Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order was already highly reminiscent of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice due to its emphasis on parries in combat. This worked well for Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order’s combat due to the game also having only a default weapon that players need to practice with and get good at brandishing against enemies. Players eventually receive a dual-bladed attachment as well as an attachment that separates the hilt into dual lightsabers, but the parry mechanic is still paramount regardless of which stance players adopt in combat.
From the bit of gameplay that has been shown for Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, it would seem like all of Fallen Order’s combat fundamentals are returning. This is great for fans who loved the original game and spent time expertly mastering combat with a lightsaber. But there are other areas that Survivor could improve from its predecessor, such as its platforming sequences. Thankfully, it would seem like Star Wars Jedi: Survivor may be taking another page out of Sekiro’s book for inspiration on platforming with a newly introduced grappling hook.
Platforming Looks to Still Be a Primary Feature in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
In a brief shot from Star Wars Jedi: Survivor’s gameplay trailer, it was revealed that Cal Kestis would have some sort of grappling hook. The shot shows Cal leaping forward with nothing below him before Force-dashing forward and firing out a cable that connects to a pole that sticks outward horizontally. The cable reels him in, and he hangs from the pole momentarily before seemingly using his momentum to leap from it.
This is a glimpse of what platforming could look like for a lot of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, but since much is also withheld from fans in this trailer, it would not be surprising to learn that other platforming mechanics have been added as well. A critical part of platforming in Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order was Cal's Force abilities were involved, such as sprinting and hopping between narrow walls or double-jumping into a Force-pull to swing on a vine, and these features have yet to be fully shown in the sequel.
Platforming was less exciting when players were bouncing on inflatable pods in Kashyyyk, but Survivor has an opportunity to improve platforming greatly with a grappling hook and the functions that may provide in gameplay. Further, because Cal will presumably still have access to all the Force abilities he recollected in Fallen Order, it makes sense to iterate on platforming with an item as versatile as a grappling hook.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor’s Grappling Hook Could Reflect Sekiro’s Own
Grapple hooks are not completely alien in the world of Star Wars as fans have already seen, such as the ones used in Star Wars Episode One: The Phantom Menace. But since the Star Wars Jedi franchise has already been explicit about its favorable FromSoftware inspirations, it would make sense if the addition of a grappling hook was also inspired by Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.
Sekiro’s grappling hook is multifaceted but chiefly used as a way to traverse chasms and other gaps in guided platforming. Much of the game’s landscape is built on verticality that players can scale with consecutive grappling hook inputs, flinging Wolf around from one perch point to another.
Otherwise, the grappling hook can also be used to close the distance on particular enemies when the associable prompt appears, or players can grapple from branch to branch to remain undetected by enemies below. Cal Kestis is only seen using a grappling hook once in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor’s latest trailer, but it would be exciting if it has the same multifaceted uses as Sekiro’s.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor releases on March 17, 2023, for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.