Where should EA take the Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order series?
IAN DEAN
EDITOR
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order tapped into the mysticism and otherness of the broader Star Wars universe. Jedi-in-hiding Cal Kestis evolved over the course of the game into a lightsaber-swishing Nate Drake, as happy swinging about ancient alien tombs as he was bouncing lasers back at hapless stormtroopers. The structure is in place: Merrin leads a great supporting cast, the Stinger Mantis is your space-van for hire, and there’s a galaxy of temples to plunder. Refinements to the platforming are essential but this could be our proxy Uncharted.
JESS KINGHORN
STAFF WRITER
I’m not completely anti-Cal but I’m intrigued by his crewmates aboard the Mantis. Specifically, I’d love Nightsister Merrin to have more room to breathe in the role of protagonist. I don’t just want more of her spooky vibe or face tatts, I loved that her interpretation of using the Force is casting dark magick. Having recently read Naomi Novik’s Uprooted, I’m all for seeing a female protagonist reinterpret and redefine in-universe rules of magic that were previously thought to be fixed or otherwise unmalleable by other characters. Besides all that, who doesn’t want to control their own undead army?
OSCAR TAYLOR-KENT
GAMES EDITOR
I don’t want just one more thing from Fallen Order sequels, I want many. Specifically, more faces. As much as I loved Cameron Monaghan’s adorkable Cal Kestis, one of Star Wars’ strengths has always been its characters. I want the Mantis to be filled not just with NPCs but with playable characters. Fallen Order already mashes up multiple genres, so lean into this with different types of personality as well as Cal: a stealthy Twi’lek; a blaster-spinning scoundrel. Why not give BD-1 some bombs for demolition missions? (And yes, Jess, Nightsister Merrin can join in too). Give me a squad.
MILFORD COPPOCK
MANAGING ART EDITOR
EA can go almost anywhere with the setup for Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. We have the bickering, throwntogether crew, the junkyard ship, and the potential of a galaxy of Jedi-in-hiding with their own stories to tell in this post-Order-66 universe. But let’s shoot down the tauntaun in the room: the game’s platforming sections almost dragged this into Force Unleashed levels of disappointment. Making a leap of faith after soulsborning a room of enemies was never fun. If Respawn can wrangle these moments into a better whole, then I’ll be on board with Cal and the gang.
THERE’S NO SIGN OF A NEW UNCHARTED, SO CAL AND THE CREW OF THE STINGER MANTIS WILL DO JUST FINE. FROM THE MOMENT I SAW NIGHTSISTER MERRIN, I KNEW SHE’D CAST A SPELL ON ME MASHING UP GENRES MEANS WE SHOULD MASH-UP THE NEW FRANCHISE’S CHARACTERS TOO. FIX THE TERRIBLE PLATFORMING AND I’M ON BOARD WITH RESPAWN’S STAR WARS STORY.