The world of Star Wars videogames went mostly silent after LucasArts was sold to the Disney corporation in the early 2010s. Since that time only a few new games have popped up though that is likely to change in the coming years with reports of many new titles in the works across the gaming industry. Despite the drama over the license itself it is hard to argue against the view that the pantheon of Star Wars characters that were made for video games is vast and beloved by many.
Many of people’s favorite stories in the Star Wars universe have come from the gaming industry and that is due to the cast of unique characters that fill them out. Not all of these new characters stand the test of time, however.
10 Worst: Dash Rendar Is Just A More 90s Han Solo
While the character Dash Rendar might have the superficial charm of the swashbuckling smuggler archetype, he really is just Han Solo with different hair. Invented for the Shadows of the Empire multimedia project in the late 90s, Dash and his story was meant to bridge the gap between Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
This muscular fellow shares Han’s disposition towards the Empire, his roguish charm, and even owns a similar ship. Maybe if Dash had gotten a film adaptation and was played by someone like Bruce Campell then he might be a bigger deal in the hearts and minds of Star Wars fans, but as it stands he is very one-note.
9 Best: Cal Kestis Knows What Being A Jedi Is All About
From the political machinations of the Jedi Order during the waning days of the Republic to its fall to its complacency in the rise of Darth Vader, it is easy to forget what is so great about the Jedi. Thankfully that question was answered in Jedi: Fallen Order by the young Jedi Cal Kestis.
Much like Luke Skywalker at the culmination of his own story, Cal’s story is about putting aside the will of the Jedi Order and instead followed the will of the force. When Cal decides to leave the fate of all the force sensitives he spent an entire game trying to locate in the hands of the force, it was a display of the true faith the Jedi Order long forgot how to practice.
8 Worst: Master Vrook And The Dantooine Council Are Cardboard Cutouts
After the prologue in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic the player is introduced to a council of Jedi on the planet Dantooine. These Jedi, unlike almost every other character in the KOTOR series, do not add any new spin or commentary on the mythos of Star Wars. They are in effect just copies of already known Jedi with names and faces swapped around.
There is the wise one who looks just like Yoda, there is the mean one who is bald like Mace Windu, and there are the other ones that go under the radar. This council was a missed opportunity to say something new about the Jedi Order.
7 Best: Kyle Katarn Is Like Dash Rendar But Actually Has A Story
It might not be fair to compare Dash Rendar and Kyle Katarn as Katarn had an entire series of games to gain development from his initial Han Solo introduction. But even so, it is clear that out of the two main spins on Han Solo, Kyle Katarn gets the better story.
The main character of the entire Dark Forces/Jedi Knight saga, Kyle Katarn goes from gun toating mercenary to prodigal son and Jedi Knight, to Jedi Outcast who has given up the force and back again. Katarn’s journey was helped along by stellar and memorable gameplay, but alas his story remains one of the most well regarded in Star Wars gaming history.
6 Worst: Hoar Barely Counts As A Character
Most gamers have likely never heard of KkH’Oar’Rrhr, also known as Hoar. This is because he is a random Tusken Raider that is only playable in the PS1 game called Star Wars: Masters of Teräs Käsi. His effectiveness is close to any other character in the strange fighting game, but unlike most of the characters, Hoar was made for the game.
As such he has little in the way of backstory or motivation and is more or less just there to make the roster bigger. At some later point, Hoar was in a comic that showed him nearly killing Darth Vader in single combat in an effort to take vengeance for Anakin slaughtering the men, women, and children of a Tusken camp. Sadly his game incarnation doesn’t get credit for that.
5 Best: Starkiller Displays The True Power Of The Force
One of the most well-known and beloved characters from Star Wars gaming is Galen Marek, also known as Starkiller. Starkiller was a secret apprentice trained by Darth Vader to hunt Jedi and eventually help him overthrow the Emporer. Betrayed and left for dead Starkiller enlisted a Jedi Master who he blinded in combat, an imperial pilot, and several others to help usher the beginning of the rebellion that would one day end the Empire.
He tore a star destroyer out of the sky, battled rancors, and turned armies with his power. Then he sacrificed himself to save everything he had built, leaving the groundwork for Luke Skywalker’s rise. While this is all non-canon now, it is hard to argue that Starkiller will remain in the headcanon of many Star Wars fans for many years to come.
4 Worst: Rom Mohc Was A Boring Antagonist
While it is cool that Rom Mohc from Dark Forces has an obsession with cybernetics and droids, and that his Dark Trooper Project was eventually brought to the silver screen in another form there is no getting around the fact he is a bland bad guy.
While The Mandalorian has brought back the Dark Troopers and showed them to an entire generation of Star Wars fans who never played Dark Forces, they left out any mention of the original creator of these intimidating death machines. That omission is likely due to the fact that Rom Mohc is a very boring and forgettable villain without any real complex or intricate motivations. He is an imperial, that is about it.
3 Best: Revan Is The Master Of Light And Dark
Few characters manage to capture the Star Wars fanbase the way that Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic‘s main character did. Both Dark Lord and Jedi Knight, Revan, regardless of the player chosen aspects is a statement about willpower and pushing forward towards goals using any and all means available.
They took none of these steps alone, but their curiosity and confidence made them a natural leader and more importantly a thought leader. Revan was one of the first to argue in favor of a wider view of the force than the boring polarity between darkness and light, instead focussing on the will to choose above all else.
2 Worst: PROXY Was A Nuisance To Players
While PROXY was an interesting and unique droid companion in Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, he nevertheless proved annoying to players. His programing made him randomly attack the player during sections of the game, slowing plot progression and sometimes providing a truly difficult fight all for the sake of training Starkiller.
From a plot perspective, this is a cool idea. From the perspective of a gamer trying to get through a level, seeing PROXY was a frustration at best.
1 Best: Kreia Is The Most Philosophical Character In Star Wars
It is a common occurrence for characters to break the fourth wall and comment on details of the plot these days. It is far less common for a character to be written truly as though they are a deep thinker pondering the truth of the universe they have been written into.
But that is precisely what Kreia from Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II is. Kreia’s understanding of the force and her contemplations on what its nature implies are jaw-dropping, beyond classification, and should be experienced by all Star Wars fans as soon as possible.
