Star Wars Jedi: Survivor

It's finally a great time to be a fan of pre-established IP (unless you're a Lord of the Rings fan because apparently Gollum is terrible). But not only have we been treated with an utterly fantastic Harry Potter game earlier in the year, we're also getting a sequel to about the only Star Wars game EA has done correctly in their time of owning the rights. The first "Star Wars Jedi" game, Fallen Order, was a surprise hit and one of the very best Star Wars games ever made, with probably the outright best lightsaber combat ever created. From the makers of Titanfall 2 (which still sits highly in my "Favorite Games of All Time" list), this series has found a enticing blend of many games, while striking a difficulty balance that challenges without being obnoxiously punishing. Between this series and Elden Ring, I'm happy developers are starting to find ways to even out the punishment of insane difficulties.

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor picks up not far after Fallen Order. Cal Kestis - who adds to a streak of great Star Wars protagonists as of late - is sporting a scruffy beard and running with a new crew. We begin on Coruscant and the story evolves from there into a bit of a treasure hunt. If I'm being honest, Survivor's story, while still engaging, didn't hit as high as I'd hoped. It has a bit of a "middle child" syndrome with clearly more story to tell in this likely trilogy+, and there is a TON of story padding. That happens in every game - even the best ones - but in Survivor it felt more obvious, especially in retrospect. Depending on the next game's direction, I believe that the events of Survivor could retroactively be made more important/significant, but for now it's a merely "good" story and sometimes I sense that Star Wars is afraid to go to places they flirt with (no spoilers!). 

"Ooops there goes your head..."

Customization is back and better than ever

Luckily, the characters in this series' section of the universe remain iconic and pop off the screen. Cal himself has grown on us collectively as gamers and is a bada**, yet thoughtful leader and warrior. The voicework by Cameron Monaghan continues to be stellar (as is everyone's TBH), to the point that I half expect there to be a live-version of this character soon. As Cal gets his crew back together, familiar faces like Merrin, Greez, Cere, and Master Cordova meet newcomers like Bode, Rayvis, and Dagan Gera. Throw in a heaping dose of the adorable BD-11 (Respawn has a knack for crafting iconic robot friends) and you've got yourself a Star Wars cast that feels massive and complete without a Skywalker in sight. That aspect continues to remain one of the best elements of this series is that it's far removed from characters we know and there's not been much need yet to overlap with ones we've seen before but, we know the general story elsewhere in the universe because of the films. It makes it easier to follow along with what's happening and why characters may act the way they do. 

If the story is perhaps the "biggest downgrade" (harsh term, take it with a grain of salt) then I'd argue the traversal wins the "biggest upgrade". Simple additions - like a Force Dash - make a huge difference and you can tell Respawn misses Titanfall (make a 3rd game, dammit!!). That's to our benefit as the player however, because Cal has a much wider range of traversal abilities this time around, making for an engaging series of worlds, some jaw-dropping set-piece moments that fare way better than the ice/mud-sliding ones in the original, and even some insanely challenging traversal "Force Tear" secret levels. I'm a sucker for awesome traversal (see earlier in the year) so when it's done right I appreciate it, and it felt like the most evolved element in Survivor. I'm still a believer that some sort of stealth element a la the Arkham games would be beneficial, but the lack of it this time around was less obvious than before.

If it wasn't clear, Cal Kestis is a BAMF

Traversal has lots of wonderful surprises

Lightsaber combat has also had some drastic evolutions and still looks like poetry in motion. Luckily, you've kept your powers from the first game, which instantly makes Survivor easier than Fallen Order. That is mostly a good thing because it doesn't feel as if you're going backwards, but instead only moving forward with your Force journey. It does, however, mean that when the difficulty spikes hit, they HIT HARD. There's only a handful of encounters in the world(s) that frustrated me, and often times I would only need 4-5 tries to defeat them. Boss battles are a different story entirely. One particular boss who you fight at three separate points in the game features such an obscenely difficult array of moves that my best bet was to essentially hope I got the time that his move combos were actually of the blockable variety. Yes, I was playing on "Hard" mode, but when I have to play a particular boss 20, 30, or 40 times...it starts to chip away at my enjoyment. What's more is that sometimes these bosses - with their randomized moves - will come in fast and hard, destroying you much faster in one instance, then seemingly toying with you in another one. The final boss, which features basically four segments, was one I tried ~20 times, left it for a day, and came back to defeat them on try #2 of that new day. The day-long break is a tried and true method of mine, but there are still some moments where it's more about the villain's cheapshots than any need for me to "git g00d". 

