Plano Skywalker

here is how Kreia kills them:

I haven't played any of the old flight sim type games such as Tie Fighter partly because I've never owned a Nintendo system and I've heard those games didn't really port well to PC. However, I really want to play them, especially Tie Fighter (I've heard that game is soooo good for what it is). Anyway, I may get a Wii for that purpose...you can download any title that has ever been on a Nintendo platform (for a fee, of course). I will probably get a Wii before a 360. Anyway, I think KOTOR 1 is probably the best of the bunch I have familiarity with (JO, JA, K1, K2) but only because it was so polished and had a lot of sidequests. K2 had a much more interesting story. It really is close as to which is better, IMO. and for those of you who can't wait for the next Jedi Knight game....I think you will get that in the new game (which is called Force Unleashed I think). I suspect it will be much closer to JK than KOTOR. I doubt they will keep using the JK name.

well, there is truth in that....the "main story" has to be something of a mystery so, if you write out (and post on public fora) a full-blown story map, well, they probably aren't going to use that based on that fact alone. your best bet for story ideas is snail mail and/or email. they will still say that they don't read it, but that kind of disclaimer is to be expected....those 2 options are still your best bet. still, there is nothing wrong with suggesting (here, on public fora) what you think the general jist of the next story should be (after all, the last one WAS a cliffhanger) and, certainly, there is nothing wrong with gameplay suggestions. I suspect that someone involved with the production of this franchise looks here for gameplay suggestions from time to time. As far as something like whether your character should start off as a trainee or be a retired Dark Lord of the Sith who has anmesia, well, I admit that that does have something to do with the main story (especially if they use the later concept) but that sort of thing (character generation and ownership) is such an important part of the rpg experience that I think it really boils down to a gameplay issue rather than a story issue....trust me, there are a number of different ways to tell the story, even if they want the PC to be the end-all, be-all. It is just that the half-baked pregen (especially when anmesia is involved) is a really cheap trick that we don't need to see again in this franchise, IMO.

Taris, but I'm not sure it is a fair comparison. Taris was, by far, the most fleshed-out world in these games so far.

you are absolutely right, Darth Mortis. I think the biggest weakness in these games is in the backstory of the PC. Now, to be fair, BioWare almost always uses this formula (PC is some Chosen One who may have some awareness of this but, as the story progress, he learns more and more about his destiny, which is based on his past). but there is still the trouble of the PC's past: the Jedi don't train adults per SW canon and so the idea of a half-baked pregen becomes popular. but what are the other alternatives? 1) start as a Youngling and advance via Fable-style rapid aging. 2) [my fav] start as a 20-year-old who has already been a Youngling (as long as he can remember) and who still has a few more weeks of training to be dubbed a Padawan...you pick up the PC just as he is about to finish his training....oh, and you can still have some wacked-out backstory about how the PC's dad was a Jedi or Sith, etc....in fact, it would be nice to have more say in that....K2 had some of that customization (via dialogue) but not enough. 3) you start off as a teenage orphan who realizes he is Force sensitive and wants to learn more.... 4) start off as a Sith apprentice (doubt they would do that though). the bottom line is that we need to start with what amounts to a clean slate and not with trying to regain something that was lost (and having no control over what that is). the half-baked pregen is the easy way out but terrible for roleplaying and EU continuity.

I think you are on the right track. I'd like to see skills/feats that your PC can take that increase your ability to manage your squad. If you don't have the feat, you only have a rudimentary set of commands; with the feat, you get more and better commands and so on... I do think that stat-based gameplay (along with stat advancement) is part of the "irreducible core" of what an RPG is but there is no reason this can't be mixed with real-time combat and with a squad-based tactical mechanic.

yeah, and I read that he was actually one of the most athletic men to occupy the office but, for some reason, he was always tripping and stumbling (off airplanes and the like) and that may have, more than anything else, hurt his chances of remaining in office.

indeed, BioWare had to cut an entire planet from the game....it's just that Obsidian left the cut content on the Xbox version of the game and crafty folks ported it over. "

