STAR WARS: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords (NSP, XCI) ROM + v1.0.2 Update

Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords is a role-playing video game developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by LucasArts. It is the sequel to BioWare’s Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and was released for the Xbox on December 6, 2004, for Microsoft Windows on February 8, 2005, for OS X and Linux on July 21, 2015, for Android and iOS on December 18, 2020, and for Nintendo Switch on June 8, 2022. Like its predecessor, it is set in the Star Wars universe 4,000 years before the events of the film Episode I: The Phantom Menace and is based on the d20 System developed by Wizards of the Coast.

The game uses the Odyssey Engine, which was originally used in Knights of the Old Republic. Writing first began before the original Knights of the Old Republic was released, and development began in October 2003, after BioWare offered Obsidian their Star Wars license due to being confident in their previous work.

Knights of the Old Republic II starts five years after the events of the first game and follows the story of The Exile, a Jedi Knight who was exiled from the Jedi Order. During this time, the Jedi Order has been almost completely wiped out by the Sith. The game begins with the protagonist waking up from unconsciousness at an asteroid mining facility. After the player escapes with the help of their party members, they find the person who exiled them ten years ago, who sends the protagonist on a mission to seek out the remaining Jedi to fight against the Sith.

The game’s critical reception upon its release was generally positive; praise was given to the story, characters, and writing, which were noted to be more gray than the original Knights of the Old Republic. The game was included in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die. Particular praise was given to the character of Kreia, with GameSpy naming her the best video game character of 2005. However, the game received criticism for being too similar to its predecessor in terms of graphics and gameplay systems, as well as for being launched in an incomplete state.

GAMEPLAY

Knights of the Old Republic II is not a turn-based game but is a role-playing video game played from a third-person view that features pausable real-time combat. Combat and interactions with the environment and non-player characters in Knights of the Old Republic II are based on the d20 System as in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. The game starts with a character creation screen with several choices to make, and there is also an option of letting the game do it automatically. There are 30 new Force powers, which are manifestations of the Force, in Knights of the Old Republic II.

Like its predecessor, the game has several minigames, including swoop bike racing and a card game called Pazaak. The interface has been streamlined from the original game and party management has been made easier; for example, the player can switch between two selected weapon sets in the menu. As in the first game, the player can choose to align with either the light side or the dark side. Choosing dialogue options that are respectful and empathetic gives the protagonist light side points, while options that are egotistic and evil result in dark side points.

The combat of Knights of the Old Republic II is identical to its predecessor. Several new lightsaber forms were added to the game. Each of them is useful for a different situation. For example, one is best for enemies using blaster weapons, while another would be good for recovering from using Force powers. The player can use a variety of melee and ranged weapons, including swords and firearms. Fighting unarmed is also an option. A new addition to the game is “prestige classes”, add-ons to the Jedi classes that were established in Knights of the Old Republic. They allow the player character to practice in lightsaber combat or Force powers, depending on the player’s choice.

The player can travel with up to two party members at a time, who gain experience points at the same rate as the player character. Equipment and perks for party characters can be selected for different statistical effects or abilities. Players can loot corpses and various environmental objects. The protagonist also can “influence” their party members; by doing things that impress them, the player increases their influence with them. Depending on the level of influence, party members may support the player character unconditionally or turn against the protagonist. The player can also exploit high influence by drawing party members to either the light side or the dark side, and some characters can even be trained to use the Force.

PLOT

While hiding on the Harbinger, a Republic cruiser, the Exile is sedated by an HK-50 assassin droid to be delivered to a crime syndicate called the Exchange, who have put out a bounty on live Jedi. The Exile is rescued by Kreia, with whom the Exile forms a Force Bond, and the droid T3-M4 on the Ebon Hawk, and the three flee the Harbinger as it is hijacked by a squad of Sith assassins. However, their ship is damaged during the escape by the Harbinger’s gunfire, and they eventually arrive at the Peragus Mining Facility.

Teaming up with smuggler Atton Rand, the group escapes to the planet Telos IV. While hiding out on Telos, they encounter Atris, a surviving member of the Jedi Council who sentenced the protagonist to exile ten years prior. After settling a dispute regarding the Exile’s past sentence, Atris forms an uneasy alliance with them, instructing them to seek out other surviving Jedi to rally against the Sith.

The Exile then travels to four worlds to find reclusive Jedi Masters and either beg for their aid or kill them in revenge for being exiled, depending on the player’s choice. As the Exile continues their journey, they are joined by several individuals in their quest. After finding all the Masters, the Exile travels back to Dantooine and learns that the countless deaths at Malachor V resulted in the Exile unconsciously giving up their connection to the Force, which then became the teachings of the new Sith. If the player aided the Jedi Masters, they prepare to strip the Exile of their Force connection permanently, as the Masters fear that these teachings could result in the actual death of the Force, but Kreia reveals herself to be the former leader of the Sith and murders them all in retribution.

If the player kills the Jedi Masters, Kreia attacks the Exile and leaves. Tracking Kreia to Telos, the Exile fights and defeats a corrupted Atris, from whom it is learned that Kreia plans to strengthen a massive “wound” in the Force made ten years prior. This “wound” had been created by the Exile during the Mandalorian Wars, when they activated a gravitational superweapon, the Mass Shadow Generator, to end the battle on the planet Malachor V, causing mass death and destruction.

Before following her to Malachor V, where Kreia had since rejoined the Sith as Darth Traya, the Exile stops a Sith invasion of Telos, defeating one of Traya’s former apprentices, the Sith Lord Darth Nihilus. On Malachor V, the Exile is separated from their companions and fights through hordes of monsters on the planet’s surface and the inhabitants of a large Sith Academy who survived the cataclysm. On the final floor of the academy, the Exile kills the Sith Lord Darth Sion and confronts Darth Traya in the planet’s core. The Exile defeats the Sith Lord, but before Traya dies, she delivers a prophetic vision of the future about the player’s companions and the worlds that were visited throughout the story. Depending on the Exile’s alignment, they either order the destruction of Malachor V, escape before it is destroyed, and travel into the Unknown Regions in search of Revan (light side), or remain on Malachor V as the new Dark Lord of the Sith (dark side).