Plano Skywalker

the problem that you are addressing is not solved by MMORPG-style "grinding" IMO. the answer lies, quite simply, in ALOT more sidequests, including faction-specific sidequests and sidequests that take you to worlds that the main story does not require you to visit.

I also like the idea of advancing in a specific lightsaber form. Jade Empire does something quite similar. It could be something as simple as having its own feat tree or something much more granular (as in the Jade Empire approach). I would opt for a more granular approach.

one of the main Force powers you see being used in the movies is, in fact, using the Force to throw debris at your opponent. We haven't seen that yet in the KOTOR games (not sure if we've even seen it in cutscreens). I would like to see that. Perhaps the main reason we haven't seen it is, when you think about it, this would be a little tricky to implement since you would have to select which object to throw and at whom and how forceful, etc. But it would be cool if they found a way to do it.

I'm sure someone else can get you a more detailed answer but I think you bring up a good point: if you could travel faster than light, you would also be time-travelling. Yet another reason to think of hyperspace travel as manipulating the folds in the fabric of space, rather than going as fast or faster than the speed of light.

I think you are right. For the most part, I try to stay away from making suggestions about the main story. When I do it, it is usually to illustrate something else (such as how to have a multithreaded endgame or how to give the PC a player-chosen backstory, etc). I do believe that LA is interested in our views on characters, planets and gameplay. However, the main story is something that they really do not need our help on. However, since K2 was such a cliffhanger, I suspect we will continue to see all kinds of ideas about how this could be wrapped up. In that sense, K3 will not get here soon enough.

I have no problem with a Black lightsaber. If I am not mistaken, black lightsabers have appeared in the EU. However, I am of the opinion that 9 out of 10 lightsabers we see in the game should be of the "traditional" colors of blue, green, and yellow. There should only be one of each of the non-traditional colors IMO. Also, red lightsabers should be somewhat rare, since, according to the EU, only someone powerful in the Dark Side can manipulate the red crystal so that it becomes strong enough to produce a saber blade...they need to explore the lore of the red lightsaber. If they do that, then everyone will be talking about red lightsabers.

Again, a Nihilus Force Ghost would be fine....they would just have to find a way to deal with the alienspeak that he does. If Nihilus was a senior in high school, he would have won the "underachiever of the year award". I think alot of people were disappointed with the Nihilus character because it could have been a truely awesome character. Bringing him back a ghost (if they could find a way to do it) would be a really good idea, IMO. The trick, as always, is in the implementation.

just do all the sidequests on Nar Shadda and make sure you talk to the people after helping them. the components that Bao-Dur is talking about cannot be purchased.

but that is the underlying formula that I think you will continue to see: * get 4 clues * endgame is triggered after you have the 4th clue one way to make it less predicatable is to keep the 4 clue thing but have more than 4 worlds you can navigate to (in addition to the introductory worlds, obviously). the location of the 4 clues changes every time....but it is not a wasted trip if you end up on a "non-clue" world because there are always sidquests to do and unique merchants to visit. I realize that creating the worlds is probably the most time-consuming aspect of this but one can dream anyway. MORE REPLAYABILITY!!!

Just to clarify: I personally don't care whether they use him or not in KOTOR III. I just think that the KOTOR Chronicles should give us some insight into where LA was thinking of going with this and the Chronicles do, in fact, leave it wide open. The fact is, the guy has already operated "outside of his time" so it would really not be asking alot to have him resurface. Think about it for a minute: video games reach casual SW fans and even non-SW fans. If you wanted to show these people what "the Sith" of antiquity looked like, this would be a perfect opportunity. I realize that the hard core fans might not like it but they know they've got them anyway. If we do see red-skinned Sith in K3, we will also see Naga Sadow...that is the only prediction I'm going to make about that. As far as his tomb goes, did we see his mummified body in that tomb? Anyway, even this could be worked around. The three Great Pyramids in Egypt did not house the great kings like Ramses....the larger, more ornate tombs were decoys to fool and trap grave robbers.

there does seem to be alot of unused Force powers, though. what they should probably do is not have very many 1st-level Force powers at all but have it so where the powers "branch off" at the 2nd and 3rd levels.

What does Force Storm do? ANSWER: does damage to multiple opponents. What does Advanced Throw Lightsaber do? ANSWER: does damage to multiple opponents. again, it may not be quite as effective but it is effective and accomplishes much the same thing. and, for those really into to roleplay, makes alot more sense on LS.

Hmmmm, I don't know. If the past is any gauge, then KOTOR III will start off as a console game and then be ported over to PC. The idea of degrading video for lesser machines is more of a PC FPS thing. I doubt they will do it. I wonder, though, if KOTOR III is going to be next-gen? I think so but it is possible that they are already working on it and that it is current gen. Ah, the suspense.

Is that your opinion or is that EU continuity? If it is continuity, then I ask for a citation. Which comic? What number? etc.

nothing new here but a summation of hyperspace travel. we can assume that we want our science fiction to be based, at least in part, on real science. if that is the case, then the speed of light is, in fact, the unapproachable horizon....men and machines will never travel at the speed of light. however, the idea of folding space time and manipulating the folds that are presumably already there, has at least some basis in real science and must be the idea behind hyperspace (even if it was originally thought of differently).

