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EA and Respawn released a free new content update on May 4 for Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. One of the most requested features for the game was added in today's update. This is, of course, the ability to play with a New Game+ option that carries over some unlocks to a second playthrough of the game. You can tell by those ominous italics that there's a catch here with this implementation of New Game+. More on that in just a second.
In addition to New Game+, today's update also adds in Meditation Training, new cosmetics, Combat Challenges, and some improvements to accessibility. Yes, there are also the usual bug fixes and tweaks included in today's update.
In case it wasn't abundantly clear yet, this update is free to everyone that owns Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order.
The New Game+ mode in Fallen Order is called New Journey+. This mode gives players access to Meditation Training game modes. It also allows players to carry over their collectibles from a previous playthroughs, though abilities will have to be relearned. Without the abilities carrying over to this New Journey+ mode, it seems as though it misses the mark of why fans wanted this in the first place. Literally all that carries over are the cosmetics you've unlocked and the chests that you have opened will still be opened on NJ+ mode.
It's important to note here that every single chest in the game grants players a new cosmetic item. There are no upgrades that can be found through opening chests scattered throughout the game's environments. The implementation of New Journey+ is an odd one to be sure.
Respawn says that the real meat of this update comes in the Meditation Training that is now included in the game.
Meditation Training is the biggest part of this update and is a new game mode hub that can be accessed from the Meditation points found throughout the game (further details on that below). In it, you’ll be able to face off against all enemies, including bosses, in two different modes: Combat Challenges and the Battle Grid.
Combat Challenges will pit Cal against waves of enemies across multiple planetary backdrops from across the galaxy, including the Imperial stronghold Fortress Inquisitorius. Each unique location will feature its own unique challenges, too, allowing for tailor-made experiences that draw from each environment. Different challenges will have different numbers of waves and each will have a three-star completion rating.
What makes these challenges especially unique is that they’ve all been designed for veteran players. They’re designed to be tackled when Cal is at his strongest and most experienced towards the end of the game, so be wary if you decide to take on challenges early in a playthrough. The abilities Cal knows at the time of entering his meditation will be the ones you take into a challenge.(...)
The second mode in Meditation Training is called the Battle Grid. This mode is a sandbox for players to create their own encounters. In it, players will be able to select a location, the size of the encounter they want to face, tinker with various difficulty modifiers, and set the overall combat difficulty to one of the four difficulty levels.
Combat Challenges will pit Cal against waves of enemies across multiple planetary backdrops from across the galaxy, including the Imperial stronghold Fortress Inquisitorius. Each unique location will feature its own unique challenges, too, allowing for tailor-made experiences that draw from each environment. Different challenges will have different numbers of waves and each will have a three-star completion rating.
What makes these challenges especially unique is that they’ve all been designed for veteran players. They’re designed to be tackled when Cal is at his strongest and most experienced towards the end of the game, so be wary if you decide to take on challenges early in a playthrough. The abilities Cal knows at the time of entering his meditation will be the ones you take into a challenge.(...)
The second mode in Meditation Training is called the Battle Grid. This mode is a sandbox for players to create their own encounters. In it, players will be able to select a location, the size of the encounter they want to face, tinker with various difficulty modifiers, and set the overall combat difficulty to one of the four difficulty levels.
General
- New Journey + added
- Unlocked after beating the game
- All cosmetic unlocks are carried over
- All lightsaber colours are available from the start
- Exclusive dark side-themed cosmetics available in NJ+
- Inquisitor uniform
- Protection and Defence I & II lightsaber parts
- Red kyber crystal
- Meditation Training game modes added as part of NJ+
- Combat Challenges
- Wave-based game modes to fight against preset enemies
- Battle Grid
- Sandbox-style game mode for players to make their own encounters
- Cosmetic rewards for BD-1
- Combat Challenges
- Button-mashing quick-time events can now be skipped
- Needing to hold the Climb button can now be disabled
- Holding a button to confirm/interact with something can be changed to a button press
- Text size scaling options have been added
- Improved transitions between parry and block animations
- The Bog Rats on Bogano were sometimes floating. They should now be more grounded.
- Improved the transitions into and out of jumping and double jumping
- Fixed the issue where Cal could get stuck in an endless falling loop during air attacks
- Fixed the issue that would prevent Cal from progressing his journey when a Bounty Hunter would show up
- Improved overall responsiveness of gameplay and the reliability of actions based on player feedback
