‘Execute Order 66’, one of the shortest and yet most powerful commands ever spoken in the Star Wars universe. With these words, Palpatine set the genocide of the Jedi in motion back in Star Wars: Episode III. Only a few Jedi managed to escape, living the life of an outcast, always on the look-out for the troops that will exterminate them in seconds. One of the Jedi who managed to escape is Cal Kestis, our new protagonist.
An impressive story
Right from the start, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order manages to set the tone. What started as a hopeful introduction to our new protagonist ended in a fight for his life. Cal lives a normal life on the planet Bracca. Together with his friends, he’s a scrap rat, constantly on the look-out for old machinery to resell some of its parts. It’s not the most thrilling life but it’s a safe one, far away from the eyes and claws of the Empire. This changes when Cal faces the dilemma of rescuing his friend by using the Force, exposing his position on Bracca. After his heroic act, he nearly escaped his deadly faith thanks to the help of two other characters. These events set the impressive story in motion, it’s a story about loss, war, and hope. Hope for the return of the Jedi, but it won’t be an easy journey.
The story is by far one of the main attractions in this game. It’s a game completely aimed at the singleplayer experience. This isn’t a multiplayer filled with loot boxes or microtransactions, this is one of the best modern stories ever created. It must be said, coming from the team over at Respawn Entertainment, it’s rather impressive to see how well they manage to create such an impressive story. This is a lot different from Titanfall or Apex Legends and I’m sure a lot of Star Wars fans will adore every second of this high-paced action game. Even if you’re not a fan, this is by far one of the better games that recently released in the genre.
Explore your way out
Besides offering a solid story, this game does a lot of things right. One of those is the exploration of your environment. If you’re not following the narrative or if you’re not battling some of the challenging enemies, you’re exploring your environment. If you played a Respawn Entertainment game before, you know the team likes a high-paced traversal of their worlds. This results in a Jedi that could easily become the champion of Parkour. Cal is extremely flexible and agile, moving around is a true blessing. You’ll easily jump from wall to wall, grabbing ledges and performing near-impossible jumps. There’s a lot to explore and the more powers you’ll unlock, the more you’ll see of the world. Combining his impressive Parkour skills with the power of the Force results in an extremely fun adventure game comparable to Tomb Raider.
While running around, you’ll often face one of the environmental puzzles, challenging your mental capabilities. It’s up to you to find your way out while your path is often blocked by enemies or natural obstacles. These puzzles feel very natural and never forced, it’s like exploring a real landscape. Add the diversity of your location, including some breath-taking planets, to this list and you’ll understand why we loved our stay in this gorgeous Star Wars game. When you’re done exploring, it’s time to face your enemies.
Every battle counts
If you thought the exploration gameplay was handled correctly, wait until you meet your enemies. The fights were never this good in a Star Wars game and never were the stakes so high. As you would expect in a Star Wars games, you’ll fight hordes of enemies controlled by the Empire, the only main difference in this game is the fact they won’t go down easily. Where you could easily blast your way through enemies with your Lightsaber and the Force in earlier Star Wars games, you’ll really need to fight for your survival in this one. Combat follows the rules of the Souls-genre, offering a challenging yet fair shot at success. Each type of enemy attacks in a certain pattern. It’s up to you to discover this pattern, time your parry correctly and attack while there’s an opening in the enemy’s defense. It’s a harder and more complex battle mechanism than you might expect in a Star Wars game but it’s really beneficial for the gameplay.
Since your enemies won’t go down easily, you’ll instantly connect with Cal’s struggle, in order to save the Jedi, he’ll have to fight and every battle counts. Spread over the levels are points where Cal can meditate, increasing his health points while learning new skills. When he’s defeated by an enemy, however, he’ll lose all of this progress, until he faces that same enemy again and manages to destroy it. This is pulled directly from the Souls games and it’s amazing to see how Respawn managed to implement it so well in the Star Wars universe. The powers of the Jedi are a force to be reckoned with but you’re never invincible, as many enemies will prove during your adventure. Besides that, I absolutely adored the variation in enemies and the way they can be taken out. Each new type demands a new strategy and offers a new learning curve, resulting in a huge reward once you’re able to finally take them down. It’s never as hard as a true Souls game but it’s by far the most challenging Star Wars game to date, which is a good thing.
Conclusion:
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is easily one of the best Star Wars game that ever released. It takes inspiration from games such as Tomb Raider, Dark Souls, and some might even add Castlevania to that list. Instead of just copying some key features, Respawn Entertainment really made it their own. This isn’t just an adventure game with a Star Wars skin, it’s a Star Wars game that easily combines some of the most impressive gameplay mechanics into one game. It’s a no-brainer if you’re a fan of the Star Wars universe and even if you’re not, it’s one of the best action-adventure games of this year, it’s certainly worth trying!
