Obviously, I've been posting a lot of stuff about this awesome game, but I haven't gotten into how the game works, and whether the game's worth it. I'll go over many aspects of the game, and in the end, reveal my (not so secret) opinion. And don't worry, this is spoiler-free.
First up, let's talk graphics. I've heard people say the graphics are stunning. Star Wars Battlefront II (2017) is apparently one of the best games, when it comes to graphics, and people are comparing Jedi: Fallen Order (2019) to Battlefront II. I don't see it, though. The graphics are great, yes, but the graphics don't transition as well as they do in Battlefront II, and it doesn't seem very fluid. One example is the appearance of any wookiee. They are a mess. Literally. I encourage you to google what a wookiee looks like in this game. Furthermore, graphics don't fully load very quickly, which is fine usually, but when you're trying to settle on a new outfit or BD-1 skin or Mantis paint job, you can count on working on it for thirty minutes, maybe longer.
Next up, the combat. I started on Story difficulty, which was insanely easy. Then I leveled it up to Jedi Knight difficulty. Later, when I play, I'm going to go to Jedi Master, because in Story and Jedi Knight, I have never died. I keep hearing people say you can't play through Jedi: Fallen Order without dying, yet I'm more than 90% done with the game, and I still have no clue what happens when you die. Jedi Master should pose a challenge, however, and Jedi Grandmaster is apparently provides a true Dark Souls experience; and for those of you who don't know, Dark Souls is often considered one of the most challenging video games of all time. The combat in Jedi: Fallen Order is supposedly based off Dark Souls (if so, Dark Souls did combat right; it's awesome), so Dark Souls veterans might be right at home in Jedi Grandmaster difficulty. I'm disappointed with the locking mechanic, however. Simply moving the mouse changes your target, and since I do that a ton accidentally, I can have the perfect final blow lined up, and then the target randomly changes and my character whirls and throws the attack at an enemy that is way out of range. So, I never use the targeting system, I just maneuver my character manually.
Exploration is a big topic in this game, and it doesn't disappoint. Unfortunately, you can't explore Dathomir before Kashyyyk very effectively, or Kashyyyk before Zeffo, so in the end, the order of planets you explore is linear. But the maps are quite the opposite, and have plenty of options for how to get to places. If you want to get from Point A to Point B, there'll often be at least 2-3 ways to get there, though there are a bunch of exceptions to this. Overall, I'm thrilled with exploration.
The story is EPIC. A point was brought up about character development, and I concede that Cal is one of the few characters who actually has good character development, but it is, nonetheless, a great story. The ending shocked me, though I won't say why so we avoid spoilers.
Lastly, I want to touch on customization. The Mantis customization must have something right, because I'm thoroughly unhappy with each paint scheme. Why is that a good thing? Because I went in not caring, and now I wish I had more options. BD-1 customization is small and insignificant, yet I always seem to be bugged when it doesn't match my outfits, which goes back to the game making me care. (There are a few good BD-1 skins that make me cheer, including one that looks black in sunlight but a reflective gold in artificial lighting.) Cal's ponchos have neat designs, yet I usually leave them off, now that I've unlocked the Outlaw outfit design for Cal, which makes him look like a Sith. Lightsaber customization is the highlight, though. I touched on that with another article, but what I'll say is, it's definitely the highlight of not only customization, but the entire game.
What is my final impression? Best. Game. Ever. In my opinion, anyways. I love everything from the bottom up, and I can see myself spending a ton of time on this game. It's truly a masterpiece, and takes everything I want Star Wars to be and makes it playable. I haven't played the Force Unleashed games, yet I'd wager Jedi: Fallen Order is on the same level as Force Unleashed, if not better.
Also, to put your concerns to rest, you can count on this being one of the final Jedi: Fallen Order posts. I might occasionally post with funny stories, fan-fiction short stories, or related content, but this is the final major post dedicated to the game.
First up, let's talk graphics. I've heard people say the graphics are stunning. Star Wars Battlefront II (2017) is apparently one of the best games, when it comes to graphics, and people are comparing Jedi: Fallen Order (2019) to Battlefront II. I don't see it, though. The graphics are great, yes, but the graphics don't transition as well as they do in Battlefront II, and it doesn't seem very fluid. One example is the appearance of any wookiee. They are a mess. Literally. I encourage you to google what a wookiee looks like in this game. Furthermore, graphics don't fully load very quickly, which is fine usually, but when you're trying to settle on a new outfit or BD-1 skin or Mantis paint job, you can count on working on it for thirty minutes, maybe longer.
