Plano Skywalker

I personally don't care. However, the more "concrete" stuff we get about Revan, the less speculation. The more concrete his identity, the more of an immersive story they can write in K3. Why male? >well, I think it is obvious that Bastila was written as Revan's lover or (wannabe lover). I think more Revan accolytes would appreciate seeing them together than would be offended by a hard-coded identity. I could be wrong but I think Revan and Bastila together would be good for business. Why LS? >generally speaking, SW protagonists are LS. Even Anakin was ultimately LS (redeemed). LFL has already said that Revan is LS continuity-wise.

Absolutely right. If all they wanted was a simple cop-out, then they could have just referred to Revan as the unlikely hero (anti-hero) who defeated Darth Malak. Newbies would have had no problem with that and K1 fans could have filled in the blanks. But by having Revan be such a dominate issue in K2 while providing no resolution, it either: 1) demands real resolution in the next installment or 2) was a complete and utter failure at a cop-out. Essentially, K2 falls apart unless K3 offers real resolution to Revan and the True Sith. I don't really think Revan is on the same level as the Nameless One though. Dark Horse is not going to tell the Nameless One's story in comics. Revan, however, WILL EVENTUALLY HAVE a home planet, a fixed gender, alignment, etc because his story WILL BE TOLD in the EU. Killing him off (or finding some other resolution for him) in the games will allow his story to be told in the EU. The sooner we get Revan out of the games and into the EU, the better.

Exactly...REVAN IS AN EU CONSTRUCT at this point. He WILL APPEAR in future (Dark Horse ?) continuity comics and other official continuity source material. So, the best bet is to go ahead and lock him in to a certain identity and fate in K3. The sooner Revan gets "real resolution" the sooner they can use him more in other EU outlets, such as comics and novels. Also: NO MORE PREGENS!!!! Customizable backstories are fine but not outright pregens.

the biggest problem with K2 NPCs is lack of dev time....I think G0TO was supposed to be much more....same with Bao-Dur. however, nothing really wrong with having a dead weight character like G0TO...just give us more options. If I want a floating mine remover, I might choose G0TO. If I want a second astromech droid, then I can put him in the G0TO slot. Basically, there should be an inner circle and an outer circle of NPCs. The inner circle cannot be subbed out...the outer circle can. I think the idea that they should not have cameos of anyone that *could* have been killed is a specious argument. Obviously, there is an "official" explanation to what happened, even if it is not written down anywhere.

the biggest obstalce to having everything "wrapped up" in K3 is the fact that this would essentially require Revan (and possibly the Exile) to have "hard coded" appearances, alignments, genders, etc. leaving Revan and the Exile ambiguous would allow them to avoid offending anyone on that level but then it all becomes an incomprehensible soap. I say they hard code both Revan and the Exile and wrap this thing up. Revan is a LS, white, heterosexual male who marries Bastila. Don't like it? Then deal with it! Exile is a Twilek.

I think the problem is this: LA had no idea that BioWare would capture lightning in a bottle with the Revan character. Revan is now the more popular among many SW fans than Exar Kun or Luke Skywalker....trust me, they had no idea. But now Revan is, essentially, the dominant EU character in that time period and they can't just not use his name...that is the reality we are stuck with. someone mentioned that "the Revan saga" is kinda like "the Bourne saga". that would have been fine: give us a pregen and PACE THE GAMES so where we can use the same pregen throughout the trilogy. HOWEVER, this is simply not possible now. As I see it, we either have: 1) there is no trilogy...which effectively means that K2 was not really a cliffhanger. the KOTOR games are one big soap offering no real resolution. 2) there is a trilogy in that the antagonist has been there and alluded to the whole time....the protagonist changes but the antagonist stays the same. 3) there is a trilogy and the protagonist is the same (Revan) but you are not playing the primary protagonist...you are playing a minor, supportive character. * Scenario 1 is probably the easiest for the devs/writers. Revan becomes a convenient plot device like Charlie from Charlie's Angles or Robin Masters from Magnum P.I. He never gets any real resolution but is always lurking in the shadows. IMO, while this is easiest for the devs, this is probably the least satisfying for the consumer. * Scenario 2 this seems to be where this thing is headed. there are a number of clues to suggest it: K1 mentions the fact that Naga Sadow's body is not really buried on Korriban, for instance. also, the bit with Canderous and how "the Sith" approached the Mandalorians to go to war. There is no way this could have been the Revan/Malak Sith. Whether BioWare intended it or not, the "true Sith" thing has plenty of footing in K1 to make this a viable way to wrap up the story arch we are in now. * Scenario 3 I doubt this one will be used. however, this one is actually my favorite. why do I have to play the primary protagonist? why can't I play someone in a secondary kind of role? This would allow them to tell the story of Revan that they want to tell while giving us the flexibility that comes by not playing a pregen.

