kalimeeri

You're assuming the robot identified Exile based simply on his traveling on Ebon Hawk. Even for a malfunctioning droid, that's a leap of logic. What's to stop him from identifying Canderous or Atton as Revan? The robot recognized Exile by voice print.

If you really want to play this game, put away your preconceptions. About the only thing PST shares with IWD or BG2 is the engine. You can play either of those two games superficially, just watching events unfold. But PST is all about character and morals, and it's very deep. You have to talk to everybody, particularly your party members (again and again). TNO is a bit similar to Kreia; nobody tells you anything, you have to be paying attention, and figure it out on your own. And you may not like the answers so very much. Awesome stuff.

I have the originals on commercial videotape. Proof!

If he's as bad at writing and pacing as he says, he understands, but doesn't comprehend. He has nothing to say. Especially with all that cash jingling around in his pocket.

Great post ^ Kreia recognized that her major failing was that she was not a leader and couldn't motivate or persuade others. Exile could. She did a lot of manipulating, yet she never once tried to use him as a megaphone or a marionette for her own ideology. Instead, she encouraged him to make his own choices, laying out opposing viewpoints and scenarios, maybe hoping and trusting that he would see the truth she did, independent of coercion or persuasion. I think she saw Exile as vindicaton for her life's work--first, that he would ultimately choose her path; and second, that he would get the word out to others in a way that she could not. But in the end, that really didn't matter as much as Exile's becoming a whole, functioning person again. It was probably the most selfless thing she'd ever done; and I can't think of a better definition of a loving parent.

It depends, though. For me, hearing actors voice (dialogue voiceover) is somewhat... less enjoyable. Classic RPG is like reading a book - poor visual character details and no (or little) voiceover makes me imagine, rather than observe, hence resulting in more comfortable picture in general. I see what I want to see, I hear what I want to hear. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I agree with both viewpoints. The imagination part is like reading a really good novel; it's open to personal interpretation and preferences. Just putting a voice or even a face into the equation limits that. I think that's one reason why many movies made from books are so disappointing. I like hearing the words spoken, too--but only if it's done well. I don't believe that games in general have tapped into the power of good voice-acting, the kind that adds to the meaning and emotional impact of the words, and actually defines the character speaking. One exception was Kotor2. Kreia's VA was awesome; the other characters were uniformly good to excellent. But many games are cringe-worthy, you just want to turn the 'voice' off. It has nothing to do with whether the acting is done by a big name actor or not; voice acting in a game requires different skills. I see it as the lack of attention to a resource that can and should be used to its fullest, the same way music and graphics and fine dialogue should be. It's sad that games (and movies!) that get it all in balance--let alone do it right--are so rare. As far as 'Western' RPG's go, I'm just keeping my head down until the current storm of MMORPG's passes, and hoping the cycle comes around again. I haven't seen much of late that I feel is worth playing, from any side of the globe. Some of the dev's seem to be experimenting, or going for the quick gold, or something, taking elements from every successful game they can think of, and mixing them all together. The shotgun approach gives the impression they didn't really know what they wanted to do. Juggling so many elements, none of them done as well as the original, more often than not ends up a muddled flop. I'm not against experimentation, or evolution. But there's nothing wrong with doing one thing, and doing it exceptionally well, either.

[quote name='Bl

Oh, I agree. That's it, though. She's a young adult--not a child. Sheltered and warped maybe, but emotionally she now has a need to be treated as her own person, to make some decisions on her own. To be accepted and fit in. That's what the captain offers; and I see that as the real battleground between the two. It's natural for an older sibling (or a parent), I suppose, but Simon's still trying to control her and her environment completely. It's as much for him as for her--loss of that control makes his whole life empty. He does think to ask her, but only after the dice has been rolled. Good stuff, those layers. BTW, my daughter loves Simon; and I'm firmly in Mal's camp. Makes for some interesting discussions, considering the role reversal.

I pretty much agree with the unknown actor thing... but Bruce Willis could do a great Canderous.

Well, it was more difficult to understand where Simon was coming from in the movie; it comes across as a bit arrogant to try to dictate the terms of a 'free ride' that saved his (and his sister's) skin. I didn't care awfully much for him in the series, but I understood him. If I had started by just watching the movie, I'd have wondered why he hadn't been thrown off the ship long ago. I'm sure the added toughness was a device to get backstory out in a hurry, and I think it was a commendable effort; it's never easy. But Simon came out a not-so-likable character, who I wouldn't have minded seeing killed off in the end.

It's between Vandar and Vash. Both were willing to express an opinion in public contrary to Vrook's (who apparently has enough power to sway most of the Council members to vote his way). Vandar was well respected, and more of a political threat to Vrook than Vash, IMO. Of the remaining Jedi, though, Vash was the only one who was actually *doing* something besides hiding. She took a more active role than Vandar would have. Instead of sitting in her cage whinging (like Vrook--I mean, what *was* his master plan for getting out of the Dantooine mess? *Talk* them to death? No wonder his captors were cranky) she at least had thought things through. Points to Vash for the guts to ante up alone and in person, I guess.

