Star Wars’ Next Game Should Avoid Jedi, Outlaws’ Shared Gimmick

Posted by By our-little-miss-is-home February 11, 2025 4 Views 5 Min Read
Star Wars' Next Game Should Avoid Jedi, Outlaws' Shared Gimmick
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Star Wars games are well into their new frontier following the end of EA’s exclusivity deal in 2023, leading to the release of games like Star Wars Outlaws and the upcoming Eclipse. However, with more studios able to take a swing at the franchise, there’s one trend (followed by games like Star Wars Outlaws and the Jedi series) that future titles need to buck.

Following the fallout of Battlefront 2‘s lootbox fiasco, fans became incredibly critical of EA’s exclusivity deal over Star Wars games—which began in 2013 and ended in 2023. These critiques were of both the quality and quantity of games being released, with many viewing EA’s control as a problem for the IP. The release of Fallen Order in 2019, a single-player game in the midst of many multiplayer titles, softened the blow somewhat—and its position in the twilight years of this deal made it the signpost of a new era in Star Wars gaming.

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Future Star Wars Games Need To Bench Darth Vader For A While

Following the end of EA’s exclusivity deal, new Star Wars games are starting to spring up left and right. While games like Star Wars Outlaws haven’t been as warmly received as other titles in the franchise, the greater variety in genre and studio is very much welcome. Now, a trend has started to pick up with these games: the repeated inclusion of Darth Vader. The Empire’s ruthless chief enforcer, undoubtedly the single most recognizable character in the franchise, saw a bombastic appearance in the climax of Fallen Order. Still, his appearances have become consistently less and less justified, leading to some oversaturation.

From Unstoppable Threat To Cameo, Vader Should Return To The Shadows

One of the most memorable moments in any Star Wars game is the boss fight against Vader in Jedi: Fallen Order—precisely because calling the battle a ‘boss fight’ would be a misnomer. Fans were impressed with how Vader was represented as an unstoppable Sith lord that young Cal Kestis couldn’t hope to scratch. The player’s only option is to run from Vader, before eventually needing to distract Vader with the weight of an ocean’s worth of flooding (which the dark lord is still able to hold at bay). It’s an incredibly impressive send-off to the game, one which saw near universal acclaim.

Unfortunately for any follow-up attempts, this moment in Jedi: Fallen Order only worked because of the unlikely crossing between Cal and Vader. Cal’s effort is insignificant to Vader and certainly isn’t characterized as something the Sith villain passionately pursued. Rather, future Vader moments (such as those seen in Survivor and Outlaws) live in the shadow of Fallen Order due to their inevitable proliferation of the character; it seems absurd to suggest that Darth Vader would involve himself with every other going-on in the Empire, especially when it comes to the events of a game like Outlaws.

Not every Star Wars story can have the fate of the galaxy rest in its hands, and that’s a good thing. This means, though, that not every story should use a central antagonist like Darth Vader. His ubiquitousness throughout Star Wars games has made the incredible breadth of the galaxy feel smaller, which is a problem the mainline franchise already struggles with.

Future Star Wars games should avoid bringing in Vader, as using him anymore would make him feel like a mere cameo as opposed to the gravitas he carried back in Fallen Order. Darth Vader’s appearances in these games still feel in character for the dark lord, but the risk of character dilution from overexposure is high if his overuse continues.

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