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Star Wars: KotOR II Review - Page Three |
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Linearity is another issue. Of course, all RPGs are linear to an extent: as long as they have goals, there is a progress towards that goal. But many disguise that linearity by allowing you all the time in the world to explore a fascinating world. Regrettably, there’s nothing fascinating about the pretty but largely non-interactive and repetitive worlds of the KotOR games, and there’s no real room to explore. Rain forest planets invariably have paths you can’t stray from no matter how you try, and very few paths, at that. Temperate planets with large urban areas have surprisingly little of it open to your examination, and very few people in those areas you can get at.
Even those few individuals who show up often repeat the same mind-numbing group of two or three rumors over and over in a travesty of conversation.
Finally, there’s the matter of the AI. On an average level of difficulty, your human-controlled team is simply better than twice the number of their computer-driven opponents. Why is it that they can’t do something as simple and basic as concentrating fire on one of your characters, instead of spreading it out? I hate to summon forth the spectre of Betrayal at Krondor again, but…in battle, enemies employed diverse strategies, and many were pretty smart. You can practically breeze through either KotOR game’s combat scenes on autopilot, save for a few that force you to confront various leaders.
In short, the games lacked sufficient content for their length, and were too easy by half.
That said, I enjoyed many other aspects of both titles, at least on the PC. (I also played KotOR on the Xbox, but found the controls unwieldy.) There were a nice sense of urgency and build to KotOR, and its followup from Obsidian has truly engrossing NPCs among friends and enemies, as mentioned above. I like the artwork and voiceovers of both games, and the writing in KotOR2. And if LucasArts had only allowed sufficient time for finishing the title…
But this is where you came in. Suffice to say, if you enjoyed KotOR, you’ll almost certainly enjoy its successor, with caveats.
| GameBanshee Rating |
Overall
8.5
How We Score |
Gameplay (50%) |
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| Graphics (25%) |
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| Sound & Music (15%) |
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| Lasting Value (10%) |
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| Article Details |
| Reviewed Star Wars: KotOR II
Reviewer Fable
Published 04/14/05
Pros Excellent dialogue, strong NPC characterization among party and enemies, numerous upgrades for equipment, skills far more useful than in KotoR, great voice acting, ranged combat as effective as melee
Cons Some areas and quests feel unfinished, contradictions between dialogue and results, ending is a real letdown
Overall KotOR Cons Very linear gameplay, few quests, puzzles are pre-adolescent, a lot of time spent going to and from places you’ve covered before instead of in exploration, combat AI is poor |
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