Review of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
Here is the complete review of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. In the beginning, I was scared and frozen with fear as I wondered how Respawn would be able to surpass the excellence of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order.
But as I spent countless nights playing its sequel, I discovered they had managed to get it right as Cal Kestis grew more robust, and I became more accustomed to the game. And now, we find ourselves in outer space, but please wait to go! I promise to stop.
The main idea is that Star Wars Jedi: Survivor offers expanded combat options, bigger and more open maps, more abilities to experiment with, and plenty of collectibles to keep you occupied. In many ways, it’s like the relationship between Batman: Arkham City and Arkham Asylum.
Just like the Arkham games were the best at capturing the experience of playing as Batman, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is the most convincing game for those who want to experience playing as a Force user.
Advantageously, you can go back and play Fallen Order before starting Survivor if you want to, and I appreciate that the sequel doesn’t make you re-learn Cal’s powers and upgrades from the first game.
There’s no cliché amnesia or contrived situation where you lose your abilities and no pesky Jawas that come and take away Cal’s climbing claws or BD-1’s Scomp Link for hacking. You only have to earn back the healing canisters and extensions to your life and Force bars. In essence, Cal is the same as he was five years earlier when we last saw him.
The game starts with an exciting mission on Imperial Coruscant that pays homage to A New Hope, followed by a thrilling escape. You’re immediately thrown into action, using the Force to push Storm Troopers off ledges and performing various movement tricks like wall-running, climbing, swinging, and sliding down ramps.
But that’s just the beginning – the game introduces a Spider-Man-like grapple that only works on specific points before leaving Coruscant, and there are more exciting unlocks to come at a satisfying pace.
When you obtain the mid-air dash ability and combine it with your double jump, the game takes on a new level of excitement – you can cover incredible distances without touching the ground and even change directions twice to reach objects around corners.
I had to completely change my perspective on what was possible. The game doesn’t create the mid-air dash, but Respawn does an excellent job of using it, showcasing their skill with the mechanics from Titanfall.
While moving around in the game is enjoyable, the lightsaber is the game’s main attraction. Survivor takes the excellent dueling mechanics from Fallen Order and elevates them with five different fighting stances that are stunningly animated, resulting in some of the most visually impressive and intense Star Wars melee battles.
Even if you need to improve the timing of your strikes, parries, and dodges, the fights look impressive and fluid as you cut through enemies. However, if you are skilled, the fights look even more impressive.
Additionally, arms and legs can sometimes be severed from Storm Troopers and humanoid enemies (not just droids and creatures who already get shredded), making the kill animations feel even more satisfying and powerful.
Lightsabers are, of course, the stars of the war
After experimenting with the single, double-bladed, and dual-wielding stances from Fallen Order, I eventually settled on the two new ones introduced in Survivor: the Crossguard style inspired by Kylo Ren and the hybrid Blaster stance, which imagines Han Solo as a Jedi.
The Crossguard style treats your lightsaber as a slow, heavy broadsword, ideal for pounding a stunned enemy into the ground. The Blaster stance equips you with a sidearm that can take out small enemies without getting up close, making it particularly effective against flamethrower troopers and packs of animals.
Once I unlocked the ability to throw my Crossguard saber to hit enemies from a distance, either stance could take down any enemy. These stances pair well with the expanded set of Force powers, which allow you to pull groups of enemies together before unleashing a spinning slash to defeat them all.
The game allows you to choose only two of the five stances at a time, which initially seemed like an artificial limitation, but the player can change them at any meditation circle.
However, as you progress in the game and earn skill points, you can specialize in certain stances and customize your fighting style. This limitation adds more personality to your character as a fighter, and by the time you reach the latter part of the game, you may have clear favorites that suit your playstyle.
Related Article –
By the time I got to the story’s second half, I was sure of my preferred positions and had no regrets
The game’s storyline effectively moves the player from one thrilling action sequence to another. Cal’s journey begins with an accidental fall into a treasure hunt, which follows the idea of him being the Nathan Drake of the Star Wars world.
This leads to many opportunities to explore and solve puzzles in ancient and abandoned chambers with the help of gadgets and the Force. The game does not impose much time pressure to complete objectives, so there’s room to explore and engage in side quests without feeling like the primary mission needs to be addressed.
For instance, players can investigate missing prospectors in a mine, find out what went wrong in a droid factory, and pursue other rumors presented by locals.
Although the adventure is mostly enjoyable, the main issue with the story is that the big twists are heavily foreshadowed, making it a matter of when, not if, they will happen.
The identities of the main villains are not revealed to avoid spoilers, but they are easy to predict. However, they are written and acted with enough depth to avoid feeling like recycled versions of previous foes faced by Cal. The characters are given priority over the plot, which is most successful.
The Fallen Order cast, which I loved, is back in full Force
The ensemble of characters from Fallen Order returns in full Force in this game, and this time, the protagonist Cal (played by Cameron Monaghan), stands out more prominently among them. In this installment, his character development is about fighting the Empire and finding a sense of belonging, moving past his guilt, and seeking a safer home.
His journey after surviving Order 66 is compared to an alternate path he could have taken, emphasizing his growth beyond being a traumatized fugitive learning the ways of the Jedi. Consequently, his choices carry more weight, making him a more fully-realized protagonist.
BD-1 stays with Cal throughout the game, but the rest of the crew have their reasons for leaving after the events of Fallen Order, and they come back together in this game.
Greez’s personality is still lovable, and he provides wise advice as he pilots the Mantis but avoids overusing his catchphrase. Merrin returns with a new look, and her more relaxed demeanor after traveling the galaxy makes her even more charming.
Although Cal no longer needs a mentor, Cere’s intensity is more pronounced, and she demonstrates her power in one of the game’s major action scenes.
