Chapter 1: First Impressions of Jedi Survivor

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor has generated a lot of buzz, but it seems the game could have benefitted from some additional development time.

Although I wasn't particularly fond of 2019's acclaimed Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, I appreciated the concept of merging the Star Wars franchise with the challenging mechanics of a Dark Souls-style game. However, the execution didn't resonate with me. For every thrilling encounter against the evil empire, I found myself awkwardly battling random creatures without context. The worlds felt more like intricate game stages than authentic settings, and the initial launch faced some technical setbacks.

That said, it was visually stunning, and I've revisited it a few times over the years. Now, after completing the first mission of its sequel, Jedi Survivor, on both Xbox and PC, I'm starting to understand its appeal. Unfortunately, it appears to be plagued by some technical issues at launch.

Section 1.1: Technical Struggles on PC

The PC version is currently facing significant backlash online, prompting EA to issue a public statement. A quick search on the Steam forums reveals numerous frustrated players. It appears that this game may have prioritized console optimization over PC performance, similar to other recent Unreal Engine titles. The PC version is not living up to the expectations typically associated with a major release aimed at a broad audience.

I've got a reasonably powerful gaming rig, only about a year and a half old, featuring a Ryzen 5800 CPU and a Radeon 6800XT GPU. The game automatically suggested a mix of Ultra and High settings, and I opted to enable ray tracing as well. It's amusing that Unreal Engine refers to its Ultra settings as "Epic," but that's a discussion for another time.

While playing at 1440p with FSR set to quality mode, I encountered noticeable stuttering during camera shifts and scene transitions. This appears to be the infamous "Shader Compilation Stutter" that has been a hot topic across social media platforms. Oddly, the game includes a lengthy shader pre-compilation loading screen at startup, which should mitigate this issue.

A brief update: When I restarted the game, it pre-compiled the shaders again, which somewhat alleviated the stuttering, but frame rate inconsistencies persist. However, I believe these problems can be addressed with future patches. As always, take online criticism with a grain of salt, and consider trying EA Play Pro instead of purchasing outright if you're on PC and open to a subscription.

When the game runs smoothly, I can achieve frame rates of 60-80FPS in the opening scenes, and it looks visually stunning. The level of detail is so impressive that it often feels cinematic, causing me to pause and admire the graphics instead of focusing on gameplay.

Section 1.2: Console Performance

On the Xbox, the experience is not without flaws either, but it appears to be the more stable option during this launch phase. I played the opening mission on a Series X in "Quality" mode, which caps the game at 30FPS. The performance was generally acceptable, though I did notice a few animation glitches that briefly disrupted character positioning, but nothing that ruined the experience.

Jedi Survivor achieves such a high level of visual fidelity that these glitches become more noticeable, highlighting the technical challenges at launch. The game excels in creating an immersive atmosphere, blending cinematic visuals with engaging combat and storytelling. Yet, there are moments when characters seem to misstep, breaking the immersion.

Interestingly, I find it less bothersome when Cal Kestis pauses to open a chest than when Kratos does so in God of War; perhaps it's because Star Wars has always been more of a "video gamey" franchise, while God of War leans into serious narratives.

The opening level does a commendable job of introducing various gameplay mechanics, including force powers, combat, grappling, and platforming. The combat feels more fluid than in the previous game and surpasses the responsiveness found in other Souls-like titles, even in the early stages.

For those who aren't fans of challenging action games, a range of difficulty settings is available to customize the experience to your preference. Although I only managed to play about a third of the first game, I'm already captivated by this sequel and envisioning multiple playthroughs. It's an enjoyable experience, even if just for the visuals alone. I hope the gaming community doesn’t overly penalize it for its technical issues and that EA can swiftly address the problems; from what I've experienced in just a couple of hours, this is an exceptional game.

Chapter 2: The Future of Jedi Survivor

The first video explores the game's performance one year after its launch, addressing player concerns about lag and technical issues.

The second video discusses potential monetization strategies for Jedi Survivor one year later, raising questions about its value to players.