Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is a 2019 action-adventure game created by Respawn Entertainment and released by Electronic Arts. The story takes place in the Star Wars universe, five years after the events of Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. It follows Cal Kestis, a Jedi Padawan who is hunted by the Galactic Empire after the Jedi Order is destroyed. While hiding from the Empire, Cal tries to finish his training, face his past, and help rebuild the Jedi Order. Players control Cal, using his lightsaber and Force abilities to fight enemies like stormtroopers, wild animals, and bounty hunters. The game uses a level design style similar to Metroidvania, where new areas become available as Cal gains new skills.
The game was directed by Stig Asmussen, who started working at Respawn in 2014. Initially, the game was planned as a standalone project not connected to Star Wars. However, Electronic Arts believed the game’s action style would fit well with the Star Wars universe, and they convinced Lucasfilm to approve and guide the project. The game’s visual style was inspired by Rogue One and Star Wars Rebels, while its combat and level design were influenced by Metroid Prime, Dark Souls, and The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. The voice cast includes Cameron Monaghan as Cal Kestis and Debra Wilson as his mentor, Cere Junda. Ben Burtt voiced Cal’s droid companion, BD-1, and Forest Whitaker returned as Saw Gerrera, a character he played in Rogue One. The music was composed by Stephen Barton and Gordy Haab and recorded at Abbey Road Studios with the London Symphony Orchestra and the Bach Choir of London.
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order was released for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One in November 2019. It later came out for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S in June 2021. Critics generally praised the game’s combat, characters, world design, and performance, though some technical issues were reported at launch. The game sold over 10 million copies by 2020 and was nominated for awards, including Best Action/Adventure Game at The Game Awards 2020. It won several honors, such as Adventure Game of the Year at the 23rd Annual D.I.C.E. Awards. A sequel, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, was released in April 2023.
Gameplay
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is an action-adventure video game played from a third-person perspective. The player controls a character who uses a lightsaber to attack enemies or block incoming strikes. Blocking an attack uses up a meter that shows how much blocking is left. When the meter reaches zero, the character is vulnerable to attacks. If the player blocks just before an attack, they can parry the attack or bounce back a projectile, which causes the enemy’s block meter to drop faster, making them easier to attack. Some enemies glow red when they prepare to use an attack that cannot be blocked. The player can avoid these attacks by moving sideways, jumping, or using Force abilities. At the start of the game, the player has one lightsaber. Later, they can learn to use two lightsabers at once or a lightsaber with two blades.
The player can use Force powers for both fighting and solving puzzles. At the beginning, the player has a "force slow" ability that slows enemies. As the game progresses, they earn more Force powers, such as wall-run, double-jump, force-push, and force-pull, which help them reach new areas. These abilities are powered by a Force meter that refills when the player harms enemies with regular attacks. As the player completes tasks, they earn skill points that can be used to improve their abilities in three areas: Survival, Lightsaber, and Force. Enemies include wild animals from different planets, stormtroopers, droids, and soldiers who hunt Jedi called Purge Troopers. Bosses include Inquisitors, bounty hunters, large wild animals, and vehicles like AT-STs. Some bosses are part of the main story, while others are optional. A droid named BD-1 travels with the player and helps open chests, access terminals, and heal the player using Stim Canisters.
The game uses a style of exploration called "Metroidvania," where players revisit areas after gaining new abilities. Five planets are available for exploration: Bogano, Zeffo, Kashyyyk, Dathomir, and Ilum. The Stinger Mantis is a central area where players can speak to characters and travel between planets. Each planet has connected areas, and players can find shortcuts once they unlock new abilities or items. BD-1 can show a map of the planet, highlighting goals in green and blocked areas in red. As players explore, BD-1 sometimes asks to scan items, which gives experience points. Chests found during exploration contain cosmetic items that change the player’s appearance, their ship, and BD-1. Players can also find "essence" items that permanently increase health or Force meter capacity, and "echoes" that reveal more story details. BD-1 can be upgraded to help with navigation and combat, though some upgrades may be missed. Each level has "meditation circles" where players can save their progress, spend skill points, refill Stim Canisters, and rest to recover health and energy. However, resting causes enemies to reappear. Losing a battle costs experience points, but lost points can be recovered by harming the enemy that defeated the player.
