KESTIS RUN

STAR WARS JEDI: SURVIVOR is a grand sequel with Souls-like action

- Morgan Park

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is arriving at a time when there’s too much Star Wars, and most of it is not good. The Mandalorian has gotten too cheesy in its third season, the Boba Fett and Obi-Wan shows were toothless side stories, and enthusiasm around the next wave of movies feels, at best, muted. Jedi: Survivor bucks this trend. It’s one of the best things to happen to the series in years, and easily the best modern Star Wars game. 

At a glance Jedi: Survivor seems like it falls squarely on the pulpy, safer side of Star Wars – the gifted Jedi with untapped potential, faithful droid companion, and swashbuckling crew certainly paint that picture, but there’s more to Cal Kestis. Jedi: Survivor doesn’t shy away from the darkest chapter of Star Wars history, but finds humour in an unfair world and sometimes succumbs to helplessness.

It’s not a story about fighting the Empire as much as coping with its dominance, grappling with the futility of rebellion and questioning what’s left to fight for. The modern Star Wars media that this feels closest to is Andor, though it’s not as ambitious in its storytelling or as cynical. Unfortunately, those themes take a backseat through the middle of the story while Cal Kestis and crew entertain the deranged tantrums of a skin-deep evil guy with a red lightsaber, reminding us that this is still Uncharted in space.

But man, is it damn good Uncharted. Better, in fact, because Jedi: Survivor breaks free of the Naughty Dog trends 2019’s Fallen Order chased. Yes, Cal climbs up crumbling buildings and swings on ropes, but he also double jumps, air dashes, wallruns, and grapple hooks all over the place. There’s an almost equal ratio of combat to platforming, and both things are fun this time.