New Stream Idea - Play Me a Story

[JJ48]

PRESS PLAY - KOTOR

Twenty years ago, game developer BIOWARE developed a Star Wars game. Set thousands of years before the events of any of the movies, this game, Knights of the Old Republic, would become a beloved entry into the Star Wars franchise.

Streaming from his home, gamer JJ48 selects the title as the new topic for his stream. Having already played through TIE Fighter, he feels that BIOWARE'S RPG will offer a different, yet still fun, opportunity for lore analysis.

But BIOWARE will not allow their game to be beaten so easily as that. Before he can even hope to get into the game proper, JJ48 must make it through character creation and the tutorial....

 

[JJ48]

Link makes his way through the Earth Temple with the help of Medli. Or perhaps it would be more correct to say he makes it through the Earth Temple while helping Medli. On the one hand, it makes sense that she can't stand up to monsters like Link can, seeing as how she's not a sword-wielding hero. On the other hand, it'd be nice if she could at least move around on her own without Link having to carry her from room to room or take control of her through song. Maybe all the Rito are just a bit bird-brained.

 

[JJ48]

Our heroes have crash-landed on a world controlled by the Sith, and must avoid capture while searching for Bastila, the Jedi, and then finding some way of leaving the planet. How will they manage to keep a low profile? By engaging in popular spectator sports, attending Sith parties, and talking to everyone they see, of course!

 

[JJ48]

Everybody knows about the Hero of Time, and how he once saved Hyrule, but no one really speaks about the fairy who once saved the Hero! No, not Navi; she was just irritating. Not Tatl either. She was less frustrating to deal with, but seemed to cooperate out of mutual benefit more than for the Hero's good. We are, of course, talking about Tingle! (The First, presumably.)

Join us as we read about and discuss his heroic tale in The Legend of the Fairy!

 

[JJ48]

The Galaxy is a strange place, with many strange people. Some people are wookiees, who apparently never bathe or groom their fur, despite it probably getting filled with bugs and burs and other stuff if not cared for regularly. Some people are refugees who live in mortal fear of someday turning into a bloodthirsty monster who preys on friends and family, until some guy suddenly decides to just uproot the entire society and look for somewhere better, without any preparation whatsoever.

And then, some people are Player Characters, who get to take whatever they want, go wherever they want, and solve every generations-old problem immediately with minimal effort. This doubtless seems rather unfair to the other cultures; but fortunately, they're not programmed to resent us. Much.

 

[JJ48]

It's been a long, hard struggle, but Link is finally ready to fulfill his destiny. That's right, he's going to play some mini-games! Whether it's sorting mail or hang-gliding for distance, this is Link's chance to prove his worth!

Oh, and helping Makar through the Wind Temple to power up Link's sword so he can stop Ganondorf is probably also important. But mostly it's about the legendary mail-sorting ability.

 

[JJ48]

After helping Mission rescue Zaalbar, we come to that familiar part of any hero's story where we have to sneak into a gang's base to steal a racing part from them so we can use it to modify a swoop and then go racing to win the freedom of our Jedi friend. That story element may seem tired and overused nowadays, but it was actually fairly fresh and exciting in 2003.

 

[JJ48]

Here at Press Play, we like to poke fun at games, but do you know what's not a game? Sad grandmas. Every year, millions of grandmas are afflicted with sadness due their grandchildren being kidnapped by giant birds, running off to save the world, or even hanging around with pirates. It's a serious problem, but fortunately, you can help. Studies have shown that even something as simple as releasing a magical fairy in the presence of an afflicted grandma can significantly reduce her sadness and make her ready to support whatever hare-brained mess her grandchildren have gotten into. She may even feel well enough to make you some soup!

It is our hope that by working together, we can someday end sad grandmas once and for all! (That is, end their sadness, not end the gra- You know what I mean. PSA over!)

 

[JJ48]

Link decides it's time to seek out the Triforce Charts so he can assemble the Triforce and confront Ganondorf! He knows one can be found on his home, Outset Island, and it turns out to be in a hidden pit! ...filled with monsters. ...from all over the Great Sea. ...in numbers comparable to all of the monsters on all of the other islands combined.

Link's not sure what's going on here, but it seems to give new meaning to monsters under the bed (or rather, everyone's beds)!

