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The Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic series consists of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, The Sith Lords and a massively multiplayer online role-playing game called The Old Republic, with the first game being released in 2003 and set 4,000 years before the Star Wars films.[1] The series also encompasses a 2006 comic book series.
The main and player character of the first game is Revan, and the main and player character of the second game is the Jedi Exile. In both games, the main character can either be a human male or a human female, with other characters joining the player's party and becoming controllable. The player can control three characters at one time in both games.[1] HK-47, Canderous Ordo and T3-M4 appear in both of the video games as playable character, while the first game's playable characters also includes Carth Onasi, Mission Vao, Zaalbar, Bastila Shan, Juhani and Jolee Bindo. The second game's playable characters also include Atton Rand, Bao-Dur, Mical, Mira, Hanharr, Brianna, Kreia, Visas Marr and G0-T0.
The characters have overall been well-received, with the first Knights of the Old Republic winning the Academy of Interactive Art's "Outstanding Achievement in Character and Story Development", and both Kreia and HK-47 receiving other awards.
Chris Avellone, the lead designer of The Sith Lords, has said that "a core part of what made KOTOR I so great was the story and your companions, and that was our intention in the sequel as well",[2] and has also said that he thought that the characters and voice-acting were some of the key strengths of The Sith Lords, and said that they got a lot of help and support from LucasArts in the voice-acting and sound department. Avellone stated that in some cases, the characters turned out "better than we thought they would be". According to Avellone, while "there was some stuff we wanted to add", overall they "got almost everything we wanted in there". Avellone has said he has been surprised by the positive feedback of some of the characters.[3]
BioWare banned users of their Knights of the Old Republic forum from discussing homosexuality in their games.[4]
Revan is the main protagonist and player character of the first game, who is first introduced as someone aboard the Endar Spire, which is being attacked by the Sith. He is later revealed to be a Sith Lord whose memory has been wiped. Canonically, Revan is male and follows the light-side path,[5] but the player may choose to make Revan female and/or follow the dark-side path.
The Jedi Exile, also known simply as just the Exile, is the main protagonist and player character of the second game. She is canonically female and follows the light-side path, but like with Revan, the player may choose her gender and decide what path she takes.
Jesse Schedeen, from IGN, said the character was one of her favourite Star Wars heroes.[6]
Canderous Ordo, also known as Mandalore in the second game, is a Mandalorian who appears in both the first game and in The Sith Lords. Ordo is a veteran Mandalorian warrior who joins the player's party in Knights of the Old Republic. After the game's conclusion, he becomes "Mandalore", leader of the Mandalorians. Mandalore pledges himself and his warriors to the service of the Jedi Exile in The Sith Lords.
UGO Networks put Ordo as their 18th favourite Expanded Universe character.[7]
T3-M4 is an astromech droid who appears in both games. It was constructed by Janice Nall of Taris for a local crime lord. The droid features code-breaking and computer "slicing" skills in addition to being able to mount armor and weapon upgrades.
HK-47 is an assassin droid owned by Revan, who appears in both of the games. In 2003 HK-47 won Computer Gaming World's "NPC of the Year" award,[8] and later won the category of "Original Game Character of the Year" in the 2004 Game Developers Choice Awards.[9]
Carth Onasi, voiced by Raphael Sbarge, is a Republic pilot who has trust issues who appears in the first game. If the player chooses to make Revan female, Carth and Revan may romance with each other and fall in love. Carth sometimes appears in a cut scene in the second game.
Carth Onasi was been considered to have been replaced by Atton Rand in the second game by IGN's Hilary Goldstein.[10]
Shiela Lewis put Carth as the 6th top male video game hottie.[11]
Mission Vao, voiced by Cat Taber, appears in Knights of the Old Republic. She is a Twi'lek and friends with Zaalbar. Mission joins the player's party after encountering her in the Under City on Taris.
Zaalbar is a character from Knights of the Old Republic. He is friends with Mission Vao and joins the player's party. Zaalbar is the brother to Chuundar, the leader of a tribe on Kashyyyk. When your party first arrives on Kashyyyk, Zaalbar is referred to as "mad claw". Through Freyyr Revan learns why Zaalbar betrayed the tribe. Zaalbar learned that Chuundar was selling Wookiee slaves to Czerka Corporation, and attacked him. Freyyr sided with Chuundar and thus Zaalbar was exiled. When Revan and Freyyr confront Chuundar, Zaalbar sides with Freyyer and Revan and in turn kills Chuundar, freeing the Wookiees and driving Czerka off the planet. He has a life-debt to Revan.
Bastila Shan, voiced by Jennifer Hale, is a Jedi who appears in the first game. The first part of the game is spent rescuing her after the Endar Spire is destroyed. She is the Jedi who defeated Revan prior to the game's beginning and joins the player's character's quest. Darth Malak captures her and seduces her to the Dark Side. If the protagonist aligns with the light side of the Force, he defeats Bastila in a lightsaber duel and she redeems herself by helping the Republic fleet. If the protagonist is a dark-side character, the player has the option of killing Bastila or allowing her to live. If the latter, Bastila becomes his apprentice. Bastila is also a romance option if your character is a light-sided male.
