Lucasfilm is upping its video game slate. While there’s a long history of Star Wars games within the expanded universe, there are far fewer titles that Disney perceives to be canon. Those initial Legends games often impacted the wider continuity. Knights of the Old Republic for example, which is now gaining a remake, completely forged a brand-new era while Shadows of the Empire represented a much wider, cross-medium project.
But the video games that are being released in the new canon timeline feel so much further away from the rest of the galaxy. Considering how integral Lucasfilm wants these titles to be to the wider story they are telling, it doesn’t seem as if there’s a true commitment to ensuring their narratives genuinely make a difference. Moving forward this has to change so that players are rewarded for following these characters and their arcs.
There Are Always Connections To The Lore In Star Wars Games
It is important to note that within Star Wars games there are connections to the wider continuity. Lucasfilm has no problem including many of their famous characters within the video game titles they work on. While many of these games seem to be set within the Galactic Civil War and slightly beyond the Empire’s destruction, the time period does provide plenty of opportunities for familiar faces to arrive. Darth Vader has a terrifying presence in Jedi: Fallen Order, while Hera Syndulla makes a much-needed cameo in Squadrons.
Regardless of the title, characters like Saw Gerrera and Lando Calrissian remind audiences that despite playing as an original hero or villain, they still very much belong in this pre-existing world. That extends to the technology, planets, species and lore, all of which gives Star Wars its unique flavor and plays into the design of the games. There’s certainly no question that Star Wars video games are set in the standard continuity, but it’s their impact elsewhere that is ensuring they feel separated from the series.
Star Wars Games Are Rarely Referenced In Other Material
Almost every single aspect of Star Wars media is deeply connected in some way. Black Krrsantan made his debut in the comics for example and then showed up in The Book of Boba Fett. Ahsoka Tano first appeared in the Rebels animated series and now boasts her own Disney+ show. The High Republic era was launched on the page with books like Light of the Jedi and is now influencing the show The Acolyte. And Grand Admiral Thrawn’s movement from Legends, to canon books, then to Rebels before finally ending up in Ahsoka is a great demonstration of how all of these projects can be interwoven. Regardless of the medium that the audience is interacting with, they can guarantee that the plot beats and characters may go on to influence other areas of the franchise. That just isn’t the case for the games.
Cal Kestis is yet to turn up in a book or comic that involves other major characters. Iden Versio hasn’t appeared on-screen in established series such as Obi-Wan Kenobi. The team from Squadrons hasn’t made an impact outside the title. What’s more, the plots of these games are rarely referenced within the continuity. If they didn’t happen at all, no other projects would be impacted. There are a few exceptions to the rule. A droid similar to BD-1 appearing in The Mandalorian was a nice touch and Iden Versio’s appearance alongside Inferno Squad in the Bounty Hunters comic was a fantastic example of how the universe can be drawn closer together. But these scenarios are few and far between. Fans want to see Kestis in live-action fighting alongside established Jedi. Players would love to go into Star Wars Eclipse or Star Wars Outlaws looking for characters that will return again in another form. But history has shown this probably isn’t going to happen.
The Production Complexities & Sequel Plans Limits The Potential Of Star Wars Games
There are a lot of reasons why Disney and Lucasfilm have to keep the games at an arm’s length. For starters, the production of a video game is a lot more complex than many would assume. With so many moving parts, it’s hard to line everything up in time so that the game actually matches with the rest of the continuity. If Lucasfilm were relying on a game to establish a character they were then going to use in a TV show, any delays in the production could absolutely ruin any plans. There’s too much going on for this to be a reliable strategy and that’s why characters like Iden Versio only appeared elsewhere years after the games were released. What’s more, Lucasfilm doesn’t want to limit the plans of the video game studios. If they take a story that began in a game and carried it on in a different medium, it might creatively hinder plans for sequels. Development has already begun on a sequel for Jedi: Survivor for instance, so having Cal Kestis continue his journey outside that game would potentially affect the momentum of the series.
It’s far easier for Lucasfilm to produce tie-in content on a smaller scale, that they can control. Books and comics that are based on the video games are more likely, because they act as a single project with a writer that can work alongside the game development team to ensure there’s synergy between the stories. Delaying one book or comic series is less of a headache than a whole show or ongoing run getting affected. That’s why books like Battlefront: Twilight Company or comics such as Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order – Dark Temple get created, to round out the story across multiple mediums without truly impacting the larger continuity. Lucasfilm has moved away from completely limiting themselves with tie-in games like Revenge of the Sith which rely purely on adapting the films.
There’s plenty of original storytelling now happening within the gaming world. But ultimately the major problem is that the company cannot guarantee audiences will play the games, and thus they can’t tell stories elsewhere that rely on another title. They don’t want viewers to have to play Jedi: Fallen Order to watch Obi-Wan Kenobi, nor do they want people anticipating Outlaws before they enjoy a title like Skeleton Crew. Star Wars games will continue to have very little impact on continuity as long as Disney wishes to keep their contributions separate. This is to ease the production process, create opportunities for sequels and avoid confusing the audience. But the games have the potential to do so much more.