 

[JJ48]

It turns out that in order to escape the planet, we're going to need to help a bodyguard double-cross his boss by stealing a ship and escaping. But before we can do that, we need to arrange an illegal death match, encourage a stranger's drinking problem, and threaten an innocent receptionist so she lets us into a secure military base. Normal, everyday hero stuff.

 

[JJ48]

As Link seeks the Triforce Charts, he remembers that he has a house of his own, and it has everything one could hope for in a house! With a pool, giant wall puzzles that reward rupees, a door that's actually a butler, and half-flooded, rat-infested tunnels that can only be traversed by crawling on his belly; it seems Link is set for life when he retires!

After getting the codes we need from the Sith Base, we take a smuggler's ship and escape Taris. We head to Dantooine so Bastila can return to the Jedi Enclave, and learn that we can become Jedi ourselves! The first step is tricky, as we need to learn the Jedi Code:

There is no emotion, there is boredom.
There is no ignorance, there are Internet experts.
There is no passion, there is resentment.
There is no KAOS, there is CONTROL.
There is no death, unless you get between Master Vandar and the taco bar at lunch.

...eh, that's probably close enough.

Link collects more charts and gets them translated so that he can finally hunt down and collect the legendary Triumph Forks! However, the charts don't lead to forks at all, but instead to broken pieces of a triangle. Oh, well. At least it's better than nothing.

There's a lot we need to learn to become a Jedi. We need to accept requests from complete strangers. We need to learn how to settle disputes. We need to learn that Mission's brother is a bigger deadbeat jerk than anyone would have thought possible.

That last one may not have actually been part of our Jedi training. But we DO have to learn that it's pretty easy to fall to the Dark Side. Maybe the Jedi should focus more on building mental guardrails.

 

[JJ48]

Link recovers the last of the Triforce Shards and completes the Triforce, meaning he's finally ready...to do some side quests! Whether it's watering trees, pushing blocks, racing boats, or gathering pendants, Link is prepared! And who knows? He just may find that the REAL golden treasure was the silly mask he earned along the way.

 

[JJ48]

We continue to encounter many strange things during our training. We have to resolve a Space Romeo and Space Juliet situation. We find part of an ancient map that Revan and Malak used to find something called the Star Forge. But strangest of all, we learn that Juhani's fall to the Dark Side was part of her training, to teach her that the only thing easier than falling to the Dark Side is turning back to the Light Side, apparently. Maybe at some point it'll be our turn to fall to the Dark Side and return, as part of our training.

 

[JJ48]

As the final confrontation draws nearer, Link is in a desperate race. Will he be able to complete his figurine collection before he has to face Ganondorf? He knows he must, or what was even the point of it all?

 

[JJ48]

Tasked by the Jedi Council with finding the Star Forge and figuring out how to stop the Sith, we take off for Tatooine. There, it doesn't take long for us to find the greatest quest in the entire game: trying to communicate with someone speaking a language we don't understand! Sure, every delay allows Malak that much more time to work on his conquest of the galaxy, but that's a chance we have to take!

 

[JJ48]

Link and his friends finally complete the figurine collection (and also take down Ganondorf in the process)! After some well-deserved credits, it's time for them to begin one of the most challenging puzzles in the series: trying to make sense of the timeline!

 

[JJ48]

It has been truly fascinating examining the Zelda series and watching it grow from the beginning! Along the way, we've seen Zelda games on home consoles, and we've seen Zelda games on handhelds. In Four Swords Adventures, Link will have to use the combined power of both to once again take on Vaati and save Hyrule!

 

[JJ48]

The deserts of Tatooine are full of many dangers. Wives trapping husbands. Hunters trapping other hunters. Sand People trapping pretty much everybody.

Fortunately, there is a hero to step in and rescue those trapped, and to work to make peace between the warring factions! And all he asks in return is a race's complete, secret history, previously unknown to any outsiders!

 

[JJ48]

The Links rush to Hyrule Castle to rescue one of the maidens there, before she directs them to visit her home town. There, they have to unravel the mystery of people disappearing to the Dark World. To this end, they team up with some secret agents, whose main secret seems to be that they just sit back and let others do all their work for them.

 

[JJ48]

We continue our search on the water planet of Manaan, which is trying to maintain neutrality between the Republic and the Sith. This neutrality is threatened when we break into the Sith embassy and fight the guards there, so the Selkath who rule Manaan are forced to punish us...by refusing to respond to any more Sith calls for help. The Sith may complain that it's not fair, but they should have thought of that before going against a main character!