Review by Nathan Beauchamp for Assassin’s Creed 2
Rating:
Gaming has hit an all time low thanks to UBI Soft. If you didn’t like draconian DRM schemes, you’re going to hate UBI Soft’s new policy: you must be connected to their servers 100% of the time to play Assasin’s Creed 2. If you don’t have internet, or if your internet is out, or if you are on vacation, stationed in Iraq, or want to play at the airport, you are out of luck. No game for you. That in itself is very troubling and reason enough to NOT BUY THIS GAME. However, there are additional reasons that are even more frightening:

1) Setting the precedent for future games

If gamers buy Assasin’s Creed despite this huge limitation on game play, it will open the door to many more games like this in the future. That would be awful for the consumer.

2) Turning ‘owning’ into leasing”

Tying games to some sort of server for activation is bad enough, but making them DEPENDENT on a server is horrible for the consumer. It takes away our rights (to play the game we paid for on our terms) and creates a system whereby you are simply LEASING a game. If at some point UBI Soft decides to take down their servers, you lose your game. They can take away your rights to play the game at any point in the future if they decided to. They have you by the cajones! If you give into this model, expect to never own any digital medium again; the makers of games, producers of music, and distributors of movies would love to see our current model of OWNING a physical copy of your game album movie replaced with a system where you only own the ‘right’ to access play that medium. It’s their wet-dream to turn the current system of ownership on its head so they can re-sell you things endlessly as well as take them away from you at their discretion. As a consumer, it’s important that we speak out against this by supporting DRM free games (Mass Effect II, Dragon Age, Fallout III, etc…) and DRM free music (buy it from Amazon!) and REFUSE to buy this junk with built in limitations and restrictions that SERVE NO PURPOSE.

3) Making games dependent on ‘phoning home’ means you’re at the total mercy of UBI Soft (or whomever runs their servers)

If their servers are down, you lose access to your game. If their servers are overtaxed, you may experience problems connecting to your game. Think that isn’t likely? Think again. Currently (03/09/2010) the servers have been down for the last 12 hours or so, creating chaos for all those who expected to be able to fire up Assassin’s Creed. It doesn’t even matter if UBI Soft is malevolent or not; if your service provider has a bad week you may be out of luck. If there is a storm in your area, you could end up out of luck for weeks (this happened to me when a tree knocked out my cable internet for 9 says straight–I thought I was going to die). You’re screwed if your internet, their servers, or anything along the line between the two goes down.

4) DRM is pointless (and this online restriction is one of it’s worst forms!)

Want to pirate games? It’s tragically easy these days. Even more tragic is that DRM, supposedly designed to prevent piracy, is a total failure at actually accomplishing that. Want proof? Google “Spore + DRM + Piracy” and see what you come up with. I’ll give you a hint: Spore was pirated BEFORE it was officially released. Many games are unto torrent sites well before their release date. The worst part of this is that the pirated versions are in almost all cases SUPERIOR to the DRM infested versions: they don’t contain the invasive, crippling, and destructive DRM that past games have been ruined by (Bioshock, Mass Effect I, Spore, etc…). I am NOT ADVOCATING PIRACY. I think you should buy the games you want to play. I am advocating NOT BUYING games that violate your basic consumer rights (right to resell your game, right to play your game WHENEVER you want to without restrictions). If a game limits those rights, I say skip it entirely. Because UBI SOFT are morons doesn’t give anyone the right to steal. As your Mom (or at least mine) used to say: two wrongs don’t make a right!

I am not opposed to simple DRM schemes (disk check, or even Steam which has established very good rapport gamers by being both consistent, fair, and show a long track record of stability). I am totally opposed to anything that PREVENTS ME FROM PLAYING THE GAME that I paid money for. I don’t want to see this standardized (and I don’t think it will be) and so it’s time to take action NOW and refuse to buy this garbage.

The bottom line is DRM is not and has never been about preventing piracy. It’s about CONTROL. Control over you and how you are able to play the very game you paid your money for. It’s about wrenching ownership away from the consumer and replacing it with something much lesser: rental leasing. Don’t let them do that to you.

Final Thoughts:

UBI SOFT and those like them have got to be taught a lesson. The only way to get heard by these huge companies is by hitting them where it hurts: their pocketbook. Refuse to buy this game or games like it that infringe on your rights. Tell your friends not to buy it. Write reviews that inform people about the risks of doing so. That’s how you get things to change. To the inevitable trolls who will tell me that DRM should just be ‘given in to,’ I’d like to point out that currently game makers are MOVING AWAY from DRM schemes. The reason is because of the backlash against pointless restrictions by those like myself who are unwilling to sit around and watch PC gaming be ruined by greedy scumbags. It’s because of grassroots action (Spore for example) that the tide has turned and that DRM is now much less common than it was a year ago. Top shelf games are being released DRM free. You know what? I’ve bought all of them and recommend you do the same. Let’s all give our money to the makers of games that RESPECT us–after all, WE ARE THE CUSTOMERS. Enough said.

