Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order:
Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order: Return of the Cliche
Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order: Exploring Six Planets in the Galaxy
Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order: Murdering Wildlife with A Wifflesaber
Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order: Even the Force Can't Hold the Plot Together
Navigating the six planets, which vary from tiny Ordo Eris to the massive Zeffo, combines the explorative aspects discussed in the previous article, with combat elements. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order provides detailed maps for each level.. The holographic projections come courtesy of the customary cute bot assistant, BD-1. The map isn't a separate screen, but an overlay that appears when Cal asks for it. Which means the player can't use it while swimming, and can't see it if they are facing a wall, as the projection is blocked by the rock. The map appears in classic Star Wars hologram colors; blue, with green, red, and yellow to mark objects of interest. The map only displays the areas the player has explored. Yellow highlights pathways to new areas. Many paths are blocked by obstacles. The player can overcome these after acquiring additional force powers. Immovable obstacles are marked as red on the map, while obstacles that the player has the ability to overcome are marked in green. This helpful indication prevents the player from wasting their time on barriers they literally can't leap. But it can also feel like too much hand-holding. Whether maps are supportive or too accommodating, they lack a feature all maps should include. Players should be able to mark the map with details they wish to remember.
The map allows for easy exploration, but it also reduces exploration to following the path, which isn't exploring at all. It removes the sense of searching. Each region of the map indicates the number of Chests and Secrets hidden in the area. Collecting secrets increases Cal's Health or Force power. Some secrets increase BD-1's stash of Stims, an item similar to Dark Souls' Estus Flask. Stims heal Cal for a portion of his health. Chests divulge cosmetic loot. It's odd how many chests there are, and that they contribute nothing to the game. I'll return to the collectible cosmetic issue momentarily. But the point is, Fallen Order is like Nioh, there are no real secrets. Everything is labeled, and relatively easy to locate. Many secrets are merely placed slightly to the side of the main path. The map metaphorically grabs the player's hand and drags them to the location. In rare instances secrets are frustrating because of the convoluted exploration system, which discourages investigations by deploying arbitrary walls to keep the player on the developer's predetermined path. I felt ridiculous seeing Cal claw at the air for the fiftieth time, searching for a new shirt to wear as he duels Sith and local lifeforms.
While the backgrounds are stunning, the visual effects of the rest of the game are merely serviceable. Nothing feels imaginative. Fallen Order felt like it had been run through the EA/Disney filter to make sure any real creativity has been ironed out. The game looks simultaneously good and bad, depending on the changing of the scenery, or the perspective of the character's face. These areas have a generic look, with the odd, attempting to look realistic, but slightly failing, AAA appearance. Other visual effects worth mentioning; cosmetics. Fallen Order includes dozens of skins for BD-1, lightsaber components (which have no impact on game-play), ponchos for Cal (which looked hilarious), and paint jobs for Cal's friend's ship. The ponchos don't react to wind or falling, as if they are pasted to Cal's body, while the lightsaber handle is too small to see during the game. BD-1 appears to teleport around the screen as necessary, and underwater he jumps into chests and makes them shake, without moving from Cal's shoulder. The lightsaber doesn't affect the terrain enough, occasionally marking walls with a cauterized appearance, but leaving many objects untouched. It doesn't cut boxes. And while Darth Maul was the coolest aspect of Episode I, the developers need to recognize that not every character needs a double-bladed lightsaber. It seems an obligatory object in Star Wars material. Of the five battles with lightsaber wielding bosses, four of them use double-bladed lightsabers. Cal also acquires one himself, because.
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order has been compared to Dark Souls, and that is an error of magnitude. It uses the same saving mechanic, and a vaguely similar combat system. Instead of saving wherever the player likes, they need to lead Cal to a meditation circle (bonfire). Some (or all) cinematic may save the game, but I can't guarantee this. Fortunately, these meditation spots are well spaced, like the Registration Points in Alien: Isolation. It might instead be said that Fallen Order has too many save points. They seem to be everywhere. Dark Souls doesn't have the same amount, because in Dark Souls bonfires aren't required for saving; the player can save any time, any place. But at least in Fallen Order, the player is never far from a save point. Using a meditation circle restores Cal's life, force power, refills his Stims, and revives enemies (unlike Dark Souls – which incorporates this system into its story, and Nioh which gestures at a strange, half-explanation, Fallen Order has no interest in justifying why Stormtroopers come back to life). The meditation circle also allows Cal to upgrade his abilities. Defeating enemies earns Cal a measure of experience. If the bar fills up, he earns one point. New abilities cost one, two, or three points. At the start of Fallen Order, Cal has a limited number of abilities to upgrade. As he advances through the story and learns core Force Powers he unlocks additional abilities for purchase. Unlike Dark Souls or Nioh, which require farming souls to maintain a proper power level, Fallen Order thinks this is boring. I never farmed units for experience; clearing an area once provides an adequate amount. Of the eleven Force abilities, fourteen lightsaber abilities, and eight Survival abilities, I unlocked eleven, nine, and eight.
When the player dies they return to the last activated meditation circle. They lose all current experience. To recover the lost experience, Cal needs to hit the foe that defeated him. The first hit on the foe also restores Cal's health and force bars.
After the first area teaches the player the basics of Cal's acrobatics, it introduces the lightsaber. The first foes are the ubiquitous stormtroopers, accompanied by scout troopers wielding electro batons. I can honestly say that I never laid a hand on the basic model. They all shot themselves! Which is a silly way of saying that it is absurdly easy to reflect laser blasts. Holding the block button knocks the shots aside (though it depletes Cal's stamina bar slightly), but clicking it at the right moment redirects the laser back at the shooter. As all Star Wars fans know, a single laser shot defeats a stormtrooper. After just a short time, the player will be able to reflect a laser shot without even seeing the shooter; the sound is sufficient. Other upgrades improve his blaster defense, allowing Cal to run and deflect lasers simultaneously.
Other ranged enemies, which are just mild variations on the stormtrooper, offer a similar lack of challenge. Melee enemies require the player to employ slash, dodge, and parry to defeat. It's possible to have a crowd of scout troopers, or other melee enemies encircling Cal. Unlike the Arkham series, enemies don't wait their turn to attack, but engage in a mob. Parrying, clicking the block button at the instant of impact, allows Cal to perform a special animation against many enemies, but it seemed like other enemies could interrupt it, hitting Cal when the player had no control, no possible defense. Some attacks have no defense, the player can't block them. When an enemy turns red performing an attack they can't be blocked or parried.
More on combat next article.
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