Many are looking forward to the Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order sequel coming in the future, but the game must avoid repeating the mistake made in The Book of Boba Fett. The release date of Fallen Order 2 is currently unknown, but it was confirmed as one of EA's three new Star Wars games currently in development. Fallen Order released in 2019, and introduced a new Jedi protagonist Cal Kestis, who is challenged with rebuilding the Jedi Order after Order 66 while battling The Empire and Darth Vader's Inquisitors.
The Book of Boba Fett is the latest Star Wars Disney+ series and follows the iconic bounty hunter, first seen in the original film trilogy, as he tries to bring order on Tatooine as the new Daimyo of Mos Espa. Boba Fett takes place after the events of The Mandalorian season two, where Fett appeared on-screen in live-action for the first time since Return of the Jedi. Taking place five years after RoJ, Boba Fett features lots of cameos of very notable Star Wars characters, which was both good and bad.
Depending on where Fallen Order 2 falls on the timeline, there could be cameos of characters from Boba Fett appearing in the game, but that would be making the same mistake the series did. Boba Fett's first three episodes started off very slowly, and a lot of fans were very disappointed with where the show was going. Suddenly, the focus of the show shifted and became more like a season of The Mandalorian, with Boba Fett himself having no screen time. This trend continued until the final episode of the show when all of the cameos and side-plots came together, but it took so much focus away from the titular character that The Book of Boba Fett didn't feel like an appropriate title anymore.
Jedi: Fallen Order Sequel Must Focus On Cal
No character-centric game should do what Boba Fett did and lose focus on its main protagonist, and if Fallen Order 2 wants a darker Cal Kestis, it needs to be especially mindful of this. Cameos and crossovers in Star Wars are cool - the excitement of seeing Luke Skywalker at the end of The Mandalorian was immense - but Fallen Order 2 cannot get bogged down trying to replicate that. Boba Fett featured Star Wars characters from live-action, animated series, and comics, and while that was fun it quickly stopped being about Boba Fett and stunted his character development.
What made Fallen Order great was that fans were introduced to a new character that was also a Jedi, and were able to see him develop in a new way. Cal had to reconnect with the force and learn how to control it, without a master like Yoda or Obi-Wan, all while being hunted down. If the game adds lots of cameos, like Saw Gerrera in Fallen Order, that will give Cal less room to grow himself. The game already has a great crew around Cal and doesn't need to add lots of new characters to keep a new story interesting.
Jedi: Fallen Order 2 Can't Shrink The Star Wars Universe
The Book Of Boba Fett's mistake of adding too many other Star Wars characters didn't just make the main character less important, it also made the Star Wars universe smaller. It's a frustrating thing that can occur when the same characters keep appearing in different movies and shows, especially in a universe as big as Star Wars. It feels unlikely that, in a galaxy with so many planets, the same host of characters like the Mandalorian, Boba Fett, even Cad Bane, end up seeing each other and ending up on the same two planets.
Jedi Fallen Order 2 doesn't need Skywalker Saga and its content to tell a story and would be better off leaving that in the background and focusing on expanding the universe in the civil war period of Star Wars. Fans have already played games and watched shows and films that take place on planets like Tatooine and Hoth, Fallen Order should explore planets less traveled, or new ones altogether. It should also try and connect more with things in the past of the Star Wars universe, like the Zeffo race that was a big part of the first game's story.
Fallen Order 2 Can Set Up More Star Wars Crossovers
By now, characters from Star Wars games should be appearing in the TV series, not the other way around. It was awesome when Fallen Order's BD droid appeared in Boba Fett and and was a good sign that more crossovers between the shows and games are on the horizon, and the characters in Fallen Order are worthy of time on-screen. All of Fallen Order's characters are voice acted and motion-captured and look like the actors that are playing them, making it easy for them to appear in live-action production.
Cal himself would be an obvious choice to appear in a live-action Star Wars show, especially as his role now is to find hidden force-sensitive children that are hiding from the empire during the civil war. He could make an appearance in the Kenobi TV series that is releasing in May, as Cal could end up sensing Luke and having an encounter with Obi-Wan who watches over him. Fallen Order 2 should spend more time with its group of characters, and would benefit from making the Mantis more like Red Dead Redemption 2's camp so players can hear more of their stories.
This is an exciting time for Star Wars fans, as there is so much content coming out in lots of different forms. The Book of Boba Fett was the latest TV series for fans to enjoy, and though it was good overall, it struggled at times due to its strange pacing and the wavering focus on the main character. When Jedi Fallen Order's sequel comes out, it needs to avoid making the same mistake and should do everything it can to get Cal and The Mantis crew out to as many different planets across the galaxy, preferably far far away from Tatooine.