Star Wars: Jedi Survivor from Respawn

[schmojo]

If they can solve the problem of getting caught in a circuitous map, miles away from your destination, then it'll be a huge improvement.

 

Y'know, fast travel. Because the maps in Fallen Order are labyrinthine as fuck and getting out of them is super dull.

[BabelRich]

The maps were my biggest issue with the game. Outside of Kashyyyk they were like Mario Sunshine Void levels. Loads of islands seemingly floating in the air with no sense of place. Sort that out and we’ll be golden(rod). 

[Mr. Gerbik]

I think it was mostly the license that let it down. Without the Star Wars name and look, you'd have a far more appealing game. That franchise makes for a bad first impression nowadays - I can imagine many bouncing off because of that.

 

It would be good if for the sequel they'd drop the Star Wars name. Maybe make it first person too and add huge robots that like, fall from the sky. Add some wall running and maybe also add a 3 at the end to indicate that a game without the Star Wars license is three times as good as a game with that smelly wookie nonsense.

 

[hmm]

I fairly massively disagree with that. I'm no SW fanatic but Fallen Order tapped straight into whichever part of my brain is responsible for - and enjoys - recognising things being Star Wars-y. It's a distinctive, rich universe and there's a huge amount of shorthand they can use when working within it. Sure, there have been decades of subpar films now, but I don't think that's particularly undermined the magic of the original universe or reduced the ability for other forms of media to do great work with it. I'd agree that, generally speaking, we're somewhat at saturation point with the SW brand but I don't think that's true at all within the gaming space - if anything, it's underrepresented there.

 

I'm hugely looking forward to a sequel personally. I hope they find a way of allowing some fresh RPG progression without a silly amnesia plotline or whatever, and like everyone I hope they have had some therapy for their sliding fetish, but I'm pretty confident it's going to be brilliant.

[Captain Kelsten]

12 hours ago, Mr. Gerbik said:

I think it was mostly the license that let it down. Without the Star Wars name and look, you'd have a far more appealing game. That franchise makes for a bad first impression nowadays - I can imagine many bouncing off because of that.

 

It would be good if for the sequel they'd drop the Star Wars name. Maybe make it first person too and add huge robots that like, fall from the sky. Add some wall running and maybe also add a 3 at the end to indicate that a game without the Star Wars license is three times as good as a game with that smelly wookie nonsense.

 

 

Think it's the exact opposite. It was a mediocre game saved from oblivion due to the licence, which probably saw it get more sales than it otherwise would have. I think the most lavish praise you could put on the game is 'yeah, it was alright'.

[Thor]

Nah, it's a genuinely great game, but moreso for Star Wars fans. Subjectivity and all that.

[davejm]

On 30/05/2022 at 11:54, Thor said:

Nah, it's a genuinely great game, but moreso for Star Wars fans. Subjectivity and all that.

 

I loved pretty much everything about it, and it felt good to have a good Star Wars game to enjoy again.

[Ran]

Aye, I thought it was great despite the odd niggle (didn't even mind the slides all that much)

I thought it was really well paced and the sense of progressing from an inexperienced, broken Jedi to a capable warrior was really good.

I would love the combat to incorporate more mobility and acrobatics (like the old Jedi Knight games) but it probably wouldn't gel well with the souls like model they have started with.

It will be interesting to see how progression is handled or whether there's some cheesy metroiding to take Cal back to square one (I don't think they will)

[Mogster]

If you think the license makes it less appealing, try picking up a stick around and pretending its a sword. Now do the same, but make "vrrrm, vrrm" lightsaber noises.

 

I loved the first game, and definitely felt it was elevated by the license. The main thing I'd ask of the sequel is for the combat to be tightened up a bit, and for less sliding down slopes of course.

[ZOK]

On 28/05/2022 at 18:29, FishyFish said:

I played Control not long after Fallen Order, and thought the Jedi-like powers you had in that game were much better realised than the ones in FO.

Correct. Control is the best Jedi game going, they just need to shove some Star Wars in it.

[Harsin]

I thought it was the definition of a 7/10 game myself.

[Kayin Amoh]

I'm assuming everyone knows that @Mr. Gerbik was making a joke about how he wants Titanfall 3 above Jedi Survivor? Totally valid viewpoint given how rad the previous games were.

 

That said, I thought the original of this was a generally good game with a surprisingly strong storyline and exceptional fanservice. That bit at the end? THAT BIT? That's how you do bits like that bit. Phenomenally done, and showing laudable constraint in their own creation.

 

People have mentioned hoping Survivor takes lessons from Sekiro, and while I doubt they will it would be a great move for the flow of battle. Specifically the sense of impact - sure, a lightsaber's not going to feel like a katana, but Sekiro had very satisfying physical feedback on your actions in combat. Fallen Order typically didn't.

[hmm]

Seemed to me that the first paragraph was a genuine point about the franchise being a millstone and the second was a joke/wish about TF3.

[dreamylittledream]

1 hour ago, hmm said:

Seemed to me that the first paragraph was a genuine point about the franchise being a millstone and the second was a joke/wish about TF3.

Surely it was all heavily ironic as one of the primary reasons the game did so well was because of the licence (unlike the much critically acclaimed but poor selling Titanfall games), and the game was a little rough around the edges in places but gave superb Star Wars fan service.

 

That said I though the first game was great overall doing Star Wars x Tomb Raider/Uncharted with a tiny dash of Soulsbourne (and it was only a tiny bit, it was hardly crushingly difficult) and I’m fully signed up for a sequel.

[Ran]

I am starting to wonder if..