Review by Silverwing for Assassin’s Creed 2
Rating:
Though it doesn’t say anywhere in the description, you *NEED* an internet connection to play the game. Yes, you need to be connected to an Ubisoft server *at all times* in order to be able to play. No playing out in the backyard, or on the beach, or while waiting for your bus… Without internet, no game!

And so far the Ubisoft servers have done nothing but crash, be unavailable, break off your game-play, lose your saves and so on. Officially, it’s all because of attacks on the servers… yeah, right. And irate customers who are trying to vent their frustration on the Ubisoft forums are having their posts deleted.

I’m paying for an *offline* game, not for an online one (I have enough of those). I sent mine back.

Review by B. Rogers for Assassin’s Creed 2
Rating:
This game is abusive to consumer rights. You need a continuous connection to Ubisoft’s servers while playing. If the connection breaks, the game stops. And Ubisoft is already having trouble keeping their server online.

The pirates cracked this game within 24 hours, so the DRM isn’t effective at stopping the pirates. And it’s also not effective at allowing paying customers to play, so the DRM fails in every respect. It just ruins the game. If you value your rights as a consumer, don’t buy this game.

Review by Latchman Sahadeo for Assassin’s Creed 2
Rating:
As just about every other review has stated so far, beware when purchasing this game. It’s single player only but you can be locked out from playing it if you don’t have an internet connection that’s 100% up while playing, and as long as UbiSoft’s servers are online (which they aren’t always).

If you absolutely must play this game, play it on a console. Avoid the PC version. You will be at the mercy of a draconian DRM system that is completely out of your control to play a game that has no online component apart from Ubisoft keeping an eye on you like a criminal.

This is no way to run a business and my pocket will speak for me. AC2 & the new Splinter Cell were two games I was going to purchase from Ubisoft… not going to happen anymore. I rather support developers/publishers that don’t treat their user base like thieves.

Review by Brian Jones for Assassin’s Creed 2
Rating:
While the game itself is great, I have no quarrels with it, the developers should be ashamed of themselves. Why would anyone purchase a single player PC game that forces them to be connected to the internet? That’s correct. In order to even start the game, you must be connected to the internet, and if the internet fails, even for a second, the game kicks you out and you either have the option to wait for it to reconnect, or you will loose all of your game until your last auto save. Quite annoying. I understand this is to prevent hacking, however this only penalizes the legit player, not the pirated version, which has no DRM anyway. I will no longer ever purchase a Ubisoft title, that’s for sure. Stick to the PS3 or Xbox360 version if you really want to play this title, otherwise it’s not worth the hassle.

Review by Steven Myers for Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords
Rating:
Knights of the Old Republic 2 is, in most ways, extraordinarily similar to the original. All the gameplay mechanisms are the same. There are a few new force powers, more feats to acquire, and more items and upgrades. This is not a criticism: the original KOTOR was a great game.

This is not, for one simple reason: it isn’t finished. By this, I don’t mean that the door is left wide open for a sequel, although it is. I don’t even mean that the game is buggy, although it is. The game is literally not finished.

Plot points appear and disappear at random. For example, and without spoiling anything, in the first part of the game, your actions cause a significant problem on one of the other worlds in the game. You get a quest to fix the problem. You find a way to do so. The quest abruptly ends there–there is no way to let anyone know you’ve solved the problem. Then, at the end game, people complain to you that you never solved this quest. And that’s a minor example. Frankly, more of the end game is explained by the brief blurbs on the loading screens than anything that happens in the game itself.

The game is filled with “Huh?” moments as a result. The end game, in particular, expects you to know things that are never revealed anywhere because those aspects were cut. Side plots are built up and suddenly dropped. One of the end-game cutscenes suggests a critical decision is about to be made, then is completely ignored.

Then there’s the ending itself. Sheer garbage. There’s no payoff for wading through the disjointed story. There’s nothing but a brief little dialog that goes nowhere.

What’s particularly sad is that, what story is there is very interesting. This game was designed by the designer for Planescape: Torment, one of the great RPGs. It has a similar feel, full of regret and melancholy, and the weight of decisions made in the past. I’m quite sure a complete story was developed. Some genius decided to start cutting so the game could get out the door sooner. It’s a sad waste of potential, and leaves a bitter taste.

