We all know that Star Wars games have featured many different playable characters, but two of the most popular Star Wars games that focus on unique central characters are Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. The star of Fallen Order is the canon character Cal Kestis, while Galen “Starkiller” Marek is the star of The Force Unleashed. So, in a fight between Kestis and Starkiller, who would win?
Galen “Starkiller” Marek would win in a fight against Cal Kestis. Galen “Starkiller” Marek would be too powerful for Cal Kestis to handle because the Force powers in The Force Unleashed are too overpowered compared to what has been established in the current canon. On top of that, Starkiller was trained by Darth Vader, who was exponentially stronger than Kestis.
Even though Starkiller and the entire The Force Unleashed game aren’t canon, it was still an enjoyable run for one of the most overpowered Star Wars characters in history. Cal Kestis, on the other hand, was more realistic regarding the current Star Wars canon. But the fact that he was realistic made him much weaker than the overpowered Starkiller.
Lightsaber Skills
Cal Kestis learned how to fight from Jaro Tapal, a powerful Jedi Master during the time of the Jedi Order. Kestis, however, wasn’t able to spend a lot of time mastering the art of saber combat under Tapal, and that was why he seemed a bit too rusty during the early part of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. Nevertheless, Kestis is skilled in using basic forms, such as Form I and Form VI, two of the most popularly used lightsaber combat forms in the Jedi Order.
Galen Marek may have learned the basics of lightsaber combat from his father, but he eventually became much stronger after learning to fight under Darth Vader. The fact that he was trained by one of the greatest duelists in the history of Star Wars makes Starkiller a formidable duelist. He defeated several other Jedi Masters throughout the events of The Force Unleashed due to his training.
Starkiller was trained by one of the best, which gives him the edge over Kestis, who became quite rusty after spending five years without using his lightsaber. Starkiller was killing Jedi Masters, while Cal Kestis struggled against Inquisitors.
Cal Kestis knows all of the basic Force powers, such as Force pull, Force push, and other similar Force powers that the Jedi are known to use. However, after spending five years in hiding, he needed time to re-learn the skills he learned under Jaro Tapal. There’s also the fact that Kestis was never portrayed as someone with special Force abilities that allow him to stand out compared to other Jedi.
Darth Vader took in Galen Marek to be his apprentice for a good reason, as he already felt how strong he was in the Force, even though he was still just a child when they first encountered one another. Training under Vader allowed Starkiller to learn all of the Force skills that both the Jedi and the Sith know, as he can manipulate an entire room using the Force and shock multiple enemies with his Force Lightning. And the cream of the crop was that he could pull an entire star destroyer using the Force.
There is no doubt that this goes to Starkiller once more because the Force powers of The Force Unleashed were quite overpowered compared to what has been established in the Star Wars canon. As such, the things that Kestis could do were only fractions of what Starkiller could do.
Cal Kestis was 18 years old in Fallen Order and 23 years old in Survivor. Throughout his run as a Jedi, he fought multiple Inquisitors and even went toe-to-toe with a former Jedi Master. He also fought multiple Stormtroopers, droids, and Nightbrothers during the events of the Fallen Order. As such, he became an experienced Jedi that grew stronger thanks to the experiences he gained along the way.
Galen Marek was around 20 when Darth Vader sent him out on a mission as his secret assassin. In the many missions that he went on, he defeated countless Stormtroopers, aliens, and even monsters that were as strong as a Rancor. Galen Marek could even bring down an Imperial Walker all on his own. And he defeated numerous Jedi Masters during his run as Vader’s secret apprentice and assassin.
This is another no-brainer because Galen Marek is simply the more experienced character because he participated in missions far more dangerous than the ones that Cal Kestis went on.
The greatest feat that Cal Kestis achieved in the Fallen Order game was defeating a fallen Jedi Master in the form of Taron Malicos, who had become strong in the dark side of the Force after getting corrupted during his stay in Dathomir. However, Kestis also defeated multiple Inquisitors that Vader himself trained. He defeated the Ninth Sister in the middle portion of the game. The final boss of the Fallen Order was the Second Sister, a powerful Inquisitor.
Galen Marek was so powerful that he defeated countless Jedi Masters in The Force Unleashed and could even bring down an entire Rancor alone. But the greatest feat he could ever accomplish was defeating Darth Vader in combat. The fact that he defeated Vader proves he was also strong enough to take on Emperor Palpatine. And, to reiterate, he pulled down an entire star destroyer all on his own.
It might be a great accomplishment to defeat a fallen Jedi Master and a trained Inquisitor. But Starkiller killed multiple Jedi Masters and even defeated Darth Vader. Again, this is a no-brainer, as Cal Kestis couldn’t even land a blow on Vader.
There was never a point in the storyline of Fallen Order that it was mentioned that Cal Kestis had extraordinary potential as a Force user. In many ways, he was portrayed as similar to other Force-sensitive characters in that he was “ordinary.” But it was the fact that he was ordinary made him so relatable as a character as we could see a very human character struggling with his connection with the Force while legitimately fearing Inquisitors and, of course, Darth Vader during the game.
When Vader confronted and killed Marek’s father, he initially thought that he had a master that was far stronger than he was. That’s because Vader sensed the presence of someone stronger in the Force, and that happened to be a young boy in the form of Galen Marek, whose connection with the Force was already stronger than his own father’s. Marek’s unbelievable potential convinced Vader to take him in as his apprentice.
The Force Unleashed Galen Child
Vader killed a lot of Jedi during his time, but only when he felt the potential in Starkiller, was he convinced that he needed to train this boy and hone his talents. That means that Galen Marek could have been one of the strongest Force users in history if he had been allowed to reach his prime. On the other hand, Kestis hasn’t shown anything extraordinary.
Cal Kestis vs. Galen “Starkiller” Marek: Who wins?
The fact that Starkiller is a character that was made to be over-the-top in terms of his Force powers gives him a clear advantage over Cal Kestis, who was ordinary in terms of what he can do with his Force abilities. Galen Marekundoubtedlyoubt the stronger Force user between the two, and it’s not even close. Nevertheless, Cal Kestis’ status as a seemingly ordinary Jedi made him a lovable and relatable main character. So, while he isn’t a fraction of Starkiller’s strength, he is part of the Star Wars canon and is probably the more interesting character among them.
