It’s a good time to be a Star Wars fan for Switch owners. There’s a raft of classic Star Wars titles, and some new ones, that have been gracing the machine for a couple of months. Recently developer and publisher Aspyr brought one of Star Wars’ biggest, and most loved, games to the Switch: Bioware’s classic Knights of The Old Republic. Not only was it a fantastic conversion of a fantastic game, but the Switch is also the perfect place to play it on the go. You can check out more on what we thought of that over here: Knights of The Old Republic Switch Review | Invision Game Community (invisioncommunity.co.uk)
Now Aspyr has completed the collection by bringing over KoToR’s Obsidian developed sequel: Knights of The Old Republic 2. Have they done a good job with this port as well, or is there a whole bunch of issues stemming from the Dark Side?
KoToR 2 had a rough development cycle which left the final game with many issues. Issues divided the player base and critics alike. While the general reception was positive, because of the games rushed development schedule, it came out with a raft of bugs and an ending that was. . . unfulfilling to say the least.
On PC, in came the heroes of the modding scene who spent their time fixing the bugs and restoring the lost content that they could salvage with an, originally, unofficial patch. Aspyr has since officially endorsed the patch, making it an official DLC for the game on home computers. Sadly, the closed Xbox system meant that that version of the game remains as originally released. Thankfully, the Switch version of the game will be getting the Cut Content as free DLC. Sadly though, it’s not available yet meaning that the Switch version of the game as it stands as of writing, is the same as the original release in terms of content, if not visuals.
KoToR 2 is a standalone sequel to KoToR, meaning that it follows its own storyline with nods to the first game. You take on the role of an anonymous Jedi during a time when the Jedi have all but been eradicated by the Sith. Across a galaxy-spanning adventure, you have to survive the Sith while choosing which of the Force’s sides you want to journey down: The Light or The Dark.
If you played KoToR, or any of Bioware’s other RPGs, then you know what to expect. Cue plenty of voiced dialogue, branching dialogue choices, oodles of sidequests, combat and force powers and, finally, a whole heaping of choice. This isn’t just a Jedi’s story. It’s yours too. Do you want to help heal the galaxy or divide it further? Do you want to spare some coins to save someone from a gangster or do you just want to murder everyone in your path? It’s all up to you in Bioware’s patented play style.
Obsidian came in and made the sequel their own though. From the gameplay down to engine changes. Oftentimes, KoToR 2 is a very dark game with choices that can lock you out of quests or open up new ones. There are equal chances to join the Light or the Dark with a whole bunch of grey options for those who like to sit on the fence out of convenience. Your choices don’t just affect what you can open up, but also affect your alignment with your allies.
Right from the bat, KoToR 2 is a totally different game from the first. It’s also far more combat orientated. You’ll be fighting just as much as you will be exploring and talking. The combat system feels a little more refined this time out and stacking up commands works better as well. Combat animations still hold up well today and your AI-controlled allies are thoroughly effective in a fight.
Visually KoToR 2 is running in high definition. Some work has been done on the character models and textures and the game looks good overall, if somewhat sparse by today’s standards. There are still moments of slowdown, usually in combat with too many particles in effect or in large spaces. The first game had the same issues and this is more down to engine issues rather than poor porting or underpowered hardware.
One interesting aspect that I enjoyed was how Obsidian chose to deal with the first game’s events and multiple endings. At a time when choice-driven games have multiple endings and the sequels choose to make one ending canon, Obsidian chose to let you choose your own responses to the previous games ending. I thought it was a neat way to not isolate players over what they had chosen. KoToR 2 is also a slower-paced game at the same time. Once you’ve completed the action-heavy prologue, the game slows down to build upon its characters and story, while making sure you’re busy solving everyone’s problems too. Usually, though, most things are easily solved with a Blaster to the face.
With the DLC, this would be considered the definitive version of the game, making it just one more reason that I wish it had been available at launch. Not only would we have gotten the cut content and a more fulfilling endgame, but some of the game bugs would have been ironed out as well.
During my time with the game, I came across one annoying looping bug at Peragus station, where the game would continue to loop the same fight over and over. A reload solved the issue. A more serious bug does exist for some users though, and that is a crash during a cutscene just past the game’s halfway point that essentially stops your progress cold as you can’t progress the story further.
Aspyr is aware of the problems and is working on a proper patch to sort them out, especially the game-breaking cutscene crash. In the meantime, if you’re one of the few Switch owners who have been accosted by this bug, there is a workaround using the games cheat system that will warp you past the cutscene. Not quite an elegant solution, but at least one exists until Aspyr can deploy the patch.
As with the previous game, playing KoToR 2 on the Switch is the ideal way to play it for me. With complex characters and quests whose outcomes will actually make you stop and think about your decisions, Knights of The Old Republic 2 is a compelling foray into a galaxy far, far away that still manages to capture that Star Wars magic many of us have come to love.
Developers: Aspyr, Obsidian Entertainment, Aspyr (Mac, Linux, & Windows Update)
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, Android, Xbox, Microsoft Windows, iOS, macOS, Linux, Macintosh operating systems
Publishers: Aspyr, The Walt Disney Company, Lucasarts, Lucasfilm, Aspyr (Mac, Linux)
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