Huge improvement on the already surprisingly good predecessor in pretty much every possible way, but carrying over some of the original‘s fundamental problems. I still think making a Star Wars game an action platformer is an extremely clever idea and gameplay wise this game is at its best once you have your full ability set and run‘n‘jump like fucking Mario, it‘s silly but so much fun. In terms of its world, as much as I like the metroid approach this game takes to its structure and level design I think these levels (especially Koboh) are just way too big, I rejoiced every time the game sent me to a smaller, tighter space, because I knew it meant I didn‘t have to run around or backtrack samey environments for several hours.

I believe this game‘s biggest issue is its length, pacing and story structure. It has a phenomenal start and a strong final act but there‘s a (at least) 10 hour long section that I think could be almost entirely scrapped without really losing anything of value. It builds its entire middle part around two antagonists, one of them is a boring, cardboard cutout biggie baddie, while the other is a weirdo with story potential but barely any screentime who finally just gets axed with very little fanfare. I never not enjoyed my time with this game but I was ready for this section of it to end more than half a dozen hours before it did, and it does seem like ultimately the game itself wasn‘t very interested in it either because there‘s very little in terms of synthesis of themes or messaging by the end. Maybe I had overblown expectations because of some reviews calling this a multilayered story with interesting moral questions or whatever but that‘s not really what this is, there are glimpses of it here and there but it ultimately doesn‘t tread terribly new ground. Which is fine, it‘s a very servicable space opera with way above average storytelling and character writing for action games.

Its biggest strength is definitely its take on the aesthetics and vibe of Star Wars, Respawn really understands what makes this universe so appealing and is extremely good at communicating its magic while not being afraid to get a little loose and weird with its lore. The cast of characters is great (they especially sold me on Cal in this story), all the customization and cantina stuff made me feel warm and fuzzy and the overall presentation is phenomenal all the way through. I do think this is probably the best Star Wars game, I just hope they find a more genuinely interesting and thematically rich story to tell in the next one.