I agree with the idea that a *major plot twist* is fine but probably should not be done everytime. But, one has to keep in mind that, by having a major twist, the twist essentially becomes the story and helps to avoid the issue of a proper darkside path. So, unfortunately, while I would like a more straight-up story, I'm not holding my breath because I know how much easier it makes the devs' job by always having a major twist in a game that supposedly allows for 2 different paths.

I really enjoyed Swoop Racing in K1 and I loved the 3-tier system of winnings. In K2, I avoid it because it is just not as enjoyable. Also, what about SWOOP BIKE UPGRADES??? We hear NPCs talking about them (at least in K1) but they are not available. We need upgrades and the occasional ability to take the bikes out on actual missions.

> Make your own cards ? While I haven't done it myself, yes, I believe it is possible to go over to the workbench and make your own +*/-* cards, for instance. If you put nothing but those type of cards in your side deck, you will win alot. I think a better approach would be for you and the other player to randomly draw your side cards from the main deck at the beginning of the game. > I think Pazaak is supposed to be like a in-Cantina game. How would you hold a > tournament? (like what would happen in the Pazaak Den). well, I would like to see a seperate "multiplayer" version of the game that resembles a Blackjack table (or Texas Hold 'Em table) in look and feel with voice-over remarks from the other players.

Agree...if there is one area were K2 shines over K1 then it would have to be just the overall sense of "immersiveness". I personally think that was much better in K2. However, the game has many weaknesses: * lack of party management (yes, I know, the first one did not have this either but it is still a glaring ommission IMO). * swoop racing is MUCH better in K1 than in K2....sometimes less is best. * Pazaak...needs a more casino-like feel....needs tournaments....get rid of the ability to make your own cards (way too munchkinish). * Influence/dialogue was half-baked....get rid of redundant looping dialogue trees within the same session...come up with a way to introduce new dialogue trees if you have already failed to influence someone...feat-based would be fine. * OK, we are essentially using D&D rules...need some dual-classing for non-adepts. * not enough aliens on the ship. * lack of a proper DS path (K1 also had this problem but it was camouflaged better). * K2 had very poor pathfinding and combat AI (as did K1). * Random loot is fine in principle but it was very poorly implemented in K2. * having 5 Force adepts on your ship is too many....need quality over quantity when it comes to this kind of relationship. * by now, we should have some selection in who trains us in the Force...don't "stick" us with a mandatory mentor. (end of laundry list, for now)

the problem with producing dialogue-heavy, story-intensive games is that they must now be done within a framework of eye candy graphics, cinematic cutscreens, and voice acting. (also PST used a pregen...a shortcut device to making a truely immersive game). that is not to say it can't happen....I think TSL could have been a true gem with about 6 more months of development time and about 40-50 hours of content.

I would say they should: 1) use major known planets like Coruscant and Tatooine. 2) introduce new planets (like Taris). 3) use "movie" planets that did not get enough play in the movies (i.e. Kessel and Alderaan). minor planets that have already received plenty of play in the movies probably do not need to return, IMO. HOWEVER, I would like to go to an icey planet...with mountains, preferrably.

Kreia was indeed the best written character of K2. However, she was also a shortcut device to prop up a weak, extremely linear, "filler" story and to avoid the issue (once again) of a proper darkside path. I'm all for 3-dimensional characters but I sure as heck don't want to see a shortcut device like that in future games. The idea of having to fight your former teacher or student is classic Star Wars. However, they really can't do it that way every time in these games. I'd like to see the protagonist in these games become a little more like 007...different ways to accomplish the same objective. You're not a fan of complex characters are you. <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Jade Empire seems to have a good journal/clue system. They would be well to incorporate something like that. In my opinion, Jade Empire is a truely great game (even though, content-wise, it is a little short). I also like the fact that, for all practical purposes, there is no inventory management...if your character buys a better staff, you no longer have the old one, etc. Now, that might be harder to do with KOTOR but incorporating that to some extent would be a positive thing, IMO. We either need an old-fashioned encumberance system or something closer to the Jade Empire inventory system. The clunky system we have now needs to go.

I also like the idea of not being "stuck" with a certain mentor and for there to be different ones for LS and for DS. Also, when you go prestige class, your teacher tells you to go seak out so-and-so and he will teach you the higher mysteries of the Force. Multiple teachers = more illusion of choices and depth.

I agree that we have seen enough of the "Chosen One" device. That is not to say we will not see it again but it just makes it so much easier to write a compelling story when the PC has a pre-defined backstory. I believe a solution would be to continue to use backstories but to have a number of different ones to choose from. Yes, this would mean more work for the devs but it would be sweet. With video games becoming more cinematic, this produces a need for the video games to have a more clear-cut objective. The predefined backstory helps connect the dots. OK, fine, but give us more than one backstory to choose from. They will all connect the dots but it will give us the illusion of choice. The illusion of choice is sometimes just as good as real choices.

