Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, the Proof That Star Wars Has More Stories To Tell

Key Art for Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Deluxe Edition.

Disclaimer: spoilers ahead for the plot and characters of Fallen Order.

Few franchises invoke the same level of vitriol, controversy, passion, disdain, and love as Star Wars (no citation needed). Hardcore fans of the series defend it vigorously to the point of driving franchise stars off the internet completely. Newer fans are often looked down upon, alongside female fans, non-white fans; and the list goes on and on. To some predominantly white, male fans of the series, there are just some people, and some stories, that don’t belong in Star Wars. 

These toxic fans are often the first to raise their hands when installments of the series go too far off course for their liking or add elements of gender and racial diversity, occasionally to the point of stymying the franchise’s artistic growth. To clarify, commercially, there is no struggle to remain relevant for Lucasfilm and its Step-Parent company Disney. However, over the past few years, there’s been a growing sense that the Star Wars franchise has seen its best days, and that an increasingly fast turnaround rate for franchise installments has led to some fatigue. As a die-hard Star Wars fan myself, I find this notion disheartening, though sometimes true. 

But then, I found Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. Originally released in 2019, Fallen Order is the exception to this rule, and the proof I personally needed to know that Star Wars, as a whole, still has stories to tell, and ones that are worth telling at that. Its sophisticated storytelling, character diversity, masterful gameplay, and startling progressivism separate this game from an increasingly saturated marketplace. and makes it a clear standout in my video game library.

A little housekeeping; I’d like to offer a refreshing change of pace from the normal toxicity we’ve grown accustomed to within the Star Wars fan base, and extend a hand to those who are new to a galaxy far, far away... 

Dear reader, if you are not at all familiar with the Star Wars franchise, its plot, its characters, etc, just know that I love you and support you and you are seen and you are beautiful. For you, dear friend, I am going to try my absolute best to tee up the plot of Fallen Order, and place it within the context of the larger Star Wars universe, with minimal condescension and convolution so you can follow along.  

In an effort to voice at least one gentle recommendation, I hope this review encourages you to at least try the first movie, and if not, once again you are valid and loved. 

Cal Kestis, voiced by Cameron Monaghan.

The galaxy is in a dark place. Fallen Order, rather unsurprisingly, takes place after the fall of the Jedi Order, a society of highly ranked Jedi Masters who protect the galaxy while wielding lightsabers, and the telekinetic/spiritual power known as The Force. The Order falls after the canonical events of one of George Lucas’s ill-fated prequels—Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. In the film, the character known as Chancellor Palpatine (a meme legend, just Google “Do It, Star Wars” and let the good times roll), who later installs himself as the galaxy’s cloaked and hooded Emperor, betrays the Jedi Order, systematically annihilating the Jedi in one fell swoop in order to establish dominion over the galaxy.

Five years after the fall of the Order, we pick up with Cal Kestis (played expertly by Cameron Monaghan), a former Jedi-in-training living in relative obscurity. In the game’s prologue, his hiding place is discovered by agents of the new Empire, namely the game’s main antagonist, an emerging Sith Inquisitor (think an evil Jedi, red lightsaber = bad). Mysteriously dubbed The Second Sister (and played by Elizabeth Grullón), this new Sith has orders to track down and exterminate any living Jedi. Cal barely escapes her clutches, teaming up with a renounced Jedi Master Cere Junda and her pilot Greez Drtius, voiced by Debra Wilson and Daniel Robuck, respectively. Their mission now is simple: evade the Second Sister and her army of Stormtroopers, all the while seeking out young, force-sensitive children, who will one day become the next generation of Jedi, in an effort to restore the glory of the once-great Jedi Order. 

Cal and Cere (Debra Wilson) strategize onboard The Mantis, which doubles as Fallen Order’s central hub.

For those of you who know a little about Star Wars, this is no doubt where things get interesting for you. To get us all up to speed, the story of Fallen Order takes place before the events of the first three Star Wars movies.  

In these three films, the Jedi Order is still decimated, and unrestored. So, if you come into Fallen Order knowing even a little about the franchise, you know that Cal and his allies are ultimately unsuccessful, as the game takes place prior to these films in the canon. Now, anyone who’s ever played a video game knows the game ends when you successfully complete the game’s main questline, and that Fallen Order can’t possibly end with you failing to restore the Order, right? So, where do we go from here?  This wrinkle is the element of Fallen Order that proves Star Wars hasn’t yet run out of that secret sauce that made the franchise what it is today. 

Towards the end of the game’s main storyline, Cal enters a hidden vault, said to contain a map of the whereabouts of all the force-sensitive children in the galaxy. However, true to the spiritual nature of the Jedi, once Cal is inside the vault, he begins to have visions of his future; his personal future as the young Master to an entirely new generation of Jedi.  

At first, the visions are calm and peaceful; Cal is a beloved master to his Padawans (Jedis-in-training), and their schooling is going smoothly. And yet, as you walk through the visions yourself (an element of the gameplay that prevents you, the player, from distancing yourself from this dark and distant future), the game slowly begins to hint that all is not as it seems. 

The visions take a turn, as Cal and his Padawans are found out by the Empire and the relentless Second Sister, and eventually captured and broken into submission. We see children killed by Stormtroopers, children imprisoned and tortured for information, and finally, Cal himself taking his place alongside The Second Sister as an evil Sith Inquisitor. With the endgame in sight, Cal sees a deadly portent of the future, and the grim fate that awaits him and a score of young children should he complete his mission.

After a final confrontation in which Cal loses, then wins back the map to the force-sensitive children from the Second Sister, defeating her in the process, the game ends with Cal destroying the map altogether, arguing that it’s better to leave the children’s destinies to the will of the Force. We leave our rag-tag team of heroes with an open-ended call for a new mission, and the entire galaxy at their fingertips.   

Cal explores the Wookie Planet of Kashyyyk.

This is what I enjoyed most about Fallen Order: its commitment to subverting what we’ve normally come to expect from a Star Wars installment. In most Star Wars films, the Jedis/Rebels win in a clear-cut manner, defeating the Empire and saving the galaxy from the jaws of evil, thus living to fight another day.  

Conversely, Fallen Order suggests a different kind of victory can be just as satisfying; a more personal, intimate one, that not only endears us to our protagonist but subverts all expectations in the process. Yes, the Bad Guy is defeated, but not the larger apparatus (the Empire) that put the Bad Guy in your way. You’re still pursued, still hunted, but in a way, you’ve saved the lives of hundreds of innocents and soothed Cal’s conscience as well. It’s a meditative, thought-provoking ending that still has me thinking about it weeks after finishing the game. 

I’ve seen every film installment of Star Wars, I’ve played multiple video game versions of those movies, as well as their spin-offs, and I’ve dipped my toe into the waters of the television universe, ushered in by the crown jewel The Mandalorian. So before playing Fallen Order, I thought I knew what to expect from a Star Wars installment. I think of it as no small feat that this game managed to not only completely surprise me, but made me rethink what I’ve come to know about Star Wars, as well as restore my faith in the franchise as a whole.

It’s hard to wholeheartedly recommend a video game like this, as there’s a high barrier to entry, namely owning a gaming console capable of supporting its software. But, if I could, I would. And, if you’re looking for a video game to buy your Star Wars obsessed niece or nephew this holiday season, hopefully, this helped narrow your search. 

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order was developed by Respawn Entertainment and published by Electronic Arts. It is available to play on Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, Stadia, and for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and Series S.