During Star Wars Celebration 2019 panels, Respawn Entertainment (makers of Apex Legends and Titanfall) finally revealed the next Star Wars game … Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. Right off the bat, the team announced that this is a single player game, with no multiplayer or microtransactions. The goal for the team is to put the lightsaber in your hand and tell a fantastic story.
The story takes place during “The Dark Times” where you play as Cal Kestis, who is played by actor Cameron Monaghan (recognized in Gotham and Shameless), a Jedi Padawan who survived Order 66 and the destruction of the Jedi Order. Cal is hiding from the Empire after the fall of the Jedi and is working as a salvager on a new Star Wars planet named Braka alongside a small droid companion called BD-1 (Buddy Droid 1 — internally at Respawn). Cal will also have a former Jedi Knight as his mentor/friend played by actress Debra Wilson.
Respawn Entertainment explained that they wanted a combat system that was easy for players to pick up but also had “a lot of depth to it” and even described it as “thoughtful combat.” Players will have to use all of their abilities and moves to succeed in combat, according to Respawn Entertainment. One example of this that was given is the new Purge Troopers, a new melee-focused variant of Stormtroopers that are specifically created to hunt down Jedi who survived Order 66, though they have already appeared in the Star Wars Comic.
To me, it sounds like the game will be an action-melee type that will be in third person style. As someone who grew up watching the films and playing the games, I always wondered what if someone survived Order 66 and was in hiding from the Republic (and I know I wasn’t the only one thinking this). For Respawn to take a shot at telling this story through a game is interesting, let alone having EA release it after they stated, “No one plays single-player games these days.” Respawn has grabbed this fan’s attention with their story trailer, so if you are a long time fan of the Star Wars franchise, then this should be right up your alley.
Yes, EA hasn’t been very good at using the Star Wars license thus far (Battlefront, Battlefront II, and the canceled one that Visceral was working on before they had their doors closed) but in all honesty … this could be a turning point for them, especially from how the crowd reacted to them announcing that there was no micro-transactions, no loot boxes and is a single player story game. EA listens when you use your wallet, so if you want more Star Wars games like this in the future, be sure to pick up your copy! If you never had a chance to play a Star Wars game before, I would say that now is the time to try — especially this one. It seems like it will be worth your money.
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order will be released for PS4, Xbox One, and PC on November 15, 2019. You can pre-order it now at GameStop, Amazon Origin, and other retailers.