Spoiler

Maybe they'll utilise Merrin as a player character learning to use the force more like a Jedi and Cal will be offed or at least not the only player character.

 

[womblingfree]

Fallen Order had the feeling of being thematically cobbled together, a bit of Uncharted, some Soulsbourne, a bit of Mario 64 and a bunch of other stuff. Likewise the planets were mostly rather flat and barren.

 

It worked remarkably well though, and apart from the truly dreadful looking Wookies, looked amazing.

I mean, if Respawn can produce Fallen Order from nothing to a deadline, I’m presuming the next one will be a masterpiece.

[Thor]

On 31/05/2022 at 10:33, Ran said:

I am starting to wonder if..

  Hide contents

Maybe they'll utilise Merrin as a player character learning to use the force more like a Jedi and Cal will be offed or at least not the only player character.

 

Agree with the former, but I don't like the latter.

Spoiler

Cal Kestis is a really good, likeable character, with the player joining him on his journey to become a fully fledged Jedi. Killing him in the next game would be ... unfair, I feel, at least at this early stage.

 

[Ran]

11 minutes ago, Thor said:

Agree with the former, but I don't like the latter.

  Hide contents

Cal Kestis is a really good, likeable character, with the player joining him on his journey to become a fully fledged Jedi. Killing him in the next game would be ... unfair, I feel, at least at this early stage.

 

Same here, I liked the character and thought he did a great job. (Pretty much true of the entire cast, I felt everyone involved fulfilled their roles perfectly)

[BitterToad]

I really really liked Fallen Order. The maps were atrocious obviously and that's a big thing that needs to be fixed in the sequel but other than that and some weirdly uninspiring locations in its first few levels I thought it was a really great time and a fantastic use of the Star Wars license. There were a lot of people on here and elsewhere saying it was "only good because of the Star Wars license" but for me that's like saying jam donuts would be shit without the jam in them. Yeah. That's why there's fucking jam (/Star Wars) in there. 

 

I felt like a Jedi. The story was great. I could force push and cut bastards up. It was probably an 8/10 but that's fine! 8/10s are fun! 

[Ferine]

I think Cal was good and well realised, however he was a) surrounded by more interesting characters, and b) a Jedi, who are ideologically boring.

 

My hope for the sequel is that it has Cal examine what being a Jedi means to him, given the old Order was a self-evident failure and he's travelling with different types of Force users. Maybe the person in the tank could be a Jedi from a bygone era who doesn't even recognise the dogma Cal was taught, that kind of thing.

 

As for the game itself, the first is a good foundation even if it was rather rickety in spots. Hopefully being current-gen only will help smooth over some of the map design/loading corridor restrictions, as re-navigating the environments could be a real slog.

[Sexton Hardcastle]

You ain’t getting any of that shit. It’ll be Evil Cal clone, who will have a black cape & act as boss encounters throughout the game. 

[Pob]

In general I much prefer open games to linear ones but in the case of Fallen Order I would've preferred if the whole game was a bit more Uncharted-like (or even Titanfall 2-like) rather than trying for Dark Soulsy level design. Perhaps they just didn't apply the formula very well, but it felt a bit pedestrian and quiet. Whoever said that the different worlds felt like a series of platforms rather than actual organic environments was spot on. By far my two favourite locations were the opening on Bracca and the final level in the Inquisitorious base, both of which were linear and more set-piece based.

 

I also thought it came alive in the final boss battle, so perhaps it would've benefitted from me bumping up the difficulty.

[RubberJohnny]

Yes, there's a solid 6 hr Respawn setpiece-driven campaign in there buried under another twelve hours of filler Crash Bandicoot platforming and endless backtracking.

[womblingfree]

Why are people hiding the name

Spoiler

Merrin

?

[Wiper]

I'm choosing to imagine that it's because everyone is choosing to shield others' eyes from the fact that there's a character in the game

Spoiler

seemingly named after a Merry and Pippin slash fiction ship name.

 

But in reality I imagine that it's just that

Spoiler

you do encounter the character before she becomes an ally, so those could be spoilers for people who've not played/finished the original yet.

 

[Talvalin]

Anyone reading a thread about a sequel is no position to complain about spoilers for the previous game. On that note, there are rumours of the game featuring two playable characters, so it is possible that Merrin will be one of them.

 

If Survivor is going to go full Metroidvania, the game could start out with Cal in fully powered up form before he gets injured (I doubt he will get killed off, because that would a terrible waste of his character development in the first game) and Merrin has to take over.

[womblingfree]

The Night Sisters are seriously under explored in Star Wars so I’d love to see more of them.

[Kayin Amoh]

I heavily dislike the 'kill off the previous hero' trope. It's a good way to annoy people who liked them, and just because someone's story arc is done that doesn't mean they should be summarily murdered as a cheap plot point for their annoying, less interesting replacement.

 

Not that it can't be done effectively, it just pretty much never is.

[Ran]

Despite my guess I'd be more than happy for Cal to start with the same suite of powers he ended fallen order with and the progression system exploring mostly sideways rather than continuing with the metroid aspect (I'm not keen on memorising places to return to when the obvious key to unlock them gets added to your repertoire)

They'll probably stick to a similar template though and it's easy to start wishing for a completely different game whilst ignoring how much you enjoyed the first one, I just want to hear more. I hope we get a proper look at it sooner rather than later.

(I don't expect stormtrooper limbs and heads to be flying off again but bits of armour shearing off and leaving more obvious burns/scars would compliment the brutal finishers better at least)

[Benny]

Can't wait for Star Wars: Secret Ponchos 2.

 

Spoiler

Yeah I've been sitting on that one for a while.