BioWare

Year Released: 2003 Platform: Xbox

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The path for most video games predetermines the ethics of your actions: “Here’s the right thing. Go and do it.”

Given how Manicheistic the worldview is in George Lucas’ oeuvre, it surprised gamers when it was a Star Wars game that added shades of morality to a gameplay experience.

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic took the consequences and branching story paths pioneered in games like Deus Ex and augmented them exponentially. You acted out every choice that made your character into a Jedi master or a Sith lord, giving the game a verve and believability that the latter-day Star Wars films lacked.

Developer BioWare went on to become one of the most talented game studios around and continued to make compelling story delivery – particularly in the Mass Effect games – its stock in trade.

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