly in an epic adventure in a Galaxy far, far away.
Sound
One of the biggest turn-offs in some Action/RPG titles is that some of the music starts to wear out too quickly. The music in KOTOR is always there; it may be quite, but it sets the mood perfectly. The music seems much more based around the older Star Wars, with the more subtle classic approach. Not only did Knights have an almost perfect score, the sound effects are straight from the Star Wars archives. The same sounds that developers like Factor 5 dipped their fingers into, was placed into the masterful hands of Bioware. The sounds are authentic to the birth of your Lightsaber to the close of a blastdoor; it’s all real and really helps with the immersion.
Now, easily the most impressive feature in Knights of the Old Republic is the over fourteen thousand lines of dialogue found throughout the game. The voices are acted out perfectly by an obvious high-budget acting team. Even the minor characters skulking around the back of the Cantina’s are voiced with quality. Greater still are the different languages. From Wookie to Twi’lek, it’s all there and perfectly translated. It seems there are hundreds of characters in KOTOR, and each of them is unique, and has something important to say. My favorite of course, is one of your own party members, the eccentric assassination droid named HK-47. He brings a nice light of comic relief to your party with his hilarious dialogue.
Control
At first glance, this may look like a click and watch RPG, along the lines of Star Wars Galaxies, but there is an awesome combat system at work. The combat is based on the D20 rules system, which originated from pen and paper games, and is used in other games such as Baldur’s Gate. There is no need to worry, if you’re new to the system then you just need to follow the Quick Character guide, and let the story sweep you off into Star Wars bliss. There is two ways to go about playing Knights, you can play it all in real time, selecting your character and you’re two other party members’ attacks as you go along, or you can queue them all up in the pause menu. By tapping pause during the battle, the fight crashes to a halt and you’re able to select attacks for each of your party members, and then watch them be carried out.
Fun Factor
The best part of KOTOR is the feeling that you’re in complete control. You can control if your character if Good or Evil. During character creation, you start off by picking your characters class. There is Soldier, Scout and Scoundrel. You then choose your characters stats, if you’re new to the D20 system, then simply click the recommended button and you’re on your way. Then, you proceed to the ‘Feats’ menu, where you choose your characters distinct skills, like persuasion which influence’s the information you can squeeze out of others. Among others, there is also hacking, which will let you break through doors. Once you’re character is ready to rock, you start off on your way to the Jedi Academy to begin your Jedi training. Right from the beginning you start leaning to one side of the force or the other by the questions you answer, and the way you talk with the NPC’s. In the Academy your Jedi master makes you take vow’s to always stay on the light side of the force, but these are vows you don’t have to keep. Depending on your possible actions you could wind-up giving your old master a lesson or two in the uses of the force. During the game you’ll take part in a lot of epic challenges, fighting an battle for Wookie Freedom, or stealing from the Star Wars crime ring. There are also 3 mini-games, Pazaak, Swoop bike racing, and Turret Battles, all 3 of them are implemented into the games story to give you a more immersive experience.
As perfect as this game is, like most RPG’s there is the concern of wanting to finish it more then once. With Knights, this is no issue. The game changes dramatically whether you’re male, female, light or dark, or even try to stay on a neutral path. Anyway you look at it; there are LOTS of reasons to play this many times. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is my first pick for Game of the Year 2003, buy this one NOW!
-- Anonym. Contributor, PGNx Media
---- Jul 16, 2003
|
