Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
Attacking the clones
THERE IS NO framework in entertainment that you can’t stretch StarWars over and make into a success. Just look at Episode 1Racer or the Western tropes of
TheMandalorian.FallenOrder chooses not to retread the JediKnight games, but goes after two more recent console stalwarts: Uncharted and DarkSouls.
The latter of those has a reputation for difficulty, but how hard can chopping down stormtroopers be when you’re armed with a lightsaber from the start? The answer is “very.” FallenOrder balances this with a Story difficulty level that tones things down considerably for those who want to be in with a chance of seeing the credits. The Uncharted influence—all wall runs and leaps of which Luke Skywalker would be proud—fits so beautifully with the Jedi mythos that tougher stormtroopers deserve to be an optional extra.
What the game inherits from StarWars is worth the price of admission for fans. Hand-crafted alien worlds, new lore, and old references. Force powers to send blaster bolts back whence they came and slow the blades of massive fans, so you can pass through without getting minced. It’s all being a Jedi on the run should be.
Shame you’re such a dullard. Hiding out at a spaceship scrapyard in the gap between RevengeoftheSith’s Order 66 and ANewHope, padawan Cal Kestis is surly, with floppy hair, and in any other media would have a flashing sign over his head saying “Will Fall to Dark Side.” That’s been ruled out here—it’s not Knightsof
theOldRepublic— but Cal is just a little too close to the teenage angst of prequelera Anakin Skywalker for our tastes.
Luckily, the universe he exists in is a rich one, and depending on how you like your combat difficulty, there’s plenty to see and do. Cal has a rare Force ability that enables him to see “Force echoes” of events in the past. Through this ability, he can pick up on plot points not otherwise directly shown to the player—a useful skill in a videogame protagonist.
Cal spends a lot of time repairing his connection to the Force, “remembering” skills he once had, and using them to fight off ever-tougher opposition. He powers up at meditation spots, putting points into skills as if this were a Ubisoft game. These spots also have the unfortunate side effect of causing all defeated enemies to respawn when used, so you are often forced to choose between new skills or a relatively safe back-track through an area you’ve already cleared. Most of the time, you’ll want to choose the new skill, because it’s necessary to access an area of the level previously denied to you.
He aids the resistance on Kashyyyk, undertakes Jedi trials, cuts off the hands of antagonists, builds and modifies lightsabers, takes up with a crew of space adventurers, and attempts to discover the secrets behind a long-vanished race. But what Cal never does is be likeable, his sulky demeanor begging for a dash of John Williams’ “Imperial March.”
This is a shame, because with a more charismatic lead, the intelligent mix of influences could have created something truly great. As it is, the framework beneath the StarWars wrapping is enjoyable enough even if you don’t care about the lunk with the lightsaber.