Okay but this screenshot's graphics are actually stunning...

Despite the frustrations, combat is largely a delight. This time around, your Force moves are more plentiful and powerful, while your lightsaber stances grows to five with the introduction of the Crossguard stance (think Kylo Ren's lightsaber, slow but mighty) and the Blaster stance (single lightsaber with a blaster, sure to piss off purists). I enjoyed experimenting with all the stances, while primarily running with double bladed because it's the GOAT, but Crossguard quickly found it's way into my playthrough because of its benefits for destroying enemy blocking, despite being slow. Lightsaber colors, components, and materials are plentiful and when the game is in motion, it rivals the likes of God of War in terms of poetic combat, all with the familiar hum of the lightsaber's blade. The customization of BD-11, your lightsaber, Cal's look and outfit, and even your newly-acquired blaster proves that Respawn listened to the adoration that minor customization created in the original, and doubled down on it. While I largely let BD-11 remain as was for long periods of time, I changed saber, blaster, and clothing components often (especially blade colors) to make Cal my own. 

This MOFO...I swear...

Cyberpunk: Galaxy Far Away?

Survivor is bigger than its predecessor as well, with several open worlds that are less linear than the original and more something akin to the aforementioned God of War (or many other games that use this technique). That's a great thing - and the worlds truly feel unique and varied. Some are more barren than I would have liked, including the primary "largest" one, but even still, there is some fun post-game or during-game exploring you can do that can lead to neat surprises. There are plenty of things worth collecting from other customization options, currency to buy customization, or finding Force Tears (secret levels), bosses, bounty hunters, or skill points. The secret levels and secret bosses kept me searching for several hours after my initial playthrough and I really enjoyed that each world was both graphically and gameplay nuanced. Navigating them can be really tricky because the map is a bit finnicky and hard to understand how you may get somewhere, but I eventually learned that as long as I pointed in the right direction, I'd be alright.

Unsurprisingly, the graphics are incredible - as you can see from these screenshots - and I was consistently entering photo mode to take these pictures, while mostly being too enamored/enveloped during combat to register anything other than "wow, this is fluid and pretty". Unfortunately, this graphical achievement seems to have come at too high a cost, even still a month+ into the game. Reading over Fallen Order's review, I cited bugs too, so to have it a second time is a bit unacceptable. I didn't encounter many of mine until near the tail end of my playthrough, but they were complete freezing and shut down "send an error report" crashes that became immensely frustrating. 

For MACE WINDU!!

Despite some minor qualms, some very real (technical issues) and others perceived (lacking story), Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is a very worthy follow-up to Fallen Order and, from a gameplay perspective, evolves in thoughtful ways. It's fantastic that EA is finally capitalizing on their Star Wars license and doing so in the way that many fans want: awesome, narrative-driven games. Now...who owns those Lord of the Rings and James Bond licenses...?  

CONS

• Technical issues that I thought I'd avoided until I had ~5 hard crashes
• Difficulty spikes with bosses that border on ridiculous, thanks to overuse of unblockable moves
• Lots of plot padding in our story and the events don't feel all that big (but could be made more so with the next game)
• Maps of each world are tricky to navigate and not always helpful

PROS

• Plot is still engaging thanks to lots of memorable characters, both heroes and villains
• Cal Kestis is an awesome focal point, largely because he's so powerful
• Varying worlds with lots to discover and explore. Certain things to find (bosses, Force Tears) are really exciting
• Combat remains an absolute high point, especially thanks to a couple new lightsaber stances. Each feels balanced with pros and cons, and their inclusion is a thoughtful evolution
• Traversal is the biggest upgrade of the game, with some fantastic set-pieces and overall just a lot more functionality, thanks largely to Force Dashing
• Customization FTW. It was a quietly massive win for the first game, and it's back in huge fashion
• Aside from the mentioned difficulty spikes, this is a level of game difficulty that feels appropriate. Death will happen, and there is some punishment for it, but it doesn't suck the life out of you
• Keeping your powers from the first game was a wise choice
• Unlockable powers/skills are all pretty great too (as always, some better than others)
• Stunning graphics and sound. The sound should be obvious - lightsabers, a rousing original score, blasters, etc. - and the graphics rise to the occasion as well with lots of detail, a solid framerate, and gorgeous vistas and colors

Rath's Review Score | 9/10

Enjoy some additional screenshots of my playthrough!