I also think that the facial distortions are just plain clownish. At the very least, that should be optional, IMO.

I have a hard time with it. I did it once just to see what the differences were. As I have stated on other threads, part of the problem with DS is that there is not enough of a "non-bully" path. If you want DS Mastery in these games, your PC ends up being little more than a psychopathic megalomaniac. That should be available, don't get me wrong, but they need to allow us to play a smooth manipulator DSer, as well.

If KOTOR III finishes the story we are in now (and, really, it almost has to) then it gets tricky. Whether they realized it when they started or not, LA is already writting all kinds of non-self-contained continuity here. I think they will approach any foray into the Unknown Regions with great care. Who knows what they will do? They might decide to reveal the true threat in a way that does not require a trip to the Unknown Regions. The more they can avoid writting new continuity, the better, I think. That is another reason I think Naga Sadow will be the head of the "True Sith"...it is such a natural way to explain the difference between the true sith and the new sith order....and it really doesn't mess with continuity that much.

I generally agree....the KOTOR games need to be about what Jedi "normally" do (i.e. in times of relative galactic peace). Having said that, I think many people (myself included) would be very disappointed if KOTOR 3 did not have an epic ending to what we are in now.

Yes, that was their first attempt at such...until they seperated the technology from the language in .NET. As I said, it is really the .NET Framework, more than C#, that is the JavaKiller. CLARIFICATION: I thought you meant J++ not J#....sorry about that. Anyway, I think C# is supposed to be the "spiritual" successor to Java even if it is not the actual Java Dev stealer, as it were.

of the ones you mentioned, Throw Lightsaber is the most effective. The second-level feat Advanced Throw Lightsaber is actually very effective. sometimes, I try to avoid taking Force Storm for role-playing reasons. Advanced Throw Lightsaber is, essentially, the LS equivalent. Maybe not quite as effective but effective nonetheless.

I personally think a Darth Nihilus Force Ghost would make an excellent DS mentor (and, IMO, K3 really needs to have a more clear-cut distinction between LS and DS paths and, by extension, training). However, the alienspeak that he does poses something of a problem....they would need to find a very plausible way to explain why he had the alienspeak in K2 but not as a K3 Force Ghost. Bringing him back as a living man would be difficult, IMO. Calo Nord has a better chance of coming back as a living man than Nihilus does, IMO.

Hmmm, characters? That would be with names and appearances already defined? Actually, in Arcanum you can choose a PC that already has a name and a more detailed backstory or you can create your own character and still add a little bit of a backstory. While I would certainly play an RPG that gave me a choice of characters that already had names and appearances, my own preference would be to generate the character first with name, class, gender, starting skills and appearance and then define the backstory during in-game dialogue. As long as this is done within the first hour of play, I think that would be the way to go. Hmmm, how about, during the character creation stage, you have a drop-down menu of backstory. Your choices are: * No backstory * Minor backstory * Major backstory No backstory is, of course, for the gamer who wants it totally "open-ended". He misses out on some extra content but he is content knowing that his character is his character. Minor backstory would be things like what planet you were born on, a bit of info on your parents and siblings and whether you gravitate more to the Jedi or Sith. Major backstory is things like, well, basically the Exile has a major backstory. The War Veteran, Jedi Outcast, the Dark Lord of the Sith heir-apparent who got injured and now, 10 years later, is trying to seize the Sith throne, etc. All three approaches have their advantages and disadvantages. But man, you talk about immersion and replayability!

CHOOSING YOUR OWN BACKSTORY this came up on another thread. This is about giving your PC a backstory so that you can decide early on whether you want your PC to have been trained by Sith, or be a fallen Jedi, a Jedi recruit, a Jedi Outcast or someone who aspires to train others, etc. Arcanum allows you to choose a bit of backstory if you want at character-creation time. things like: * raised by wolves * joined the circus * elven blood etc, give your PC certain advantages and certain disadvantages. I personally believe the KOTOR games should give us about 4 or 5 fairly detailed backstories to choose from and that the story is heavily influenced by what we choose. Basically, with RPGs, it is a choice: the more straightjacketed the PC's identity is, the more immersive the story can be written around him....the more "open-ended" the PC's identity is, the more "generic" and haphazard the story is going to be. By giving us 4 or 5 "prefab" options, this gives us the illusion of open-endedness while allowing the devs to create a quality, immersive story.

MORALE CHECKS ANYONE? CAPTURE BAD GUYS? how many times have you found yourself slaughtering Gand and other opponents who did not have a chance? On LS, this can be a little disturbing. It would be nice if your opponents could flee after taking alot of damage. It would also be nice if your PC could capture some of the big baddies and have them tried (i.e. the Exchange bosses, the Mercenary boss on Nar Shadda, etc). After their Vitality rating is down to about 25%, you get the option to SUBDUE. If you activate that, your strikes are designed to knock the person to the ground (without inflicting lethal damage). Once on the ground, options open up to use various holding devices. Subdue should be a SQUAD-BASED command and there should be a number of squad commands.