Plano Skywalker

I actually like to think of KOTOR as a time period, not a specific story arc. Which means, that you could have any number of KOTORs, just like with the Final Fantasy franchise. I like to think of the KOTOR time period as anything from the time of Exar Kun (The Sith War) to the time of Darth Bane (Battle of Ruusan). Now, you could go prior to this time period (Golden Age of the Sith) or beyond (the Republic Age?/the Rule of Two, etc). But KOTOR is great because it is a very feudal time, even though it nominally has a Republic structure. It is a time in which it there are lots of Jedi, Sith, Krath and all kinds of lone ranger types and splinter groups, not to mention an ongoing feud with the Mandalorians. We have to have joinable factions in any future KOTOR, IMO....let's take advantage of what this setting has to offer.

I don't care for the idea of being able to kill party members but I sure as heck want to be able to eject/rotate NPCs. I think it's great to tell the story using the party members, PST-style but please don't make them all indispensable. And even if someone has a really important story bit to tell, make him releasable once he gives up the clue he has. I also like the idea that NPCs can be killed on the missions...nothing wrong with having the KOTOR-style approach were, as long as the PC survives, they all survive...just give each NPC a "vulnerability zone", some place where that is not in play...different for each character. I also want slots for hirelings, non-sentient droids, and (upgradeable) vehicles. And I think the ship's captain should determine where party members sleep....the captain can use that as a bargaining chip in conversation (i.e. "Do as I say or you're sleeping in the Engine Room", etc). And now back to the NWNs discussion....

that's alright, I've actually been away from this board for many moons. My "real" life has had me a bit too busy but I suspect I will start posting again for now. thanks for the link.

I am hopeful that the future of Star Wars lies in video games like KOTOR (which can be quite cinematic). We already have plenty to draw upon from the movies. What I want to see in space adventure is more shows like Firefly and the new BSG...shows that try to immerse you into something that you can almost believe is real.

The problem with 7,8, and 9 is that, if they followed in chronological order, they would be about the Thrawn trilogy and that, when it gets right down to it, is a much different story than the ones so far. I say let Thrawn, Kyle Katarn and the Vong live out their existence in the EU. I think the best bet for more movies would be in the window of time between Episode 3 (ROTS) and Episode 4 (ANH). That way, you could actually see the fault lines between pro-Empire and pro-Rebellion forces, now that the illusionary threat of the Trade Federation is gone. Vader going out to the Outer Rim to hunt remaining Jedi, Obi-Wan and Yoda going their seperate ways, insurrections on individual planets, Bothan spys....lots of material there, actually. However, it appears that this very segment of time is going to be the focus of a TV show...thus making more movies unlikely. This would, however, be the best bet for more movies, especially if GL only wrote the overarching story and did not micromanage (i.e. ESB).

I will second that. Iced Earth is one of the best-kept secrets in the 'verse and Horrow Show is probably their best offering. Demons and Wizards (a side project of both Iced Earth and Blind Guardian) is also very good. This is power metal at its finest and really doesn't have much in common with bands like Slayer. Sure, they may touch on some dark themes but the overall perspective is much different. The overall feel is positive.

those are all good ones. perhaps the biggest one for me was when the Mandalorians (as part of the raiding party on the Ravager) were concerned that the Republic might get upset if they destroyed the Ravager since it was used against them at Malachor. Say again? Perhaps that was another thing they were looking to tie together but, in and of itself, it makes absolutely no sense. I would love to see that explained somewhere in the future.

I remember the first time I saw the ESB in the theater. It was my first Star Wars film and may have been the first sci-fi film I saw on the silver screen. It absolutely blew me away. I mean, Imperial Walkers marching through the snow? That was not something movie-going audiences were used to. The ESB is still one of the most definitive space adventure films to date, IMO. What I like about the prequels is that it shows us the Star Wars universe in its "regular" state of being: the Senate rules, Jedi are the FBI, Coruscant is key, etc. The prequels are there to help paint a more complete picture of the setting. There is no way they can compete toe-to-toe with the originals...they are not meant to. And there is no way a human-vs-droid war can have as much drama as a human-vs-human one. Now, Revenge of the Sith was a very good film....one that could have used about another 30 minutes of screen time to help justify Anakin's fall and one that would have been better off with about half as much CG. (a side note: KOTOR takes place inside this "regular" state of affairs...we need stories that maybe are not quite as epic and that take advantage of this regular state of affairs....we need to be super-sleuths, not super-saviors).

I keep seeing The Shield mentioned. How is that better that any of the other crime shows (Law and Order, CSI, etc)?

excellent points, Architect. The mindless button-smasher is what sells. Thankfully, BioWare was tasked with creating the first KOTOR. What I mean by that is that they had the muscle to say "back off!!!" when the suits wanted to water that down for a quick profit. BioWare was determined to use KOTOR to take cRPGs to the next level and they succeeded. there are different things at work, though. LA/LFL is aware that there are too many Star Wars games and they are determined to limit the number of SW titles at any one time. And, as previously mentioned, nobody is going to go anywhere near a space RPG until they see Mass Effect and see how well that sells. and if ME sells well (which I expect it to), then it becomes all but inevitable that any future KOTOR has to offer about the same graphics, freedom, and gameplay as ME, since KOTOR is primarily a console title. And that would be sweet: have Obisidian write KOTOR 3 using the ME engine under license. This time, they have an actual studio and will have all the necessary ingredients (such a texture artists, QA, etc).

