Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order Talks About One Key Gameplay Mechanic That Almost Didn’t Happen

Like with all games, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is a product of many collaborative ideas forming together for a bigger picture. That means a lot of ideas don’t make it off of the cutting room floor, some big – some small, but ultimately for the greater good. I recently sat down with the lead combat designer for Fallen Order, Jason de Heras, and producer Blair Brown to talk about one key combat mechanic that almost didn’t make it into the game. 

One thing we noted in our preview of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order after a few hours with the narrative-driven game from Respawn was how fluid and natural the combat felt. From the ability to Force Push an enemy’s projectile back to them, to being able to block and parry, the system is beautiful and feels rewarding but de Heras mentioned that we almost didn’t have the ability to block. 

“We used to not have block and the player could only parry,” the lead combat designer mentioned. “But it was too tense for some people, so we added the ability to hold down the button and block and now you can even reflect blasters. So it’s fed into the Star Wars fantasy, especially because Jedi deflecting bullets has gotta happen in the game.”

After doing my own fair share of deflecting blasters and kickin’ ass alongside some casual name-taking, I’m glad that they implemented the blocking feature. It helps, especially when dealing with boss fights, and also gives a feeling of control over combat. In that moment you are Cal Kestis, which is a really strong testament to how well the combat mechanics in Fallen Order come together.