Nowadays, it’s common for games to receive a story expansion after launch. These are designed to add new features that evolve gameplay and further develop the cast of characters. For games that exist within larger franchises like Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, DLC stories may provide slice-of-life adventures or teases for potential sequels. For example, Marvel’s Spider-Man: The City That Never Sleeps is a great example of a self-contained story that only teases Miles Morales training to use his new powers.
However, Jedi: Fallen Order never got story DLC. The game follows follows Order 66 in a story that explores locations and characters from the Star Wars franchise’s past, but instead of more story content, players who complete the game are treated to new features like a challenge mode and New Game Plus. While the lack of story DLC may have disappointed gamers who enjoyed Fallen Order‘s narrative, the lack of such content is ultimately better for the game as a whole, allowing it to shine through its challenges.
One factor that sets Jedi: Fallen Order apart from other Star Wars titles is its punishing gameplay. Taking a page from games like Demon’s Souls and Bloodborne, Fallen Order ensures players can’t easily decimate enemies without a solid strategy. As a result, even the most unsuspecting enemies have an opportunity to defeat a player if they let them.
The game’s bosses chiefly represent this, with their attacks and patterns being both unpredictable and devastating. However, another example comes from bounty hunters and large animals that can strike at any time. They feature their own unique move sets that force the player to adapt quickly, acting as mini-bosses that could either present a difficult challenge or an insurmountable obstacle depending on how they’re approached. Furthermore, because they strike at random, these seemingly basic enemies constantly keep players on their toes, which is effective when navigating multiple large worlds.
Because of this natural inclination to explore, Fallen Order tricks players into lowering their guard as they focus on finding items. Coupled with the unpredictability of the enemies and their massive damage output, it’s easy to end up at a major disadvantage. Familiar areas become foreign thanks to a massive creature or a pair of aggressive bounty hunters. It proves that, even without an expanded story, the game can still keep players engaged.
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order shows how content available in a base game can more than make up for a lack of story DLC. Thanks to the game’s challenge maps, players can put their skills to the test and devote their attacks to memory before returning to explore the different worlds. Through this effort, players will become more prepared for the environments and larger enemies when they appear, which aren’t always the same. Jedi: Fallen Order didn’t receive story DLC because it didn’t need it — and that’s great for both players and the developers who may have had more time to work on a sequel.
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