The story for Star Wars Jedi: Survivor will stay true to Star Wars canon while also working independently for players not familiar with the lore.
Jedi Survivor is set to release on all platforms on March 17, continuing the story of Cameron Monaghan's Cal Kestis five years after the events of the first game.
Since the release of Fallen Order, many fans have wondered if Cal will appear in any upcoming films or Disney+ series, or if any characters throughout Star Wars will appear in the sequel.
However, it seems as though Lucasfilm would like to keep the Jedi franchise separate for the time being, as it was recently revealed that Jedi: Survivor is going to be accessible even to gamers who have never pressed play on a single Star Wars movie.
The Duality of Jedi: Survivor
In an interview with Game Informer, Cal Kestis actor Cameron Monaghan talked about how the story of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor would connect with the canon of the Star Wars universe while also being able to stand on its own.
Monaghan explained that the game will be conscious of the "established lore" of Star Wars, but the game's story needs to be "satisfying and interesting regardless" of that canon:
"I think that we have a bunch of really big questions that we’re asking with this one. It’s funny, because… it’s this dual-sided thing, right? You have an established lore, character, canon, all the stuff, and you’re so excited about it, and you love it. But also, at the end of the day, ‘this’ needs to exist and be satisfying and interesting regardless of ‘this,’ right?"
The actor did state that certain events in the lore will "interact with each other." However, at the same time, Monaghan revealed that someone "who's never watched a Star Wars movie" will be able to pick up the game and "understand it:"
"And you want to be able to have them interact with each other and… have an interplay, but you also… It’s always been important with me with our stories that the drama, the stakes, the characters should be clear regardless of whether or not you have any understanding of anything outside of it. And I want anybody who’s never watched a Star Wars movie, read a Star Wars story, anything like that to be able to jump into this and play it and still be able to understand it."
Fans need not worry, though, about the contents of the game not appealing to them. According to Monaghan, if a player has "a more experienced understanding" of the Star Wars canon, then they will have "a deepened appreciation" of what takes place:
"And then if you do have… a more experienced understanding, then you’re only going to have a deepened appreciation of a lot of what’s going on here. And Lucasfilm were really generous and always adding input, explaining and helping us find… our footing and where the story should be and where it should live."
At the end of the day, Monaghan desires the story of Jedi: Survivor to be "satisfying on its own," and not be required to connect to everything throughout Star Wars to be considered up to par:
"But yeah, it’s always been really important to me to make sure that our story is satisfying on its own, and stands on its own two feet, and that being the priority."
The Force is Balanced with Jedi: Survivor
Just because there won't be an abundance of connections between Jedi: Survivor and other Star Wars projects doesn't mean that it won't contain its fair share of Easter eggs and fan service.
All Monaghan is saying is that the story will be able to work on its own. It doesn't rely on a film or a tv show in order to work. Jedi: Fallen Order worked the exact same way, and even though Darth Vader was included near the end of the game, players didn't have to know anything about Star Wars canon to understand what was going on.
Both Lucasfilm and Respawn Entertainment seem to be trying to offer the best experience possible to any player. If the game is someone's introduction to the world of Star Wars, it appears they won't be out of the loop in the slightest. If someone picks up a controller who knows everything there is to know about the galaxy far, far away, they will likely be rewarded for their knowledge.