STAR WARS JEDI: FALLEN ORDER: A PADAWAN LEARNS TO PARRY

8.5 of 10 bananas. Real lightsaber weight, a lovable droid, and planets worth backtracking, held back by rough edges.

By the Alpha. PS4 disc listing. Updated Oct 12 2026.

Honest note: This is not a fresh hands-on playtest. I built this verdict from launch reviews, critic consensus, patch history, and what is known about the game today. If I put real hours in on stream, I will update the score and say so.

Platforms: The Amazon button is the PS4 disc (Electronic Arts). At my check Amazon showed it in stock from a third-party seller. Check the seller and price before you pay. The PS4 disc plays on PS5, and Respawn shipped a 2021 update that improved resolution and frame rate on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. It is also on Xbox One and PC on Steam.

Sit with me a moment. Every young gorilla in my troop has swung a stick and made the hum with his mouth. Fallen Order is the first game in years that made that hum feel earned. The first time I parried a Purge Trooper, waited, then struck, I understood that Respawn built a saber game that asks for patience before flash.

What It Wants To Be

Respawn's 2019 adventure follows Cal Kestis, a Padawan hiding after Order 66, as he tries to rebuild the Jedi Order with his droid BD-1 and the crew of the Mantis. It mixes deliberate, parry-first combat inspired by Souls games with explorable planets you open up as Cal recovers his Force powers.

What Works

The combat has weight. Blocks, parries, and stamina matter, and boss duels feel like real saber fights. BD-1 is one of the best companions in any Star Wars story. The planets, Bogano, Zeffo, Kashyyyk, and Dathomir, are dense with shortcuts and secrets. The story is earnest and character driven, with Cere and Cal carrying real weight. It is a single-player story with no microtransactions.

What Breaks

Listen well. Launch performance was rough, with texture pop-in and stutters on base consoles. Maps can confuse, the 3D map is hard to read, and there is no fast travel, so backtracking gets old. The cosmetic rewards in chests are mostly ponchos and paint jobs, which deflates exploration. Platforming can feel loose at times.

Who Should Play

Play if you love Star Wars, Souls-lite combat, or Metroid-style exploration. Start here before Jedi: Survivor, which builds on this story. Skip if you hate backtracking or want a fast, power-fantasy hack and slash.

Related: Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, Sekiro, God of War.

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