LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga includes the Star Wars sequel trilogy, which is exciting because of how many doors it opens up. Not only did these movies establish tons of interesting new Star Wars locations and characters, but they focused on several Force powers that don't have a major presence in the previous movies. For instance, Rey and Kylo Ren's reality-bending telepathic communication in The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker will probably come into play somehow, as will the extremely important but surprisingly rarely seen power of Force healing. A Jedi's remarkable ability to transfer life energy from themselves to an injured being shapes the course of The Rise of Skywalker.
Force healing will almost certainly make an appearance as a narrative beat in LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, but it could play a mechanical role too. It'd be great to see Traveller's Tales introduce healing as a new Force power in The Skywalker Saga. However, if the game introduces Force healing in its sequel trilogy levels, it could be a little awkward to look back on once players play through the prequels or the original trilogy. There's a ton of times where it would've been great to see Force healing get some use, but it just never came up.
Force Healing's Potential in The Skywalker Saga
Force healing has a pretty rich history in the Star Wars world. After making an appearance in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars TV show, it started cropping up in other places, like the Disney Plus original show The Mandalorian. It's appeared in non-canonical video games a considerable amount too; Force healing shows up in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic as a valuable technique. As for the movies, Force healing may have made its first appearance through Ben Kenobi in A New Hope before getting a more obvious spotlight in The Rise of Skywalker.
Rey is well known for having a proclivity for Force healing. In The Rise of Skywalker, she and her fellow Resistance members run into a vexis that blocks their path. While the others fear the snake-like creature, Rey realizes that it's injured and uses the Force to heal the wound, prompting the soothed vexis to slither away peacefully. Later on, when Rey grievously wounds Kylo Ren in a duel, she immediately draws back her weapon and heals Kylo Ren out of regret and compassion for her nemesis.
Considering how closely connected Rey is to Force healing, it could show up in LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga as a fun new Force power. There might be certain obstacles similar to the vexis that can only be cleared by a Jedi who has a knack for Force healing like Rey. Alternatively, it could be a unique new ability that Rey can use during combat. Every once in a while, she might be able to restore life to herself or an ally, providing an alternative way for players to heal in The Skywalker Saga, rather than chasing hearts around like fans do in most LEGO games. It'd be great to see Force healing help shake up the LEGO Star Wars formula this way.
How Force Healing Reflects on Star Wars
Anyone interested in seeing Force healing's effect on The Skywalker Saga can happily play through the sequel trilogy before the other trilogies since The Skywalker Saga lets players move through the Star Wars movies in the order they choose. However, anyone who starts with Rey's story will probably be left thinking about Force healing a lot as they witness Anakin and Luke Skywalker's stories. Even if Rey gets some kind of Force healing mechanic in The Skywalker Saga, there's no using that power to save the lives of long-dead Star Wars characters.
Star Wars fans have long debated why Force healing didn't come up in a variety of situations where it would've been helpful. For example, when Obi-Wan Kenobi is helping a dying Padme Amidala give birth at the end of Revenge of the Sith, it seems like Obi-Wan really should've used the Force to restore Padme's vitality. Similarly, when Luke Skywalker unmasks a dying Darth Vader, he could've tried to use Force healing to undo the wounds Palpatine inflicted on Vader. Fans will certainly see these scenes in The Skywalker Saga, but Rey's skills in healing won't do any of her predecessors any good, even if fans play through the sequel trilogy first.
Fans have come up with all kinds of theories about why Force healing didn't show up in these pivotal moments. Some suggest that the technique was lost for a long time before it was rediscovered after the fall of the Jedi Order, leading it to eventually fall into Rey's hands through Luke Skywalker's sacred texts. Others suggest that Obi-Wan and Luke's emotions were too stifled due to the Jedi code to use Force healing, unlike Rey, whose Force knowledge and sense of empathy aren't limited by a traditional Jedi's impassive mindset. Whatever the case may be, it'll be unfortunate to look back on these past deaths with knowledge of Rey's Force healing.
LEGO Star Wars' Perspective on the Movies
At the same time, it might be hard to get brought down during these tragic moments while playing The Skywalker Saga. Throughout its life, LEGO Star Wars has brought an unwavering sense of humor to every moment of the movies. Through visual and physical jokes, LEGO Star Wars always manages to bring humor and levity to even the most tragic moments of the franchise. It's unfortunate that Force healing didn't do anything to change the course of Star Wars, but nonetheless, LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga is just the messenger, and it knows how to deliver the Star Wars story with aplomb.
Maybe the Star Wars franchise will work out the question of Force healing within its canon someday. It'd certainly be interesting to hear an official explanation for why Rey could save Kylo Ren, but Obi-Wan and Luke didn't have the power or knowledge to save people that they cared about. As for The Skywalker Saga, though, it'll probably just be recounted in the same way as before, leaving fans to ask questions themselves. Knowing LEGO Star Wars, maybe Force healing will even be the butt of a joke.
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga releases in Spring 2022 for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
