Non-Spoiler Review: Star Wars Jedi Survivor
Since I absolutely loved the first game in this series, Jedi: Fallen Order, I pre-ordered this game as soon as it was available. Although I would have preferred to get the Deluxe Edition with the extra cosmetics (especially the Han Solo stuff), I had to settle with Standard Edition because $90 for a game with a few extra cosmetics is a little more than I can stomach; Standard Edition with just the pre-order content was crazy high priced enough, but worth every penny it seems. I just finished it (again) and here is my review, the non-spoiler edition. (Spoiler edition coming soon.)
The game is nearly 155 Gigabytes in total so if you have crappy internet like me, be prepared for a long wait before you get to play. There are also some minor performance issues like some occasional choppiness and framerate drops. (I have a Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060. If you have a lesser card, be prepared for some MAJOR issues.) These issues are currently being addressed by the developer though and they’ve already released a couple of patches to fix some of these issues. More patches are likely incoming. So, I won’t be holding any of that against them. You could lower the graphics settings until it’s completely fixed, but who wants to do that?
As for the story of the game, it’s hard to talk about it without getting into spoiler territory and this is a “non-spoiler” review. (I’ll post a spoiler-filled story review later.) Still, I can say the story is a good one. It has unique and interesting villains that are unlike what you’ve seen before and strike some emotional chords along the way. There are several “I didn’t see that coming” twists and turns in the story. It also takes longer to complete (at least it did for me) than the first game. The main story that is, the locations themselves take a lot more time to explore but more on that later. There were some moments in the story that made me smile, some made me cry, and even some that caught me off-guard. Needless to say, I was hooked on the story and had to keep playing it and skipping side missions until I got to the end of said story. Yes, you read correctly, there are side missions in addition to the main story. More on that in a bit. All that I will say about the ending is that it is open-ended (leaving things ready for a third game) but the ending is also, thankfully, satisfying unlike some game sequels. (Looking at you, Knights of the Old Republic 2!)
The game takes what was great about Jedi: Fallen Order and vastly improves upon it. That’s not to say there aren’t any parts that they could further improve. The new skills system is a bit wonky and just “too much”. It could definitely use a good streamlining since I never know where to spend my points even though I have a specific playing style down already. There are now more secret boxes to discover this time around and a wider variety of customization things to find since the customization features are off the charts. You can tweak just about everything now… except the Mantis. That stays default unlike the first game but that’s okay. You’ll have enough to customize without worrying about the ship. Oh, speaking of customization… remember those creepy-ass spider-like creatures on Kashyyyk and Dathomir in the first game? You need not worry about such creatures in this game if you don’t want to. There is an “Arachnophobia Switch” which if activated replaces all spider creatures with other less cringy creatures to battle. I love this feature!!! (I wonder if it could be retroactively fitted to Fallen Order… maybe with a mod. I’ll have to look.)
The settings are all beautiful and a true sight to behold. It amazes me just how gigantic some of the planets’ maps are, especially the main hub world. There’s always more to discover in this game! I just wish there were more planets to discover but I guess when maps are this large and intricate, it cuts down on how many of them you can have while keeping things practical. Still, I would have liked more variety of environments but hey, nothing’s ever completely perfect. What does make up for that though? A brand-new and very much needed Fast Travel System. You can now travel instantly between Meditation Spots. I have lost count of how many times I have gotten lost on Zeffo while trying to find my way back to the Mantis in the first game. I won’t be having that trouble here!!
I like the new buddy system where you occasionally go through the game with another character who fights with you and helps you overcome obstacles. It’s a little weird to get a handle on though. You can either just let them fight alongside you on their own or you can order them to attack specific targets and get specific targets lined up for you to attack in an easier way. It’s nice to occasionally traverse the galaxy with more than BD-1 every now and then. Oh, you can also ride some specific animals too both on the ground and in flight. I really like how if an animal you can ride is in range, you can call for them to run up to you. There are also background characters that you can actually interact with! Not only can you speak with them, but you can also get side-missions from them! There are a lot of side-missions in this game and all of them are optional while some you will be able to complete while just following the main story without venturing off to who knows where. Oh, and now there are shops. Yes, you can go shopping now at different spots at different places. You just need to collect the right objects to use at each shop. Those objects can sometimes be hard to spot though. Still, it’s a fun and welcome new mechanic. What can you buy? Mostly new cosmetics and occasionally a few new gameplay effects.
So how would I rate this game in conclusion? It’s nearly a 5-star game but the lack of extra planets takes a little away from it. Also, the over-bloated skills system and that you can only have two lightsaber stances at a time. So, I give it a 4.7 out of 5. I’ve already replayed this game twice, and I can see myself replaying it many more times before the expected sequel comes out in a few years.