SWTOR: The death of KotOR?

The other day, a friend of mine (hi, there!) mentioned her sadness that Star Wars: The Old Republic pretty much ensured there would never be another Knights of the Old Republic.  I'm not entirely sure I agree with that, because in almost every way that matters, SW: The Old Republic IS Knights of the Old Republic 3.  If you think about the features and gameplay offered by the KotOR games and compare them to what SWTOR offers, it seems like we're getting KotOR 3 plus online gaming, rather than something like World of Warcraft derailing the Warcraft RTS franchise.

Some of the features to think about:

• Companions - check
• Romance - check
• Epic storyline - check
• Crafting - check
• Dark/light side choices - check
• Multiple classes for multiple playthroughs - check
• Gear upgrades, etc. - check
• Class specific quests - check
• Star Wars setting - check
• Interactive dialogue - check
• And so on.

Additionally, SWTOR will add things to the KotOR formula, such as the ability to play in groups, instanced dungeons, PvP, and ongoing content updates that will keep the game going for years.  The flipside of all that though, is that it will be an MMORPG, almost certainly require a monthly subscription, and there will be no clear cut "the end".

Still, from what I've heard it should be possible to play the game almost exactly like KotOR and just ignore all the multiplayer aspects if that's what you want.  Sure it won't be as pretty as a KotOR 3 probably would have been, but in many ways I think it will offer the core of what KotOR 3 would have been.

What do you think?  Will SWTOR be similar enough to KotOR to scratch that same itch, or is it just going to feel like WoW in space and be a big let down to fans of the single player franchise?