I recently replayed one of my favorite games of all time, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (KOTOR). Created by BioWare, KOTOR is a narrative masterpiece. This is my fourth or fifth time playing through the game and I am still discovering new quests and areas to explore. The release of KOTOR for iPad is what possessed me to play the 10+ year old game again.
In KOTOR you are Darth Revan, Sith Lord leading a campaign against all Republic space with your mentee Darth Malak. A Jedi strike team attacks you while simultaneously Malak betrays you. Instead of killing you entirely, a Jedi named Bastila reconstructs you memories and turns you into an instrument of the light side. Eventually, you regain your competency of the Force as well as your memories. You ultimately confront your former self and decide which path you want to follow. If you choose the light side, you defeat your former apprentice and set off to rebuild the Jedi strength in the galaxy.
When I played through the game this time I was able to better appreciate the branching narrative. It is very difficult to create a good game story, it is even harder to create a story where a player's choices affect the outcome. BioWare executes the branching story narrative excellently, giving the player enough choices to want to play the game again and again just to see how the other narrative options play out.
BioWare's Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic has helped me better understand myself as a game player and designer. I know now that out of all video game elements, I am most attracted to a good story. Graphics and technology are not nearly as important to me as a good story. This is most definitely the reason why I enjoy playing games that are 10+ years old (KOTOR, Morrowind, The Legend of Zelda, etc.). I will have to give BioWare's MMORPG Star Wars: The Old Republic a play once I find some time.
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