Having only played KOTOR 2 first, going from that game to this game is honestly a big disappointment. I know I was basically expecting a proto-Mass Effect and standard-fare Star Wars experience, but I thought there'd be a little bit more to it than that.
The levels/planets range from being pretty neat to kind of mediocre. I think the worst one is the first planet you get stranded on because of how much the game clumsily throws on-top of you to get the ball rolling for the story. There's a decent amount of quests to do on that planet but because it feels so elongated you probably didn't bother with most of them so you can get this shit over with quick. It doesn't matter anyways since that planet gets blown up with zero meaningful repercussions. Manaan and Korriban are solid, though.
The combat is clunky and honestly becomes a chore to micromanage because the AI for the enemies and companions are slow, late, and just kinda bad. I don't think Bioware realized it at first that this type of combat was not suited for more than, like, 5 enemies to fight, because near the end they go overboard with the hoards of enemies that it becomes frustrating.
I feel like i'd be more forgiving if the game's story just wasn't so uninteresting and hackish at times. I actually enjoy a good portion while playing before the big twist that torpedos the story to being a really bland rehash of Return of the Jedi. You can technically be a "Sith" and do villainous stuff but none of it really matters because you're still saving the galaxy from them. Which also goes to show how little weight the choices you make in this game are for the most part.
That said, I still had some decent fun playing through this and I can see where a good game is buried beneath the rough. But in retrospect, it's better that you just skip it and go straight to KOTOR 2 which is a much more ambitious and interesting game set in the Star Wars universe.
The levels/planets range from being pretty neat to kind of mediocre. I think the worst one is the first planet you get stranded on because of how much the game clumsily throws on-top of you to get the ball rolling for the story. There's a decent amount of quests to do on that planet but because it feels so elongated you probably didn't bother with most of them so you can get this shit over with quick. It doesn't matter anyways since that planet gets blown up with zero meaningful repercussions. Manaan and Korriban are solid, though.
The combat is clunky and honestly becomes a chore to micromanage because the AI for the enemies and companions are slow, late, and just kinda bad. I don't think Bioware realized it at first that this type of combat was not suited for more than, like, 5 enemies to fight, because near the end they go overboard with the hoards of enemies that it becomes frustrating.
I feel like i'd be more forgiving if the game's story just wasn't so uninteresting and hackish at times. I actually enjoy a good portion while playing before the big twist that torpedos the story to being a really bland rehash of Return of the Jedi. You can technically be a "Sith" and do villainous stuff but none of it really matters because you're still saving the galaxy from them. Which also goes to show how little weight the choices you make in this game are for the most part.
That said, I still had some decent fun playing through this and I can see where a good game is buried beneath the rough. But in retrospect, it's better that you just skip it and go straight to KOTOR 2 which is a much more ambitious and interesting game set in the Star Wars universe.