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Star Wars Jedi Survivor’s Cal Kestis wants a game non-fans can enjoy

Star Wars Jedi Survivor’s Cal Kestis actor Cameron Monaghan says the EA action-adventure game will also appeal to players who know nothing about Star Wars

Star Wars Jedi Survivor’s Cal Kestis wants a game non-fans can enjoy. A Jedi with red hair, Cal Kestis from Jedi Survivor, stares into the camera with a robotic companion on their shoulder

Star Wars Jedi Survivor’s Cal Kestis actor Cameron Monaghan explains how the upcoming action-adventure game from Respawn and publisher EA – which follows Cal into adulthood and a much darker period for the Jedi – has a story that is designed to also reach players who have never read or seen anything connected to Star Wars before, as we look ahead to the sequel to Fallen Order, and the Jedi Survivor release date.

Set five years after Star Wars Fallen Order, the plot of Jedi Survivor runs broadly parallel to the Obi-Wan Kenobi television series, as the Galactic Empire consolidates its power, thrusting Cal into a difficult fight for survival. Monaghan, who previously starred in the Batman-connected TV series Gotham, discusses Jedi Survivor’s darker tone.

“The Star Wars galaxy at this time is at an extremely dark point,” Monaghan tells Game Informer. “The situation for a Jedi has never been worse than it is for Cal. I think Cal is at this point where he’s even questioning how it is that he’s supposed to proceed and what his next move should be. In our first story, we had someone who was a boy becoming a man. He doesn’t have a safety net.”

Despite these connections to the broader Star Wars universe, Monaghan also explains how the plot of Jedi Survivor and the ongoing story of Cal Kestis is written to also appeal to non-Star Wars fans – the wider lore is there for those who want it, but the game functions dramatically on its own terms.

“It’s this dual-sided thing,” Monaghan continues. “You have this established lore, character, and canon, and you’re so excited about it and you love it, but at the end of the day this [the plot of Jedi Survivor] needs to exist and be satisfying and interesting regardless. You want them to be able to interact with each other and have an interplay.


“But it’s always been important to me that in our stories, the drama, the stakes, and the characters should be clear regardless of whether or not you have an understanding of anything outside of it. And I want anybody who’s never watched a Star Wars movie or read a Star Wars story to be able to jump into this and play it and still understand it. And then, if you do have more experience and understanding, then you’re only going to have a deepened appreciation of a lot of what’s going on here.”

If you’re looking forward to Jedi Survivor, in the meantime, you might want to try out some of the other best Star Wars games. You can also get ahead of the launch day with our complete guide to the Star Wars Jedi Survivor system requirements. Alternatively, take a look at the very best story games, where narrative and drama really matter.