I remember when SW: Galaxies first came out. All the guys at the office were raving about it and how you could buy real estate and build homes or other buildings on it and how you could have shops that were persistent (in other words, your shop continues to do business even if you are offline). Apparently, it is still the only game to feature this. I will probably check it out eventually just because I like that concept and want to see how it works. But it seems to me that MMOs are all about socializing. If you want to socialize first and game second, go for an MMO. But that is not the primary reason I play computer games. If I want the social component, I play tabletop games. If and when I do play online again, it will probably be Guild Wars. I've only played the first chapter (haven't beat it) and now there are 2 other chapters that build on each other. Guild Wars is extremely story-focused and it really amounts to playing a single-player RPG in a multiplayer world. When you are in a town, hamlet, stronghold, etc, you can talk to other people, but when you go into an adventure area, you get a private instance that only includes you and anyone who may have joined your party in town....later on, there are henchmen you can hire in town if you prefer to not have another player join in. I've also heard the PVP is pretty good (think my guild versus your guild) but they keep the PVP world and the roleplay world totally seperate. Anyway, GW is probably not the socializer's MMO but it is the roleplayer's multiplayer game, IMO.

I really think that having a more deconstructable environment helps, even in combat. In the Obi-Wan game, for instance, there was a room where you could slice a water pipe and then the room began to fill with water...you could then use that to your advantage in combat (actually, that might have been the only way to beat that Big Bad)....still, having alternate ways of dealing with foes, other than straight-up combat is a good thing (from an RPGer's perspective) and we could stand to see more of that.

well, yeah, taking the concept to the cutting edge. still, extremely linear.

exactly....the JRPG rose when the Occidental Adventure Game started to decline; so, in a sense, the JRPG had no real competition for what it was doing. now it does with games like Indigo Prophecy and Heavy Rain.

actually, I agree. KOTOR 2 (despite its rough areas) had an awful lot of dialogue and choices THAT MATTER.... I think that is what made it a good RPG. Real-time combat would not have taken away from the experience, IMO. I can handle real-time combat and not having the isometric view.

I wouldn't say the "traditional" cRPG is over but it is not mainstream anymore. you have to look for it: http://www.spiderwebsoftware.com/ Mainstream games like Mass Effect target the console audience first and foremost and they have to give them what they are looking for (while slipping in some RPG elements like dialogue, stats, etc). Thing is (and I'm sure Mass Effect will have this), since you can't get the isometric camera view on these games (which is good for managing party combat), you need something to compensate. And that something is SQUAD COMMANDS that temporarily override the individual follower's AI script.

they could, indeed, just leave Revan and the Exile out of K3 saying they are doing something in the Unknown Regions....but that would come across as supercheap, I think. It seems to me that Revan has to either 1) reappear as a coprotagonist, 2) die, or 3) get locked into some sort of freakish trap (that could serve as a plot device for other games). K3 has to be about a pending invasion from the True Sith and has to have Revan as the key that unlocks the puzzle of the True Sith. That is the most satisfying way to finish this story, I believe.

there have also been hints of a "true sequel" to Star Control 2: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Control

that's too bad...I love the idea of terraforming what can be terraformed and just mining the rest. it's the exploration side that I actually like more than the strategy side.

I've been reading through the forums over at the still-in-development Horizon game website and it seems the devs over there are quite aware of what to avoid in a space strategy game and what makes it fun. One thing that I think they will avoid is tech combos (faster than the other guy) = game lock...also, they talk about good AI that is adaptive, not of the cheat variety. however, it does seem like they will go the Gal Civ route when it comes to terraforming.....no go. IMO, that is unfortunate simply because that is the kind of micromanaging that is just fun (doesn't really matter if it makes a strategic difference) .....still, it looks to be a solid game in the making.

looks like I may have found the spiritual successor to such games: http://www.l3o.com/horizon/faq/

yeah, I just did a massive search and all the links to the downloadable demo seem to be down or broken.....no one is serving it up independently it seems....huh.

I'm also wondering about Empire At War...is it good in its own right? Or does it just ride the SW coat tails?

I have to admit that, since watching Firefly/Serenity, the whole idea of terraforming is a big deal for me. Apparently, the MOOR games have that while the G Civ games don't.

I've played some Galactic Civilizations (haven't beat it yet) and, while I think it was a good idea, it has some serious flaws (a hokey space bug of some kind and the fact that all races eventually get all technology). Still, I think it was on the right track and it was turn-based which is a good thing. I've heard lots of good things about Master of Orion 2 and I'm wondering if that is my best bet (even though it is also fairly old) or if GC 2 is it or something else. Anyway, I would love to hear your thoughts on space strategy games.

absolutely, it would be sweet if this person did not always appear on subsequent playthroughs and, when he does appear, he appears at different segments of the game and uses different tricks each time....that, along with joinable factions would make for a really sweet game....talk about REPLAYABILITY!