“Star Wars: Jedi: Fallen Order” Review

Ah, the Star Wars fandom. Used to be nothing united us, not the new movies, tie in books, or even the Star Wars video games – until “Jedi: Fallen Order”. This video game, arguably the best Star Wars video game since 2003’s “Knights of the Old Republic” is a masterpiece, a work of art, and proves that EA doesn’t always know what’s right for the Star Wars license. After a string of cancelled projects, mediocre games, and blatant pay-to-win schemes, this was it. Star Wars done right. Be warned: spoilers follow.
In “Fallen Order”, you follow the adventures of Jedi Padawan Cal Kestis and the ragtag crew of the Mantis as they go on a journey to rebuild the Jedi Order after the Jedi were nearly annihilated during Order 66 in 2003’s “Star Wars Episode 3: Revenge of the Sith”. This timeline, where the Jedi are all but extinct, is an integral part of the Star Wars mythos. The remaining Jedi, branded traitors by the newly-formed Galactic Empire, have gone into hiding across the galaxy. Cal, a young man hiding out on the industrial planet Bracca is recruited by Cere Junda who takes him under her wing, eventually completing his training and deeming him a Knight of the Republic.
Along the way, Cal will adventure to far-off planets, including some iconic ones, such as Kashyyyk, the Wookie homeworld, and Dathomir, home of the Sith Darth Maul and the Nightsisters. You will also meet iconic characters, such as the freedom fighter Saw Gerrera, from “Rouge One: A Star Wars Story” and the iconic Darth Vader who serves as the final boss.
Gameplay-wise, “Fallen Order” finds that right balance of difficulty and fun. While I died several times on Jedi Knight, the normal difficulty level, it was still overall a very enjoyable experience. New gamers however, may want to stick with Story Mode, which tones down the difficulty significantly, allowing causal players to focus on the story and spend less time dying.
As for pacing, the game is very short by today’s standards, as a lot of the playtime comes from exploring the different locales. There is no New Game+ either, which, in other games, allow you to play through the game with all unlocked upgrades, which is a bit of a bummer.
All in all, “Fallen Order” is a very enjoyable experience, and a very worthy addition to a video game franchise that has struggled to find its footing since EA took the reigns. Hopefully, that’s all a long time ago, in a galaxy far far away.