DISCUSSION: Jedi Fallen Order (SPOILER TALK)
When I wrote my Jedi Fallen Order review, I only covered the basic outline of the story without going over some of the major spoilers of the game. I mentioned that I liked the story, and a lot that happened in it I enjoyed, but I thought the story and characters could have been fleshed out more. Now, here is my chance to go over the specific story of the game, and tell what I liked, didn't like, and what could be added in a potential new game.
Cal's journey
I think the best part of the story for me was the personal journey Cal undertakes in the game. We see him go from scared and apprehensive about fighting, to him fulling embracing his role as a Jedi and his connection with the force. I think a good way the game does this is by making him go against individuals who reflect on what he could be if he were to turn or abandoned his light-side nature, such as the Second Sister and Ninth Sister, and former Jedi turned Dark Jedi turned Taron Malicos.
I also think the game was smart by having the story represent the player getting new powers, by having Cal reconnect more and more with the force, until, like the player, he is at his fullest potential at the end of the game with powers and a new lightsaber. To me, the game does a good job making you feel sorry for Cal, and wanting him to push forward, to the point where, by the end of the game, when you feel like a badass, Cal, in a way, can grow like that as well.
Also, I can't deny one of the best and most impactful sequences in the game, where you play as a young Cal during Order 66, having to fight your way through clone troopers and watch your master die right in front of you.
Cere's journey
Throughout the game, we learn more and more about Cal's informal mentor in the game, Cere Junda. It turns out, she is a former Jedi who cut herself off from the force, at least until the very end of the game, due to her, while tortured by the Empire, giving the location away of her padawan, Trilla, who turns out to be the Second Sister, the main villain of the game.
I thought the twist worked well, as I liked the ways Trilla and Cal fought and interacted with each other in the game. I also thought Trilla was a great villain in her own right. I also liked the arc Cere undertook in the game, as she both guides Cal, while at the same time, opens up her own past traumas and works to put them past her.
That being said, while I thought the scenes with Cal and Cere were good, I thought a lot of the writing between them were cliche, and I would have liked a few more "organic" scenes with the two of them together, to really make me feel for their relationship more.
Other characters
This leads to my biggest problem with the story to me. I didn't think it was a bad story, and I was invested until the end, but I thought everything could have been explored more. I thought the story was going to go beyond finding the Jedi holocron, but never really does.
BD-1 and Cal are perfect together, and to me, they are the heart of the game. Greez on the other hand, the pilot of the ship, I thought was OK, as to me, he really wasn't that well developed or shared a lot of scenes together with the other cast to make much of an impact.
The same thing goes with the Nightsister introduced in the game, Merrin. Unlike Greez, I really liked her character, backstory, and dynamic with Cal. The problem, she becomes a member of your team right at the end of the game, so she really doesn't have enough time to leave much of an impact.
Again, I liked how the story ended, with Cal destroying the holocron to prevent the Empire from finding the force-sensitive children. The problem, that's where it ends. You are not always granted a sequel, (looking at you Force Unleashed 2), so I didn't like the idea of ending the game on a cliffhanger, even if I would love to explore the characters and worlds more in a direct sequel.
I hope that if the game does get a direct sequel, the game gets truly bigger in every way, not just with the exploration, gameplay, and world-building, but with its story, its character dynamics and interactions, and with the overall stakes and plot.
Vader
Vader has a real knack for stealing the show when he appears. First in Rogue One, now in this game. After Kal defeats Trilla, Vader comes and kills her for her failure. From there, it is, ironically, pure joy for me, as you have no choice but to run from your life from Vader, as the game wisely doesn't give you the option to fight him.
His whole sequence, and his interactions with Cal and Cere were easily one of, if not the biggest highlight of the game for me, and certainly ends the game on a memorable note.
