Vette (Star Wars)

Catherine Taber provides the voice for Vette.

Vette is developed as a selectable companion character from the player's pool of allies in The Old Republic.[1] Companions are fully-functional characters directed by artificial intelligence, who are capable of fighting by the player's side through much of the single player content for The Old Republic, and joining multiplayer parties to fill in for other players who have to take their leave mid-session when necessary.[2] Vette may also be instructed to craft items as a companion.[3] Her appearance can be customised by the player, a feature intended to help make each player's companions feel unique despite the MMO nature of The Old Republic.[4] Prior to The Old Republic update 4.0 patch released on October 20, 2015, the nature of Vette's relationship with the player character was measured numerically as "Affection" and could be altered depending on whatever decisions are made; this mechanic has since been replaced with "Influence", which also builds when a player makes meaningful decisions with companions but is not a determinant as to whether they like the player character or not.[5]

Catherine Taber, a self-described Star Wars fan, voices Vette.[6] She was offered the role without being required to go through an audition.[6] Taber and BioWare had a clear vision on what Vette would be, and wanted to use her to infuse the game with traditional Star Wars humour.[6] Taber drew on parts of Indiana Jones while voicing the character—at one point improvising the line "K'lor'slugs, why did it have to be k'lor'slugs?" in reference to the character.[6]

Vette is introduced near the start of the Sith Warrior storyline, having been captured by the Sith after an attempt to break into an ancient tomb. The Warrior is given her as a slave, wearing a shock collar, to help them access a secret entrance to the tomb, as part of their trials. It is at this point she becomes a companion, and afterwards Baras allows the Warrior to keep her. The player character may choose to free her or keep her as their slave, the latter of which allows opportunities to shock her at various points in the story. As they increase in character levels, the player character get new unlocks where they learn about Vette's backstory. Additionally, throughout the game Vette may comment on the player's choices, and the tone she adopts is dependent on the nature of her relationship with the player character. In the character's questline the Warrior meets a group of Twi'leks she used to be part of and helps her track down her family: Vette finds her sister, though her mother is already dead, to which the Warrior may either encourage Vette to let it go or to try and take vengeance. If the player chooses a male Sith Warrior, they may, over the course of the game, develop a romance with the character.[4]

Robert M. Geraci and Nat Recine surveyed 369 The Old Republic players on behalf of Religion Dispatches to inquire about how they handled Vette as their character's slave. Geraci and Recine noted that "torturing Vette makes sense — if one plays as a Sith Warrior", as such characters are evil-aligned and "seemingly destined to cruelty". The survey's findings suggested that most players revealed their discomfort with evil acts, predominantly chose benevolent options and resisted behaving in a cruel manner to a fictional individual, with 84% of respondents befriending and showing mercy to Vette instead of torturing her. The findings suggested that the presence of characters like Vette influenced the player's actions and encouraged them to make choices that would gain them "Affection". Geraci and Recine also found that those who did torture characters within the game claimed that role-play gave them an opportunity to consider moral questions, in essence envisioning a "more just world even while exploring the darker side of human nature". They determined that like most other MMO video games, The Old Republic carries a quasi-religious affect and could be considered part of "modern moral development"; that the game's "on-the-ground experience" is often morally progressive which "undermines claims about the supposed evils of online gaming"; and a player who is capable of committing a criminal act in a videogame does not mean they would do so in real life. In summary, they formed a view that while it is reasonable to question games that "railroad players down morally questionable paths", patience and consideration should be exercised when assessing allegations of video games teaching or encouraging morally objectionable behavior, and suggested that "the truth might be quite the opposite".[7]

Critical reception for Vette has been mixed, though the character is generally popular with The Old Republic players. A 2012 fan poll by IGN placed Vette as the fourth favourite of all Old Republic companions.[8] According to player infographics released by BioWare in celebration of The Old Republic's fifth anniversary, Vette along with Lana Beniko were the most recruited companions as of July 2016.[9]

Larry Everett from Massively Overpowered claimed that Vette is "almost universally liked" by players, singling out her quirky personality, sense of adventure, and the quality of Taber's performance for praise. He also suggested that Vette's popularity is connected to nostalgia, as Taber's earlier character from Knights of the Old Republic Mission Vao was another fan favorite.[10] The dynamic nature of Vette's character arc is cited by Robin Burks of Tech Times as a demonstration that romance subplots in The Old Republic are not mere distractions from the overarching story, but are integrated into the main narrative and help shape who and what the player character becomes by the end of the game.[11] Rolando Gutierrez from Gamers Decide assessed Vette to be overall the best companion and romance option for the Sith Warrior based on multiple criteria, including her personality, gameplay utility, and the quality of her romance subplot.[12][13]

GameZone's Andrew Clouther used Vette as an example of how The Old Republic 's dark side oriented character arcs not only "tempts you with evil, but tests your ability to DO evil", and praised the game for its ability to affect players and challenge their consciences.[14] Kotaku's Phil Owen drew attention to one scene where the player may have sex with a woman and forbid Vette to leave. While he acknowledged that this act is "messed up", Owen commented that BioWare allowing players to act evil is a big reason why he holds the game in high regard.[15]

Conversely, Erik Kain from Forbes was critical of the inclusion of a shock-collar-wearing slave as a companion character, which according to him was "not so much surprising as it is disappointing" and "really creepy". Kain argued that this is symptomatic of how gaming is "overly focused on teenage boys" and reinforces a hostile, misogynistic environment for girls, and that the inclusion of choice failed to improve upon the situation.[16] The Mary Sue contributor Becky Chambers felt that in theory Vette's character concept was fine, and that within a gender equitable Star Wars universe created by BioWare her gender could be "entirely incidental". However, Chambers was unconvinced that very few players could play without involving their "personal context" and considered it a problem in the context of the wider gaming community. She expressed discomfort about all available options for the player character in dealing with Vette, and criticized BioWare for inadvertedly encouraging misogynistic behaviour with their shortsighted creative decisions.[17]

• Vette's biography on the Official Website of Star Wars: The Old Republic
• Vette on Wookieepedia, a Star Wars wiki