K2 sat on my preorder list for a long time, put there in a manic moment of glee when the game was in production. I was busy with other things and didn't find out that K2 didn't directly continue the first game until I had the game box in hand. But $50 is $50. When I played it I liked it a lot, because Kreia was done so well, and because the Revan backstory thread drew me in. I think it was a smart move on Obsidian's part--they didn't actually USE the character Bioware created, and so avoided changing him overmuch. Different authors can put their own spin on a character, without even trying or realizing it. As far as Revan goes--and I still maintain that K2 is his story, from a different angle--I don't mind that Kreia made him into some glorious hero. How else would she appeal to Exile's strong sense of right and wrong? Revan had an agenda, to be sure, but no one really knows what it was. I dislike being forced into the idea that he was some Malak-evil dude just as much as halo-polishing. Real people are a mass of conflicting emotions and motivations, and a hero is just an ordinary person forced into action by extraordinary circumstances. That's what I want to see; and I don't think K2 did any harm. But K3 needs to go back to grass roots. I'd rather it not be made at all than go overboard in either direction.

:cool: I don't either. I've tried a few, and halfway through the game I always end up wondering what the **** I was thinking, just wanting them gone. The one exception is the code/quest fixes from TSLRP; they don't force anything radical on you, and actually improve the game. I will try the finished project, because it will restore portions of the narrative that should not have been left out. I'm still reserving judgment whether restoring the ending scenes makes sense. While party members did need to make an appearance in the last portion of the game, I don't know enough about what happens to even guess whether it fits with the theme of the game as a whole. And I like Peragus, except for the spacesuit part. I didn't like Manaan for the same reason. I hate walking in that thing.

I think robes may have been 'required attire' for the Jedi order, but that doesn't apply to Exile. He isn't a card-carrying member any more. I use the force armor through the first part of the game, but after stats build up, the robes actually provide better protection. 'Lookin' good' is the main consideration after that. I like force armor with ballistic overlay, and prefer the gray Jedi padawan or dark jedi robes over any of the others, regardless of alignment.

Could be quite entertaining, actually. I was using one of the better VR programs with my word processor, and every time the dog barked or the clock chimed, it typed something. Let the fun begin!

I got the Ultima only once, and that time it was too late to bother with (far into Trayus). Not really worth the backtracking with the major damage Exile was already doing.

Honestly, I think both systems are pricing themselves out of their market, especially in the current economy. At some point, buying high-priced equipment that solely plays games becomes foolishness. I'm sure there are some who will buy, just not me.

I wouldn't mind seeing Jolee again; some of the other characters in K1, not so much. Jolee wouldn't have gone to Katarr. He was over the whole Jedi infrastructure ... just like Kreia and Revan and Exile... He was also mucka curious about the ancient computer on Kashyykk, and was present at the time Revan accessed it. So it's at least possible he might have put enough pieces together to follow Revan's path, and that we could see him in K3. Of course, he could be dead if we do...

'Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.....'

Turn off the 'auto-install' option of the automatic update process. It will still download the patches, but it will just tell you they're ready when you are. That way you can choose when--or if you want your system modified. Myself, I don't trust them enough to give them complete control.

>>Insert eulogy here<<

The 'normal' rules of marketing don't apply to this movie; there was no real sense wasting money on them. Word of mouth is the only fair way to spread the word. Serenity is about people and character, first and foremost; the plot is tightly interwoven, but it's secondary. But marketing has to focus on something--and the Serenity universe is a broad spectrum that is most accurately described as sci-fi. Most people who don't like sci-fi are the result of decades of real stinky, hokey B movies. Prejudices affect part of the audience, even though Serenity is a good intelligent movie that adults can enjoy, and Whedon's writing is a breath of fresh air. I think that referring to "Buffy" in the advertising was not a kindness. To adults who haven't watched that show, the impression is that it's a kid's TV show, the same way that consoles are regarded as being a kid's toy. It's a stigma (much like Peter Jackson had; pre-release, I read a number of critics mention he had only done zombie movies--no one really believed he could do justice to LOTR). I don't think the lack of big-name stars is significant. Who had really heard of Mark Hamill before Star Wars, or Harrison Ford before Indiana Jones? Faces don't sell a role; acting ability and talented writing does. If you're someone who appreciates these things, see the movie. It's the only way to send a message to the suits in Hollywood who are hurling shovelfuls of uninspired manure at us.

It does have that aura, doesn't it? Maybe it was also a way to bring swoop racing into the picture, but then the rotten thing ended up busted. What was that about? NS is very linear. Once you set foot outside the Refugee Sector doors you're railroaded, possibly leaving some of your new sidequests unresolvable. But it really isn't apparent that the swoop is the answer; it's just confusing. And it takes you out of the game to have to 'think like a programmer' to figure out the trigger. The swoop probably also would have made more sense story-wise if you were allowed to take it on board Ebon Hawk for future swoop races, but then the workshop area of the ship would have been SRO with Bao-Dur, Remote and HK in residence. Not much gratification for those who tried the races and found them lacking, either.

Here's a linky to an interesting article from MSN about box-office performance, a sort of requiem to the movie theatre: http://www.whedon.info/article.php3?id_article=11722

Theatres are in decline. Hollywood doesn't seem to have any original ideas or creative writers left. Instead, we get a constant barrage of poorly-written or poorly-disguised remakes. In addition, most people would rather watch movies at home (how many family trips to the theatre=the purchase of a big-screen TV?) because of the expense and lack of a pause button. It seems there's always someone coughing, talking, or fussing with big hair in front of you, or someone who refuses to leave their three-month-old baby at home. How does that get fun, when you paid to watch a movie? Considering just the majority of critical reviews, I think Universal would be crazy not to do a sequel. If they don't pick up the option, someone with a little more vision surely will, the same way New Line kicked arse when they jumped on LOTR after Miramax turned it down. I think they know what they have in Serenity. Not a flash in the pan, but an idea that will gain momentum more slowly, like Raiders of the Lost Ark (which only made $8 million its first weekend.). And I wouldn't be surprised to see a new ride at Universal Studios, 'Fun with Reavers'.