Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order – Finally a good Star Wars RPG or just another flop?
Hello again fellow game nerds! Today I’ll be reviewing EA’s newest Star Wars game Jedi: Fallen Order.
Like many people I was once again on the fence about pre-ordering this game but the fact that it had Respawn Entertainment as it’s developer and was clearly and RPG rather than a multiplayer FPS was what tipped me into giving in and finally pre-ordering.
I’m so glad I did.
This is one of the best games of the year.
Storyline
This game takes place just after the purge of the jedi. You Play as Cal Kestis who is a young jedi in hiding working as a scrapper. During his adventure he is found out and he has to go on the run. He is rescued by a former-jedi Cere Junda. When Cere notices Cal’s rare ability to touch objects and reveal their history using his connection to the force she decides to take him to a secret vault on the planet of Bogano.
Bogano
It’s on Bogano that Cal finds and befriends BD-1 a droid that, when Cal finally gets to the vault plays a message from Cere’s old master Eno Cordava. The message reveals that Eno had compiled a list of force-sensitive children and hidden it inside the vault, which was built by an ancient civilisation called the Zeffo. The only way into the vault is to pass Cordava’s multiple tests he’s left on different planets around the universe. And thus your adventure to pass all of them begins…
Combat
I’ve seen this game compared to Dark Souls when it comes to combat and some other parts. I must say I agree, though it definitely isn’t hard it’s not a game you can just button mash to get through. You need to really think about what techniques you’re going to use before you jump into a fight. This gets even more challenging when you’re jumped on by a random burrowing creature from seemingly nowhere.
You can fire blaster rounds back at storm troopers and kill them but your timing has to be pretty much perfect. If you hold the block button your stamina will go down and you’ll be stunned and open to attack. You can’t just blindly block things and you’ll have to dodge and use the force to avoid being killed.
Meditation areas
Mediation Circles are an area on the map that will always save your game. Here is where the game becomes a challenge. Some of these are very far away from each other and you can only save your game in one of these circles. If you die from point A to point B you will go back to the first meditation circle and have to do everything you’ve done again.
The meditation circles give you a chance to spend skill points to upgrade Cal’s skills and also heal. However if you do choose to heal every enemy you’ve faced will respawn. So you need to choose. Don’t heal and risk being killed with the health you have left. Do heal and hope you’ve gotten better at facing certain enemies.
“Use the force Luke”
I’m sorry, I had to… anyway back to the review.
All throughout the different places of different planets you go to you’ll come across things outlined in blue. These things can be slowed down and manipulated by the force.
One challenge for example will have you stopping a windmill like thing so you can jump across the blades to the other side of a hill.
This is actually a really fun part of the game. It sounds so basic but you’ll be amazed how hard it can be and how easy it is to fall to your death if you aren’t careful. Very careful. These things are timed so you can’t slow it down forever, you’ll have to be quick and precise which is a challenge in itself.
Review
I love this game. I simply love it.
The only negative I can really give it is that the first planet where you do most of your learning of the controls and meeting of BD-1 is very slow paced. I almost became bored, then I finally got the the temple. Learned a new skill and the pace quickened because I had new places on the planet I could explore.
Even though the meditation circles can be a nightmarish distance apart I never once got sick of dying. It just meant I had more chance to kick some storm trooper butt. Because the combat is so fun I never got bored or annoyed. I was having a blast no matter how many times I died.
Add that to the fact that I really had to think before going into a fight with any kind of enemy meant it was different every time. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it just got me my handed to me and I had to learn and adapt to that.
Even if you’re not a Star Wars fan this is just a plain old great game. Well worth the money I spent on it. In fact, after I’d been on it for a while I was kicking myself for not choosing the more expensive version.
Finally! A good Star Wars game! REJOICE!
