Plano Skywalker

So we just simply have to start as a kid...and thats fine with me <{POST_SNAPBACK}> something like that...instead of Fable-style "rapid aging" I would say multiple backstories would accomplish the same thing. basically, you are conversing with someone about your past and you get the opportunity to say "my parents gave me to the Jedi Order when I was younger...I am currently on a sabbatical to see if I want to continue my training". That would be the backstory you choose if you want to be a member of the Jedi Order later on. other things you could say would suggest different faction opportunities. but the Jedi Order (the official one based on Coruscant) will only take you with the right backstory.

I hope it is K3 but, if it is, I would like to think MCA would have a big hand in it as he did a great job with K2. Anyway, I'm sure he would have a big role, even if not officially so.

another thing to consider is that, while the "crossover console" (has a keyboard and mouse and runs Windows) did not make it this generation, you can bet that it is eventually coming. convergence is happening and will continue to happen.

I think factions are the key to the whole "Jedi" thing in this era. This is a pretty feudal era and really should not be about just Jedi and Sith. There should be splinter groups that call themselves Jedi (but are not the officially-recognized Jedi Order) and there should be more than one Dark Side cult (the Krath, for instance). Now, the question comes with regard to someone who starts off as a Force Adept but does not wish to join any faction. Can he still win the game? I would say yes but it should be much harder. He is, essentially, a "wild mage" who learns intuitively. He has the potential of surpasing formally-trained Force Adepts (because all factions encourage and discourage certain things) but he generally has to depend on the Ithorian priests and other lesser-known mentors and probably has to pay credits to get the training on a one-off basis. As much as I like the idea of a non-Force endgame, I really can't see it in KOTOR. One way or the other, your PC comes into focus with the Force and you win the game with a lightsaber in your hand. There is no way around that in KOTOR, IMO.

IIRC, one of the reasons that MS is pursuing more RPGs is because they actually believe they can sell their consoles in Japan. They believe that a lack of good console RPGs for the Xbox is one of the main factors the platform did not sell well in Japan. Whether this translates into good, occidental RPGs is a really good question. It might mean adventure games with stats (i.e. JRPG clones). Guess we will find out soon enough.

one of the things I that I liked about SWG (though I never played it) was the idea that you could buy property and open a business....your shop continues to do business even when you are not online. anyway, I know SWG has that but not all MMOs do. the problem is one of lifestyle...I don't want to compete with a 16-year-old who does nothing but grind all day. And when he's not grinding he's buying in-game money off eBay....I know that some say they will solve such issues but they will not. the system is fundamentally flawed. MMOs also suffer from story breakdown. And story seems to be pretty high on the list of the posters on this board.

MMOs suck. IMO, the answer is in premium modules. Downloadable, professional content that you either pay for on a per-incident basis or on a subscription basis.

I like the way K1 had it so where you had to complete a minigame to advance the main plot. I'm sure some would be against it, but I thought it was a nice touch. I would like to see something like that in the next installment. (I do, however, think that the turret minigame should be optional but should be available more often....I also like the idea of being able to upgrade the turret.) It is worth pointing out that K2 had a minigame that K1 did not have: the "hanger turret" scene on Peragus. That was nice. Pazaak...it has potential but there are not enough "novice players" in the bars. There needs to be patrons who really don't know what they are doing as well as those who will take your money. Not only is this realistic, it is also fun to win. I also wouldn't mind seeing a casino-style version in which the house deals out to several players at once. Swoop Racing...I like the idea of ongoing, multi-world, big money tournaments. I thought K1 captured this better than K2. And I generally like the more straightforward approach of K1's racing. Dejarik...I really wouldn't mind seeing this...I don't know if the game has ever been constructed (the way Star Trek 3D Chess has, in fact) into a playable version, but it would be really sweet to have a fully-animated, Dejarik game going on inside the Ebon Hawk. Even if they don't want to make it into a playable game, just having others sitting down playing it would be a nice touch.

what, you don't what Lego SW?

