Star Wars: The Old Republic story explored in full mission video

By Adam Rosenberg August 1, 2011

Image used with permission by copyright holder

We may not have a hard-set release date yet for BioWare‘s inaugural MMORPG, Star Wars: The Old Republic, but the fact that pre-orders are being taken and a collector’s edition has been announced indicates that the game is on target to arrive this holiday season. It’s hard to really get a sense of what the developer is doing differently without actually playing the game, and although that’s still not an option you can get the next best thing with this newly released extended clip.

Electronic Arts has released a full video playthrough of a single mission taken from early in the game. Accompanied by commentary by BioWare director of production Dallas Dickinson, the video aims to show off those elements that make The Old Republic special in comparison to other MMOs. The increased focus on a narrative is highlighted best, as you can see multiple fully voiced cutscenes play out over the course of the 13-minute video. Improved graphics and UI elements aside, these scenes could easily have been pulled from the developer’s Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, which is regarded by many as the franchise’s best video game.

If The Old Republic demonstrates the same emphasis on building an absorbing Star Wars story that KOTOR did, it could be a winner. While some early previews have criticized the gameplay for feeling too much like World of Warcraft, The Old Republic‘s multiple classes — each with its own story spanning tens of hours — appear to offer players yet another reason to invest in the MMO for long-term play.

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Previously, Adam worked in the games press as a freelance writer and critic for a range of outlets, including Digital Trends…

Gaming

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor brings balance back to an unstable universe

Jedi Cal Kestis.

It’s funny to think about how much has changed about Star Wars since EA released Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order in 2019. The action-adventure game would launch just weeks before The Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, a polarizing conclusion to its sequel trilogy that would create a disturbance in the force. In the years since, Disney has entirely changed its approach to the series by expanding the cinematic universe with a mixed bag of content, from the critically acclaimed Andor to more middling projects like The Book of Boba Fett. More than ever, the series is in desperate need of stability. It’s somewhat fitting, then, that Star Wars Jedi: Survivor could be the project that gets Star Wars back on track.

During a demo event ahead of the sequel’s April 28 release, I got to play a sizable chunk of the game – spanning over three hours of playtime. What stood out most during that session wasn’t its visual glow-up or fleshed-out combat. Rather, it was how tightly packaged it all is, both as a AAA video game and as a piece of Star Wars media. It’s an almost classic Jedi adventure, filled with dramatic lightsaber battles and some lighthearted comedy in-between the galactic melodrama. It’s hard to imagine anyone being upset over it (though the fan base always finds a way, doesn’t it?).

Gaming

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor will now release in April following delay

EA and Respawn Entertainment need a bit more time to create Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, so the game has been delayed until April 28.
Originally set to release on March 17 at The Game Awards 2022, this delay pushes the highly anticipated Star Wars game back by more than a month. In a tweet explaining the delay, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor director Stig Asmussen explains that the game is "content complete," but needs more time to "enhance performance, stability, polish, and most importantly, the player experience." Ultimately, he believes this six-week delay will allow the development team "to hit the Respawn quality bar, provide the team the time they need, and achieve the level of polish our fans deserve." You can read the full message in the tweet below:
https://twitter.com/eastarwars/status/1620527593580806145
Thankfully, a six-week delay isn't that lengthy in the video game industry, so Star Wars fans will only have to wait a little while longer to experience Cal Kestis' next adventure. Today hasn't been the best for Respawn Entertainment fans, though, as the developer also announced it would shut down the mobile version of Apex Legends.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is the sequel to 2019's Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, a single-player action-adventure game that followed the journey of former Padawan Cal Kestis between the events of Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope. This sequel takes place five years after that game, with Cal Kestis actor Cameron Monaghan telling Digital Trends that the narrative has an "emotionally complicated center where we’re exploring some challenging questions." Hopefully, that all makes this game worth the wait.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor now releases for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S on April 28.

Gaming

First Star Wars Jedi: Survivor trailer features dual-lightsaber combat, open-world teases

Cal Kestis with BD-1 droid on his shoulder.

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is launching on March 17, 2023, for Xbox Series X, PlayStation 5, and PC. The action-adventure game received an impressive trailer during The Game Awards that showed off several new features and teased some potential open-world aspects.
Survivor takes place five years after 2019’s Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, continuing the adventures of Cal Kestis and his droid pal BD-1. Cal is no longer a young Padawan and is now a full-blown Jedi. The much larger scope of the game seems to reflect that change.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor - Official Reveal Trailer
Combat is notably evolved in the trailer, as Cal can now freely use a dual-lightsaber stance in battle. Later, we see him enter “cross guard” stance as he takes down droids with heavy, two-handed slashes. EA tells Digital Trends that the goal of the sequel is to give players more agency when it comes to their playstyle.
Traversal plays a large role in the clip too. In addition to swinging around via grappling points, Cal is seen mounted on animals. He’s shown riding the back of a four-legged creature and using a winged one like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild’s glider. The clip seems to imply that the game’s planets might be more open-ended than Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order’s, as one shot shows Cal peering out over a gigantic vista. EA notes that the sequel is still largely a Metroidvania-inspired title where Cal gets new abilities over time.
Cal has a new human companion this time named Bode Akuna. In one clip, we see Bode flipping over Cal’s back to attack an enemy with a combo move.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor was built with current-generation consoles in mind, with ray tracing being a major focus. It appears to be a graphically impressive showcase that features more dynamic lighting and flashy lightsaber effects. The adventure won’t launch on PS4 or Xbox One, but it’ll be available for PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC on March 17, 2023.