Star Wars is one of Hollywood’s long-running franchises. We aren’t not just speaking about the movies either. In the gaming world, Star Wars has been around for decades. Across multiple generations, it has tried to capture the hearts of gamers worldwide. Despite various successful attempts and some bonafide classics, Star Wars has also had its fair share of failures. Remember Masters of Teras Kasi? Star Wars Jedi: Survivor takes everything Fallen Order started, improves it, then ramps it up significantly in a stunning Star Wars action-adventure classic. Our Star War Jedi: Survivor review explains how much was changed and improved from its predecessor.
Story: A Blast From the Past
Survivor picks up five years after Fallen Order with a stunning set piece that pays homage to a beloved piece of Star Wars history that we won’t spoil here. Cal Kestis is back and quickly realizes how futile his war against the growing Empire has become. Cal retreats to a planet called Koboh to reunite with his trusted companion Greez and figure out his next steps.
A series of reveals and revelations will again take Cal to numerous planets in search of hope against an overwhelming force. Despite the initial plot seeming safe, it goes places we didn’t expect and sets up Koboh as more than just a location, but a home away from home. Koboh is a massive open world, and players will keep returning to it as they meet new characters and turn Greez’s run-down bar into a thriving and bustling cantina.
Koboh, without a doubt, is the star of the show, as it is packed with world-building and provides a base of operations consistently delivering entertaining story beats and side quests that contains meaningful upgrades and narrative moments. Cal’s former allies appear, and some riveting villains keep the story fresh. These characters and plot are well told, and they wisely avoided telling another Rebel versus Empire storyline that has been done to death.
Gameplay: Trust the Force
Cal’s journey will have him platforming through deadly tombs, wall running, and facing off against enemies outside the Rebel and Empire forces. During your journey, Cal will grow his connection to the force to levels beyond the last game. Cal will unlock new fighting styles, including a cross-hilt two-handed style resembling Kylo Ren’s trademark lightsaber.
These various fighting styles join Cal’s repertoire of abilities from the previous game, as Respawn thankfully avoids stripping Cal of his connection to the force and making us jump through hoops just to get back to where he started. Cal has most of his powers at the start allowing them to design the rest of the game with his expanded moveset in mind, much to the benefit of the game’s intricate level design. Cal features numerous skill trees that touch on everything from new abilities for each lightsaber stance, and his base health and force stats.
One of this game’s strong suits is the sublime core gameplay design. We were consistently impressed during our Star Wars Jedi: Survivor review with the quest design and gameplay loop. Koboh is a sprawling and exciting open world, and each other planet falls under a similar design as the previous game with a tight level design and little to no excess fat. The design of each world, especially Koboh, takes clear inspiration from Breath of the Kingdom, but what it draws inspiration from differs from the parts you expect. Cal never has to climb a tower and fill his map with icons. You can survey the land and plant your beacons and landmarks.
The sense of freedom and trust in the player to explore and uncover the world on their terms is impressive. Cal doesn’t spend his time speaking to players and answering every puzzle for you, and each adventure doesn’t end with a blue piece of leg armor that provides a meaningless stat boost. Star Jedi: Survivor is an action-adventure with an equal emphasis on adventure, and the confidence the game is designed with makes for an impressive experience.
Related:Â Is There a New Game Plus in Star Wars Jedi Survivor?
Graphics/Audio: The Galactic Frontier
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is a visually stunning game. The feel of each world and environment gives off a distinct Star Wars and Firefly vibe, with run-down towns, settlements, and temples begging to be explored at first glance. It’s also nice to see worlds outside of Tatooine for once.
The score is impressive, as the grandeur of Star Wars space opera meets the tones and flourishes of an unexplored frontier. Mixing both worlds comes together to accent Cal’s adventures and significant story beats. They still pull off a distinctly Star Wars sound without relying on the classic theme.
On consoles, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor offers a 4K quality mode-locked at 30 frames per second and a performance mode running at 60 but caps the resolution at 1440p. Despite the vast open-world environments each of the different planets have in store, we never encountered many technical hiccups or bugs. The framerate would slightly dip in the various regions of Koboh, but it never detracts from the game experience. Cal’s journey will look and sound fantastic no matter where you play.
Conclusion: This is the Way
Our time with Cal Kestis during our Star Wars Jedi: Survivor review process was an absolute treat. The audio and visual presentation combine with superb game design to create a fantastic sequel that moves into the upper echelons of Star Wars games. Without the IP attached, this game shines as an example of what happens when trust is given to the player and the developers are confident in their game design. We recommend Star Wars Jedi: Survivor if you’re looking for an ambitious sci-fi adventure.Â
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor releases on April 28 on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
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