SS2 came first <{POST_SNAPBACK}> hence, the word predecessor.

which dovetails nicely into the whole idea about just who our shipmates are....IMO, not everyone on my ship has to be a controllable character. in situations were I must have someone accompany me, then I want that person to be AI-controlled and not burn a party member slot. They did it on certain planets...you have your party but then there was an AI squad not too far behind....they should do that with mandatory party members. mandatory party members are AI controlled, do not level up, take care of their own equipment, etc, etc.

exactly...I want to park my swoop bike and know that there is some chance it will be stolen, stripped, or vandalized when I return. Hence, I may buy some security equipment to help deal with that. and you should not automatically have a swoop...it should be a major expenditure that you can either go with or opt out of at some point (relatively early) in the game.

I heard that Balder's Gate: Dark Alliance II had halfway decent dialogue. And Demon Stone had party members.

I actually liked the way KOTOR 1 did it with the 3 rounds of play. That way, you can still enjoy it and make money without having to spend too much time on it. The K2 version was, well, twitchy enough to be its own game (as in not a minigame). What I really want to see though, is the PC and crew use swoop bikes in-game. Real time (with combat) would be preferred but just having it done with cut screens would be worth doing, IMO. Because it is not realistic to think that every objective will be near the starport.

exactly! and that is where the KOTORs really shined...they were "real RPGs" designed with console as their native turf. I don't know that Jade Empire was a retreat (even though it had real-time combat) because it remained stat-based, had a sidekick (AI-controlled henchman), and had good dialogue. what I don't want is the lone hero, as in Balder's Gate: Dark Alliance...no, I want henchmen or party members (or both, actually). party members with full VO and branching dialogue trees.

right-o. As I see it, Quantic Dream is resurrecting the adventure game genre with this title. They didn't get everything right but it was a very good game and provides a point of reference for future titles of this type. I really didn't mind the Simon Says routine. However, I played the game on console and it probably flowed much better on the console controller.

a couple of things: * as long as it is stat-based (i.e. Jade Empire) combat, then I can live with real time. * just because the combat is real time does not mean the overall feel of the game has to be twitchy. I have been playing Jedi Outcast and I really don't mind the real time combat. What I mind is having to reload the game 20 times because I can't jump over a conveyor belt at exactly the right second...that kind of crap really ticks me off. As long as Obsidian lives by their self-imposed rule of not frustrating the gamer with needless crap like that, then I am quite open to real time combat. Jade Empire got it about right.

in principle, I have no problem with playing the same protagonist throughout 3 games (or 2 games, whatever). the problem is that the games were simply not paced for it. Balder's Gate 1 only allowed you to reach 7th level and Balder's Gate 2 allowed you to import your BG1 character over into BG2. I really would not mind that in these games but the first 2 were simply not paced for it. If they decided to make 4,5, and 6 a trilogy or if they decide to do a trilogy based on Knights of the New Republic, then having the ability to export the protagonist character would be sweet as long as the games are paced for it. I personally think these games would be best as self-contained stories. There would be less continuity problems that way.

exactly! walking out of the Taris apartment with Carth, I felt like an ant in a world of elephants...that is exactly the idea. there can be backstories, but they need to tone it down. the main reason that they need to have some sort of backstory is to explain how you came into focus with the Force since the Jedi don't train adults.

in terms of where I would like to visit if SW was real.... I would say Naboo would be my first choice and then Coruscant.

ehhh, excuse me but

the bottom line is, while they will continue to use backstory, they have to tone it down a little...no more "chosen one".....you are just a Force Sensitive in the right place at the wrong time. the more they tone down the backstory (and its use in the dialogue trees, etc), the easier it is to have different ones.

agreed Jorian....if they use BACKSTORY as a storytelling device (and they probably will for a Jedi story) then it would be sweet to have multiple backstories to choose from. and it would be sweet if your backstory actually affected certain things, such as which optional party members you might run into.

well, if they don't make K3, at least we can look forward to this: http://www.lucasarts.com/games/legostarwarsii/

well, not counting the "either/or" situations. Juhanni was an entire slot that you could not get any other way. the either/or thing is good, don't get me wrong, but there needs to be more of the other as well, IMO.