Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords previews

I picked up KOTOR 1 and played through it about 3 times, trying all the options, and ending up loving the game, even though it had plenty of bugs. Same with the sequel, KOTOR2, the plot suprises and twists just like the first storyline and keeps you playing right until the end. There are still a few bugs, like the dantooine hanging bug, but hopefully that will get fixed.

I especially liked the forms and all the extra dialogue options which have influence over the other characters. As well as the breakdown and create items option that has been added. It usues a modified version of the KOTOR 1 engine, which works well bar the few bugs, and still can generate some quite nice visuals.

With so much replay value and a brilliant story, this is one of the best sequels to any game in the past 5 years. Highly Recommended to all pc gamers.

KOTOR II has a completely new storyline but with elements of old characters mixed into the storyline. This made it refreshing in the sense that you were dealing with new characters but also finding out about old characters from KOTOR.

There has been no radical modifications to the game engine so as you play along you feel that your are playing KOTOR I. This is rightly so as the engine used for KOTOR was fine.

However they have added new fighting animations for specific combat moves and improved force powers and force powers that are only available depending upon your character class that you chose.

This means that for the hardcore Star Wars fan many hours is to be had if you are to play the game through with all of the different classes available.

One of the most impressive new features of the game was the ability to make items and to breakdown pre-existing items allowing you to construct upgrades for weapons and armor.

The dialogue with characters is free flowing and often amusing and allows you to interact on a wide scope with Companions and NPC's

One of the biggest drawbacks for the game is crash related issues and bugs. One major bug was on Dantooine where the frame rate dropped and the player was teleported across the screen similar to KOTOR I.

So in summary KOTOR II is just as satisfying as KOTOR I. Despite having a number of bugs which will hopefully be fixed in subsequent game patches

I liked the original KOTOR. Its immersive gameplay so totally absorbed me that I would forget to go to bed at a decent hour and pay heavily for it at work the next day. Obsidian Entertainment have taken the ball from Bioware and run with it with their take on what is fast becoming a classic series by simply giving you more. More choices, more quests, more characters, more puzzles, more fights.

You play the part of the last suviving Jedi in the Old Republic who must make a stand either for the light or the dark side of the Force. Your actions dictate which path your character will take to become either the saviour of the galaxy or its oppressor. You do not need to have played the original game to enjoy KOTOR2 but there is plenty in there for those who are familiar with the first game to smile knowingly.

Issues? Well the interface is a little strange at first but after a while becomes second nature. My poor PC crashes out during cut scenes but I expect that will be patched in due course. Its not that infuriating because the game kindly autosaves before crashing.

All in all, an excellent game that will occupy you for hours at a time.

I played this game right after playing KOTOR 1, which I loved. I was disappointed right away. It looks more or less the same but slightly different, yet somehow not as good. It's engine is updated I think but to me it didn't look as good as the first. I'm picky though.

It's not a bad game, I was enjoying it until near the end where it starts to seem rushed, and that spoils it. The last part of the game is all filler, actually. Also, the story wasn't as good and the ending was a let down. Compared to KOTOR 1's terrific ending it was pathetic really.

It doesn't seem to be any bigger than the first one. You'd think there would be a few more planets to explore in a sequel, but no.

There are the same minor problems I had with KOTOR 1, like the planets and locations aren't done very well and are rather bland, and the universal inventory is still there. I'd prefer a more realistic system where each character had their own inventory and probably a weight or encumberance limit.

The creators were also careless in the amount of powerful items that you find. You find powerful sets of armour and weapons scattered liberally throughout the game. It's common to pick up a super set of armour on a common sith soldier or bounty hunter. There are vendors that sell stuff but you don't use them. I found every item I used, I didn't buy one significant item thoughout the entire game. Not a big deal I suppose but it's fun buying new stuff, and it spoiled my fun a bit not having anything to spend my money on. At the end of the game I had 120,000 credits!

It's buggy too!

Other than all that, fine.

A switch of developer has had some unforseen consequences.

A lot of “Matricisms” have crept into the dialog for the sequel. There is a vendor on the planet Onderon who does a wonderful impression of the “tasty-wheat” guy from The Matrix and goes as far as using his “pay him no heed” line.

There is a lot of dialog in the early going on that shows clear Matrix influences, and unfortunately that hinders the quality of the game. You even have different “forms” of saber combat, and will spar semi-nude with a handmaiden to learn her form of combat technique. It is very reminiscent of the beginning sequence of “Last flight of the osiris” from The Animatrix.

If you don't mind The Matrix being mixed into the Star Wars world, you may like this game. For me though it's a bit too much, and I would go as far as to say that The Sith Lords actually lacks the Star Wars “feel” that the original had.