Welcome to Leilukin's Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic Shrine!
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (KotOR) is a space opera role-playing video game series. The series takes place in the fictional universe of Star Wars, with the story taking place approximately 4,000 years before the rise of the Galactic Empire.
The first title was developed by BioWare while the second (Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords) was done by Obsidian Entertainmenr. Both games were published by LucasArts. The KOTOR 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.
To learn more about the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic series, you can check out the KotOR Community Portal.
My History with the KotOR Series
I had been a Star Wars fan since I was 13 in 2005 after watching Revenge of the Sith in cinema. However, I was not aware of the existence of the Knights of the Old Republic video game series until around 2010, after seeing other Star Wars fans on Baidu Tieba talked about those games. I started playing the first KotOR game in early 2011, immediately followed by KotOR 2, and the series has been one of my special interests ever since.
I was hooked immediately to the KotOR series when I played them. The first KotOR 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 KotOR 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 KotOR, I thought a romance between your player character and an NPC you like can only exist in imagination via shipping or fanfiction.
My investment in the KotOR series has evolved over time, leading to me learning to mod the games and become a modder.
My History with KotOR Modding
I began to use and get interested in KotOR mods since the mid-2010s, in no small part thanks to The Sith Lords Restored Content Mod (TSLRCM), which is widely regarded as an essential mod for the best experience with KotOR 2, as the game's rushed development led to many contents being cut from the game. This led me to discover more KotOR mods hosted on Deadly Stream, which include the developers of TSLRCM, and GameFront.
In mid-2010s, the KotOR 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 KotOR, so it took practice to learn and understand the modding tutorials on Deadly Stream and the now-defunct LucasForums (R.I.P.).
The very first KotOR mod I created was TSL Improved Party Outfits in 2015, though initially I only meant it for personal use, until I released it to the public on 4 February 2017. The first KotOR mod I released to the public was Visas Marr and Female Exile Romance on 15 December 2016.
Making same-gender romance mods for KotOR 2 was the primary motivation for me to make and release KotOR mods myself. I was immensely frustrated by the total lack of same-gender romance mods for any of the KotOR 2 characters, and every other LGBTQ+ KotOR fans I have interacted with on Tumblr share the same sentiment. Therefore, I decided to stop waiting for KotOR 2 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 Handmaiden and Female Exile - Disciple and Male Exile Romance mod would go on to win the Mod of the Year 2017 award on Deadly Stream.
I love modding the KotOR 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.