The release of the new Star Wars game – Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order – brings us another sci-fi adventure set in a Galaxy far, far away. Because we have already discussed the game more than once in our previous blog entries, this time around we shall examine games that served as an influence and shaped many aspects of the latest installment brought to us by Respawn Entertainment and EA. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is a mix of various genres, therefore a retrospective look at the titles that the latest release was inspired by, will offer great alternatives to those who plan to enjoy the new Star Wars game.
The time period between episodes III and IV
Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order is one of the stories from the Star Wars universe, that fills the gap between the Prequel and the Original trilogies of the movies. Within the context of the films, 19 years pass between episodes III (Revenge of the Sith) and IV (A New Hope). Various TV shows like Star Wars: Rebels and some EA Star Wars games take place during this time period as it has been constantly stirring up the imaginations of Star Wars fans and authors alike.
New Star Wars game is yet another tale inspired by this interesting moment in the history of Star Wars galaxy which marks the fall of the Old Republic and the establishment of the Galactic Empire. Games and books often explore the implications of these events and the legacy of the Jedi after catastrophic Order 66 purge.
One of the most notable games that take place between the first two Star Wars trilogies does not even come from EA. Star Wars: The Force Unleashed was released back in 2008 by LucasArts and it strikes a lot of similarities with the new Star Wars game gameplay-wise.
The Force Unleashed had us controlling a rebelling apprentice of Darth Vader named “Starkiller” (fun fact: Starkiller was the original surname of Luke Skywalker in the first script of 1977 Star Wars movie). The game had a strong focus on lightsaber combat and encouraged the use of devastating Force abilities such as overpowered (and thus satisfying) Force Lightning that could bring down even the AT-ST walkers which serve as bosses in the latest EA Star Wars installment.
Elaborate lightsaber duel mechanics
Aside from the new Star Wars game and The Force Unleashed series, the game that was for many years most notable for being the “lightsaber duel simulator” was the infamous Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy released back in 2003 and it also served as a sequel to Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Outcast as well as Dark Forces games from the 1990s which also filled episode III-IV time gap.
The story of the game wasn’t too impressive, but the fans remember it mostly for awesome gameplay that seems to be mirrored in the latest EA Star Wars game. The player not only had lightsaber customization options which are also present in the new Star Wars game, but also a high variety of character customization features as well as the ability to choose lightsaber combat styles.
You could decide to fight with two lightsabers in each hand and either of them could have had different, optional colors. Double-bladed lightsabers like the one Darth Maul uses in Star Wars: Episode I: The Phantom Menace was also an option and thankfully this has made a return in EA Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. A single lightsaber served as an optimal balance between attack and defense stats of the previous selections.
The protagonist of the game – Jaden – could chop imperial stormtroopers or Mos Eisley thugs into pieces, send their limbs flying and similar things can also happen in the new Star Wars game. Additionally, the player could enjoy awesome looking slow-motion animations of lightsaber kills as the camera was spinning around the action in a cinematic way.
Ability to freely travel between planets
Thankfully, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order features optional space travel, unlike some other, more linear EA Star Wars titles. By this, we mean that the player can choose which planet to travel to as the story progresses in a non-linear fashion, while the spaceship serves as a hub to interact with the crew and upgrade your gear.
These qualities of the new Star Wars game are most likely a call back to BioWare’s epic RPG from 2003 – Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. Just like the main cast of the legendary Original Trilogy had the Millenium Falcon, so did the crew of KOTOR rely on Ebon Hawk.
The same features were later on transmitted to the first EA Star Wars project – the MMORPG Star Wars: The Old Republic, which continued the mythos established by KOTOR and featured private spaceships as well. Not only that, players of 2003 KOTOR could participate in “on the rails” space combat sequences that would happen traveling between the semi-open world planets of the Star Wars galaxy.
The new Star Wars game includes optional, non-linear space travel with a private ship, and also allows for exploration of detailed and rich semi-open worlds, which often contain secret passageways and rewarding collectibles. The latest EA Star Wars installment also surprises the players with mind-twisting puzzles! At moments feels like the Star Wars iteration of Tomb Raider games.
KOTOR, after all, was an RPG and while Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order doesn’t allow for such wide freedom of choice or character customization options as KOTOR did (for the purposes of story-telling and developing the specific character of Order 66 survivor Cal Kestis), the new Star Wars game does feature other RPG elements, most notably a skill tree. Once again, this is very reminiscent of mentioned Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy as well, and the new EA Star Wars title seems to recreate a familiar game structure in a fresh new way.
Try the classic Star Wars games if you haven’t done so already!
Star War Jedi: Fallen Order seems to be a very faithful modern reinterpretation of the good-old Star Wars games which have already been tested by time. These titles will bring great entertainment even if you are not a Star Wars fan, because they are amazing games in and of themselves. All the discussed titles, which inspired the new Star Wars game, are available at a very cheap price on the Eneba store, including many other notable EA Star Wars installments. Be sure to check them out and may the Force be with you as you start your new adventure in Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order!