Review by Vappour for Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords
Rating:
Oh, man, here we go with the name calling already. Re reviews below: Ray is not an “idiot” L.L., he just expected his game to run since Kotor I ran okay on his system, and the engine is basically the same. I’ve had the opportunity to play Kotor II on the Xbox (friend’s copy and console), and now I’ve just finished the PC version (hoping Obsidian/Lucas had learned something in the last two months). No such luck. The game is inexcusably buggy (even after all the feedback from the Xbox version players). This is a serious and distracting problem throughout the game (and Lucas/Obsidian tech support is not good) — beware!

To be fair, I should note that Kotor II is a darker, more complex, more philosophical story than Kotor I. The GAMEPLAY is somewhat better with a whole new system to build a great Jedi character (Dark or Light) and to handle combat more effectively (new Dark/Light Force powers are available along with new moves, feats and Jedi or Sith “prestige classes”). But the STORY, as realized, is often tedious, confusing and even puzzling (read boring) — it often simply doesn’t make sense (Like why am I doing this?). Quests end for no apparent reason without resolution or explanation. The ending sequences are especially bad. Storylines begin involving NPC’s in your party who you care about, but you have no idea how they’re resolved. The ending just creeps up, and then it’s suddently game over (credits roll). It’s almost as if they didn’t get a chance to finish the last 25% of the game completely (time constraints?). This looks like a rush job for the Christmas 2004 (Xbox) shopping season which is really a shame. With a little more development time, testing and polish, this game could have really been great. I guess it’s all about money.

The new characters/party members are okay, but not quite as interesting as Kotor 1. You do have a “bond” with one of the NPC’s, but she’s not a pretty young Jedi — just the opposite in fact. For those of you who enjoyed the “romance” and other sidequests involving party members in Kotor 1, there will be major disappointment. If you liked the random dialog (sometimes very funny) between certain NPC’s in the first Kotor, forget it. Most of the dialog in Kotor 2 seems to be pretty much scripted. The new “influence” system is a nice touch if you like to talk a lot (and know how to say the right things). If you handle things exactly right, you can even make apprentices (Jedi or Sith) out of certain party members.

In a couple places the game forces you to split up your party and use party members you don’t like, don’t want and didn’t equip (this really bothered me). If you like combat, you can build a real “tank” type Jedi and mow down scores of “enemies” (this can get a little old after a while). I often felt my character was actually too powerful — even with the game setting on “difficult”. Remember, this time your character starts the game as a Jedi exile with some Force powers (but no light saber — you must acquire the components and construct it). The weapons balance (melee vs. ranged) is MUCH improved as is the ability to switch weapon types during combat.

So, as I said in my Xbox review, this is a half great game. The gameplay is great, but the story/quests/characters are not so great. There’s no way this game deserves 5 stars (except to real Star Wars fans who admit the game has problems but still give it 5 stars. Hmmm). For more objective people, I’d give it 3-1/2 stars if I could. It’s a pretty good game. Perhaps upcoming patches will fix the bugs; perhaps not. I loved Kotor I but felt kind of let down by this one. Consider carefully before you buy.

Review by for Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords
Rating:
The first KOTOR was, in my opinion, one of the greatest games ever. Though it had its flaws, they were few and far between. Obsidian and everyone involved with putting out KOTOR 2: TSL deserves an enthusiastic round of applause for their efforts to make a follow-up to such a stellar game. They managed to come up with a sequel that, while plauged with bugs and other issues, is nonetheless relatively enjoyable.

First, the good stuff:

TSL is fun to play–most of the time–and delivers much the same kind of experience as the first KOTOR (after all, what can compare to barbequing hordes of Sith with Force Storm whilst laughing maniaclly to yourself?). KOTOR 1 was good, and TSL tries to continue in the same tradition. Though there are plenty of problems with the game (see below), it is worth the time, to play through a few times. Many of the new features, like the streamlined weapon-change function, or the “Empty” label for looted containers, or the fact that new datapads are automatically opened to be read, are small but very helpful add-ons. The new prestige classes add a lot to the experience, giving much additional replay value. The companion influence system is interesting, if a bit stifling at times. Aside from the gameplay, I feel compelled to praise the new Jedi/Sith robes in the game: unlike KOTOR 1, TSL boasts about four different, full-length types of robe, with probably two dozen different color schemes/stats/features–it is most gratifying to walk around in a flowing robe, something very Star Wars-ish that the first game just didn’t convey despite the brilliance of everything else. The music is quite good, as is the feature on the main menu that enables you to listen to the different songs you’ve unlocked in the game.

Now the not so good . . .

The one word that comes to mind when playing TSL is “Potential.” This game had *enormous* potential to be utterly amazing, but unfortunately . . . it’s not. I’ve seen other reviewers griping about Lucasarts pushing Obsidian too hard, about the game not being completely finished when released, etc. I’m not going to get involved in all that, but there are a great many things that disappoint in TSL, and it looks like TSL was indeed *not* entirely done when released (Pardon me while I sigh miserably over the lost content).

