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Evil_Lurking_Koala

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About Evil_Lurking_Koala

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  1. I think a lot of the criticisms so far mentioned about K2 have been well founded. I think the principle problem with the game is in the core philosphical theme behind it. That theme is nihilism (nothingness; no moral truths). It's not a feel good philosophy and most people don't like supporting it. I would't willingly seek out a study in nihilism when looking for an enjoyable game. Basing a game on nothing just doesn't work. People leave the game feeling unsatisfied from the experience. That was Obsidian's worst mistake, in my opinion. It makes the entire game dreary and many of the characters, including the exile, unsympathetic. I'm looking forward to seeing the final product of the TSLRP, they are certainly doing the community a tremendous favor with the work they are doing, but I'm uncertain if the additions they make will change the core philosophy that makes it so unpalatable. People would much rather participate in a medium supporting Joseph Campbell's monomyth (the story of a hero's journey) than a story about the supremacy of nothing. That's one reason people like Star Wars and K1 so much. They both relate to people a journey that we all have in our collective subconscious. We leave playing such games or watching such movies with a sense of hope and satisfaction.
  2. Did KOTOR II earn RPG of the year? The short answer: No. Longer Answer: Any game that's advertised as complete and sold incomplete is the trademark of sloppy work. Gamers, not developers, are having to clean up the mess...for free. That's not the sign of terrific effort on behalf of the developers but, rather, carelessness. It's a rushed game pushed out as fast as it could be to milk the KOTOR brand name for every dollar that could be made. So, no, KOTOR II did not earn the title. It simply lucked out due to lack of competition and the timing of the awards.
  3. Voted for Vader myself. Loved his ruthlessness in ANH and ESB as well as his eventual redemption in Jedi. Black suit, black mask, greatest villain ever in my opinion. Second prize goes to Maul who didn't get a very fair shake. He had a cool look and a very different type of fighting style, sort of ninja like. There was definately a sense of menace to him, similar to Vader. I thought that he stole all the scenes he was in. Too bad he was killed off far too soon.
  4. Sad to see Nintendo continuing to slide down hill. I'm old enough to remember when the original 8 bit console was a must have item. Still, I don't find it surprising. I'd much rather have my PS2 and computer than the hardware Nintendo is currently offering. There aren't as many games in their library and up until the release of the Revolution none of the games have been backwards compatible to earlier versions of the hardware. The biggest problem I think Nintendo has is the focus on child gamers. Games aren't just for kids anymore. Theres a growing demand for mature titles (Grand Theft Auto series for example). Games are now for people of many ages and of many tastes. Nintendo doggedly refuses to adapt to the changing console climate, though it did make a few noticeable exceptions for the Gamecube. This, more than anything, will contribute to Nintendo's continued collapse in my opinion.
  5. KOTOR II was a considerable let down to me but whether or not it was a waste of my time is a question I haven't quite answered yet. It wasn't a waste of time in the fact that it satisfied my curiosity to see how Obsidian would handle the franchise. It was a waste of time in that I found the game to have little in common with its predecessor beyond superficial elements (graphics, levelling system, etc.). The heart of the game seemed missing somehow. A waste of money? Certainly. As a consumer, I have a reasonable expectation that the product I'm buying is in a complete state. I wouldn't pay fifty dollars for a product I knew to be incomplete. I expect a complete game for a complete game price. Instead of getting a completed game, myself and all of the other gamers who purchased KOTOR II got a rushed unfinished cash in sequel. It says a lot that players, not programmers, are having to finish the game (bless each of the TSL Restoration Team seeing as none are being paid for their valuable time, they have all my best wishes for their efforts). I hope Obsidian doesn't hope to make this sort of precedent (gamers having to finish what programmers either can't or won't finish) a constant in all of its products because it's not only infuriating but unacceptable. Not what I consider fair or honest business practice. As a result, I'll be very careful before parting with my money on the next Obsidian project.
  6. I wouldn't say it's an expansion pack as it can function independently of another game but the lack of a completeness in the final product does beg the question. That being said, KOTOR II should have been sold at a price reflective to its state of completion. This price should have been around the price expansion packs are typically sold at (around $25 to $30). Personally, I don't consider it canon at all. The storyline makes little sense following the original KOTOR. It's more like an odd divergence into an alternate Star Wars universe.
  7. I would have to pick the original KOTOR. The storyline was far more compelling to me than that of sequel, perhaps for the simple reason that I felt I accomplished something by the end of KOTOR. I identified well with the protagonist and I enjoyed all of the party members. They had backstories, quests, and personalities of their own that helped me to actually care about them. I found the darkside quests resonated with me powerfully. I actually felt strongly that my character's actions were deliciously evil. Unfortunately, I cannot say that I felt the same way about the DS actions in the sequel. I suppose it boils down to a feeling of accomplishment. I got that from the KOTOR storyline but only confusion instead from KOTOR II's storyline. In fact, by the end of KOTOR II, I didn't feel like I had made any sort of major impact on the galaxy I had interacted with for several hours. Why? I think it's for a number of reasons, but the foremost for me was that I believe the developers went out of their way to create something different. While they certainly accomplished that goal by my estimation, they sacrificed the basic structures that help to make an enjoyable game/storyline (deep characters, clear distinctions between good and evil, romances, a sympathetic protagonist, etc.) I also thought that the explanation for Revan's absence broke the suspension of disbelief for many players. I certainly had trouble believing the explantation as it was given. The missing content only helped to exacerbate the problems with the storyline that were already glaringly obvious. For all of these reasons, KOTOR's storyline is the clear winner when compared to KOTOR II.
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