Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
Powerful, the upgrade is
Set five years after Darth Vader bellowed that infamous, drawn-out “Noooooooo!” at the end of Revenge Of The Sith, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order explores a galaxy coming to terms with the Empire’s rule. The Jedi are in hiding, planets are under attack, and Fallen Order’s protagonist, Cal Kestis (played by Gotham’s Cameron Monaghan) is doing his best wide-eyed Luke Skywalker impression.
What sets Fallen Order apart from other Star Wars games, and the recent films, is its faith in its own heroes and villains. Cal is a Jedi-in-hiding who is forced to reveal himself to save a friend. What follows is a roller coaster ride across the galaxy, recruiting a rag-tag crew of smugglers, rebels, and one of the best new Star Wars characters to appear in years (religious outcast Nightsister Merrin) while staying ahead of the Empire’s Inquisitors. The aim is to plunder abandoned temples and tombs of a lost and ancient civilisation for clues to the whereabouts of a hidden Jedi Holocron, which contains the locations of all remaining Jedi.
RISE UP
The setup ensures a unique blend of soulsborneinspired lightsaber combat and physics-based platforming straight out of Lara Croft’s playbook, coupled with a light metroidvania structure that sees Cal and crew revisiting planets multiple times to access new areas and vaults. Developer Respawn has constructed a solid, modern Star Wars game.
And it’s one that benefits greatly from being on PS5. This free upgrade (even those who bought the game physically can get a digital code) makes good use of PS5’s new-gen tech.
Zipping about the galaxy is a pain-free experience thanks to the way the SSD speeds up loading, and the cinematics work better too. Two display modes – the now-familiar Performance (1440p at 60fps) and Fidelity (4K at 30fps) – give new life to the game. The soulsborne nature of the combat demands the 60fps offered, and there’s a slight stutter when running at 30fps in 4K. Both modes feature improved textures and lighting, which comes into its own on the foliage-rich planet of Kashyyyk. On PS4 the Wookiee homeworld was a low-res eyesore; on PS5 it’s dense and heavy. When you’re pinging laser fire back at Stormtroopers in dark corridors the lighting tech shines, too.
When you’re firing lasers at Stormtroopers in dark corridors the lighting tech shines.
Ir’s not perfect. DualSense support is limited to buzzes and brup-brups as you walk. Some audio can be out of sync too. And the horrible sliding platform stages remain unbalanced and laborious. Yet these minor gripes aside, Fallen Order on PS5 is a must-play.