Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order was the first single-player Star Wars game in over a decade. To the surprise of some, it surpassed all sales expectations, and received almost universal praise for its mechanics and story. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order was soon followed up by a sequel, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, which received praise for its customization options, story, characterization, and setting a darker tone for the series. A third Star Wars Jedi is currently in development.
The third Star Wars Jedi has been confirmed to be the conclusion of Cal's story. Cal Kestis has become one of the most beloved Jedi among Star Wars Jedi players, and the conclusion to his story needs to stick the landing. Beyond Cal's story, however, is the question of Star Wars Jedi's future. With Star Wars Jedi being one of the only successful Star Wars game franchises at the moment, and with no other Star Wars action games on the horizon, abandoning the franchise would be a massive blow for fans and for the IP. Star Wars Jedi doesn't need Cal's story to continue past the third game, and there are other ways of reimagining the franchise instead of ending it.
The Cardinal Sins of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor Explained
For new players trying out Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, there are a few actions that gamers should avoid making as journey with Cal Kestis
Star Wars Jedi Broke a Worrying Pattern
Star Wars Jedi was the first Star Wars game to be so positively received in a very long time. The 2010s saw a dearth of Star Wars games of all types, cancellations of promising games, and controversies such as Star Wars: Battlefront's notorious loot boxes and locking characters like Darth Vader behind a paywall. Star Wars Jedi broke this pattern, and was received all the more positively for it.
Unfortunately, in the years since Fallen Order's release in 2019, Star Wars games are still lagging behind the quality of other popular game franchises. Star Wars Outlaws received a lukewarm reception, LEGO Star Wars only remains an adaptation of the movies, while the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic remake has been passed from studio to studio and hasn't released any updates in over a year. Despite these releases, Star Wars Jedi remains the only contemporary Star Wars game that lets players focus on the role of a Jedi through fun gameplay, deep customization, and a compelling story with good characterization that adds to the lore of the franchise.
Star Wars Jedi Has the Potential to Continue
The ending of Cal's story shouldn't mark the end of Star Wars Jedi. With an ambiguous title, Star Wars Jedi could instead follow another Jedi, and could even jump to another era to fully distinguish itself from Cal's saga. A Star Wars Jedi game that follows on from the current franchise could instead be set during the Old Republic era, a period that hasn't received much attention since Disney's acquisition of Star Wars. Instead of following an established character, it could tell the story of another new, original character, just like Cal. Alternatively, the game could take place after the fall of the Empire, and follow the story of a Force-sensitive individual who survived because of the Hidden Path, which would show the impact of the crew of the Stinger Mantis.
Capturing the Heart of Star Wars Jedi
Rather than abandoning Star Wars Jedi's core identity, a follow-up game should retain the features that made Star Wars Jedi so popular. To do so, it would need a likable protagonist, deep customization for lightsabers, different lightsaber stances, and satisfying Jedi combat.
With a world as big as Star Wars, which spans both a galaxy and a very long timeline, telling the story of a new Jedi shouldn't be difficult. This series' gameplay is dynamic, fun, and different enough to differentiate itself from other games, and to not use this to the advantage of Star Wars games would be a massive missed opportunity.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 84 /100 Critics Rec: 87%
- Released
- April 28, 2023
- ESRB
- T For Teen due to Mild Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Respawn Entertainment
- Publisher(s)
- Electronic Arts
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 4
- Franchise
- Star Wars
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Action-Adventure, Soulslike, Sci-Fi