A 2020 update added the Meditation Arena, which can be accessed through meditation circles. The arena includes combat challenges where players fight groups of enemies from the main game. Completing challenges earns up to three stars based on the player’s health. Stars can be used to change BD-1’s appearance. The Meditation Arena also has a battle grid where players can choose their abilities and opponents for custom challenges.
Synopsis
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order takes place five years after the events of Revenge of the Sith, when the Galactic Republic, a democracy, was replaced by the Galactic Empire, a strict government. The Empire controls the galaxy and nearly destroyed the Jedi Order, the Republic’s peacekeepers. The game follows Jedi Padawan Cal Kestis, played by Cameron Monaghan, one of the few Jedi survivors after the Empire’s Great Jedi Purge. Cal tries to rebuild the Jedi Order while being hunted by the Second Sister (Elizabeth Grullón) and the Ninth Sister (Misty Lee), both trained by Sith Lord Darth Vader (Scott Lawrence) as part of the Imperial Inquisitors program. These characters were first introduced in the Marvel Comics series Star Wars: Darth Vader – Dark Lord of the Sith.
During his journey, Cal is helped by several allies, including Cere Junda (Debra Wilson), a former Jedi Knight who became a mercenary; Greez Dritus (Daniel Roebuck), a pilot who owns the ship Stinger Mantis; BD-1 (Ben Burtt), a small droid once owned by Jedi Master Eno Cordova (Tony Amendola); and Merrin (Tina Ivlev), a survivor of the Nightsister clan on Dathomir. Other characters include Saw Gerrera (Forest Whitaker), leader of a rebel group against the Empire; Dark Jedi Taron Malicos (Liam McIntyre), who took control of Dathomir; Wookiee chieftain Tarfful, who leads Wookiee resistance against the Empire and appeared in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith; and Cal’s former Jedi Master, Jaro Tapal (Travis Willingham), who appears in flashbacks with clone troopers (Dee Bradley Baker).
Five years after the Empire’s rise and the Jedi Purge, Cal hides on the planet Bracca, working as a scrapper who recycles old warships. An Imperial probe sees Cal using the Force to save his friend Prauf, and two Inquisitors—the Second Sister and the Ninth Sister—are sent to capture him. After the Second Sister kills Prauf for opposing the Empire, Cal escapes and is rescued by Cere Junda and Greez Dritus, who take him to their ship, the Mantis.
Cere takes Cal to Bogano to find an ancient vault. Along the way, Cal meets BD-1, who shows him a message from Eno Cordova. The message explains that the vault was built by the Zeffo, an ancient civilization, and that a Jedi Holocron containing a list of Force-sensitive children is hidden inside. Cere believes the list could help rebuild the Jedi Order, but accessing the vault requires following Cordova’s path. Cal travels to the Zeffo homeworld and finds a clue pointing to Tarfful, the Wookiee chieftain. On Kashyyyk, Cal meets Saw Gerrera, who helps him free an Imperial slave camp in exchange for a meeting with Tarfful. Unable to find Tarfful, Cal returns to Zeffo but is attacked by the Second Sister, who reveals herself as Trilla Suduri, Cere’s former Padawan. Trilla explains she was captured by the Empire after Cere betrayed her under torture and warns Cal of a future betrayal by Cere. Cal learns he needs a Zeffo artifact called an Astrium to access the vault but is captured by a bounty hunter working for the Haxion Brood crime syndicate. He is forced into a gladiatorial arena owned by Sorc Tormo, the Haxion boss. After Cere and Greez rescue him, Cal returns to Kashyyyk, where Tarfful tells him to investigate the pinnacle of the Origin Tree. There, Cal finds another message from Cordova, revealing the Astrium is hidden in a Zeffo tomb on Dathomir. His exploration is interrupted by the Ninth Sister, whom he defeats.