The incomplete state of the game is the biggest issue for me. This means that there are vexing holes in the story–especially near the end, where, as I think someone else pointed out, the little tidbits of info on the load/save screens are more informative as to what’s going on than the game itself. The first KOTOR really delivered a strong, continuous main plot that kept you riveted till the very end; TSL pales in comparison. The story is *there*, you can sense it, but it was not fully brought out and clearly delineated–again, wonderful potential, but it falls flat. The end of the game is nice, to be sure, but KOTOR 1′s was, simply put, totally cool, and made your adventure worth playing. In TSL, well, it’s more than a little disappointing.

The NPCs you find seem sadly, madeningly dull compared to the first KOTOR. They don’t have nearly as satisfying backstories or personalites–with the notable exception of Kreia; she is in the same league as KOTOR 1′s characters. Occasionally, you’ll get a juicy emotional cutscene or something where you actually connect with the others in your party, but those are infrequent. Also, the influence system makes its doubly hard to find out any stories that the NPCs actually have. (After hearing Atton make a woefully not-funny comment for the hundreth time, you’ll start getting nostalgic for Jolee or HK-47 and their side-splitting remarks.)

The sidequests involve a lot of tedious running back and forth, and many quests simply cannot be completed, or end with irritating abruptness, a symptom of the game’s unfinished state.

Many of the locations you visit in TSL are disappointingly flat. Unlike the unique and vibrant locales in the KOTOR 1, TSL’s areas seem to be studies in how many shades of brown, gray, and black can be used (ah, for Manaan, or the Rakatan world).

There are other complaints, too: countless bugs, typos in the dialogue subtitles, items mysteriously vanishing from inventories, plot-critical quests failing to trigger, etc.–while I’ve been fortunate enough to avoid the bulk of these, I’ve heard many others complaining bitterly about them.

All in all, TSL is fun, but is lacking on many levels. If you liked the first KOTOR, I’d recommend getting TSL, but you’d be better off waiting for the price to drop.

Meanwhile, I think I feel inspired to go replay the first KOTOR, and hope that the rumored KOTOR 3 will be polish the many rough spots in KOTOR 2 . . .

Review by mark twain for Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords
Rating:
“So many bugs, too epic a story, too little time,” is what Obsidian must have been saying as the shelf date of it’s first collaboration with Lucas Arts was drawing to a close.

The game play was to be flawless; the story was to be epic, more so than the first installment in the series had been. But strapped for time and with Lucas Arts pushing for the game to be on shelves by Christmas, Obsidian was forced to put out a glaringly obvious UNFINISHED GAME.

Many of us, loyal KOTOR series fans, rushed out to buy the game. But as we approached the 45-hour mark, the horrible realization set in that this was, indeed, a rushed game. We fought through the bugs, the moderate load times, the game freezes harder than we fought through any programmed foe and as we approached the end of the game, the last battle, the cold fact was, that many of the plot lines were left dangling, whole subplots discarded; subplots that you spent at least 6 hours of the game attempting to complete! We pressed on anyway, fought the final battle, only to have a promising ending fall completely flat, left with more questions than answers.

Now, I hear you asking now, cliffhangers? No, not cliffhangers, glaringly obvious plot holes, sucking any satisfaction out of your being that you might have had, in completing a 45-hour long game.

The unrealistic time constraint imposed on Obsidian by Lucas Arts, to rush the game out before Christmas was obscenely detrimental to both the game’s play and storyline. Lucas Arts seems to have made the choice long ago that profits come before quality and customer satisfaction, a disturbing trend in the gaming industry today; one that must be stopped. We need to show Lucas Arts that bullying smaller production companies into unrealistic time expectancies is unacceptable.

That games that win awards by default and not merit do not win over consumers!

Over the past few months since the games release, PC gamers have found strings of code, and sound clips from what was to be the games original ending, it was to be of EPIC proportions and lead designers of the game have acknowledged the time constraints as a major reason for the cutting of that material. Chris Avellone, lead designer, has even mentioned asking LA for permission to do a content patch, but has yet to hear back.

DO NOT PURCHASE AN UNFINISHED GAME. DEMAND A COMPLETE ONE.

http://www.petitiononline.com/kotor2

~Emily C. Lang

Review by B. Bonnette for Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords
Rating:
This game is horrible. You will spend half of your time playing it restarting the game and trying to figure out what is wrong with your copy of the game. Then you start to read the reviews by the people who bought the game and played the game for any amount of time to find out that it is the game and not your copy. There has been promise of a patch to fix the problem from the development team since the end of february. Although the game is a lot of fun I would definately wait until the problems have been fixed with the patches.