An Introduction to KOTOR I

Knights of The Old Republic is a grand quest, more open in many ways than any successive effort to wander the Star Wars setting, and it should be remembered as more comprehensively made and complete. Obsidian is known after all for their broken and poorly completed games on a technical level particularly at launch, even if their writing is at least as good, often better than Bioware’s seminal effort, acting sometimes as the ‘older sibling’ putting the first piece of a game duology together. The fact is however that KOTOR II does not exist without I, and it does a disservice to either to deny the other (something I would argue for Fallout 3 and Fallout New Vegas; although Knights of the Old Republic is a much clearer case).

I’m not much of a gamer, and haven’t been for some years now. That’s just part of being drawn more and more into writing. The way I see it, and I hope you can see this from my side; is that there are thousands and thousands of gamer content creators. Masters of recording, playing, and discussion. My focus on literary analysis, with my own skills and taking it in my view more seriously and less repetitiously than the average in my humble opinion. For this reason, I’m not quite so sure about a The Old Republic review (preferring to give a proficient opinion, and not being a master of the MMO setup, aware that other commentators have discussed that ground.) I feel I serve best as a reviewer to playing to my strengths, and to be honest with you.

KOTOR is the founding point for the future of the setting, inventing the Jedi and Sith Codes, codifications of ideology even while beginning to play with the nature of war as logically far from straightforward and binary. The monopolistic neutral planet Mannan would be a subversive idea in any game, let alone this one. The shock of realisation, that things are interconnected becomes introduced not simply to the Force, but to soldiers and children, liberators and crusaders. It makes many warriors, many of the lost, and justifies the hunger or abstinence towards power.

The Rakata are an excellent example of Force dependency without a lecture by Kreia, being something visible and observable rather than told. The Empire within this story is an ancient and alien imperium, not a parallel to the fall of a decadent empire or fears of a supremacist organisation. The presence of the Infinite Empire in the past has the closest association to Ancient Egypt, not speaking of “A long time ago”; but something before the worn in nature of the setting, before its Republic, before the constant historical thread of the Jedi. One wonders if the Rakata chose Force sensitive nexus worlds, or their arcane abilities and esoteric technology shifted and shaped it. Regardless, each planet suits the story and the wider setting well.

KOTOR takes the audience in a new direction, by bringing up the idea of the very old precursor civilisation to a setting that often grounds itself firmly within a single generation. It borrows aesthetic inspiration to tell a ‘prequel’ story, to bring in so many factions and cyclical themes that SW can hardly be seen to be the same without them, where the greatest Mandalorian War has recently ended, and notions of political and spiritual neutrality, the ‘grey’ comes to the fore.

The Sith Army is quite amusing, and the aesthetic makes them look distinct and more resilient than Stormtroopers, at least to me. They have more personality than what they do in II. They are more numerous, and importantly people. The Sith antagonists are avatars of negative passions and sensations, sort of an atmospheric and intimidating exchange from I’s ability to give a little menace from their numbers and ability to restrict movement, but also humour at being outwitted.

Malek and Revan grow in power while losing their heroic warrior aspects due to the corruption of the Star Forge (or Vitiate, depending on whether you favour TOR or not). They stand strong but limited in their mental power, while the Triumvirate are the reciprocal opposite. Malek’s lack of Sith traditionalism in his opportunism, strategic bullheadedness and so on are quite easily mocked stupidity. Revan has his mind overwhelmed, and all the goodwill gained was squandered. Contrast this to their master. Someone forgotten and changed, but with no loss of memory whatsoever. Sion and Nihilus are visibly and incredibly hollowed out by their corruption, and if Kreia is Arren Kae, her body too is heavily artificially aged. Their physical attributes are undeniably deformed, and yet, their minds are not. Nihilus despite the claims of his lack of willpower clearly possesses the ability to utilise not only basic strategic methods such as reaching the Jedi and Sith he consumes, but also the political guile -possibly through proxies- to sway Onderon. His brute pragmatism has a cunning to it, the cunning of an addict manipulating those around him even as they are weakened by him. Sion is far from an inarticulate beast, and Kreia is the wordiest character in almost all the fiction I’ve read in the medium, let alone Star Wars.

The Leviathan shifts the latter half of KOTOR’s quest, introducing companion reliance and shifted perspective without it being forefront of the narrative as with the sequel, although the prioritisation is on action, variety, and in the case of Jolee, utter hilarity, not a straight faced philosophical air about it.

Identity, morality, the question of binary choices within a galaxy set to endlessly opposed factions, holding many living desperate or vigilant lives among billions of ordinary people make an incredible setting to dive into. From the grounding of Taris, to the opening drives to seek knowledge in the depths of Mannan or depths of the Shadowlands, KOTOR brings a cadre of disparate companions seeking the straightforward death of a despot. Yet in the uncovering of history, be it that of political powers, ancient evils, or hidden memories; KOTOR creates a plot tightly connected to realisation and discovery.

References:

Knights of the Old Republic. BioWare. 2003.

Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords. Obsidian Entertainment. 2004.