[UPDATE: Recent rumors and reports indicate Cal Kestis will still be themain character ofStar Wars Jedi: Survivor, but he may not be the only one playable. Original story follows.]
As the month of May slowly marches toward its end,Star Warsfans are no doubt eagerly awaiting therelease ofObi-Wan Kenobion Disney Plus. There’s also Star Wars Celebration, where EA and Respawn are expected to unveilStar Wars Jedi: Survivor.
WARNING: Potential Spoilers for Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order AheadPer Jeff Grubb’s reporting, this game will be the sequel toFallen Order, releasing in early 2023 on PC and current-gen consoles. While this should be taken with a grain of salt, the information comes from a reliable source. And, ifStar Wars Jediis changing its subtitle, it could be changing its protagonist—which would bode well for the first game’s obviousDarth Vader problem.
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Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order’s Darth Vader Problem
Darth Vader is, without a doubt, one of the most popular characters in the franchise. Darth Vader’s role in the original trilogy would indubitably leave a huge mark on the franchise—leading to the prequel trilogy about the fall of Anakin Skywalker and the rise of Darth Vader. His appearance everywhere is usually well-received, whether that’sStar Wars Rebels,non-canonically inStar Wars: The Force Unleashed, and so on. The hype for Darth Vader inObi-Wan Kenobisimply cannot be understated.
These moments are appreciated because they show what Darth Vader was doing betweenRevenge of the SithandA New Hope, and each of the aforementioned flesh out his character a little—even if it ultimately goes nowhere. Fans know that Darth Vader doesn’t turn, die, or become even more seriously injured beforeA New Hope. Some fans are even worried abouthow Darth Vader and Obi-Wan will go in the show, given some dialogue between the two inA New Hope, but there’s potential there nonetheless.
The problem is that Darth Vader is much more of a background character inJedi: Fallen Order,used to flesh out Cal’s story rather than his own. Indeed, it’s an incredibly similar trope even to Vader’s role inStar Wars Rebels. So it ultimately adds nothing new, and whenCal comes face-to-face with Vader, they know nothing serious can come out of it. Sure, Vader is intimidating, but that cannot carry his role in a story. It’s much more focused on the Inquisitors, which is fine and super interesting, but now that Cal’s on Vader’s radar, there’s no real direction it can go. Cal is not Luke.
Why Star Wars Jedi: Survivor Could Be An Anthology Series
Because of this, Cal’s story is somewhat trapped. Darth Vader has to play a role, but that role is largely predictable. No matter how the encounters go, Vader either eliminates Cal or Cal escapes to no real consequence. The entire dynamic between the two becomes lackluster, but there’s reason to suspectCal Kestis may not be the protagonist ofStar Wars Jedi: Survivor.
The key element is the colon: thegame series isStar Wars Jedi, notStar Wars Jedi Fallen Order. This could be taken as a Jedi anthology of games, where each entry explores a new Jedi. Whether they remain in the Dark Times or not remains to be seen, but hopefully not every entry would be limited to this time—Survivor does indicate this entry could, though. That doesn’t mean Cal’s story is over, it just means more stories can be explored.
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The colon and subtitle change are incredibly reminiscent of theAssassin’s Creedfranchise, which cycles through new main characters.Star Wars Jedicould, and maybe should, be just that. The question of what Jedi should replace Cal Kestis is a big one, though. It could be as big asObi-Wan Kenobi being the main character ofStar Wars Jedi: Survivor,one of the Fallen Order characters (Cere? Merrin), a character from otherStar Warsmedia sources, or another brand new character. No matter how it approaches this, if it does, there are plenty of options.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor and Getting Away From Darth Vader
IfStar Wars Jedi: Survivoris an anthology moving to a new character, that automatically cuts Darth Vader’s story off from Cal Kestis. Now, maybe Cere would fall into the same trap, but there are many possibilities that open a story where Vader may not be personally involved. KeepingStar Wars' Inquisitorsinvolved would still be interesting, but just because they work for Vader doesn’t mean Vader has to be directly involved. Maybe while he’s “hunting” Cal, another character can be undertaking their own unique journey. Maybe there are new Dark Jedi, Dark Side Forces, Sith-like characters, and so on that could be introduced as threats to whoever the new protagonist is.
Either way,Star Wars Jedi: Survivorhas a chance to get away from Darth Vader, and it’s probably for the best if it did.