I've never programmed for pay but I have for school and hobby and I work in the IT field. Anyway, if you are looking to get your feet wet, might I suggest setting up an ASP.NET web server and fool around with web scripting in ASP.NET (using either VB or C# as your language). By starting off with web scripts, you can focus on basic programming principles (including the use of objects and namespaces) but not have to deal with things like memory management right away. VB.NET is just as robust as any other language and yet its simple, intuitive language format is very unintimidating.

yes, woefully incompetent means having to fight a battle of attrition every time....sure, you might win some battles, but only because of overwhelming numbers. did you see the episode (new BSG) where the Cylons boarded the Galactica and the Colonials had to fight them toe-to-toe? Now them there is some creepy monsters! you also mentioned terrorist tactics...the new Cylons do that...the old ones did not.

Excellent points there Raymond...if it were up to you and I, I think we'd go for the Odyssey engine for part 3....JUST DO SOMETHING WITH THAT STORY! however, if they do that, they would have to go PC-only because MS would not allow anything that *obsolete* to touch the 360. KOTOR is considered a console RPG (PC ports notwithstanding) so it would have to be at least as good (gameplay-wise and graphics-wise) as Mass Effect. Well, if they go that route, then they would have to allow for more freedom and, hence, the story is not as tight. Which means that the temptation to not wrap up the Revan saga in the games becomes greater. They will hard-code Revan and the Exile eventually in the comics and have scant references to them in K3 and beyond. I do think there will be a K3 if, for no other reason, it is one of the flagship franchises for MS's console but I doubt it will be the epic trilogy-ender many of us were hoping for....probably a brand new storyline with some allusions to Revan and the Exile.

One thing that might be holding K3 back is Mass Effect. What I mean by that is that that game is going to be the most awesome, engulfing space RPG experience on the Xbox 360 with all kinds of things to explore on the fly, including derelict spaceships. K3 will most likely start off as a 360 exclusive (just as the other 2 KOTORs started out as Xbox exclusives). There is no way MS is going to allow a space RPG oriented for the 360 to not be up to the same standards as ME. ME is setting the new bar. Which leads to an interesting proposition: could the ME engine be used for K3? It is not based on d20 but, given everything else it has, might be the best bet for such a title. I don't want Obsidian spending too much time developing a new engine for the game. I want them to spend their time on content.

everything is a knockoff of something else. Classic BSG is a knockoff of Wagon Train. it is a great premise: survival as in the main story is about survival. if you wanted to do a sci-fi show that has as much "believability" as possible, it would have to be one centered around survival. Classic BSG had an enemy that was woefully incompetent and provided no real justification for Baltar's betrayal and many other silly mistakes such as the Cylon "Welcoming Party" in the pilot episode that was obviously an all-out assault on the home worlds. Not to mention the casino planet and it blowing up (obvious SW ripoffs). I like Classic BSG but the new one is much better, IMO. Classic BSG did have some fine acting, though, especially from Richard Hatch, Dirk Benedict and Lorne Greene.

you are referring to Galactica 1980 which was an insincere attempt by corporate executives to create a "kid's show" for the 7pm timeslot. They basically just ripped off the name and created something that producer Glen Larson regrets doing. having said that, the shows aren't that bad if you treat them in their own right....but that is NOT Battlestar Galactica (not even classic BSG). I like the rich backstory of the new BSG and how it goes into some of the differences between the 12 colonies. I also like the backstory on Cylons--they were created primarily so the 12 colonies could wage war on each other. Now that has plausibility, not some far-fetched notion that they were created by a now-extinct lizard-like race and forgot the war is over. I also like the overtly religious nature of the show. That is one thing that is hard to do in science fiction and the new BSG pulls it off. I like classic BSG much like I do classic Star Trek. But I think Picard's ST is much better than Kirk's. And I think Olmos's BSG is much better than Greene's.

alright, so the issue is not as cut and dry as I made it out to be. still, I like the KOTOR way (in which a voice pattern is not predetermined).

yes, that is the only benefit in my opinion...but perhaps you were trying to be sarcastic....in that case, I was simply trying to point out that it is a trade off....polish or control, not both.

BSG Firefly/Serenity Babylon 5

I like BSG but I don't watch it on cable, I watch it on DVD which means I am always a season or so behind. I still need to pick up Season 2.5. Man, this is a great show! I can watch the reruns over and over again.

probably true. I look at it as a blessing in disguise: by the time the suits are ready to go with the project, the storyline people will already have it fleshed out and in perfect sync with the EU (the new comic, et al). of course, the more time goes by, then perhaps the more likely it is that K3 will not be a "true sequel" of K2 but carve out a new story much like K2 did to K1. The resolutions that we are looking for may only be found in the comic.

yes, this is the game that will bring a 360 into my living room. (it is actually an entire trilogy of games!). I agree that the Bard's Tale-like dialogue system is something of a concern but, who knows, that might actually be better than anticipated. I suspect that emote dialogue is going to be something of a trend since it is the only way to have a game in which every single spoken word is in Full VO. It is all about sacrificing control for overall polish. All in all, I think I'd prefer control.

Demons and Wizards -- Touched By the Crimson King (album) good stuff.

good secondary villains are very helpful in creating a tight story. Jabba the Hutt was a good secondary villain in the OT. The PT could have used more good secondary villains...that is one of the weaker areas of the PT.

I don't like the idea of real-time multiplayer for KOTOR. however, I do like the idea of officially-recognized amateur content available for download. let us say that LA says "OK, we need a mission in which this, this, and this occurs...". Then the modder community (using a toolset that comes with the game) sets out to write the mission using these loose parameters. Then, the deadline comes and all the modders upload their stuff. LA then has a panel to determine which mod will be the one available for official download. Only one mod with this mission ever makes it onto official servers and/or expansion packs (a la Diamond Pack). Anyway, KOTOR is all about strength of story and characters and that is the kind of fan involvement I would like to see. True multiplayer just cannot keep the quality...it just can't.