Plano Skywalker

hmmm, very interesting. it is one thing to write a fan fiction but this individual is designing a game with statements like that....very interesting.

I was reading in a NWNs2 review that, while NWNs has AI-controlled henchmen, NWNs2 will have a Balder's Gate-style party in which you can actually switch to controlling your supporting characters. so, what is your preference?

GW was my first MMORPG....it is fun (and the online service is free) and it is widely believed to be the most story-focused MMORPG out there at this time. still, it is such a time sink and the fact that you have to cooperate with others at certain times in order to advance the story is something that I find cumbersome. for me, the single-player cRPG and adventure game is where it is at.

no one is suggesting that you not be allowed to play a Jedi....if LA did that (to this franchise, anyway) then it would be a really dumb move on their part....yes, this is a Jedi-focused franchise and it always will be. The Judge and I are coming from slightly different angles here: he would like to play a non-Jedi and have the PC win the game in a non-Jedi endgame. while I appreciate that, I also think it unrealistic. my "compromise" solution is to have everyone playing the Jedi endgame but having some say in when you become a Jedi. Those who want to start off as Force Adept (Jedi is actually a faction and should not be the name of your class) can do so....most people will....I will on my first 3 playthroughs. The Force Adept is the only starting class that can take a Jedi or Sith Prestige Class, so they are certainly not missing out on anything. Now, as to the argument that making it playable for non-Force-wielders would make it too easy for the Jedi and Sith PCs, hey that is where we are now...the AI is probably the biggest reason but the games are easy in that sense....but, even so, if you can have your PC carrying around a flame thrower or a missle launcher, hey, I don't know but I think there is something to said for that. or having an Engineer who can set up sentry guns and have your scoundrel party member bait the enemy into a trap and then your PC presses a button and activates the sentry guns blowing away about 10 Sith because of a well-executed trap...that is the kind of stuff we could really use, IMO. That is role-playing.

true in a sense but then who would want to play a Gully Dwarf in a Dragonlance campaign? hard core roleplayers, that's who. obviously the main thrust of any KOTOR game would be a Jedi pc. In fact, I would probably choose Jedi (Force Adept) most of the time. but giving roleplayers some options is not a bad thing.

true, you did not directly mention them. but if the focus is content, it will not be on eye candy, etc. I'm all for using the same engine every time for, say, 3 games and then go to another engine. that is 3 games, each with 3 official premium content updates. multiplayer? well, with almost all games now having some sort of live support, I want KOTOR to focus on content refreshes rather than trying to be another Battlefront. that is all.

Ummm, I believe I was agree with something you wrote, albeit in a somewhat animated fashion.

* they need to give us a sprite generator like in Tiger Woods Golf * customizable hilts * undertunic/outertunic/dyes, etc * customizable Force-draw animations * more "regular clothing" options * more scenarios that require disguises (squad-based disguises) * the ability to advance in a specific fighting form. * better-looking headgear (the cheesy-looking ones are the better ones at the present time) when it comes to race, you have to be a human in K1 and K2...I think that is only because of such a strong reliance on backstory as a storytelling device. if the devs stop using hardcoded backstories to the extent that they have been using them, there there is absolutely no reason we can't have non-human pcs. but whether they are willing to throw away that crutch remains to be seen.

I think KOTOR would be the perfect game for new content releases.....roleplayers don't need to keep up with the FPS crowd...we want CONTENT! KOTOR can never go multiplayer as that would cheapen the experience but I think it is a fertile ground for premium content updates. Absolutely.

Like I said, I don't think it is realistic to have a PC that will not be a Jedi...KOTOR is about Force-users....in other words, your PC will become attuned to the Force and you will have a lightsaber before the end of the game. As I see it, this is about whether you prefer the K1 approach or the K2 approach. K1 = you start off as a Soldier, Scout, or Scoundrel. You can even delay going Jedi if you want. K2 = you start off as a Jedi (3 classes to choose from)....and, if you play it right, you can go Prestige Class later on. What I propose is a combination: those who want to be a uber-powerful Jedi with a Jedi Prestige class have to start off as a Jedi (or, more realistically, a Force Adept). Those who want to spend most of their game without a glowstick choose something else. They can still go Prestige Class but only for whatever their chosen class is. Basically, they have an epiphany of sorts right before endgame starts and they become attunded to the Force, but they don't loose any of their former skills or training. Essentially, if you choose Force Adept at the beginning, you get your "Jedi Trial" within the first 15 hours of the game. If you choose something else, you get your Jedi Trial within the last 15 hours of the game.

I like the fact that in K1, you could get a person's convos just by taking them out as part of your adventuring party. you didn't have to cajole them or kiss their butt to get convos (once Canderous gets going, he has ALOT of stories in K1 and he doesn't mind sharing them with Sir Paladin Pureofheart). I like the idea of influence but it was still very much in its infancy in K2. If I can't unlock someone's convos/sidequests because of things like alignment, then I need some party management options, plain and simple. K2 had a more ambiguous "adult" oriented story that LA apparently commandeered at some point and forced them to change it into a cliffhanger. Had Obsidian had total creative freedom with the project, I believe it would have been a self-contained story and with an ending that was much darker than the published ending. Overall, it might be good that the story was modified. K3 will decide whether K2 stands or falls, IMO (as a good story, that is). As a game, it just had really good atmosphere. The "immersion" factor was higher for gamers in K2.

in terms of shear action and excitement, the 3rd one was good....perhaps my favorite part of the trilogy was when the Witch King was forced from his mount and started throwing that morning star around (just image being hit with that thing!). but I really liked the dry, archaic, creepiness of the first one....the idea that evil is all around and yet hard to pin down...and how you really can't trust anyone...that was good stuff. I agree that the sappy Hollywoodish ending was way overdone. Not sure if the Saruman ending would have been a good idea though....it would have been anticlimatic and may have confused the audience. I still haven't seen the extended cuts but that is on my shopping list.

yes, it is Knights of the Old Republic where there are more Force users than you can shake a stick at....but we need that reflected in the games....surely, Dantooine is not the only place Jedi gather in this era. surely, there are enclaves of Dark Jedi and/or Sith who teach their view of the Force....factions.....the point is OPTIONS, even if the DS player is forced to be the anti-hero and even if all roads lead to the same endgame, getting there with different OPTIONS (having some say in who teaches you, who travels with you, etc) would make a huge difference and add tons of replayability to the game.

