I think this movie should forge a new bond with the fans and with the saga, a visual guarantee claiming that not much things will change. I bet they'll be rather conservative when it comes to inventing new designs, characters, planets, factions. They own the franchise, they said a movie is to be made every two years, and they have no limit in the structure of the story now, we don't even know if the saga will still be ordered by trilogies.

Seriously I doubt they will take a big leap forward from the very first star wars movie they make. Maybe it's just me rationalizing, since I think that star wars would be hardly recognizable if the figure of Darth Vader isn't there, otherwise being a constant and neverending Phantom Menace, star warsy but just not it.

I wish they set Luke in a quest for some lost object from the old days which finding would tie some knots between past and future. Would be a nice excuse for giving the original characters a proper farewell.