On Dathomir, Cal faces an army of revenants led by Merrin, a Nightsister who blames the Jedi for the massacre of her people during the Clone Wars. Cal recalls a memory of his former master, Jaro Tapal, who died protecting him during Order 66, accidentally destroying his lightsaber’s kyber crystal. Cal meets Taron Malicos, a former Jedi who fell to the dark side and now leads Dathomir. Malicos tries to tempt Cal to the dark side but fails when Merrin attacks them. On the Stinger Mantis, Cere admits she cut her connection to the Force after briefly falling to the dark side when she learned Trilla became an Inquisitor. After rebuilding his lightsaber on Ilum, Cal returns to Dathomir, retrieves the Astrium, and overcomes his guilt over Jaro’s death. He defeats Malicos with Merrin’s help, who agrees to join the crew.
Back on Bogano, Cal unlocks the vault and sees a vision of rebuilding the Jedi Order, only to witness them being defeated by the Empire. He joins the Empire in the vision but escapes it. Trilla attacks him and steals the Holocron. Cere becomes a Jedi again and knights Cal before they infiltrate the Fortress Inquisitorius on Mustafar’s moon Nur to recover the Holocron. They battle through stormtroopers and defeat Trilla, who is killed by Darth Vader for her failure. Cal and Cere escape Vader and are saved by Merrin. The crew celebrates their success on the Stinger Mantis until they realize the children listed on the Holocron will be in danger if they become Jedi. Cal destroys the Holocron with his lightsaber and asks his crew where they should go next.
Development
After leaving Sony's Santa Monica Studio, Stig Asmussen, who had directed God of War III, joined Respawn Entertainment in 2014. He became the studio's game director, leading the second development team while the first team worked on the Titanfall games. Before starting the game, Respawn talked with Electronic Arts (EA) about making a Star Wars game. EA had the only license from Lucasfilm to create new Star Wars games, but this plan did not happen. When this plan failed, Respawn began working on an original game idea. EA later believed the project could be a Star Wars game. Lucasfilm, which owns the Star Wars intellectual property, wanted the game to focus on a smuggler or bounty hunter, as Jedi were considered a "sacred" part of the franchise. However, Asmussen argued for a game featuring Jedi and lightsaber combat. Lucasfilm continued to review the game to ensure it matched the Star Wars setting. The game's visuals were inspired by Rogue One and Solo, as well as Star Wars Rebels, which takes place in the same time period.
Aaron Contreras led the writing team, which included Chris Avellone and other writers familiar with Star Wars from their work on Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Rebels. The team wanted to create a story between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, exploring underused Star Wars elements. Level designer Jeff Magers described the time after Episode III as "a perfect place for a video game hero, as a flickering candle of light in a very dark place." The team aimed to evoke the feel of the original Star Wars trilogy while telling an "authentic" Jedi story and a classic hero's journey. At the start of the game, Cal Kestis is not yet a Jedi, as his training ended when the Jedi were purged during Order 66. Fallen Order was designed as a "David and Goliath story," focusing on "the classic battle of good versus evil." Asmussen and Contreras also wanted to explain the Jedi's downfall with a mythology, leading to the creation of Eno Cordova and the Zeffo, who resemble Ancient Egypt.
The MacGuffin changed several times, including being a lost starship or Inquisitor's secret prisons, before becoming a Holocron. The writing team described "trauma" as a key theme, showing how people react in desperate situations. This was shown through Cal's growing confidence and trust in his companions as they resist the Empire. Another theme was "survival," but the most important was "letting go," as characters learn to trust The Force and let destiny work itself out instead of controlling everything like the Empire does. Cameron Monaghan provided voice and motion capture for Cal. The game chose a human protagonist as more relatable than an alien and made him male to differ from Rey, the female lead in the Star Wars sequel trilogy. Cal's original name was "Boone," inspired by the Western genre. He was envisioned as "untrusting" and "laconic." Elizabeth Grullon voiced the Second Sister, whose British accent was added during recording sessions. The character first appeared in the Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith comic series. The team selected characters and planets meaningful to their story, avoiding locations like Hoth and Mustafar and removing the Grand Inquisitor from the plot.
