10 Best Star Wars Villains Who Debuted In Video Games
8. Sith Emperor - Star Wars: The Old Republic
When it comes to getting stuff done, few characters in Star Wars can compare to the Old Republic's Sith Emperor. Let's check off his accomplishments, shall we? He:
- Drains an entire planet of life to make himself immortal.
- Becomes leader of the Sith Empire (hence the title).
- Simultaneously becomes leader of another, secret Empire, which he rules for literal centuries.
- Dies and returns more times than a Dark Souls player character.
It's an impressive list, especially when you consider that Star Wars' most famous evil Emperor only managed to rule one Empire for a comparatively paltry 25 years. Yet it's the Sith Emperor's overachieving that prevents him from appearing higher up on this list.
The Old Republic's obsession with making the Sith Emperor the cause of literally everything wrong in the galaxy means he comes across as less of a character and more of a caricature - a Marty Stu of intergalactic evil, who gets less intimidating and more eye-rolling with each contrived return (given the amount of flak Palpatine received for somehow returning once, you can imagine how much opprobrium the Sith Emperor gets from the fanbase for his constant deaths and resurrections).
For the sheer impact he has on the Old Republic timeline, the Sith Emperor warrants his inclusion on the list. But had the Old Republic's writers been less willing to use him as a crutch every time a new expansion pack needed a bad guy, he'd likely be remembered more fondly by fans of Bioware's MMO.