the dice rolls and maths into the
background. The old BioWare still
pokes through, especially in the
slightly awkward half turn-based, half
real-time combat and the seemingly
endless inventory screens, but
the intent is clear. This is a game
designed to be picked up by anyStar
Warsfan, not just RPG players.
Working in this more accessible
style,Knights Of The Old Republic
cemented some BioWare traditions.
Side quests that shine as bright
as the main storyline, moral
decisions that have real weight,
and, of course, a party filled with
memorable companions.
If you love Mass Effect’s Garrus or
Dragon Age’s Iron Bull, this is where
it all started. Over the course of the
game, you assemble a ragtag bunch
of droids, aliens and scoundrels. It’s
a perfect fit for Star Wars, and gave
us some of the very best BioWare
companions: joyfully murderous droid
HK-47, Twi’lek and Wookiee BFF-
pairing Mission Vao and Zaalbaar, and
Bastila Shan, the Jedi master who
plays a central role to the entire plot,
and provides one of the game’s few
romance options.
Sith happens
All of these strengths – the
storytelling freedom offered by an
unexplored corner of the galaxy, the
rooting of your actions in a good-
versus-evil morality system, a cast of
companions you really care about – all
contribute to the single thing that
everyone remembers about Knights Of
The Old Republic: the twist in its tale.
Remember the two Darths we
mentioned earlier? And how one
of them, Revan, has already been
defeated when the story begins? It
turns out they were never actually
killed – Revan’s memory was wiped by
Bastila, and they were rehabilitated
by the Jedi Council. Until they woke
up, on a star cruiser in the middle of
a battle, with no memory of how they
got there. That’s right – you’re the big
bad in your own story.James Ohlen has said that the
game’s story was his love letter to
The Empire Strikes Back, and this
was BioWare’s attempt at a reveal
with the same impact as “I am your
father”. It works, not just because it’s
a shocking moment, or even because
it’s nicely seeded with little clues
and hints, but because the twist
comes around the game’s halfway
mark. From there, it becomes a story
about whether this character can
redeem themself, casting the morality
system in a whole new light (or dark, if
that’s the way you lean) and building
towards one of two endings.
This is perhaps the way Knights Of
The Old Republic best captures the
Star Wars spirit. Darth Revan’s arc was
written to echo Anakin Skywalker’s –
but it also managed to foreshadow the
story of his grandson, Kylo Ren, one
that’s still playing out on big screens.
Once that saga wraps up, Lucasfilm
promises it will finally leave this well-
trodden corner of the galaxy behind,
and many fans have cried out for a
return to the Old Republic setting.
It’s unlikely to happen, but that
matters less than what has already
grown out of the seeds planted by
Knights Of The Old Republic. BioWare
considered a sequel, but ultimately
chose to move on and tell new stories.
As with that first decision to avoid
the Episode II setting, this proved a
wise choice, leading eventually to the
beloved Mass Effect and Dragon’s Age
games. It’s a spirit of exploration that
Star Wars could learn a lot from.QTOP This is the
aptly-named
HK-47, a gleaming
metallic weapon
who is all too
keen to murder
every “meatbag”
he encounters.
ABOVE There’s a
clear effort to
capture the
cinematic
quality of a
lightsaber
battle.More Xbox news at gamesradar.com/oxm THE OFFICIAL XBOX MAGAZINE 105