Electronic Arts had a bumpy road over the past six years, ever since it sealed an exclusive deal with Disney for Star Wars games. The Battlefront games were accompanied by a slew of PR mishaps and mired in the controversy regarding loot boxes. They were both fine multiplayer games, but those who prefer a strong story and the less frantic pace of single player games were left wanting, until now: Fallen Order is out on Steam, Origin, PS4 and Xbox One.
What’s red, black, and gloomy all over?
Long Ago…
Fallen Order is the latest creation of Respawn Entertainment, of Titanfall fame. You step into the worn-out shoes of Cal Kestis, a former Jedi padawan who survived Order 66 and is trying to survive in a galaxy controlled by an ever more oppressive Empire. Five years after the purge, he makes the fatal mistake of using his Force abilities to save a friend during an Imperial salvage operation. Now he has to run from the usual throng of Imperial goons, including another graduate of Darth Vader’s school for dark side villains, an Inquisitor called Second Sister (brooding and enigmatic as every other Imperial antagonist).
The setup is fairly standard for a Star Wars game, but the story is likely to have numerous twists and turns. The lead narrative designer is Aaron Contreras, who previously worked on Mafia 3, and the game was co-written by Chris Avellone, who worked on Knights of the Old Republic II to life. That second, flawed gem remains one of the most nuanced and interesting takes on core Star Wars themes to date. Fans will also recognize him from his work on Planescape: Torment, Fallout: New Vegas downloadable content, Wasteland 2, Torment: Tides of Numenera, and other titles.
Introducing cute space puppies (puppy size may vary)
…In a Galaxy Far, Far Away
In terms of gameplay, Fallen Order is an action adventure game in the vein of Uncharted. Though Cal might have been a mere padawan half a decade ago, you’ll be developing him into a fully trained knight and, as usual, trying to gather the Jedi remnants and restore the order. You know what that means, right? Lightsabers, Force powers, and a lot of combat. Any Jedi mentor who would scoff at such uncivilized ways has long since gone the way of the dodos (or their Star Wars equivalent).
Par for the course is a crew of misfits and ne’er-do-wells to accompany you on your journey from prey to predator. The cast includes a former Jedi, a droid, and Forest Whitaker’s Saw Guerrera from Rogue One. The long road to victory will take you through a variety of locales both old and new, including a stay at Kashyyyk, the wookie home world.
Note for enthusiasts of zapping and gripping people: There is no Dark Side path in the game, sorry.
“And no, you are not bringing that ‘puppy’ onto my ship, son.”
Will it Be a Success?
With no early access for EA subscribers or pre-release reviews, the fate of Fallen Order is impossible to divine. However, the mere fact it reached release stage is good news for Star Wars fans, as three other titles developed by EA have joined Alderaan in the space dust: 1313, a gritty adventure following Boba Fett through the underbelly of a supercity, Visceral’s open world game focusing on a group of Soloesque pirates, and its second incarnation, the linear, Uncharted-esque Ragtag.
Will this be the big break that will open the floodgates on single player Star Wars games again? We’ll see.
Until we do, you can help build the ultimate guide for the game at the Fallen Order Wiki!