* Force-draw animations * customizable hilts * hooded robes * "killing blows" and/or dismemberment animations From a business perspective, the above items would add alot of "grab value" to the game. With regard specifically to the last item: I would say "yes" but it should be done sparingly (i.e. it only happens on a crit and then only 10% of the time).

I think the original poster makes a good point: CRPGs have *always* been associated with consoles more than PC. The IE time period was an exception but not necessarily a revolution in this regard. The idea of a cimematic presentation that you have some input in is here to stay....however, this DOES NOT mean that all CRPGs have to be as straightjacketed as the KOTOR games were. We need more sidequests, NPC options, faction options, character customization (including backstory customization) and alternate endings and we don't need as many cinematic cutscreens when we venture off in those areas. Sure, let there be a "main path" where we are guided by the hand and follow the bouncing ball. But let there also be several alternate paths for the hardcore gamer--the hardcore gamer doesn't need as much candy as the masses...he needs more steak and broccoli.

I think the series continues....they need to wrap up "the Revan saga" in K3 but there is no reason that they could not have several KOTOR titles. They could do other SW RPGs in other eras. However, the KOTOR time period is ideal because it is 3,000 years of time just waiting to filled in. It is an era in which not a whole lot has yet been written. They need realize, though, that they ARE WRITING CONTINUITY and they need to call upon the EU heavyweights to write the overarching stories that the games are ultimately based on, IMO. Ideally, a novel would appear about 12 months after the game has been released. LA needs to know that this is not Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance in which the story is there because it has to be there....KOTOR fans want STORY above all else.

If KOTOR 3 completes the story arch we are in now (regardless of how we got there), then at least one of the protagonists (i.e. Revan/Exile) will need to have a "hard coded" identity. They *might* be able to keep one of them a bit ambiguous but there is no way in heck they can keep them both ambiguous. Chances are, they will present Revan as someone who did not really fall (at least in his own mind) and sacrificed himself to the DS to save the Republic. That is the main impression one gets from K2 about Revan. The Exile needs a name. I personally think it would be cool to choose Exile's race, skin color, gender, lightsaber style, whatever, in dialogue. But things like alignment would be hard-coded. Again, immersiveness does not need true choices...only the illusion of choice. Both Revan and the Exile need "real resolution", IMO to prevent this franchise from becoming a soap. However, there might be ways to do this without killing them off. I like the idea that Revan switches off his lightsaber and becomes a senator (at the end of K3).

Yes. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> yes and with all the subtleties of life....for instance, if you bring a Wookie on board, you ain't bringing a Transhodan on board. If you bring a Krath adept, you don't get a Sith adept, etc. Racial tensions and the politics of faction affiliation would work wonders for influence. It should not just be about talking their ear off or taking them out on adventures. They did this somewhat with Visas/Handmaiden but it wasn't very fleshed out and there was no way to undo the "damage" that was done by befriending Visas early on.

I'm for that...but I'm not getting my hopes up. :D

Well, the DS path should be about the conquest of the Republic. In order to obtain this objective, you can cooperate with the Sith, pretend to cooperate with the Sith or even cooperate with another DS faction such as the Krath. But it all leads to the same thing: conquering or weaking the Republic. The LS path is, of course, pro-Republic. The problem with there being a "neutral" path is that this would also be pro-Republic. Perhaps there could be some special way to play a neutral path (such as an Ithorian priest)....but that reminds me, non-human PCs are a must!

If this is to be a major, multi-sequeled franchise like FF then having a true DS path is absolutely essential, IMO. As I have stated many times before, the DS path is little more than a joke right now...at best, you are the ANTI-HERO if you go DS. Now, there might be a way to do it without going to 2 shrinkwraps. Have it so where there are 12 worlds on your astrocharts...you only visit 8. There are 4 worlds that are shared between both paths while the other 4 are contingent on what your stated path is (the alignment barometer would not be the best way to determine which path your are on...you would have to "lock in" pretty early). And just because you don't have to visit a certain world doesn't mean you can't go there...you just don't get the main story triggers if it is a world outside your path. As far as which story really happened? That is a no-brainer. The LS victory is always the one LFL will go with. However, this is less of an issue anyway if we don't get another pregen. The Exile gave us more control of our backstory....hopefully, next time, we will get even more.

well, Pazaak is a betting game already, even though there are opportunities to play it without betting. as far as multiplayer goes, I think Blackjack is a good example...yes, the rules would have to be altered somewhat for this kind of play but it could work. I enjoy casino video games with voice over....I think that would make a big difference to the experience.