+ Level design with proper amounts of exploration.

+ Lightsaber combat is both fun and a spectacle to the eyes.

+ Beautiful graphics that capture the atmosphere of Star Wars.

+ Multiple paths to reach an objective, giving room to freedom and exciting turns in platforming.

+ The soundtrack further elevates the game; it always fit the situations and manages to convey emotions of the case.

+ Enemies and bosses are entertaining, from dealing with a more significant number of stormtroopers to facing Sith lords in intense duels.

- Some technical problems in terms of glitches and optimization.

-Specific skills are poorly balanced, such as "best friends," which gives force meter each time a stim is activated.

- The story is excellent, but it lacks those critical moments in the beginning and the ending. Could have used more content to flesh the origin of Cal Kestis and his journey entirely.

Introduction

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is a third-person action-adventure title from Respawn Entertainment. It follows the story of Cal Kestis, a Jedi who survived order 66 by hiding in a planet as a scrap worker. It features elements from multiples sub-genres in the action category and incorporates them to elevate its gameplay further. From lightsaber combat to climbing and soul-likes bosses, the game grabs a bit from each of the best titles but not to the point those mechanics would obscure its own identity.


Gameplay

The combat is simple but also is a lot of fun. It has vast layers put into it that can appear rather lackluster at first. Still, they are intelligent choices from the developer. Cal Kestis has access to his lightsaber for physical combat and the force to open his options. Lightsaber techniques can range from throwing it towards enemies before it comes back. Different combos or forms, while the force can range from pushing back grenades towards enemies, force pulling, slowing enemies, and more.

Players have a ton of options when facing the stormtroopers. You can push them off cliffs, throw them into one another, reflect beams at them, or cut them down with parries, to name just a few. It gives the player freedom to how they will approach any encounter with them or try new ideas. Hurl something at them, put them in front of their own blaster, forcing them towards you. The game has a lot of possibilities.

The platforming aspect of the game is also again, a successful decision in design. There are multiple ways to reach an objective on the map. For example, you can get to the next goal, die, take another path, and achieve that same destination. What is great about this is that those paths are very different when it comes to traveling itself and that they reward exploration. You can visit areas in the order you want, even as far as to go to planets you are not prepared for or discover secret places to visit later.

It borrows aspects from games like Zelda, Metroid, Uncharted, Dark Souls. It then incorporates Cal Kestis mechanics into them to make them unique to the game. Puzzles and exploration being limited until you unlock new abilities, platforming that involves using the force to expand one's reach. Approach to level design, and finally combat that mixes dodging, parrying, smart use of the force and lightsaber combat.

It is rewarding to be able to visit prior planets and discover that now you can take that path that was blocked before. Enemies being added in locations and exploring side stuff such as collectibles or hidden ways. Enemies have a defense meter, like a shield of sorts and until the player doesn't deplete that they won't be able to damage them. The combat is focused on reaction to how the player reacts to the enemy's attacks and groups of them. All of them have unblockable attacks, and bosses are ferocious with brutal powers and agile movements.

Strong points

The strong points are its story, that while it has some flaws, it is an enjoyable journey and manages to captivate what makes Star Wars so great as a franchise. The gameplay doesn't get boring because of new enemies showing up from time to time, keeping it fresh, along with the variety of options the player has. Bosses are exciting, particularly the last ones are hard to beat, and they give intense duels.

The integration of elements from other games is a concept that I like. Bringing a more refined quality in gameplay but also being careful not to let those elements get to carried away and making the game into a copy of those other games.

Finally, customization while the ponchos and ship can be some recolors; the lightsabers have a lot of customization into them. All colors are present except for red; you can change the hilt. The material, the handle, just about everything about them, and let's be honest lightsabers are very cool. It allows one to personalize the aesthetics of Cal Kestis to suit their particular tastes.

Story

The plot revolves around Cal Kestis, a young man who works to earn his living on a planet controlled by the empire. The plot follows up after the purge of the Jedi after order 66, and Kestis being a Jedi padawan, spends most of his days in hiding. One day, however, he is discovered by the empire. After escaping certain death, he ends up meeting Cere Junda, a former Jedi who managed to escape the Purge of Order 66 and the pilot Greez Ditus, the Mantis ship's owner.

Without spoiling too much, the story is good, but both the beginning and the ending of it lack specific amounts of flesh. The start of the game is sprung while the end is abrupt. However, the rest of it is rich in detail, with information on the planets that you visit, references to famous characters and events. Good pacing that allows for character development and for the player to get to know these characters.

The exploration of planets adds layers to the lore game, especially if you already heard of them before. The story has the premises of a Star Wars film. Comedic moments that can give a laugh or darker ones that can emanate conflicting thoughts or uncertainty of how things will play out. It is fantastic and one of the best aspects of the game.

Some Notes

The games run faulty on a GTX 1060; it runs okay in a GTX 1070 and anything above that it runs flawlessly. I could notice that in 1060, there were a lot of frame drops, so I would not recommend it for GTX 1060 users unless you don't mind playing in 30 FPS, which is less than ideal. There are also some bugs such as getting stuck in a wall or BD never turning off the scanner light, but those were few, rare instances.

UPDATE: So users report the game doing well on a GTX 1060, while others said it has lots of frame drops. In our experience, the game did not run well on a 1060 but it did on a 1070. If you have a 1060, you will have to try it yourself to see if it runs well or not.


Conclusion

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is probably one of the best games released in 2019. While the game doesn't manage to make something revolutionary or unique, it certainly knows how to add other elements and taking them into what Star Wars means. The combat, while simple, has a lot of freedom build into it, and the platforming-backtracking is excellent. Whenever you are a Star Wars fan or not, this is a game that you should consider getting.