No matter what the name might have you assume, Cal Kestis from Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order isn’t supposed to be called a Jedi, at least as far as the IP holders were initially concerned. Lucasfilm is hesitant to just add names to the list of surviving Jedi hiding on remote planets.
The Jedi Order is a very exclusive group of highly skilled “Force users” and has dwindled to just a few individuals after the events of Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. The implementation of Order 66 by the former Jedi known as Anakin Skywalker has scattered the Jedi across the galaxy.
While all kinds of additional media ranging from comics, books, video games, animated series and more across both the Legends continuity and current canon added countless Jedi survivors, the story still necessitates that the order be devastated during the rise of the Empire.
Lucasfilm’s hesitancy extended to video games as Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order almost did not have a Jedi as its protagonist. Cal Kestis was supposed to be just a “force user” or someone who can tap the force at a very basic level.
In an interview with The Guardian, Star Wars Jedi game director Stig Asmussen shared that the studio is protective of the Jedi term. Lucasfilm pushed Respawn Entertainment to call the protagonist of its then-in-development game a force user.
“To Lucasfilm, the Jedi are like the holy grail,” Asmussen said. “I mean, it’s something that they’re probably the most protective of, except for maybe Baby Yoda. So we had to kind of earn that. We had to go through a whole process of, why do you want it to be a Jedi? What do you want to do with the Jedi?”
He adds, “They were really uncomfortable with Jedi, and they said, ‘Let’s reset this. Let’s call this character a Force user.” Throughout Star Wars history, the Jedi and the Sith were hardly the only glowstick-shaking space magicians around.
Lucasfilm went on to suggest that the game should feature a bounty hunter or smuggler instead of a Jedi Padawan. For Asmussen, this showcases the importance of the Jedi. The game director even thought of dropping out from the project after the suggested changes. Thankfully, Lucasfilm did allow for a Jedi to be in the game.
“I’m like, well I think you have the wrong person for the job,” Asmussen shared. “That’s not my background. My background came from God of War … I’ve never worked on a shooter, and you need a different team to do that. You might as well be asking me to make a racing game. And eventually over time, we built that trust to the point where we ended up calling [the franchise] Jedi.”
However, it took a bit of time before gamers warmed up to the Jedi Cal Kestis. Fans initially found his appearance a bit bland as the studio wanted to have “a scrappy underdog” for its protagonist. Four years later, Respawn has transformed Kestis into something resembling the Jedi of the Old Republic.
“I was hoping that we could come up with a character that the player could go along on the ride with,” Asmussen explains. “So, he starts off kind of raw. He’s not even basically a complete Padawan. It’s been years since he’s had training. He’s been hiding.”
He adds, “And the player starts the game off raw, and you’re learning along the way. And as we hit these major plot points, we’re giving the player new skills, new tools. So the player’s remapping their perspective of the world, as Cal’s growing and learning about the universe around him as well.”
Well, we are glad Lucasfilm and Respawn made Cal Kestis into a Jedi. It would have been a totally different experience if he was a bounty hunter like Din Djarin or Boba Fett. Now, we are all looking forward to the sequel.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is coming to PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S on April 28, 2023.