Bastila was chosen by IGN as their 62nd favourite Star Wars character.[12]
Juhani was once a padawan who believed she killed her master. She turned to the dark side and put a taint on the Grove on Dantooine where she meditated. She believed that after what she did the Jedi Council would not accept her back and that the dark side held greater power. Depending on which path the conversation is steered in by the player, Revan may either fight (and kill) her or redeem her and have her join him to discover the location of the Star Forge. She is also another possible love interest of the female Revan (light side).
Juhani was listed by UGO Networks as the 10th worst Star Wars Expanded Universe character, who said that while "Juhani isn't really good or bad per se. She's just utterly pointless" and that "she's almost a non-entity in the story. Her personality couldn't be more vanilla, her Jedi skills are inferior to others in your party... even the simple act of looking at Juhani provokes annoyance".[13]
Jolee Bindo, voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson, is a character in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. Jolee is an old hermit living on Kashyyyk and a former Jedi Padawan, Bindo helped Revan get past shield generators that lead deeper into the shadowlands and remained with Revan's party. After the main character gains experience, Jolee will tell of how he was once a smuggler, and through this met his wife. Against the wishes of the Jedi Council he trained her in the Jedi ways. She was then seduced to the dark side by Exar Kun, upon failing to convince Jolee to join Exar Kun as well, she drew her lightsaber on him. Jolee won the fight, but he was unable to bring himself to kill her. She escaped and went on to kill many Jedi. Jolee expected to be punished harshly for his mistakes, but the Council said he had learned his lessons the hard way, and even considered promoting him to knighthood. Disappointed with the Jedi's decision, Jolee left the Order and started wandering the galaxy before being stranded on Kashyyyk, where he meets the player character.
Atton Rand is a character in The Sith Lords.[3][10] Atton is an Echani-combat trained pilot that the main character meets on the asteroid mining station Peragus II. Atton fought in the Mandalorian Wars as well as the Jedi Civil War. He originally fought with the Republic, and when Revan won against the Mandalorians and became Darth Revan, Atton remained under his command and became a Jedi-hunter. He can become a Jedi Sentinel during the game.
Bao-Dur (voiced by Roger G. Smith) and the Remote are characters in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords.[3][10]
Bao-Dur is a Zabrak from Iridonia, and a technician who fought under the command of the Jedi Exile during the Mandalorian Wars. Bao-Dur is the inventor of the Mass Shadow Generator that ended the battle on Malachor V by completely obliterating the Mandalorian Armada and inadvertently killing many Republic soldiers on his own side of the battle, leading to a great deal of guilt later in his life. The Exile (who much later befriended Bao-Dur) gave the command, which sent massive echoes in the Force throughout the galaxy. Bao-Dur is trainable as a Jedi Guardian.
Mical, also known as the Disciple, is a character in The Sith Lords, and is a soldier and force-adept that was refused for training because of the Mandalorian Wars. He eventually tells the player character that he wishes the player to be his master. He is a playable character that joins the player's party on Dantooine if your character is female. The Disciple can be influenced by light side acts and can be trained as a Jedi Consular. He eventually reveals his name as Mical to the player character.
Mira, voiced by Emily Berry, appears in The Sith Lords. Mira lost her family during the Mandalorian Wars. By the end of the wars, the Galactic Republic was flooding with refugees, and many of them, including Mira, ended up in the refugee sector of Nar Shaddaa. To survive in the hostile environment, she became a bounty hunter with the sole purpose of earning credits. A rival bounty hunter, the Wookiee Hanharr, was employed to hunt her by an unknown person. Mira will only join the light-sided player, and can become a Jedi Sentinel.
Hanharr is a Wookiee bounty hunter in The Sith Lords, and can play different roles within the game, depending on the alignment of the player character. Hanharr is encountered on the planet Nar Shaddaa, as is Mira, another bounty hunter. One of these will join the party of the Jedi Exile, as is determined by the personality of the player character. Light-side players are joined by Mira, dark-side players are joined by Hanharr.
Brianna is the "Last Handmaiden" on a Jedi Academy located on Telos IV in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords. She initially does not reveal her name to the Exile; until she mentions her name late in the game, she is referred to as the Handmaiden. Brianna joins the party after leaving Telos on the Ebon Hawk if your character is male. Her training before joining the Exile's party makes her a skilled close quarter combatant and, after fulfilling certain combat and conversation requirements, she can be trained to become a Jedi Guardian or a Dark Jedi Guardian. It is revealed by Kreia that Brianna takes up Atris' role as the historian of the jedi.
