The Joys of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic’s Gibberish Alien Language
Constructed languages are not all that uncommon in games. Probably the most famous and well-documented example would be Simlish from the Sims, but there’s also Animalese in Animal Crossing (behind the vaguely chiptune-ish noises that the villagers chirp is an actual language, which is mostly English) and most recently, the mysterious glyphs in Tunic. But one of the most memorable made-up languages is in one game that you may not expect: the alien language in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic.
But referring to this language may be a bit of a stretch, since it isn’t exactly a fully fleshed out one at all; fans of the series will know that it’s simply a handful of several gibberish phrases, said over and over again regardless of the dialogue and context, with these words pronounced in a manner that’s somewhat unique to each alien races in KOTOR: the Twi’leks, Ithorians, Hutts, Bith, Rodians and more. What’s crucial to note is that these aliens don't all speak the same alien language within the universe; it’s just that the same gibberish phrases—examples include “kee poona”, “mucha shakka pakka”, “bonana keechu” and “achutaa”—have been recycled for most conversations with the various races.
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In fact, here’s an example:
Unlike the somewhat more nuanced presentation of alien languages in other Star Wars media, this particular KOTOR language appears to have been a mishmash of Huttese, which is spoken by the slug-like species called the Hutts, and Ryl, the language of the Twi’leks. These same few phrases were so overused in KOTOR that it has since become an inside joke for fans of the series, with them repeating these very phrases on
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