I'm about 5 hours in after playing all day, minus breaks for food, sleep, "Lost" and "South Park."
I'm a male Jedi Guardian, Level 6 (yep, you do level up quickly in this game). I'm playing on the Light Side, as a fighter. Poured my stats into Str, Dex, Con and Wis, with Int and Cha at 10.
Impressions: The game is a darker, more mysterious version of KOTOR 1. The controls handle about the same. The look of the game is generally darker, as your character wakes up on the wrong end of galaxy-eating Civil War. Things are bad for the Jedi, but even worse for you. You have little backstory (akin to KOTOR 1: you are "special," but you don't know just how special as of yet).
After a prologue that serves to get you use to the controls (note: the game allows you to skip this altogether, but I'd recommend you slog through it anyway if not for a few small surprises to a KOTOR 1 mainstay), your character wakes up on an asteriod mining facility. And while you do meet up with a few sentient beings throughout the facility, it's mostly all about you.
The story of how you got here, and what's going on is told through a series of holographic projections, all done from different points of view of the station's personnel. Generally, your arrival somehow triggered a series of bizarre and fatal incidents. And while you do encounter some opposition, what's most appealing is how the absent station personnel regard you, revealing bits and pieces of their disasters along with what has happened between KOTOR 1 and 2.
And as you try to make your way around the facility, you get a visitor that's not too happy to see you.
Combat: Fighting is the same in KOTOR 2 and in 1, with the exception of different stances you can adopt: Aggressive, a pssive stance, grenades, force support. This was an option you selected for characters in KOTOR 1's menus, but now it's out in the open.
Combat is still turn-based with an invisible d20 engine rumbling in the background.
So far, I haven't learned any combat styles, although the manual lists 7 and hints at 11. I haven't gotten a lightsaber yet, but I started with Force powers at level 2. (A note: Stun Droid sucks early on. It's easier to take on mech opposition with a handy-dandy sword). You can go into the menu and set up an set of back-up weapons that you can switch to quickly during combat (ideal for ranged and melee scenarios)!
Graphics: Looks like a dank version of KOTOR 1. It's moody and atmospheric so far, but not Chris Carter-bad, where everyone forgot to pay the electric bill. It works very well in this early on a spookily deserted mining colony, where the holographic ghosts keep you company.
Sound: It's Star Wars, with Jeremy Soule doing music, like KOTOR 1. There's more of an ambient quality this time around, with creaking and distant beeping keeping you on your toes. Music is a little more somber and foreboding this early this go around.
Gameplay: It's like KOTOR 1, for all its brillance and flaws. If you liked KOTOR 1, you'll be fine. If not, well...
What's new: Well, more force powers (I gained a new feat about level 4 called Unarmed Specialist, which means you can do respectable damage when you have no swag to beat on people with). Around level 6 (your mileage may vary), I gained the ability to influence (either good or bad) members of my party. I can't find anywhere in the menus yet a meter that says if I'm on someone's nice or naughty list, so I can't gauge what they are thinking. The Force Alignment Meter is back, and it seems damn difficult to budge to the Light Side, no matter how many light points I gain. It seems the gamemakers are making you earn your halo in this go-around. Oh, and you get the innate ability to precog things (it pops up randomly, and against your command so don't get too excited).
What's bad: Some poor collision detection, bashing open some doors takes a long time, the whole idea of building items at the workbench out of raw materials is one I'll need some time with, enemies so far are a bit too easy. (note: this is about 2% of the game for me so far) Also, the adventures so far are sorta linear, you can sometimes feel the game push you in a certain direction. And when you create your character, it feels like you have less heads to pick from (which is lacking if you compare it to recent release Blinx 2, where you can build your cat/pig from a zillion different options).
What's good: OMG! Everything else. The dread, the sense of chaos coming around the corner, the mystery, a ghoulish puzzle involving a voice recorder, your new-found compatriots (one mysterious, one a smart-ass), creeping around dead installations, the on-the-fly weapons switching, the dialogue options are well-done, how the interface fades away after a few seconds of non-combat-based exploration, the cutscenes, the script in general.
Overall, you get the feeling that this is a massive game. I have no idea how deep I am into it, but I feel like I've just begun. The game keeps its cards close to its vest, sneaking in some humor here and there as well as the story. When the revelations do come, I think it'll be massive. I hope so, because I am enjoying this game more that KOTOR 1 (and I was an addicted little KOTOR monkey, let me tell you). Let's put it this way: this adventure is going to last you far longer than Halo 2.
