<p><cite>Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic</cite> (<cite>KotOR</cite>) is a space opera role-playing video game series. The series takes place in the fictional universe of <cite>Star Wars</cite>, with the story taking place approximately 4,000 years before the rise of the Galactic Empire.</p>
<p>The first title was developed by BioWare while the second (<cite>Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords</cite>) was done by Obsidian Entertainmenr. Both games were published by LucasArts. The <cite>KOTOR</cite> series also includes a subsequent new comic book series. Both comic series were published by Dark Horse Comics and act as prequels to the video games.</p>
<p>To learn more about the <cite>Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic</cite> series, you can check out the <a href="https://kotor.neocities.org/" target="blank">KotOR Community Portal</a>.</p>
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<h2>My History with the <cite>KotOR</cite> Series</h2>
<p>I had been a <cite>Star Wars</cite> fan since I was 13 in 2005 after watching <cite>Revenge of the Sith</cite> in cinema. However, I was not aware of the existence of the <cite>Knights of the Old Republic</cite> video game series until around 2010, after seeing other <cite>Star Wars</cite> fans on Baidu Tieba talked about those games. I started playing the first <cite>KotOR</cite> game in early 2011, immediately followed by <cite>KotOR 2</cite>, and the series has been one of my special interests ever since.</p>
<p>I was hooked immediately to the <cite>KotOR</cite> series when I played them. The first <cite>KotOR</cite> game was the first Western RPG I had played. I was drawn to the games' story and characters and the games' focus on them, since the <cite>KotOR</cite> series was also the most story-heavy games I played at the time. KotOR was also the first video game I played where you can pursue a romance with a character, which was a concept that blew my young mind at the time., because before <cite>KotOR</cite>, I thought a romance between your player character and an NPC you like can only exist in imagination via shipping or fanfiction.</p>
<p>My investment in the <cite>KotOR</cite> series has evolved over time, leading to me learning to mod the games and become a modder.</p>
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<h2>My History with <cite>KotOR</cite> Modding</h2>
<p>I began to use and get interested in <cite>KotOR</cite> mods since the mid-2010s, in no small part thanks to <a href="https://deadlystream.com/files/file/578-tsl-restored-content-mod/" target="_blank">The Sith Lords Restored Content Mod (TSLRCM)</a>, which is widely regarded as an essential mod for the best experience with <cite>KotOR 2</cite>, as the game's rushed development led to many contents being cut from the game. This led me to discover more <cite>KotOR</cite> mods hosted on <a href="https://deadlystream.com/" target="_blank">Deadly Stream</a>, which include the developers of TSLRCM, and <a href="https://www.gamefront.com/" target="_blank">GameFront</a>.</p>
<p>In mid-2010s, the <cite>KotOR</cite> fan circle I was involved in on Tumblr also included modders, who inspired me to learn to create mods myself. I did not have any programming exprience when I started learning modding <cite>KotOR</cite>, so it took practice to learn and understand the modding tutorials on Deadly Stream and the now-defunct LucasForums (R.I.P.).</p>
<p>The very first <cite>KotOR</cite> mod I created was <a href="https://deadlystream.com/files/file/1012-tsl-improved-party-outfits/" target="_blank">TSL Improved Party Outfits</a> in 2015, though initially I only meant it for personal use, until I released it to the public on 4 February 2017. The first <cite>KotOR</cite> mod I released to the public was <a href="https://deadlystream.com/files/file/968-visas-marr-and-female-exile-romance/" target="_blank">Visas Marr and Female Exile Romance</a> on 15 December 2016.</p>
<p>Making same-gender romance mods for <cite>KotOR 2</cite> was the primary motivation for me to make and release <cite>KotOR</cite> mods myself. I was immensely frustrated by the total lack of same-gender romance mods for any of the <cite>KotOR 2</cite> characters, and every other LGBTQ+ <cite>KotOR</cite> fans I have interacted with on Tumblr share the same sentiment. Therefore, I decided to stop waiting for <cite>KotOR 2</cite> same-gender romance mods to happen, and be the change myself. To my great satisfication, my same-gender romance mods have been well-received, with fellow LGBTQ+ players expressing gratitude for their existence. My <a href="https://deadlystream.com/forum/files/file/977-handmaiden-and-female-exile-disciple-and-male-exile-romance/" target="_blank">Handmaiden and Female Exile - Disciple and Male Exile Romance</a> mod would go on to win the <a href="https://deadlystream.com/topic/5983-mod-of-the-year-results/" target="_blank">Mod of the Year 2017</a> award on Deadly Stream.</p>
<p>I love modding the <cite>KotOR</cite> games, not only because the games are a special interest of mine, but also I love creating things for my interests. Modifying the games made me feel like I have the power to change the game to make them better and more enjoyable, and thus improve my experience with playing the games.</p>