The ship Stinger Mantis was designed by Star Wars artist Doug Chiang. Its captain, Greez Dritus, belongs to a new alien species created for Fallen Order. Asmussen said the character was inspired by "John C. Reilly and Mr. Furley from Three's Company." BD-1 took two years to design. Throughout the game, Cal bonds with BD-1, a relationship Asmussen compared to Charlie Brown's friendship with Snoopy and Woodstock. The droid was initially called "bird dog" because its design resembled a bird but had a dog-like personality. Respawn designed BD-1 to be "personable" and Cal's best friend. The team first planned a bolster for BD-1 to fly but later chose a bipedal design for exploration. BD-1 has big eyes to scan objects and project a map hologram. The team initially considered giving BD-1 dialogue but instead worked with Ben Burtt to create its beeping sounds. Cal was first imagined as a "tinkerer" who builds BD-1 from scraps, but this idea was abandoned. Early designs of BD-1 resembled BB-8 from the sequel trilogy, but the design changed after seeing the The Force Awakens trailer. Purge Troopers were created with Marvel Comics. They first appeared in the Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith comic series but were introduced as enemies in Fallen Order.
Respawn wanted players to explore the world without needing too much guidance. The team was inspired by Metroid Prime, especially how new upgrades are frequently offered. The game's "Metroidvania" structure allowed players to explore freely while creating special moments. "Re-traversal" was a key design goal. The Force powers were described as "lock-and-key mechanisms" used to solve puzzles and unlock areas. The game's Metroidvania design reflected Cal's growth as he became more confident in himself and his connection to the Force. The game does not have a fast travel system, as the team believed players would explore more thoroughly and find shortcuts on their own.
The combat was described as "thoughtful" and "methodical." The team decided early on that Jedi warriors focus on "precision and efficiency." The game was not combo-based, as the team did not want players to mash buttons. Instead, players must strike enemies and use Force abilities at the right time to catch them off guard. Players must study opponents' moves and react with different tactics. To stay true to the Star Wars universe, Cal can kill stormtroopers with one lightsaber hit. To make combat challenging, some enemies had natural armor or a "Block meter." To balance difficulty, the team looked to games like Metroid, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, and Bloodborne and Dark Souls. The team did not want the game to be too hard. Difficulty modes changed enemy behavior, parry timing, and health loss. Even in the hardest mode, players could still succeed.
Release
In May 2016, publisher Electronic Arts announced a new third-person action-adventure game set in the Star Wars universe. The game was first shown at E3 2018, and a 15-minute demo was displayed at E3 2019. Development was completed on October 18, 2019, when Respawn confirmed the game had been marked as complete and ready for release. The game was released for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One on November 15, 2019, one month before the movie Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker premiered in theaters. This marked Electronic Arts' return to Steam, eight years after it stopped selling games on its own platform, Origin. The game was available in two editions: the Standard Edition and the Deluxe Edition. The Deluxe Edition included exclusive skins for BD-1 and the Stinger Mantis, a digital artbook, and a "Director's Cut" behind-the-scenes video. One of the exclusive items, an orange lightsaber crystal, was later made available to all players through an update. At launch, the game faced criticism for having many software bugs. Respawn considered delaying the release to improve the game further but chose to launch it during the holiday season.
A version of the game for Google Stadia was released on November 24, 2020. A photo mode was added in December 2019. On January 12, 2021, a free update improved performance when playing the game with backward compatibility on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S. Native versions for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S were released on June 11, 2021. These versions improved the game’s technical performance, added support for higher resolutions, and reduced loading times. The update was free for players who owned the PlayStation 4 or Xbox One versions. A free update with new cosmetics, game modes, and combat challenges was released on May 4, 2020, which coincided with Star Wars Day.
In September 2019, Marvel Comics released a tie-in comic prequel series titled Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order – Dark Temple. The comic, written by Matthew Rosenberg and illustrated by Paolo Villanelli, follows characters Cere and her master Eno Cordova as they explore the planet Ontotho. In December 2019, Respawn added an outfit based on BD-1 to its game Apex Legends. Hasbro produced three figures in the Star Wars: The Black Series line, including Cal Kestis (and BD-1), the Second Sister, and the Purge Stormtrooper. These designs were later adapted into Funko Pop! figures. Starting in March 2022, Cal Kestis’ lightsaber hilt became available for purchase at Dok-Ondar’s Den of Antiquities in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland Resort and Disney’s Hollywood Studios, following a fan poll win in 2020. At Star Wars Celebration 2022, Lego announced a BD-1 Lego model based on the game. At the 2025 Star Wars Celebration in Chiba, Japan, a manga adaptation of the game was announced.
