Even without much to go on in terms of news for the upcoming Star Wars first-person shooter game by Respawn, we now have sufficient evidence that suggests it will be directly inspired by the classic Dark Forces series. Job listings found on LinkedIn blatantly state this fact.
Star Wars Dark Forces spawned a series of FPS games made by LucasArts and Raven Software that primarily revolve around missions featuring Kyle Katarn, a former Imperial turned mercenary for the Rebellion who eventually becomes a Jedi.
While the first game in the series came out way back in 1995 on MS-DOS, Mac, and PS1, the sequels to Star Wars Dark Forces spawned the Jedi Knight series. These games, beginning with Dark Forces 2, have Kyle Katarn using a lightsaber and commanding the Force.
Here’s every game in what is now branded the Star Wars: Jedi Knight series, in chronological and production order:
- Star Wars: Dark Forces (1995)
- Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II (1997)
- Star Wars Jedi Knight: Mysteries of the Sith expansion (1998)
- Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast (2002)
- Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy (2003)
In particular, Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast and Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy are considered to have the best, most realistic, and most satisfying lightsaber combat in the history of Star Wars games. This praise is only contested by Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order, the most recent Star Wars game made by Respawn.
If Respawn is indeed making a new officially licensed Star Wars game in the vein of Dark Forces, whose original plot is now delegated to Legends, this could indicate a potential attempt by Disney to bring the story of Kyle Katarn into the modern Canon.
Respawn Entertainment first released Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order in 2019 for PC, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, Stadia, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4. The game’s direct sequel, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, is releasing on April 28, 2023, for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.
