First Impressions: JEDI FALLEN ORDER

We finally have some solid information about EA’s next Star Wars game.

Respawn had their own panel at Star Wars Celebration for their upcoming game Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order. As reported by Salacious Crumbs host Mackenna Talley over on Facebook, the first story trailer debuted early in the panel. The trailer did not feature any gameplay, but this is normal for story games like this one.

The trailer was uninteresting to me. It seemed like every other generic action adventure story trailer I have seen for movies and video games. This game has to have an original story and the trailer does not give me confidence that it will be. We’ve seen in EA’s Battlefront games that it isn’t enough for the game to look and sound like Star Wars. Fans need a Star Wars story they haven’t heard before. Since there is no multiplayer in this game, the story will be the main focus. Simply put, the story has to be fantastic.

Throughout the rest of the panel, the developers talked about several aspects of the game. Their discussion about the game’s combat was particularly interesting. Respawn said the combat will require strategy and careful consideration, similar to God of War and Dark Souls.

Much of the conversations on stage were about the team’s excitement about the game. While these conversations did not really give us any information, their willingness to be vulnerable and express their emotions on stage got me excited. It seemed different than the usual developer panel.

Respawn has also confirmed that the game will not have a season pass or microtransactions. To be honest, I would be more shocked if they announced microtransactions would be in the game. If they put microtransactions in this game, it would have killed it almost a full year before the game’s launch. EA and Respawn are getting ahead of the constant questioning and assumptions.

EA is (hopefully) learning from the mistakes it has made with previous Star Wars games. Nobody is happy about EA’s use of the Star Wars IP. Nobody is happy about two mediocre battlefront games and several highly anticipated games being cancelled.

Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order is EA’s last chance with Star Wars. This game is going to have to sell well and have a great Metacritic score for Disney to be happy. I don’t believe EA’s exclusive deal will continue past 2023 (when the deal ends), but if this game doesn’t achieve what it needs to, then they might never have another chance to make another Star Wars game.

Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order comes out November 15, 2019. Click here for more information at EA’s web site.