This exists at the core of what I want to discuss here. As a Chris Avellone game KotOR2 has a lot of very interesting narrative design, but it’s also very messy. Note that it’s intentional I say writing and not narrative design. The truth is that KotOR2 just isn’t very good.

RCM would have diminished the effects of the rushed design, but only in part. I do not think it was stylistically designed to be this way. Although most bugs are patched out for the iPad version, it’s still a messy game, full of confusing decisions, bad level design, poorly constructed dialogue trees, and frustrating mechanics. The game’s third act plays like the confusing cliffnotes version of an actual finale. Like with so many of Obsidian’s games, it is blindingly obvious that KotOR2 was rushed out for release. Bear that in mind as I continue forward with this review. Some foolish part of me thought this would be included by default, and the notion that an iPad app might be moddable in the first place had not crossed my mind.

It was only after I had finished the game that I learned you can, apparently, mod the iPad version with the Restored Content Mod. Perhaps as an adult I’d find more worth appreciating? I played extensively as a child but only beat it once, in 2013, and my memories were not especially positive. I’d been waiting for this rerelease since finishing the first game on iPad in 2014 The Sith Lords is, after all, quite highly regarded. After seven years of delay, Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords finally came out for mobile last December.

Kotor 2 cutscenes not playing