Visas Marr, voiced by Kelly Hu, appears in The Sith Lords. Initially an apprentice of Darth Nihilus, she eventually joins the player's character's party. Visa Marr comes from the planet of Katarr, which was destroyed by Darth Nihilus when she was a child. While she is considered blind, she is able to see through the force which allowed her to find the jedi exile. When she confronts the Exile, she loses and in turn becomes part of the Exile's party. When the Exile confronted Darth Nihilus, they with Mandalore, were able to defeat Nihilus. What happened to her after that is unknown. If she went with the Exile to fight the sith empire or stayed behind is a mystery.
G0-T0 is a droid who appears in The Sith Lords. Built to oversee and aid in the planetary reconstruction of the planet Telos, its programming included two directives: produce options to rebuild the Republic and follow all the laws of the Republic. Sadly, all options G0-T0 could think of to assist the Republic would involve breaking a Republic law. Following this, the droid 'broke'; it overrided the second directive, and set up the greatest smuggling organisation in the galaxy. Eventually the droid would be destroyed, but not before the organisation had helped countless systems achieve prosperity.
Darth Malak, voiced by Rafael Ferrer, is the old Sith apprentice of Revan and is the main antagonist of the first game. Malak and Revan disobeyed the Jedi Council and helped the Republic defend against the Mandalorians. They fell to the dark side in pursuing the Mandalorians. Malak then betrays his master and usurps the title of Dark Lord of the Sith. However, Revan survives the attack, at the cost of his memory. Revan regains his power in the search for the Star Forge, and defeats Malak in the game's final battle.
Jesse Schedeen of IGN put Malak, along with Revan, as their fifth favourite Star Wars villain, saying that "[v]isually, both Jedi are immediately memorable".[14] IGN also put Malak as their 28th top Star Wars character[12] and their 33rd favourite videogame villain.[15] GamePro's Hugh Sterbakov listed Darth Malak as 22nd most diabolical videogame villain of all time, saying he was "one of, if not the coolest expanded universe Star Wars character yet".[16] UGO Networks put the character as their 19th top Star Wars Expanded Universe character.[7] On GameSpot's "All-Time Greatest Villain" competition, Darth Malak managed to get into the top sixteen.[17] GameDaily's Robert Workman put Darth Malak as their 16th top evil mastermind of all time.[18] Robert Workman also listed Malak as one of his favourite Star Wars video game characters.[19]
Kreia acts as the teacher and mentor to the Jedi Exile in The Sith Lords.[10][20] She is revealed to have been Darth Traya, a Sith Lord, at the end of the game.
Kreia was chosen by IGN as the 81st top Star Wars character[12] and Kreia, along with the other Sith Lords, was put as the 2nd top Star Wars villain that was left out of the original list by Jesse Scheedeen based on reader's comments.[21] IGN's Hilary Goldstein said that said that "Kreia offers some truly fantastic dialogue in KOTOR 2".[10] GameSpy praised Kreia as "Best Character" in their "Game of the Year" awards for 2005, saying that "Kreia was easily the most intriguing, complicated, enigmatic, well-designed and nuanced character in a video game [in 2005]" and that she made "a trip full of heavy-duty thought a whole lot of fun".[22]
Negatively, UGO Networks' Adam Rosenburg put Kreia as the 6th worst Expanded Universe character, commenting that her redemption at the end of the game was stupid and that the name "Darth Traya" was "stupidly lame".[13]
Darth Sion, voiced by Louis Mellis, is an antagonist in The Sith Lords. Darth Traya trained both Sion and Nihilus, who in turn betray her. He holds his ravaged body together with the dark-side of the Force. The player's character eventually defeats Sion.
Sion, along with the other Sith Lords, was put as the 3rd top Star Wars villain left out of the original list based on reader's comments by IGN,[21] and was chosen by IGN as their 73rd favourite Star Wars character.[12]
Darth Nihilus appears in The Sith Lords and in the Star Wars: Legacy comic series. Darth Traya found and trained Nihilus; Nihilus and Darth Sion later betrayed her. The player's character eventually defeats Nihilus.
Nihilus, along with the other Sith Lords, was put as the 2nd top Star Wars villain who didn't appear in an earlier list based on reader's comments by IGN's Jesse Schedeen, Schedeen commenting "[a]t the very least, Nihilus probably wins the award for coolest-looking Star Wars villain ever".[21] IGN also put the character as their 56th top Star Wars character.[12]
IGN's Aaron Boulding said that in the first game there was "tons of character development" and the "original characters and story are interesting enough, but being in a Star Wars setting just makes them like family".[24] GameSpot said that "many of the game's characters are well defined".[25]
The first Knights of the Old Republic game was given the "Outstanding Achievement in Character and Story Development" award by the Academy of Interactive Arts in their annual Interactive Achievement Awards.[26] HK-47 won two awards, one being the 2003 Computer Gaming World "NPC of the Year" award,[8] and also the "Original Game Character of the Year" category in the 2004 Game Developers Choice Awards.[9] Kreia also won the "Best Character" award in GameSpot's Game of the Year awards.[22]
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