Next up, the combat. I started on Story difficulty, which was insanely easy. Then I leveled it up to Jedi Knight difficulty. Later, when I play, I'm going to go to Jedi Master, because in Story and Jedi Knight, I have never died. I keep hearing people say you can't play through Jedi: Fallen Order without dying, yet I'm more than 90% done with the game, and I still have no clue what happens when you die. Jedi Master should pose a challenge, however, and Jedi Grandmaster is apparently provides a true Dark Souls experience; and for those of you who don't know, Dark Souls is often considered one of the most challenging video games of all time. The combat in Jedi: Fallen Order is supposedly based off Dark Souls (if so, Dark Souls did combat right; it's awesome), so Dark Souls veterans might be right at home in Jedi Grandmaster difficulty. I'm disappointed with the locking mechanic, however. Simply moving the mouse changes your target, and since I do that a ton accidentally, I can have the perfect final blow lined up, and then the target randomly changes and my character whirls and throws the attack at an enemy that is way out of range. So, I never use the targeting system, I just maneuver my character manually.
Exploration is a big topic in this game, and it doesn't disappoint. Unfortunately, you can't explore Dathomir before Kashyyyk very effectively, or Kashyyyk before Zeffo, so in the end, the order of planets you explore is linear. But the maps are quite the opposite, and have plenty of options for how to get to places. If you want to get from Point A to Point B, there'll often be at least 2-3 ways to get there, though there are a bunch of exceptions to this. Overall, I'm thrilled with exploration.
The story is EPIC. A point was brought up about character development, and I concede that Cal is one of the few characters who actually has good character development, but it is, nonetheless, a great story. The ending shocked me, though I won't say why so we avoid spoilers.
Lastly, I want to touch on customization. The Mantis customization must have something right, because I'm thoroughly unhappy with each paint scheme. Why is that a good thing? Because I went in not caring, and now I wish I had more options. BD-1 customization is small and insignificant, yet I always seem to be bugged when it doesn't match my outfits, which goes back to the game making me care. (There are a few good BD-1 skins that make me cheer, including one that looks black in sunlight but a reflective gold in artificial lighting.) Cal's ponchos have neat designs, yet I usually leave them off, now that I've unlocked the Outlaw outfit design for Cal, which makes him look like a Sith. Lightsaber customization is the highlight, though. I touched on that with another article, but what I'll say is, it's definitely the highlight of not only customization, but the entire game.
What is my final impression? Best. Game. Ever. In my opinion, anyways. I love everything from the bottom up, and I can see myself spending a ton of time on this game. It's truly a masterpiece, and takes everything I want Star Wars to be and makes it playable. I haven't played the Force Unleashed games, yet I'd wager Jedi: Fallen Order is on the same level as Force Unleashed, if not better.
Also, to put your concerns to rest, you can count on this being one of the final Jedi: Fallen Order posts. I might occasionally post with funny stories, fan-fiction short stories, or related content, but this is the final major post dedicated to the game.
*shutters at wookiee* btw, that is what they looked like in the original release of Battlefront II
ReplyDeleteThis is a great review! it is concise, but tells me a lot!
Didn't know that, but I know that's how Chewie looks in Battlefront (2015) :D
DeleteIt's hardly concise lol
This isn't concise? Trust me, ANY video game review can be REALLY long, so...yeah, concise. :P
DeleteWhether or not something is concise is dependent on the reviewer's abilities
DeleteFor instance, I write generally short reviews, and in comparison to them, this is really long, so for me, this isn't concise. Compared to others? Yeah it's concise, but for me, it's really NOT
Those wookies are kind of scary. Ooh, Dark Souls is hard. I hope JFO isn't that similar.
ReplyDeleteFrom what I can tell (mostly through youtube videos and reviews, as I've never played Dark Souls), only the hardest game mode in J:FO is actually similar to Dark Souls in difficulty
DeleteI've tried Grandmaster, and I decided I needed to play through the game completely on Master, first xD