IMO, K2 was a better game than K1...the story was a little different for SW, but not really that different in the context of an EU story....K1 was a movie rip-off with alot of polish. K2 was a really good game despite the issues that prevented it from becoming a great game.

@ Kalfear: oh, I agree that they have to continue to allow the PC to be Jedi...no question about it. if they get rid of Force-wielding PCs, then this franchise is over. I also like the idea of being able to start off as a Force-wielder as in K2....basically, have both: you start off as either a Force Adept or a Soldier, Scout, Scoundrel, Tech, whatever. Basically, everyone would eventually be a Jedi (it is not realistic to think of all those different endgames in the same game, IMO), but those who did not start off as an Adept will take much longer to become one and they will be able to keep their non-Jedi abilities as well after the switch. Also, the politics and romances would be a bit different. If you are not a Jedi early on, then someone like a Bastila handles the Force intrigue for you....it can be more or less the same story. And then there is the matter of lightsabers. I personally would not mind waiting 20 hours to get my lightsaber if it was reflective of what lightsabers do in the movies. Lightsabers kill on the first blow. Lightsabers slice through Gaffi sticks, etc.

right-o....the rulers of ancient Rome used "bread and circuses" to maintain the status quo and keep the masses satified...problem is, there is no end to human want. the welfare/entitlement state is the road to surfdom and tyranny.

right....one of the problems is that you are already a Jedi (or former Jedi)....they use "your" backstory to help tell the story. I can see the advantages of it from the dev's perspective. the problem is that it would make for really satisfying roleplaying if you had little to no backstory, or, at the very least, you had a number of different backstories to choose from. I was able to excuse it the first couple of times (BioWare does not know how to tell a story without a serious backstory and Obsidian folks like to use it too) but it is going to get harder and harder to excuse in the future.

oh, I agree...I have logged many hours in Morrowind but because the main story was so incidental to the game and because of the lack of interesting dialogue and cinematics, it doesn't always get the respect it deserves (it also crashed alot). It was also probably one of the very last big name cRPGs that could get away with partial VO. Full VO is now the only way to go. Apparently, the devs are going to make Oblivion a little "tighter" storywise with a little less sandbox. And, of course, the graphics are stunning (I've seen screenshots). Cinematic cutscreens? Don't know but I hope so.

also, Oblivion is real wild card. I know a number of people are dismissing it because of Morrowind. but Oblivion might be really good. if Oblivion gets really good reviews (both pro and amateur) then I will definitely get a 360.

one of the ways I justified getting an Xbox is that I did not already have a DVD player at the time. so justifying an Xbox 360 will be a little tougher in that sense. but, again, if you like occidental RPGs over JRPGs then, I think, the Xbox 360 has a clear advantage. I may also get a Revolution at some point as I really like the idea of being able to download (for a very reasonable price) any game that has ever been on a Nintendo platform. I do need to catch up on some JRPGs like Fire Emblem and Chrono Trigger.

right, and he's making 2 RPGs that are Xbox 360-exclusive.

as far as I can tell from previous dev posts and interviews, Obsidian has never flatly denied any involvement in K3....they have, IMO, pretty much stated that PNJ is not KOTOR 3 but they have not flatly denied working on a 4th title. also, K2 was a cliffhanger....chances are that the story for K3 was already written with K2 being the first half.... so, there we have it: * Musical score: probably quite similar....may already be in the can. * Story: already exists on paper * Engine: a few tweaks to the NWNs2 engine and there you go. if that view is correct, then all that remains is the map building (which is, admittedly, the most labor-intensive part). They may have people working on that already....not a big team but an advance team....the NWNs2 team could then move over to that project sometime next year.

I agree, this is not exactly "news" but this seems to be the best link to the Obsidian/K3/2006 rumor: http://www.ga-forum.com/showthread.php?t=68684

it is all about the titles...with BioWare, Mistwalker, Quantic Dream, and, presumably, Obsidian supporting the Xbox 360, I may have to go with one of those...but not until the price drop.

this may sound like an anti-war or anti-US statement but it is not. it is simply an observation. the U.S. has been a beacon of hope to the rest of the world. it has also been the world's last remaining colonial power. it is day and it is night....understand? ok, if you do, please read on. colonial powers need to assert their strength from time to time. that is what Iraq is....a chance to gain hegemony in the region. this helps secure the flow of oil (which is "the engine of freedom" in a sense) to the rest of the world and it helps take some heat off of Israel (which, all told, amount to "good guys" in that region). and then there is the "flypaper" argument. if Al-Qaida fights us in Iraq, then there is less they can do in other places. it is not any one reason but a host of reasons. WMD and "spreading liberty" are strawmen arguments for TV. even if Iraq becomes a democracy, it will likely follow the Russian model: an oil-rich, pseudo-democratic oligarchy.