Reception
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order received "generally favorable" reviews from critics, according to Metacritic, a website that collects and summarizes game reviews. Critics appreciated the game because it is a standalone Star Wars single-player experience and believed it combined elements from different types of games effectively. Many reviewers pointed out that the game had technical issues. The success of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, along with Marvel's Spider-Man, encouraged Disney to support game developers in creating more original games based on its properties.
The exploration aspect of the game was widely praised. Andrew Reiner from Game Informer called it the game's "most dynamic and entertaining quality," though he noted that some locations felt too "gamey," which reduced the sense of being in a real world. He disliked having to revisit planets for reasons tied to the story. Hornshaw mentioned that each planet in the game was beautifully designed and that players were rewarded for exploring beyond main paths. Ben Tyrer from GamesRadar described the game's locations as "intriguing" and compared the puzzles to those in Tomb Raider. Stepleton praised the team for their "attention to detail" and their effort to stay true to Star Wars sources, though he criticized the in-game Wookiees as "offensively ugly." Brad Shoemaker from Giant Bomb disliked the lack of a fast travel feature, which made exploration feel tedious early in the game. Tom Senior from PC Gamer described the game's locations as "massive, tangled dungeons" with a mix of beautiful settings and atmospheric Imperial bases, but he noted that the third-person exploration gameplay felt outdated.
Critics praised the combat in the game. Reiner said each lightsaber swing felt powerful and each fight was intense. Hornshaw and Senior compared the game's difficulty to Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, noting that enemies could easily defeat the player. They both said that despite the challenge, the gameplay felt rewarding and made players feel like they were controlling a strong Jedi. Reiner appreciated that the main character, Cal, was not overpowered, which made the Empire seem like a serious threat. Tyrer said the game was "demanding" but not "punishing" and praised the difficulty settings that let players adjust their experience. Sherif Saed from VG247 said the parrying mechanics were sometimes inconsistent and frustrating, and criticized some combat scenes where players faced too many enemies at once.
Reiner praised Cal as the game's main character and appreciated the bond between him and his droid, BD-1, comparing the droid to a "friendly lapdog." He liked the story's pacing and the way flashbacks helped develop characters. Phil Hornshaw from GameSpot also praised BD-1's role in the game, saying the droid was essential to the experience. He enjoyed the story, though he said it only became strong when it focused on Cal's growing friendship with supporting characters. Cal was generally well-received by critics, and supporting characters like Cere and Trilla also got praise. Grubb praised the game's writing but was disappointed that the story followed a typical Star Wars theme of good versus evil. Kat Bailey from USgamer said the story moved quickly but appreciated its dark moments.
In Japan, the PlayStation 4 version of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order sold 26,761 units in its first week, making it the fifth best-selling retail game that week. In the United Kingdom, it was the second best-selling retail game during its first week, behind Pokémon Sword and Shield. Sixty-six percent of UK sales were for the PlayStation 4 version, and 34% were for the Xbox One version. It was the fourth most successful UK launch for a physical game in 2019. In the United States, it was the second best-selling game in November and December 2019, behind Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. With only two months of sales, it was the sixth best-selling game of the year in the US and Respawn's most profitable premium title ever.
Electronic Arts confirmed that Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order had the fastest-selling digital launch for any Star Wars game in its first two weeks. The game sold over 8 million units by the end of January 2020, exceeding EA's expectations. Over 10 million units were sold by the end of March 2020. By June 2021, the game had attracted over 20 million players.
Sequel
In January 2022, Respawn Entertainment announced it was creating a sequel to Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, with Stig Asmussen returning as the director. The game was named Star Wars Jedi: Survivor and was announced in May 2022. It was released in April 2023 for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S. Respawn worked with Lucasfilm Games to develop this sequel, which takes place five years after the events of Fallen Order.
A related novel titled Star Wars Jedi: Battle Scars was published on March 7, 2023. The book was written by Sam Maggs and connects the story between Fallen Order and Survivor.